By How children react to changes during this pandemic may vary depending on a variety of things, including their age. Some children may be very happy to be home. Others might struggle from the onset with disruption to their regular routine. Some feel isolated from their friends and worry about the future. Among them, many children might not be willing to participate in household chores or any academic work. We have to understand that it is normal for children to show stressed reactions during this time.
According to UNICEF, “Almost 90 percent of the world’s students are now affected by nationwide school closures due to the spread of coronavirus disease, that’s more than 1.5 billion children and young people. (UNICEF).Combined with the physical distancing being practiced across the globe it’s not surprising that many young people are feeling more isolated, anxious, and uncertain.”
Some might become unusually active. Some might be aggressive or shy, quiet, withdrawn, or sad at this point. Some children may become fearful, overwhelmed, and anxious about this situation. Even children who were initially excited to be home might go through phases of misbehaving more than usual and might display some signs of stress at some point in the coming weeks. We have to understand this fact and understand how to respond.
What can you do to help your child?
For all of us, this lockdown has created a lot of challenges. It’s especially challenging to care for children. We are unaware and have no idea how to deal with this situation. So, the information below provides helpful tips and strategies for all families on how to get through this lockdown period and how to handle their children:
1. Safety First
Number one is to be safe. Strive to follow your local government’s guidelines on how to stay safe and help manage the spread of COVID-19. This means staying at your home except for emergencies or to buy essential supplies for your family. Also, travel only with traveling pass for a valid reason. Try to eat and prefer proper nutritious food and maintain hygiene maintaining social distancing.
2. Provide warmth and support
Try to be affectionate with your child by caring for them, giving them hugs, or by holding their hand or by talking with them. Tell them that you love them. This will help reassure and comfort them and help maintain a positive relationship. These minor steps will make them more confident and happier.
3. Praise them
One of the most effective ways of changing anyone’s behavior is by praising them. Showing that you have noticed what they are doing and that you like it makes children good. It helps to build a good relationship between adults and children. It also helps children to learn better behavior. Children are more likely to do things when they know they will be noticed and praised. The strategies described here work well for youngsters as well as for older children. So, try not to criticize them for their change in behavior but instead praise them often.
4. Spend more time together and have conversations
Spending just a few minutes with your children will be helpful to build stronger relationships. Paying attention will help them feel more confident and less anxious. It’s true that you might be busy working remotely, but you should spend some time playing with your children or by having an interesting conversation with them. This will make a difference in how you and your child feel. If you possibly can, make a little quality time for your child every day. Remember that they are children and try not to overload them with things you may be worried about.
5. Encouraging for good behavior
It is very important to make sure that children know what is expected of them. Sometimes children misbehave because they simply don’t understand what is good or bad for them. But if we encourage children for their good behavior, they will learn to be more responsible. There will be all sorts of practical things that you will want your children to do, like speaking politely, helping with chores, completing academic work, or being gentle with other children. These are often referred to as family rules. So you should encourage them for their good behavior and you should encourage them to behave well too.
6. Maintaining routine
As things are going in such an unprecedentedly fast pace with the COVID-19 Lockdown, it can be difficult to keep household routines going. However, if life is getting difficult at the moment, keeping routines can be helpful. They can help structure your life. This sense of knowing what to do next can help even children to feel safer and comfortable. Try to keep a fixed routine for your usual waking time, for your mealtimes, and even bedtimes. Also, encourage children to do school-work (reading, and writing). This will help them to learn, and it will keep them busy and productive.
7. Encourage children to play more
Children should play more because playing activities will relax their minds more. It will teach them to learn teamwork. It will make them understand that excitement is also essential in life. So, you should encourage your child to play with you, their siblings, or with other family members. It will pass their time and they won’t feel isolated even during the lockdown.
Practice Relaxation techniques
It is important that you spend time doing things that help you feel relaxed. To be able to care for your children appropriately, you must also spend time caring for yourself. For some people, this could be possible by doing exercise. For others, the relaxation method would be doing yoga or meditation. For others, it may be spending time in a room alone reading or taking rest. In the case of children, they find relaxation in watching television, playing games, or watching any kind of entertainment videos. Let them engage in these activities for a period of time so that they can relax too.
