One common issue I come across as people get into survival, prepping, and homesteading is family. It is quite common for you to be focused on these skills, but for your spouse or other family members to think you are nuts. I dealt with it myself for several years with my wife.
I grew up learning survival and prepping skills. We hunted, we fished, we trapped, and we worked a big garden. When I left home for college, I left all of that behind for a long time. When my wife met me, she considered me a city boy except for my southern twang. Then two years later I took a turn and went back to my roots. She was not amused.
I started spending lots more time hunting and fishing. This meant spending lots more money on gear. I also started reading online and watching tons of prepping and survival shows. She started to complain about how much I was talking about my renewed love of survival. I then did the smartest thing I could have ever done. I stopped talking about it.
I know your natural tendency may be to push your family to see how important these skills are. You might think you can convince them to be as excited as you. It probably won’t happen that way. Instead, I kept my mouth shut as I continued to hone my skills. I also started suggesting projects and activities that would teach the whole family these skills without pushing a survival agenda on my wife. Here are some ways I made that transition:
Food
There are several ways you can teach your family to grow and gather food. These skills can both help you stock up on preserved foods as well as provide fresh food in a survival scenario. They also drastically cut down on your grocery bills.
Gardening – FEMA has predicted a global food shortage sometime in the next 30 years. Growing a vegetable garden can teach gardening to the family. It gives you food sources that are relatively inexpensive. Vegetables can be dried or canned to last year-round like my grandmother used to do. If you do not have the land for an in-ground or raised garden, consider a rooftop or vertical garden.
Hunting – You should always have the skills and gear needed to hunt for meat on your property or on public property if needed. Protein is important for your diet, and it gets hard to find if the grocery stores go down. Hunting is a great activity to teach your family and pass on to the next generation. We probably provide at least 60% of our meat from hunting. Part of this is also teaching the process of butchering the meat. My son helps me butcher our venison every year.
Fishing – This is another fun pastime that can put protein on the table. Most of the year we try to go fishing at least once a week so we can do a weekend fish fry. If you have people in your family that are too squeamish to hunt, they might like fishing better. You can also learn new fishing techniques like using trotlines, float rigs, or gill nets.
Trapping – If you have a good chunk of land, trapping might actually be a more efficient way to get meat for the freezer. If you set quality baited traps and have 20 to 30 traps on a line, there is a good chance you can bring in meat every day. This is another forgotten skill that is great to pass on to kids.
Cooking – You may not think of cooking as a survival or prepping skill, but it absolutely is. You need everyone in the family that is old enough to know how to cook basic meals. You should also be sure that everyone knows how to use every method of cooking available at your home. For example, my family knows how to use the stove, oven, gas grills, charcoal grill, and propane flattop. You never know when you will be out of commission for a while and need someone else to take over as chef.
Food Preservation – I find that the whole family loves food-related projects. My son loves to help me make deer jerky or make granola. These preserved foods will last in a dry, cool environment even without refrigeration. We all also pitch in to organize our dried and canned goods periodically.
Foraging – My whole family including extended family loves foraging. Most of us go after mushrooms, but my son and I go after all wild edibles. He loves to identify plants and then eat them immediately. It is good to bring home some greens for a nice salad after a hike in the woods.
Animal Farming – As long as everyone agrees to help with the project, adding some animals to your property can be a great way to get more food sources. Chickens are ideal as they provide both eggs and meat and take up little space. Goats, sheep, and cows can provide both milk and meat. Rabbits and catfish are great to raise for food as they require little space and reproduce at high rates. What kid doesn’t want a pet sheep or rabbit? It is also nice to have a horse or mule if you have the land for it.
Water
While you may not find a lot of fun activities related to drinking water, you can suggest some simple changes that make a big difference.
Water collection – If you are currently running on city water, you can talk about adding a rainwater collection system or a groundwater well. These are both great options to let you have an independent source of drinking water.
Water purification – When you go camping, try to camp next to a source of water that needs purification like a creek or lake. Bring filter bottles in place of normal bottled water. Then, boil some water for drinking and cooking and explain why it is so important. If one of the filter bottles gets clogged, be sure you have a few iodine tablets handy.
Fire
Fire is one of the most important resources you can have for survival or prepping. Here are a few ways to get the family involved with fire:
Firewood processing – On our property, we have a fire pit and also an indoor fireplace. Every winter we have several trees fall in the woods, and I call on the family to help. The way they see it, the firewood is going to mean hotdogs, smores, and cozy winter nights in front of the hearth. For me, it means fire all winter if the power goes out. I do all of the chainsaw work, but they help me move it, split it, and stack it for drying.
Firestarting – Let’s face it. Everyone loves fire. My son loves to learn about different ways to start a fire and keep it going. Even though he is eight years old, I let him work the firestarters and add more wood. He helps build the initial fire structure and even helps me run the smoker when we use it.
Other Fun and Productive Activities
Shelter building – When you go camping or camp in the backyard, use a tarp, an emergency blanket, or natural materials to build a shelter for the night. Then you can leave it up as a fort for kids to play in. If you are in an area where you get enough snow, try building a snow cave on snow days.
Convert to Solar – Many people these days are doing a DIY installation of solar panels to get off the grid. This saves money and gives you power independent from everyone else.
Self-Defense – Mom is not thrilled about it, but most kids like to learn self-defense moves. Be sure they know to only use the moves to defend themselves, and just focus on the most basic moves to help them. Just showing a kid how to throw a proper punch can make a big difference. For adults, focus on basic moves like SING to quickly disable or disarm an attacker.
Emergency planning – Every household should have emergency plans for fires, tornadoes, and other potential disasters. Practice these plans with your family and make a game out of it.
Carving and Wood Working – My son just got his first pocketknife, and he is always looking for new things to carve and whittle. Some days I show him how to make a four-point spear or a wooden spoon with scrap wood. He loves those projects. We also work with lumber to complete building and repair projects around the house.
Tracking – When you go out in the woods, look for animal tracks. Practice identifying the animals and try to follow their trail.
Weather and Time – As you hike or camp, show the family how to tell time with the four-finger method. Also show them how to identify clouds and predict the weather.
Hide and Seek – To teach about the importance of camouflage when hunting or in tactical situations, dress everyone up in camo. Then head out into the woods with water balloons or paintball guns and see who can stay in the shadows.
Signaling and Radios – Get walkie-talkies and practice using them on any outings you can. Also, take CB radios on long car trips and say hi to the truckers. They are typically pretty friendly. Also, practice signaling with mirrors or whistles on camping and hiking trips.
Map and Compass – We have started creating scavenger hunts and treasure maps for my son’s birthday and for easter. Every year we make it tougher, and he uses his compass with a map we draw.
Sewing – Many people enjoy sewing as a hobby. It is an essential skill if you no longer have the ability to buy new clothes. Everyone should learn some basic stitches.
Knot tying – I am not a big fan of knots, but there is one game we enjoy. I like to teach the kids a new knot and then make them use it to tie me up. Then we see if I can get loose. It’s fun for our cub scout den.
The fact is that any of these activities can be lots of fun and quite productive even if they had nothing to do with prepping. There is nothing wrong with putting a little substance behind the fun times you have with your family. It just takes a little planning. The next time you are going to be outdoors or around your property and want to include your family, check this list and pick something that is fun and educational.