Skills for Life: Teamwork
Teamwork is a 20 hour Skills for Life unit, one of many units learners combine into a Skills for Life or Skills for Work Award, Certificate or Diploma. Learners learn about team roles, take part in group tasks, show respect for other people's views and review their own and the team's performance. Literacy is central and mostly oral: following instructions, contributing to group talk, listening and responding, giving feedback and explaining roles and their own contribution. Numeracy is light and only suggested, through timekeeping and working within limited time or materials.
- Awarding body
- WJEC
- Level
- Entry Level 1 to Level 2
- Guided learning hours
- 20
- First taught
- September 2027
- Amount of literacy work
- High
- Amount of numeracy work
- Low
How this unit is assessed
- Entry Level (Entry 1, Entry 2, Entry 3): Four learning outcomes. Evidence goes in a portfolio, internally assessed by the centre and externally quality assured by WJEC. 20 guided learning hours.
- Level 1 and Level 2: Four learning outcomes. Evidence goes in a portfolio, internally assessed by the centre and externally quality assured by WJEC. 20 guided learning hours.
The literacy and numeracy skills in this qualification
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Contributing to group talk
Learners move from making a basic contribution to a group activity at Entry 1 to making relevant contributions that support team objectives at Level 2. These contributions are required by the assessment criteria and are usually spoken.
Literacy: Collaborative talk
Getting pupils ready
- Year 7
- Pupils take a role card such as speaker or recorder and each offer one idea in a group plan for a class display.
- Year 8
- Pupils discuss three options for a group product and agree one, with the chair making sure everyone speaks.
- Year 9
- Pupils run a team meeting with an agenda, each reporting progress on their part and agreeing next steps.
Show the specification wording and the LNF statements
Where it is in the specification: Entry Level, learning outcome 2, assessment criterion 2.2, page 5; Level 1 and Level 2, learning outcome 2, assessment criterion 2.1, page 7
“Make relevant contributions to support team”
Progression step 3
I can contribute to group discussion in different roles, taking responsibility for completing the task well.
Progression step 4
I can undertake a range of responsibilities to structure and develop group talk, including in more formal situations.
I can recognise a range of options for action and reach agreement to achieve the aims of the group.
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Listening and responding respectfully
At Entry Level learners listen and respond appropriately to other people, and at Level 1 they listen to and respond respectfully to others' views. At Level 2 they identify and consider other people's views during a discussion and give constructive, respectful feedback, all required by the assessment criteria.
Literacy: Listening as part of collaborative talk, Listening to understand, Questioning
Getting pupils ready
- Year 7
- Pupils in a communication circle repeat back a partner's idea before adding their own.
- Year 8
- Pupils listen to two group members disagree about a plan and suggest a compromise that uses part of each idea.
- Year 9
- Pupils give each team member one strength and one specific suggestion after a group task, using a feedback sentence frame.
Show the specification wording and the LNF statements
Where it is in the specification: Entry Level, learning outcome 3, assessment criterion 3.1, page 5; Level 1 and Level 2, learning outcome 3, assessment criteria 3.1 and 3.2, page 7
“Give constructive and respectful feedback to”
Progression step 3
I can listen to and respond to others with questions and comments which focus on reasons, implications and next steps.
I can listen to others’ ideas/presentations, and understand that they may have a different perspective to my own, in order to respond appropriately.
Progression step 4
I can listen to and respond to others with questions, comments and suggestions in order to develop collaborative talk and reach compromise/consensus.
I can respond to others' points of view with confidence and sensitivity, summarising and evaluating what I have heard, read or seen.
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Following instructions and agreed procedures
Learners respond to simple instructions at Entry 1, follow a sequence of instructions at Entry 3, follow agreed procedures and instructions at Level 1, and adapt to changing needs at Level 2. These are required by the assessment criteria; the instructions may be visual, single step or multi step.
Literacy: Listening for meaning, Listening to understand
Getting pupils ready
- Year 7
- Pupils listen to three spoken steps for setting up a workstation and carry them out in order.
- Year 8
- Pupils follow a written multi step procedure to assemble a simple product as a pair, checking each step off.
- Year 9
- Pupils follow a team's agreed method for a practical task and change their plan when the teacher announces a new constraint halfway through.
Show the specification wording and the LNF statements
Where it is in the specification: Entry Level, learning outcome 2, assessment criterion 2.1, page 5; Level 1 and Level 2, learning outcome 2, assessment criterion 2.2, page 7
“Follow agreed procedures and instructions”
Progression step 3
I can listen to, understand, infer, interpret and recall the general meaning of what I have heard.
I can listen to and understand information about a variety of topics, summarising the main points.
Progression step 4
I can understand and analyse general meaning and implied ideas.
I can listen to and consider the relevance and significance of information and ideas presented to me.
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Explaining roles and reviewing own contribution
Learners explain roles and responsibilities in a team, from showing one role at Entry 1 to explaining a range of roles and the importance of individual responsibility at Level 2. They then describe or review their own contribution, and at Level 2 suggest ways to improve individual and team performance, all required by the assessment criteria, in speech or writing.
Literacy: Planning and organising for different purposes, audiences and context, Purpose
Getting pupils ready
- Year 7
- Pupils complete the sentence starters 'I helped by' and 'We worked together when' after a group game.
- Year 8
- Pupils write a short paragraph on why the timekeeper role mattered in their group task and what would happen without it.
- Year 9
- Pupils write a review of a team project explaining their role, one thing they did well and one change for both themselves and the team.
Show the specification wording and the LNF statements
Where it is in the specification: Entry Level, learning outcomes 1 and 4, page 5 and page 6; Level 1 and Level 2, learning outcomes 1 and 4, assessment criteria 1.1, 1.2 and 4.2, page 7
“Review own contribution and suggest ways to”
Progression step 3
I can write about my thoughts, feelings and opinions, showing empathy and respect.
I can share, talk and write about my thoughts, feelings and opinions using a range of techniques to show impact.
Progression step 4
I can use summary, discussion of issues, detailed explanations and logic when covering a topic.
I can share, talk and write about my thoughts, feelings and opinions showing empathy and respect.
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Managing time and materials in team tasks
The amplification names timekeeper and resource manager as team roles, and suggested Level 1 and Level 2 activities set challenges with limited time or materials. None of this is an assessment criterion, so the numeracy is taught rather than assessed and is light.
Numeracy: Measurement
Getting pupils ready
- Year 7
- Pupils act as timekeeper in a ten minute tower challenge, calling out time left at each two minute mark.
- Year 8
- Pupils split 30 minutes of a group task into timed stages on a simple schedule and check whether they kept to it.
- Year 9
- Pupils share out a fixed amount of card and tape between subgroups, measuring and recording what each uses so the team stays within the limit.
Show the specification wording and the LNF statements
Where it is in the specification: Amplification of learning outcome 1, page 9; suggested activities for Level 1 and Level 2 learners, page 10
“Collaborative problem-solving challenges with constraints (limited time or materials) to”
Progression step 3
I can use and interpret calendars, timetables and schedules to plan events and activities, and make calculations as part of the planning journey.
I can carry out practical activities involving timed events and explain which unit of time is the most appropriate.
Progression step 4
I can use the common units of measure, convert between related units of the metric system and carry out calculations.
Good to know
- Unit codes are S626E1, S626E2, S626E3, S626L1 and S626L2, and the unit is 20 GLH in the Skills for Life suite (Unit overview, page 3).
- Spoken evidence counts: the list includes "Audio recordings of learners contributing to group discussions or reflecting on their role" and minutes or notes from group discussions (Sources of evidence, page 11).
- Writing is not the focus: "extended written work" is not required unless appropriate, and judgements are on meeting the standard, not spelling or presentation (Sources of evidence, page 11).
- Suggested assessment tasks "are not mandatory"; teachers may adapt them or devise their own (specification section 4.1, page 18).
- AI tools may be used only if acknowledged: learners "cannot be credited for any work they produce for assessment which is not their own" (specification section 4.6, page 21).
- Plural criteria mean at least two: "a plural reference within assessment criterion refers to a minimum of two" (page 7).
Links with other qualifications
The pack names VCSE Retail and Customer Service and GCSE Business as linked WJEC qualifications, where explaining workplace roles and communicating in teams use the same speaking and listening skills. Within the Skills Suite, the pack suggests delivering it alongside Community participation, Looking after others, Understanding self and others, Healthy relationships, Work experience, Fairness and inclusion in the workplace and Customer service, which share group discussion, listening and respectful communication.
Source: WJEC Teamwork unit delivery and assessment pack, read with the WJEC Entry 1 to Level 2 Skills for Life and Skills for Work specification, approved by Qualifications Wales, teaching from September 2027 (© WJEC CBAC Ltd 2026).