Children have a right to know what is going on, but as adults we have a responsibility to protect them from distress. There are ways to talk to children that will help limit their fears and address their concerns.
It can be hard to know how to explain COVID-19. These are some ideas you can put into your own words to suit the age and stage of your child.
Children depend on familiar routines. They like to wake up, eat breakfast, go to school, play with friends.
When an emergency or pandemic like COVID-19 interrupts this routine, children may become anxious, confused, or frightened. These feelings may be expressed in a variety of ways.
• Reactions from clinginess to withdrawal.
• Increased shyness through to aggressiveness.
• Return to outgrown behaviours, like thumb-sucking or carrying a cuddly toy.
As a parent, you can keep up routines at home. If it is a school day, then get kids up, dressed and doing school work by 9 am.
Encourage them to use mindfulness apps, such as smiling mind, to help them work through the stress of the uncertainty.
Limit their exposure to news coverage and adult conversations about the outbreak.
Don’t forget about your own needs. Keep up meditation, yoga and exercise.
Talk to someone. Hand in Hand is offering parents in isolation free support calls and other resources to help.
For some really practical advice, specifically answering questions from children, aimed at younger audiences and packaged in interactive and engaging ways, try the following videos and e-books.
Great video from the BBC’S Newsround program worth a watch
Short online book to support and reassure children under the age of 7
This video of NZ Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern and Dr Michelle Dickinson (NanoGirl) and Chief Science Advisor Dr Juliet Gerrard
The governments around Australia are taking different actions to stop the virus spreading, depending on how many people have COVID-19 in their state or territory.
This means that the rules around what we can and can’t do might differ, depending on which part of the country we live in.
We have all done really well to slow the spread of the virus, but it is important we continue to follow the expert’s advice on what we can and can’t do. We also need to be flexible and understand that the rules might need to get stricter again if more people get sick with the virus.
Life will get back to normal again, but right now we aren’t sure how quickly it will happen.
It is important to give kids a sense of being in control. Giving children meaningful ways to help others will help them and others.
Team Rescue Hygiene Song | Kids Activity Kit |
Advice on Schooling | Advice on Staying Fit and Active |
My Hero is You, Storybook for Children on COVID-19 | Learning From Home |