40 Lessons to Teach Your Kids
by Daisy Luther
"Millenials" have been the butt of a million jokes about incompetence. The generation born between 1981 and 1996 is considered entitled, ultra-liberal, and naive about how life works. But maybe they've gotten a bad rap because what no one ever points out is that maybe the issue isn't with these young people but with how they were raised. I know that my own millennial daughter is competent, frugal, and independent.
As a parent, the most important job I will ever hold is "mom" to my two daughters. And if I'm not teaching them the important life lessons they need to survive and thrive in this crazy world, I'm not doing a very good job at all. Of course, once they get out there, there are a million variables, but how they deal with those variables has a lot to do with whether they were raised to think independently or raised to wait for rescue.
I think it's essential that we teach our kids skills outside the typical gender roles. Boys need to know how to cook. Girls need to know how to fix things. Maybe it won't be their lot in life to do things outside their traditional roles, but take it from someone who never planned to become a single mom, things don't always go the way you expect.
As my child prepares to leave the nest I feel confident they'll be just fine because I've taught her to the best of my ability the things she needs to know to be a successful adult.
The skills you teach your children while they're your captive audience will see them through many things – not just everyday life but also through a potential disaster.
Everyday skills every young person should have
Here are the lessons that I think every parent needs to teach their child, whether you're raising boys or girls. Before leaving the nest, they should be able to:
- Cook inexpensive, nutritious meals from scratch
- How to use up leftovers
- Get from point A to point B using public transit or under their own power
- Budget limited money so that the most important things are paid first
- Mend and repair items instead of replacing them
- Take a course in First Aid, CPR, and anything else applicable that is offered. The more you know, the calmer you are able to remain during a crisis.
- Have a good basic First Aid kit and know how to use everything in it
- Know some home remedies for various common illnesses: teas for tummy aches, treatment for flu symptoms, how to soothe skin irritations, and how to care for a fever
- Drive. Not only an automatic transmission but also a standard transmission
- Change a tire. You don't want your teenage daughter stranded on the side of the road at the mercy of whoever stops to help. My daughters were not allowed to drive the car until they demonstrated their ability to change the tire with the factory jack.
- Perform minor maintenance, like checking the oil and fluid levels, filling up the washer fluid, checking tire pressures and topping them up if needed, and changing the windshield wiper blades.
- Use basic tools for repairs
- Cook a healthy meal from scratch
- Cook a "company" meal – everyone needs one delicious meal that's a little fancier they can cook when they have a guest
- Grocery shop within a budget and have healthy food for the week ahead
- Speaking of that, how to budget in general, so that they don't have "too much month and not enough money"
- How to clean
- How to do laundry, including stain removal
- How to think for themselves and question authority
- How to budget for holidays and vacations
- How to manage their time to get necessary tasks accomplished by the deadlines
- How to tell the difference between a want and a need
- How to be frugal with utilities and consumable goods
- How to pay bills
- How to stay out of debt (not easy with the college credit card racket that you see on campuses across the country and rampant student loans)
- How to pay off debt if they have it
- How to keep safe: they need to have basic self-defense and weapons-handling skills.
- How to navigate with a paper map – not Google or their car's GPS
- How to make extra money fast if an emergency arises
Emergency skills every young person should have
Some of the skills above will cross over into emergencies, like First Aid. Outside of the basics of everyday life, your kids leaving home should know:
- How to light a fire
- How to cook safely over an open fire
- How to keep warm when the power is out, whether that means safely operating an indoor propane heater, using the woodstove/fireplace, or bundling up in a tent and sleeping bags in the living room
- How to keep themselves fed when the power is out – they should have enough supplies on hand that they can stay fed at home for up to two weeks: cereal, powdered milk, granola bars, canned fruit, etc.
- How to deal with the most likely disasters in their area
- About the dangers of off-grid heating and cooking, such as the risk of carbon monoxide poisoning in unventilated rooms.
- How to purify water
- How to keep safe both at home and when they're out. Be sure they know the difference between cover and concealment
- How to do laundry by hand and hang it to dry
- How to keep things sanitary without running water
- How to acquire food: foraging, fishing, gardening, hunting
It's our job to make sure our kids are competent when they leave home.
There are really too many skills to list when it comes to preparing your kids for everyday life away from mom and dad. What other skills would you add to this list of basics?
Why you should consider SafeGTM over 5G
The wireless industry has fired the starting gun for the so-called "race to 5G." Why 5G? The simple answer is that it comes after 4G. That's the previous generation of wireless technology, and the industry is desperately seeking a way to increase its slumping profits by selling an expensive and unnecessary "upgrade." (Seasoned activists may wish to go directly to this special message.)
But, why a race? It's because the industry is hoping that in the blur of a huge, flashy advertising campaign, you won't notice any of the following:
- Neither the industry nor regulatory agencies such as the Federal Communications Commission or the Food and Drug Administration, have tested new 5G frequencies for safety. Yet, scientists expert in how this type of radiation interacts with biology warn that the new 5G technologies may be far more dangerous than previous generations of wireless technology.
- A long-term U.S. government study just clearly linked the kind of wireless radiation emitted by cellphones to cancer.
- The vast number of new antennas required for 5G service will be closely spaced on utility poles right outside of homes in residential neighborhoods. Those antennas will dramatically increase your exposure to wireless radiation. (For more information about this issue, referred to as antenna densification, read 5G: Under the Hood.)
- The radiation will be beamed directly into your home (or business) 24/7/365. You will never be able to turn it off.
- You will be subjected to this radiation whether you purchase 5G service or not. The wireless industry is seeking to put antennas that service 5G close to homes in every neighborhood regardless of whether residents want or use the service.
If you have concerns about 5G (and you should), here's what the wireless companies want you to do in response to the rollout of 5G wireless: Nothing. They are hoping you will accept 5G silently and without complaint. But if you have read this far, you are probably not the silent type. You're trying to find out about the dangers of 5G and what you can do to stop it.
This site provides background on the dangers of 5G and on an alternative that not only protects your health but also your security and your privacy. We call that alternative SafeG.
What is SafeG?
SafeG offers a safe, reliable alternative to the dangerous future which 5G would create. SafeG is not a single product or service, but a framework for an internet and telecommunications system that respects our health, our privacy, our security and our right to choose what is best for ourselves and our communities. We define SafeG as follows:
SafeG means safe, fast, reliable, secure internet and telecommunications services brought into our homes and businesses by wired technology. It means technology that safeguards our health, privacy and security and that evolves over time with the goal of reducing exposure to harmful wireless radiation.
The critical element that characterizes SafeG—wired connections to the home or business—is already available to a large number people around the world from existing internet and telecommunications providers, especially in advanced economies. If we focus on extending availability and improving speed and capacity, we can have a safe system that keeps up with changes in technology and provides all the services we desire.
SafeG is About Choice
SafeG accepts the right of homeowners and businesses to decide for themselves whether to have wired or wireless networks on their premises without forcing that choice on others.
We recognize, however, that most wireless systems designed for homes and businesses (often referred to as Wi-Fi) are vastly overpowered and therefore broadcast into neighboring buildings and outdoor areas while needlessly exposing users in the building to extra radiation. While we favor wired networks in homes and businesses, for those who choose wireless networks, we recommend the use of router cages or "socks" for wireless routers. These reduce the wireless signal to what is needed to serve the premises only.
Read on to learn more.
Get Informed
SafeG vs 5G
Lurking behind the sparkling commercials about the coming of 5G wireless networks are dangers most people are unaware of. When understood, those dangers have led to a growing rejection of this flawed technology that is both unhealthy and unnecessary. Read more…
For Seasoned Activists
We are asking seasoned activists to help us advance an approach we believe can unite those who oppose 5G worldwide. Read more...
5G: The Real Story
The real reason for the so-called "race to 5G" has little to do with national economic prowess and more do with wireless industry profits. The industry faces stagnation. The ugly truth for these companies is that in the world's advanced economies almost everyone who wants a cellphone already has one. Read more…
5G Dangers
Learn in more detail about the dangers and drawbacks of 5G by clicking "The Trouble with 5G" tab in the navigation menu or click on one of the following topics: Health Impacts, Privacy & Security Issues, Decline in Property Values, Loss of Local Control, Environmental Harm.
Learn about SafeG
SafeG is Better
SafeG offers a vision for a safe alternative to the dangerous future which 5G would create. SafeG is not a single product or service, but a framework for an internet and telecommunications system that respects our health, our privacy, our security and our right to choose what is best for ourselves and our communities. Read more…
Spread the Word
SafeG Resources
SafeG Alliance seeks a better, safer future than the harmful 5G wireless system can offer. Learn more about SafeG Alliance, "I Support SafeG" Materials, Events, Videos and a Model Ordinance for municipalities. You can also subscribe to our email list for news and updates and contact us with your ideas and comments.
Support SafeG
Our mission is to support those who oppose 5G wireless and to promote the SafeG alternative by 1) spreading the SafeG idea far and wide, 2) providing training to citizens and activists, and 3) engaging in strategic litigation.
To help us do this, please consider making a donation. Since SafeG is a program of Citizens for Health Education Foundation, your donation is tax deductible as allowed by law. All of your donation will go exclusively to support the SafeG mission.
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