Today, it’s all about the 101 homesteading skills we need to teach our kids and grandkids, and possibly our neighbors. We’ve heard a lot in the last few years about homesteading skills, vintage skills, and pioneer skills. I don’t know about you, but I can do all of these and I bet you can too. I wrote this post many years ago, but I believe we need this information more now than ever before, so I’m updating the post as a refresher.
I have always pictured different farms growing vegetables and fruits and raising chickens, rabbits, goats, cows, etc. I remember visiting dairy farms. It seems now some people are calling themselves homesteading families if they’ve learned and are using these skills.
I remember growing up and hearing the word, homestead from time to time. Well, the word homestead according to The Merriam-Webster Dictionary is defined as “the home and land acquired by family” and “to acquire or settle on the public land.” Not sure how many people are acquiring public land these days, but many are trying to be more self-sufficient.
101 Homesteading Skills We Need To Teach
I think what we really need to do is explain what a homemaker is, and why those people have homesteading skills. They run a house, hence the term “the home and land acquired by the family.” I have recently started to wonder why so many blogs have become homesteading blogs. These are basically homemaking skills, maybe they are trying to bring back the skills most of us have used our whole life and putting them front and center.
I remember churches teaching these skills, as well as schools. Somehow, the teaching of these very important skills needs to be rekindled. What do you think has happened? We can’t continue to eat processed food, eat at fast food places, and eat food at restaurants every day, it’s not healthy. Plus, it’s so expensive.
Whatever sex you are who heads your home and keeps it running smoothly, I tip my hat to you. It’s hard to be a homemaker and homesteading family. I decided to break down the different areas of life we all have to deal with each day no matter where we live and discuss them. I’m not talking about backyard chickens, ducks, goats, and rabbits which a few families have chosen to prioritize. I’m talking about those everyday activities that tie up our time and energy to make the home safe, healthy, and comfortable.
I have a blogger friend, Janet Garman, who has a farm called Timber Creek Farm (.com). She is truly a role model to follow if you want a farm. She dyes yarn and knits the most beautiful hand warmers, I have two sets. I love them! Today, it’s all about the homestead, as in our home.
If you understand and use any of these skills please teach them at your church, schools, and neighborhoods. Trust me, people need to know these skills. You don’t have to be living off-grid to take advantage of this knowledge, you just want to be enterprising, cost-conscious, and live more of a simplistic life. Some would consider these as survival skills, and when used properly, many would be.
101 Homesteading Skills We Need To Teach
These are the things I learned growing up, how about you?
Baking
- I learned to make bread in a big old stainless steel bowl like this one: Stainless Steel Bowl We can truly survive if we learn to make bread in its many varieties like sourdough bread. Beginners can check out my archive for a no-fail bread recipe that uses few ingredients.
- Learn to grind wheat. I have two wheat grinders, an electrical one and a hand-powered one in case I lose power in my home.
- Learn to make whole-wheat bread. Whole-wheat bread is more healthy and may tend to make you feel full.
- Learn to make bread with flour you can tolerate. Many families are dealing with gluten issues, but they can still make bread.
- Learn to make your own natural yeast.
- Learn to make white bread that melts in your mouth.
- Learn to make dinner rolls to die for.
- Learn to make cinnamon rolls. I make a batch and share them with the neighbors, they love them!
- Learn to make biscuits. Nothing like biscuits with some homemade gravy.
- Learn to make crackers. No reason to go to the store, make your own and eat them with fresh cheese.
- Learn to make crepes. Had some delicious crepes with fresh fruit for a Mother’s Day Lunch. What a hit!
- Learn to make tortillas. Who doesn’t like a Mexican meal at any time?
- Learn to make pancakes and waffles from scratch. We have a Mickey Mouse waffle maker we use with the grandkids.
- Learn to make a cake without a cake mix. I truly love making things from scratch.
- Learn to make frosting without a container or box. We try to stay away from processed foods as much as we can.
- Learn to make pies from scratch (thank you, Jeanne). Making your own pie crusts is fun, and you know what’s in them too!
- Learn to make homemade pasta, it tastes so yummy (thank you, Bebe). We enjoy all kinds of pasta recipes and don’t have to go to the store first.
Canning
- Take a Master Preserver Canning course to keep up with the newest safety measures required to preserve our food. Four Foods You Should Never Can by Linda. Learn to can by water bath and by using a pressure canner, they both come in handy for various food products you harvest. Pressure-canning meat at home has become more common as a means to preserve food. We love to eat jams and jellies we’ve canned along with the canned veggies like green beans, corn, squash, and herbs.
- Only use mason jars designed for canning. I like both Ball and Kerr products and prefer using wide-mouthed jars. The lids have been hard to come by the past few years, but seem to be more readily available now.
- Watch for chips or cracks and discard the jars if damaged since you won’t get a quality seal with damaged jars.
- Never can eggs. The USU Extension Service class I took outlined various food NOT to can. See numbers 5 – 7 too.
- Never can milk or cream
- Never can bacon
- Never can butter
- The new rule (2015) when canning tomatoes (they are not as acidic now) is to add 2 tablespoons lemon juice or 1/2 teaspoon citric acid to quart-size jars. Pint-size jars use 1 tablespoon lemon juice or 1/4 teaspoon citric acid to make up for the lower acid levels in today’s tomatoes.
- Always remove the rings after the jars have been canned, cooled, and ready to store. This will ensure if a lid does pop up and become unsealed, it will not go back down because the ring was left on. You may never know if the seal popped up after storing it.
- When lifting your jars out of the hot water, never tip the jars, keep them upright. I have a nice jar lifter I use so I don’t get burned fingers!
- Pressure canners have weighted gauges, dial gauges, regulators, and rings. They should be checked yearly (replace as needed).
Cleaning Your Home
Make a schedule to keep on top of your cleaning, a clean home is a house of order, a house of peace and serenity. Don’t try to clean the whole house in one day, spread out the chores and do them right the first time.
Share the following cleaning projects:
- Bathrooms
- Kitchens
- Living Room
- Bedrooms
- Closets
- Cupboards
- Fans
- Dusting
- Vacuuming
- Mopping
Cleaning Your Garage
I love a clean garage:
- Blow the dust and debris outside and put them in a trash can.
- Keep the garage doors oiled and lubricated. Some lubricant from time to time is sure cheaper than replacing the motors and springs.
- Vacuum the entrance rug between the garage and house once a week.
Cleaning Your Yard
Trust me on this one, I love a clean street. Is this a homesteading skill? I don’t know but it’s important to me.
- Pick up blowing trash in your yard and adjoining neighbor’s yards. Help each other out.
- Pick up dog poop your neighbor’s dog has left, try not to be bitter because you always take a poop bag.
- Clean the street gutters if you have them, it makes all the difference in a clean tidy neighborhood.
- Keep your bushes trimmed, particularly near the home. They can become a fire hazard and a place for intruders to hide.
- Keep your trees trimmed so people can walk safely on the sidewalk in front of your home.
- Consider using a pre-emergent spray so weeds don’t become a problem for you and the neighbors.
Cooking
The following “how-to’s” are fun to learn and will make your food preparation skills so much stronger:
- How to make a roux
- How to make a white sauce
- How to cook from scratch
- How to make rice without a rice cooker
- How to make gravy from meat drippings
- How to make/cook beans from a bag
- Buy good pans the first time, this is one I use all the time: Farberware Saucepan Having the right cookware can make a real difference!
- Learn to make soups, stews, chili, and anything that will fill the belly for less money and still be healthy.
- Exchange recipes with friends that make up meals that are frugal and healthy.
- Put together a pantry and food storage inventory list. Check it at least monthly to make sure you’ll always have what you need.
Dehydrating Food
- You can dehydrate food on window screens or on netting. Using the sun’s rays can save on equipment costs, but it takes patience and skill.
- I have had two dehydrators in my life, they run non-stop. The one I have now is similar to this one: Excalibur
- Dehydrating your own food is for short-term storage only, one-year maximum. We dehydrate both fruits and veggies. I use the veggies in my soups, stews, casseroles, and more. I put the dried fruit in desserts.
- You can dehydrate frozen vegetables you find on sale and you don’t need to wash, slice, or cut them.
- When you combine homegrown garden products with canning and dehydrating the harvest it is the best!
First Aid Skills and Supplies
Thanks to Daniel for these:
- Get up to speed with basic first-aid skills, including, closing a wound with stitches and setting a broken bone.
- CPR class
I remember taking these classes at the YMCA long ago, but I am pretty sure your local fire station would be able to steer you in the right direction. First Aid Kit by Linda - Consider taking a Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) class. You and your neighbors learn skills that might save lives!
Gardening
- You can feed a family with 6-8 people if you have a garden, I know I have done it on 1/4 acre. My family canned and preserved all the food for one year. No animal meats, just fruits, and vegetables. Gardens for Two by Linda and How to Grow A Garden by Linda
- Find the best area to plant a garden, and watch for sun and shade spots.
- My favorite item you need to start your garden (I have to use these items because I have rock-hard clay soil): Miracle Grow Soil, buy at your local hardware stores.
- Composting, I confess this is the only one I haven’t done yet. I buy my organic compost materials.
- Learn to trim and prune your fruit trees correctly.
- Buy Non-GMO, non-hybrid seeds and plants. You can use the seed from the heirloom seeds for next year’s plants.
- Turn the soil several times and add the following amendments, if you need them (#8 – #11):
- Azomite Micronized Bag
- Worm Castings
- Coco/Coconut Fibre Pot Mix
- Organic Vermiculate
Heating Your Home
- Learn how to use a good chainsaw, we taught our girls to cut down trees, they cut and split the logs to heat our home together as a family. We used a woodburning stove insert to heat our home for four full winters. This was a skill we all need to learn. It’s hard work but totally teaches a family to work together as a team.
Home Maintenance
- Change your smoke alarm batteries at least once a year before they start to beep.
- Change your Carbon Monoxide detector batteries at least once a year: Carbon Monoxide Detector
- Change your furnace air filters often (thanks to Janet for the reminder). Keep in mind you may not need the HEPA filters in your home unless someone has severe allergies. We were told by an HVAC service tech to consider using the lower-cost filters. They catch the larger particles and let more air through, making them more fuel efficient.
Laundry
- Keep up on your laundry, nothing is worse than having a power outage and you need clean underwear, etc.
- Consider learning how to starch and iron your own dress shirts.
- Save money and make your own laundry detergent and your own soap products: Laundry Detergent by Linda
Money Management
Make a budget with your net income, write it down, then write your bills on the other side of the paper. Put some in savings each month, even if it’s only $1.00. (thanks to Debbie for reminding me about this topic)
Tina: I would add – Learn How to Write a Check and How to Balance a Checkbook. You would be surprised how many young folks coming out of high school have no clue how to handle a checking account.
Personal Hygiene & Health
This one is critical to our well-being and learning to stay healthy.
- Eat healthily, we are what we eat. Eat plenty of fresh fruit and vegetables.
- Clean remotes to all TVs and cell phones, etc.
- Clean light switches.
- Use the cleaning wipes at the grocery stores on those shopping carts.
- Wash your hands frequently.
- Stay home from work if you are sick, don’t spread those germs!
- Keep your child home from school if he or she will spread a virus or bacterial infection.
- Keep a jar of Vicks VapoRub on hand at all times (rub some on your feet and cover with socks-helps with a cough).
- Use essential oils to soothe a cold or influenza.
Sewing
Sewing seems to have become a lost art. These basic sewing skills may prove to be new skills for some, but they’re worth learning at any age:
- Learn how to thread a needle.
- Learn how to thread a sewing machine.
- Learn how to make a bobbin.
- Learn how to clean and oil your sewing machine.
- Learn how to sew a straight line on your machine.
- Buy a good sewing machine, not a cheap one, a good one, it doesn’t have to be expensive.
- Learn to use a fabric rotary cutter and board.
- Buy a good pair of fabric scissors.
- Buy a good seam ripper.
- Buy a good fabric tape measure.
- Buy safety pins.
- Buy good sewing machine needles.
- Buy good pinning pins.
- Get a pin cushion-they make magnetic ones that are great.
- Learn to sew aprons, then kid’s clothes, and move on to harder things.
- Learn how to sew on buttons.
- Mending can save lots of money.
- Recycling thrift clothes can be fun and save lots too.
- Learn to make your own starch and iron your clothes when appropriate.
Quilting
Quilts make awesome gifts for kids and adults!
- Learn to tie a quilt with yarn knots and fluffy batting.
- Learn to piece a quilt with leftover fabrics.
- Learn to hand quilt a quilt.
- Learn to bind a quilt.
- Learn to use a fabric rotary cutter and board.
- Buy a good pair of fabric scissors.
Knitting and Crocheting
- Knitting and crocheting must be added, I’m so thankful Valerie reminded me about this awesome skill!
101 Homesteading Skills We Need To Teach
Final Word
Thanks again for being prepared for the unexpected. Our kids and grandkids need these 101 homesteading skills and so much more. Let me know what skills you think should be added to my list so I can share your ideas with my readers. May God Bless this world, Linda
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