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Parents are definitely being put in a dilemma with the school reopens this coming 15th. While the ministry is offering an option - should parents feel more comfortable for the children to not be in school by requesting an exemption, how far are we willing to agree with the idea? Image Credit: malaymail.com Yay or Nay? I had three kids who pretty much needed to have their vitamin F (well, I mean "friends") that they are longing for, and the news that they are going back to school is something they are looking forward to. Being ‘locked up’ with not being able to meet their friends and even have a swing at the playground for four months was such a torture for them. And to my shame, I was one of the happy moms when the news that they are going back to school. I just longed for my ‘me-time’ without worrying about them waking up and staying awake during the online classes throughout the days. Like, finally! Until I opened my FB and saw notifications on the parenting page that I followed. For days, most of the sharing was the parents' concern on how reliable the school’s SOPs is and will their children be safe going back to school. As I scrolled down, I started to feel uneasy and worry. Was I being selfish for looking forward to the school to reopen or was I being sensible for not worrying about my children's well-being as I trust the school will definitely take extra precautions? Image Credit: malaymail.com Adapting to the New Normal I decided to do my own homework to have a better understanding of the whole scenario. While the SOPs from the MOE are quite ‘loose’ and stated the schools are free to have their own method to comply with the general SOP and to fine-tune on the task to meet the safety requirement. In general, there is no ‘fix’ SOP on how the schools should carry out the classes and all. It is understood that school is to strictly comply with the social distancing which resulted either on alternate days of schooling or changes in the school sessions. Food from the canteen will either be pre-packed or parents to prepare food from home. Online learning will still be one of the teaching mediums. Daily temperature monitoring will be imposed and those with high temperatures will be required to stay home. The fact is, this new mode of schooling will be introduced and as parents, we must admit that as much as we are worried about our children’s well-being, we might need to learn to adapt to the norm sooner or later. Tips on Going Back to School Post-MCO During this pandemic, everyone needs to play active roles. Be it the school’s administration, teachers, students, and parents. Things will only work out fine when everybody takes their own responsibilities. Here are some guidelines on how we, as parents, could play our roles in order to ensure our children are safe and stay healthy: Prepare their ‘Covid-19 Safety Kits’ from home. Reduce their contact with the public by bringing food from home. Prepare the face shield, spare masks, hand sanitisers, and perhaps tissues and wet tissues should there is a need for them to use it. If your children are using the cloth face mask, make sure it is cleaned and washed regularly. Train our children to practice good hygiene. Preach to them the importance of regular handwashing. Teach them how to sneeze and cough using their elbow as a shield. Explain to them what to expect in the new normal. Image Credit: nypost Remind them to always keep themselves clean, wear the protection mask all the time, and do not touch their face so often. It might be difficult for them, for the teachers and for us too. Just have faith, and never stop telling them the worse impact that could happen if they failed to comply. Avoid the use of toilet, if they could. The classes are to be shortened and they should be able to learn to ‘hold’ on if they try their best. But, remind them not to force it - use the toilet if they have too. Communicate, communicate, communicate! Our children will feel anxious and don’t know what to expect after more than four months being at home, ‘comfortably’. As parents, we need to explain to them what is expected when schooling during this pandemic. As school will be split into several sessions, they might not be in the same session with their siblings or even their play-buddies. Tell them that they need to maintain social distancing despite how excited they would be to be able to meet their friends. Image Credit: New Straits Times Encourage them to share their experience and give feedback and guidance on how to have a comfortable schooling time. Check our children’s health, regularly. Image Credit: doctoroncall.com.my As parents, we should be aware of our children if they are showing symptoms such as fever and cold. Isolate our children from the school if they are unwell. Be responsible not only to our family but to others too. Educate our children to be smart online. Some school might opt to continue with online modules to reduce physical contacts and so. We should monitor our children when they are with gadgets. Teach them to be smart online and educate them about sharing information online and things related to it. They might also want to prepare themselves about cyber bullying too. Some children might be bold enough to leave remarks and comments in a public online class and some might react differently. Most importantly, play an active role in order to make this works. Acknowledging that school and teachers are struggling to adapt as much as our children and us, things will be much easier and smoother when everyone plays their role. As a Malaysian, I’m sure we proud when our country is one of the top countries that has become a good model in controlling the spread of the Covid-19 during the MCO. The frontliners worked hard monitoring the patients, the public stayed home, shops adhered to the guidelines, and many more. We did it then, and we can do it now. Stay safe, mommies.

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Go Back To School After MCO Safely With Our Important Tips