Keeping your children safe has become more challenging with the spread of the coronavirus, but there are still things you can do. By making sure your children feel safe and taking active steps to help them cope, your actions can have positive impacts on your children.
Deal With Separation Anxiety
Younger children already have separation anxiety to one degree or another, but those feelings can worsen with worries about catching an infectious disease. You can alleviate the situation by creating a more elaborate ritual for saying goodbye. You should explain to your children that you’ll see them later and make sure they know what time you’ll be back together. This gives them something positive to look forward to while alleviating their concerns about being apart. It also may help to give them some special gifts, such as a photograph of your family together, to help them transition to school more easily.
Discuss Changes With Older Children
There will be many changes in how classroom learning is conducted as we move forward. These changes can be unsettling even for older children, so it’s important to let your kids know they can talk to you about the experience. You can discuss how the changes are meant to keep them safe and encourage them to talk about their feelings openly.
Teach Your Children to Cope
Everyone copes with stress differently, so it’s important to teach your kids a few different ways for managing anxiety. It can be helpful to teach them productive coping strategies, such as reading from their textbooks when they feel upset. You can also encourage them to do math problems or draw pictures to work out their frustrations. Most activities that will help them focus on something positive will work as a coping mechanism.
Helping your children deal with the changes that the pandemic has brought about concerns more than protecting them from infection. You’ll also have to address their fears and concerns. Children that feel especially troubled by the coronavirus may exhibit behavioral problems, so be watchful for those changes. While your first response may be to punch a misbehaving child, talk to them first to find out if they’re acting out for a reason. If that’s the case, it may be more helpful to arrange for counseling in place of punishment.