How To Teach Your Kids About Emergencies And Preparing.
Updated: Aug 15, 2021
Welcome,
Can I ask a question?, Have you ever thought about your kids safety? I mean beyond being around other adults who could help, I mean being taught what to do if they were to be separated from you as a parent, or schools and teachers on field trips, getting lost while traveling or serious emergency situations. Do they have or know the necessary tools to get themselves out of a dangerous situation in which nobody else could help them.
The point of prepping is to be prepared. You never know when an emergency will strike. Prepping with kids can be a lot more overwhelming or out of control when parents are at a loss for how or what to teach, and kids don't join because they don't understand the severity of it, Bored, and or just feel overwhelmed with all of the information. So I am here to give you a couple tips and pointers, book recommendations, guides, and more.
1: Teach your child the basics
Teach your child the basics of using a cellphone, and for all emergency contacts. Teach them on different types of cellphones. Flip phones( yes they are still being used), Track phones ( which my family uses as emergency phones), more modern phones used today such as Iphones and android touch screens.
It's really not surprising that so many of the younger generations don't even know what a flip phone, or track phone is much less how to use them. In my area we still have pay phones. If you have them in your area please teach them how they work. If they to young for a actual phone buy them a play phone or print out a phone image, glue it onto card and use it as a fake phone.
2: Teach them basic first aid and what to do when they get a boo boo
Teaching younger kids can be a little tough at first when it comes to first aid. which is why some of the best methods to teach kids have to do with using strategy and games, puzzles, drawing, and more. Depending on the age should also depend on first aid you teach.
You should not be teaching a 5-10 year old how to stitch wounds or anything crazy like that, because it can backfire and end up causing trauma which you DON"T want to do. (reason why I am mentioning is because I had watched a prepping show and this guy was trying to teach his son how to stitch a pregnancy c-section wound as a hypothetical situation through simulation, and it was just bad overall for multiple reasons, main reason being none of them knew what they where doing.)
So please if you don't know how to do it, please don't do it, or teach it, unless you are a professional or have been taught by one, even then you really shouldn't unless its a 100% necessary. But you can any kid at from 5+ age how to use basic first aid items, Such as bandages, finger splints, antibiotic ointments, gauze pads, thermometers, adhesive tape, antiseptic wipes, hot or cold packs and more...
Keep in mind some people may think 5 is too young. but I have 7 siblings, so its 8 of us in total and in daycare and at home we all learned basic first aid and how to use a first aid kit. Now when it comes to antibiotics we did learn what each use of them was for and how to use and take them, but we were not allowed to touch or use them ourselves until we got to a certain age.
Now onto how we learned and methods you can use. We used flash cards, hunting games ( like Easter egg hunting, but for medical supplies around the house), matching the words with the pictures we recognized, Drawings like coloring the bottles to memorize what they look like, and CPR practice on a balloon or doll and more...
It's all about being creative really, And If you guys would like me to make the flashcards, coloring pages, matching game worksheets I can do digitally for you to download just let me know in the comments or on the group forum. I have also added some links to books you can get to help, some may be affiliate links( meaning I get a commission if you purchase) some may not be Most of everything on these links are under $20 dollars.
Links: with 4.5+ ratings and reviews
3: Plan for your destinations
Some may understand, and some people may say this is doing too much. I say plan for your destinations meaning, you should plan on knowing and creating a city plan, plan for vacations, or relatives cities you go to most often.
You should know the closest emergency facilities, know the land by car and by foot, have maps of those areas, Have a meeting point somewhere in the city if the family was split up doing everyday activities ( such as a large tower, tree, mountain, or body off water, something memorable)
Make sure the entire immediate family or even those relatives you visit know the plan. You can do bug out scenarios and simulations. Now this may be overwhelming and a little to much for a child 8 and under to do or make them feel overwhelmed, So Instead you still want to make them aware of the plan, show them a virtual view point on google maps, and that's really all they need to know for until they older.
4: Make sure understand bug out bags and what it's for
When It's comes to younger kids their attention span is short, So you want to be quick, short, and to the point on why they need them, and its uses. First label the bags with their names in bold capital letters, I will be creating a blog post on how to create bug out bags for adults, and kids, and on the best ready made bug out bags.
How to prep kids for a bug out bag scenario, I feel that parents should have bright colored bug out bugs for the kids and whatever color they want to go with for themselves. A quick and easy way to store and access them, because remember kids have short attention spans. So if they have bright colors not only will they focus more but it's also a positive influence for their attention span, which is why we use bright colors for signs and signals when driving.
Color helps us in memorizing certain information by increasing our attention level. The role played by color in enhancing our attention level is indisputable. The more attention focused on certain stimuli, the more chances of the stimuli to be transferred to a more permanent memory storage.
Effects of colors and attention spans:
4 Colors That Give You an Unexpected Productivity Boost and more focus.
Red: Physical. Red is to stimulate the body and mind and to increase circulation
Blue: Intellectual. Blue is a soothing color, helping calm the mind and aid concentration. ...
Yellow: Emotional. Yellow is energizing and radiates postivity ...
Green: Balance. Is for balance, but it also captures the eye the most.
For those who wonder about secrecy and blending in, in a bug out disaster situation with kids walking around in bright color backpacks, I have found a solutions which is pretty basic, it's Backpack Covers! Click here to see them. I found waterproof, backpack covers that come in different sizes, and colors, even camo to blend in to nature, and anti slip cross buckle straps build for hiking and camping under $20. Last but not least but the main important.
5: Teaching your kids about nature
When it comes to not teaching your kids about nature, I feel like school and parents tend to fail in that category until it actually happens. At that point your dealing with rowdy and scared kids, which nobody wants to deal with, but I also feel like it's a good learning experience because then they may understand the severity of the situation and act accordingly. So you can show them videos and short guides on and flashcards on what the natural disasters are, how they are made, how common the occur and more.
In fact here are some articles you can use specifically made for teaching kids. Some of these may be affiliate links (meaning I get a commission if you purchase something) some may not be affiliate.
Links:
I remember being 15 and having our first earthquake, It was all of my immediate family and I except my stepdad (he was working). We were all in my moms bedroom talking, and out of no where the power went out and the house started shaking.
We were all in pajamas and looking around like "whats going on" ( this was our first time ever experiencing it so we didn't even know what it was) we were looking out the windows, running to the doors and asking the neighbors that came out side, and they were like "its a earthquake", but we were all confused because in the area that we where in, we have had big thunder and rain storms but never anything else until then. My stepdad came home we explained to him what happened and he said " they didn't see or hear anything while at work"
Next it was another incident of a military jet going bad and crash landing a couple blocks from our house, almost causing a fire near the wood that connected to our backyard, and finally it was a women getting harassed by her alleged ex- boyfriend at my grandmothers apartment and the police where called, So with all these situations it turned me into a pepper.
My point it's always good to prep no matter what anyone or society says, and your never too young or late to start learning. You never know when a disaster or emergency situation can occur especially when you are not with your kids, so it's always best to prepare them ahead of time. Just make sure its age friendly, not overwhelming, or too much for them.
P.S. I will have other blogs on natural disasters and most common types, how to create bug out bags for kids and adults, Diys, and more...
Thank you reading!
