No matter how excellent survival skills the parents have, they will be completely useless if the child finds himself in a difficult situation alone. You cannot be with children 24 a day, which means that survival skills should be taught to the child himself, at least the basic ones. It is important for a child not only to learn the theory well, but also to learn not to panic in an unusual situation. Do you feel like your little one is unable to learn survival skills? You underestimate your child! Remember, during the war, back in the last century, children managed to survive in the taiga, being there for a long time. Your task is to show your child an example and give knowledge that he can apply if necessary in a difficult situation.
What a child should be able to do
Navigate the terrain
This is a basic skill, children should know what a map and a compass are and be able to apply them in practice. Teach them to navigate, taking into account the peculiarities of the terrain and where the child is and what surrounds him: main roads, rivers, lakes, as well as mountains and forests. It's not difficult at all, children can easily navigate the map in the game, for example, when looking for a pirate treasure. The principle is the same, but it is important to have minimal knowledge of the area in order to determine your location.
First aid skills
If your child is left alone in the forest, then most likely something happened to his parents. You could suddenly lose consciousness or be injured. If you teach a child to provide first aid to people, then one day he can save not only himself, but also your life.
The most difficult thing in such a situation for children is not to panic, a person's life depends on the coordination and speed of their actions. That is why the skills for providing first aid should be worked out to full automatism. The child should remember how to apply a bandage for bleeding, as well as a splint for a fracture, tell about the main medicines that can help the victim in this or that situation.
Meeting with wild animals
In the forest, wild animals can attack you or your child; snakes are a particular danger to people, as they sneak up unnoticed. How should a child behave if he saw a snake? Under no circumstances should you throw sticks or stones at her, not shout or attract attention to yourself, gently move away from her. Also, children should know what ticks are dangerous and how to avoid the bites of these insects. Before going to the forest, children can independently assess whether they have dressed correctly, if there are any open areas of the body that a tick can infect. The child should know how to act if the mite has already adhered to the skin. The tick should be removed as soon as possible, but if there is no special tweezers at hand, then this can be done using ordinary thick thread. It is necessary to tie it into a knot, throw it over the tick, and as close as possible to its proboscis. You need to remove the insect slowly, swinging it from side to side. It is impossible to pull out the tick sharply, otherwise it will rupture and the proboscis will remain in the skin.
Get fire
If your child is in a difficult situation, for example, lost in the forest, then until the moment until they find him, he needs to somehow warm up. Even if you are near, but are injured and incapacitated, then the child will be able to get fire, if you just teach him this in advance. It is not so easy, even seasoned travelers cannot always do it the first time. Your kids should know the basics of making a fire, but they should have a flint or NAZ in their pocket for complete safety. Take care of this in advance, but explain to the child how to use them correctly, tell them that it is not safe to play with them.
Make a bonfire
If the child succeeds in getting the fire, then the next stage is making a fire / keeping the fire. It is important to be able to select suitable firewood / branches, fold them correctly and light them, which branches to use for this and where they can be found in principle. Getting a fire and successfully building a fire is half the battle; you also need to be able to maintain a fire for a long time. Teach your child two types of fire maintenance: a hot fire with a high flame is suitable for cooking, and a weak, almost smoldering fire will not go out all night and will not freeze. Many people underestimate this skill, but it is very important for your child, especially if he gets lost in the forest in winter or autumn.
Build a shelter
When the dangers in the form of wild animals have passed, first aid has been provided and a fire is made, then it's time to think about an overnight stay. To protect yourself from wind, rain and be relatively safe, you need to build a shelter. Even if your child is still too young and does not know how to use a knife or an ax for this, you will have to cope without them. If he tries, the kid will be able to create a simple hut with a bed of grass or spruce branches. Teach the children not only how to create a shelter, but also how to choose a safe place for it.
Get water
In an extreme situation, any organism, and even more so for children, loses an increased amount of fluid. That is why, in order to survive, a child must be able to find water and process it correctly. Tell the children where to find water, what kind of water to drink after boiling, and what is not recommended at all. Let them clearly understand what microbes are, and what happens to a person when poisoned. The more detailed and interesting your story about this will be, the more chances the child will have to remember common truths. If the child is already quite an adult, then teach him to get water by condensation.
Find food
This is both a very useful, but also a very dangerous skill, since even an adult experienced in such matters cannot always distinguish between safe fruits and roots from poisonous ones. Let the child know which berries can be safely eaten, how to fish, which roots can be eaten without fear.
Physical training
Perhaps the most important survival skill, as the child must be physically able to do what you teach him. No matter how much you teach your child theoretical skills, he must also be able to apply them in practice, and for this he must be physically healthy and strong. It is worth taking care of this in advance, instilling in him a love for sports and an active lifestyle. And your example in this matter is no less important than classes in the sports section. Go in for sports with your child, and then in a difficult situation he will have enough strength to collect branches or bring water.
Psychological preparation
Even if your child has learned by heart all the skills that we wrote about above, can calmly find the roots and make a fire, then all that remains is to learn how to do it all calmly and competently. Let the skills be brought to automatism, let the child know that the main thing in such a situation is not to panic. Now it's time to practice. After all, the best way to survive in an extreme situation is to do what you can do at the level of automatism. Therefore practice. practice and practice again. And, of course, a positive personal example.
The main thing that parents should understand is that their child is capable and learnable. He will understand everything that you have told him, will remember everything that you have shown, and in a difficult situation he will remember and repeat. These skills won't come easily to him, but someday they can save his life, so it's worth the work! Yes, it will be difficult. But when you succeed, the child will thank you. And not only for an interesting and eventful childhood, but also for helping him become a real person.
