This year, schooling will be very different for many children and parents. The Coronavirus pandemic is an unprecedented situation in modern times and has caused a huge educational disruption; leaving many families grappling to cope with the repercussions.
What About The Children?
With schools shut for almost a year now, it is hard to gauge the full impact that the situation is having on children and young people’s mental health and well-being since the many levels of lockdowns were being implemented.
Undeniably, the pandemic has changed our lives in more ways than we can ever imagine; and the reality is, things are not going to go back to normal any sooner.
No doubt, it has been an overwhelming year for all of us. This pandemic has taken a lot from us as parents, but it has also given us the latitude to change the way we parent! The change has given us an opportunity to reassess what seems to be the norm before and the expectations we had for our children, as well as the ways we interact with our them now.
It is time we rediscover the beauty in the change and magic in the mundane. Academic excellence – thus, should take the backseat for a little while, instead pay attention to our children’s mental well-being. How are they coping? How do they feel about not going to school and not meeting with their friends? What are their worries? We will be surprised if we start asking questions.
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Have Open Conversations
Now that parents are working a lot more from home, things can get really busy juggling different balls all at the same time for us; but do take some time and focus on your children instead. Encourage them to ask questions and express their feelings.
Remember, children may have a very different reaction to stress and coping mechanisms, so be patient and empathetic. Try starting a conversation by talking about general issues, such as good hygiene practices and follow their lead.
Create a safe environment for your child and allow him to talk freely. For younger children, drawing stories may help them to communicate more objectively while for older ones, talking while doing an activity together, such as fixing puzzles may get the conversation going.
Give them your full attention by listening attentively and putting away your phones – these little gestures show that you care and that you will always put them first.
Always acknowledge their feelings and assure them that it is natural to feel scared about things, but they can always turn to you whenever they need to talk things through; if needed, get online with them to look for trusted sources of information and help put their minds at ease.
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Plan A Routine Together
Children thrive in a structured and orderly environment. Now that our old routines are disrupted, planning a new one with your children will help us to cope better. Since schools are closed, then why not establish a schooling routine at home? Living in the technological times, we are never short of great options for educational programs; look for an age-appropriate program that can be followed online!
While it is important to establish a structure for the little ones, understand that they need some level of flexibility, too. If you notice that they start getting restless during the online class, it is OK to take a break or switch to another activity and revisit the lesson later.
Do not forget playing and reading time! When it comes to playing, let the master – your child – lead you instead! Unstructured playtime does a lot to encourage your child’s imagination. Let them pick a book to read together during your downtime with you or better yet, give them the space to read or tell you a story instead.
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Maintaining Hygiene
It takes repetition to instil good habits. Encourage your child to practise good hygiene by modelling these habits – they do what they see.
Create songs and little cute routines for washing hands, when stepping out of the house, putting on a mask, etc. Learning is not just confined to books and classrooms, use every opportunity in our daily lives to teach and learn with your child!
Children blossom when being complimented. So, take note of their little achievements or positive behaviours, such as when they sneeze into their elbows, covering their mouths when coughing, or doing a great job washing their hands!
And then reiterate the reasons why we need to maintain hygiene by doing these things. When they have a better understanding of the situation as well as a greater sense of control, their anxiety, if any, will be greatly reduced, too.
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Eating Healthy Together
Do not forget to talk about building the immune system and how we need a strong one to keep viruses and germs at bay. Encourage your child to eat a balanced diet, get sufficient sleep, and exercise regularly. Only with a robust immune system can we fight off the illness!
Maintain regular mealtimes and try to eat together as a family. Start the day by preparing breakfast together, pick out healthy items, such as fruits, oats, eggs, and milk with your child. Initiate conversations on food and nutrition values, let them know how each food contains different vitamins and minerals that our bodies need.
Growing Strong With MARIGOLD® UHT Milk with Malt
Your child’s growing body needs protein and calcium to help it develop! Introduce quality and delicious milk products, such as MARIGOLD® UHT Milk with Malt in your child’s diet. It provides protein, calcium, and a unique Bone Plus formulation that adds Vitamins D and Ca., which helps develop strong bones and teeth and increase calcium absorption.
The new MARIGOLD® UHT Milk with Malt makes a great liquid snack, too for when you are on errands-run with your child! Fortified with 6 vitamins – namely Vitamin A, B1, B2, B12, C, and D3 – it not only contains all the goodness of milk, but also gives a great energy boost.
Malt is rich in vitamins, minerals, and amino acids that help in metabolising carbohydrates, protein, fat, and provides our body with energy throughout the day!
Keep Them Healthy, Shield With Love
If the pandemic has shown us anything, it is that our children are much more resilient, adaptable, and flexible than we thought they were. As parents, what we can do is to support them by creating a safe environment for them to continue to explore and learn fearlessly, while providing a nutritious diet to help their bodies to grow and their immune system to develop healthily – much like enveloping them with an invisible shield made of love!
That is why MARIGOLD® UHT Milk with Malt is the choice of many parents. It is because of its double boost milk that combines both the goodness of milk and the energy of malt in a single pack. Try one today!