Just had this idea... what about contacting your child's school teacher and attempting to bring them up-to-speed on the situation?

Then, encourage them to MODIFY their 1999 curriculum by covering subjects in a context of self-sufficiency and low-tech alternatives to handle everyday needs.

It could be done in the spirit of historical study -- how our pioneer ancestors had to get water, how they made their own wool, how they grew their own food and built their own homes.

Ideas for projects abound. Classes on PRACTICAL nature hikes. Consider the possibilities of a "Low Tech Science Fair" : students who used berries to make natural dyes for homespun fabrics, a small group of students make cheese from goatsmilk, etc., etc.

My kids are certified Nintendo Videots. If we are unable to begin to shift their thinking about what a human really needs to survive, they may implode shortly after the second day of no video games in the year 2000...

-- Sara Nealy (keith n@ptd.net), September 22, 1998

Answers

A low-tech science fair and projects for self-sufficiency are superb ideas....

Now if the yuppified parents with their cel phones pagers and house security systems will just think likewise,...(sighing). I was born either too late or waaaaaay to early I think. (born 1952, otherwise known as "The Year of the Bad Water")

-- Donna Barthuley (moment@pacbell.net), September 22, 1998.

1955 for me Donna.

My daughter (13) is printing these for her friends in science (particularly those stories with jokes, puns, or stories and comments) and would like to know if any kids want to get hold of her, or if any kids want to start a "kid's only" thread.

-- Robert A. Cook, P.E. (Kennesaw, GA) (cook.r@csaatl.com), September 28, 1998.

Robert I have two daughters 12 & 16 both are helping me with y2k as much as possible. Both have taken the general idea of G.I. Jane to help them understand what might happen. They even went to a book stor and bought a military survival manual. I encourage them to prepare in their own way but to keep the faith they wont have to use anything they learn in the manual. The 16 year old is an avid AOL on line user and talks to anyone she can about y2k her online name even reflects this" y2kfever". She would love to talk to your daughter to share ideas from a teens point of view. Contact her at y2kfever@aol.com . I am glad your daughter is reading about y2k it will help your family if things turn out worse than any of us hope they will be. best to all Cheryl

-- Cheryl Conley (traceace01@aol.com), September 28, 1998.

Hi, I'm Jean Cook, Robert Cook's daughter. Iam 13 and go to Pine Mountain Middle School, the worst school in the universe. I am in the eighth grade and take Geometry, Target Science, Target Social Studies, Spanish (hable espanol?), Band (percussion), and Language Arts. What about you? Are you in band? Please write back. I'l have my dad check every day.

-- Jean Cook (Kennesaw,GA) (cook.r@csaatl.com), October 01, 1998.

As a former teacher I must say be careful about how you introduce Y2K into the curriculum. Many school districts, and private schools too, don't take kindly to teachers straying from the official curriculum. Science projects are probably the safest area to introduce the subject.

-- Buddy Y. (buddy@bellatlantic.net), October 02, 1998.