"We MUST address teaching skills for adulthood, no longer observed at home, in elementary school."

That's quite a lot to add to the burden presently felt by teachers, heathcliffe. What specific skills would you focus on?

I recently read that over the next 5 years, 4 of the 5 job categories expected to add the most jobs are among the lowest paying: 1. food preparation and serving, 2. personal care and service, 3. sales and related and 4. healthcare support. 

I remember a University of Chicago professor on Glenn Loury's podcast emphasizing the importance of teaching Social Emotional Learning (SEL). It's huge in education and for the last few years, our school district used the Second Step curriculum. You can find it easily, it's worth a look. As to its effectiveness, who knows. You'd need a formal study, and perhaps one has been done. The UC professor stated that a well taught SEL program has a more profound effect on personal income and quality of life than IQ does. That's saying a lot, but I'd have to see the study. He of course mentioned the importance of family but he added the value of having a mentor. If a child can learn the skills needed to self-regulate, delay gratification, and be motivated to learn with some semblance of a goal they want to achieve, well, that's enormously consequential. However, given my prior post about the deleterious effects of chronic stress and trauma, especially for kids in the inner city, it's a steep hill to climb. 

Peter T