Wilderness & Urban Survival Skills For Kids and Teens

Children can be notoriously difficult to engage in certain activities. And advances in digital communications and technology have only made it worse.

When it comes to the outdoors, or more specifically learning survival skills, I've heard a lot of responses after asking if they'd like to learn them. “Bored”, “not interested”, “no thanks”. At least the last answer verges on being polite about it.

I believe that teaching children survival skills and what to do in an emergency is of utmost importance. Here's why:

1- There may not always be an adult to help you. They need to know what to do when an emergency arises.

2- It is a way of transmitting knowledge and skills so that they are not lost over time.

3- It allows children to learn and achieve new things

4- It promotes critical thinking

5- It creates family bonds and lasting memories.

This is why TILLY SMITH (image below) was able to save so many lives during the December 2004 tsunami disaster in South East Asia in which Nearly 230,000 people died in the 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake and tsunami, making it one of the deadliest disasters in modern history :

> What should you do if you're at a beach and the water suddenly starts receding, hundreds of meters?

> Do you know that what you mentioned in your question—it happened before, in Thailand?

> When the water started receding hundred of meters, and everyone rushed in to catch dancing fishes on the beach, looked like a free-for-all.

> A carnival-like atmosphere where tourists, fishermen, kids were seen running around catching fishes, crabs, squids, you name it.

> Only when a 10-year-old British kid (Tilly Smith) realized what would follow—she alerted her parents, who warned others on the beach and the staff at the hotel in Phuket.

By a timely and swift action in the nick of time, she saved a hundred lives in the tsunami that killed scores of people in Phuket and nearby resorts in Thailand and other regions in the Indian Ocean. Tilly Smith, from Surrey, who was ten years old at the time, had learned about tsunamis in her geography class.

At the official tsunami commemorations on the first anniversary of the tsunami, held at Khao Lak, Thailand, on 26 December 2005. She was given the honour of reading a poem to thousands of spectators.

Her story is incorporated into many teaching resources for kids about Survival knowledge & Skills related to Natural (and Man-Made) disasters such as earthquakes, tsunamis AND how to stay safe.

“Tilly’s story tells us about the importance of teaching young people about natural hazards” - ( Ex-President Bill Clinton & UN tsunami envoy 2005).

I have no problem admitting that the topic of survival skills can be a little dry and boring, especially for a kid. However, it does not need to be like that. Therefore, our latest publication suggests some activities or methods to help teach these skills to the younger generation.

If you decide to purchase our e-book, , here are some guidelines that I've found helpful. I hope what follows does not sound like a sermon, for that is not my intention. It's just a little piece of advice that I had to learn from experience.

• Start teaching them as young as possible. Children's brains are like sponges that absorb all the information presented to them. Also, the younger you start, the easier it will be to keep them engaged.
• Patience, patience, patience! This is essential when teaching. Trying to teach someone something new when you already know everything can be a frustrating process. Remember that it took you time to learn what you know, so extend the same courtesy to them. Also remember to take a deep breath before reacting.
• Whatever you teach them, make sure you give them as much time as possible. The best way to learn is by doing. And learning by watching as a spectator can be pretty boring

Finally, remember that there are so many outdoor and indoor survival skills to know that I couldn't fit them all into a single e-book.

So I did my best to touch on some of the big topics like shelter, fire and water. You don't have to follow my instructions exactly because what worked for me might not work for you. If you find a better way or decide to tweak any of my suggestions, please do so. Do everything in your power to make things fun for your kids and keep them engaged.

Best Wishes,

Alex.Tawiah (Proprietor & Senior Administrator)