How to Get Your Child Ready for School in a Pandemic

Get your children ready when they go back to their global Indian school. Here’s advice on how to pull this off in a pandemic.

Your children might be headed back to school. But this time around, the experience is far from routine. The pandemic has changed education a lot and the new academic year is sure to offer a vastly different experience for the students. There will be new policies in place to help prevent the spread of the virus. The children will need to know how to navigate through in-person or online sessions. Whatever the situation, you will want to make sure your children are prepared for the year ahead.

Here are some tips on how to get them ready:

Help with the Online Classes

Your children might need your assistance with their online classes. Be there to help them log in, check their computer or laptop to make sure everything is working as they should. Put in safety measures, too, such as restrictions to limit what your children can do so they will not be prey to criminal elements who might be stalking vulnerable and impressionable children online.

Plan for In-Person Classes

Going back to school will mean taking extra precautions. Suppose, you send your children to Global Indian International School with a reputation for providing an excellent educational experience to the children. In that case, you can trust the school to take the necessary precautions to provide the children with a safe learning environment. Still, that is not reason enough to let down your guard. Follow the new safety protocols and policies that the school will set.

Talk About the Changes

Your children probably have an idea about what is happening. It is not wrong to talk to them about the pandemic. Some parents might think keeping that from their children is the best way to go about the situation. But children know and notice more than you think. If you are stressed out and worried because of the pandemic, it’s better if you open up to your children about those emotions. The more they understand the situation, the easier it will be for you as well. Part of getting your children ready is getting yourself ready, too.

Teach Them Flexibility

Are your children having tantrums because they don’t want to wear a mask? Or they do not want to stay away from their friends? This is one of the best times to teach your children about flexibility. Help them understand that being flexible is essential to coping with the changes. It is important that they know and remember that sometimes, even when the adults around them make plans, some things come up that lead to a change of those plans. Being flexible is the key to making the most out of the new normal.

Don't Lie to Them

It’s all right not to let them know the full extent of what’s happening or the full extent of the pandemic. But don’t lie to them and tell them that everything is going to be alright, or that everything will go back to normal. It won’t. Their generation will likely see plenty of changes in the way businesses, industries, and schools’ work. Instead, tell them you’re not sure what’s going to happen. However, you and their teachers are there to help them make sense of the world. You and their teachers are there to offer the support they need. Make sure they take it.

Tell Them to Ask for Help

They will be confused. They will be at a loss. They will find the new online lessons boring, or isolating, with them cooped up in their room all day, studying or just doing a flood of assignments and homework. Remind your children that it is all right to ask for help. Normalize that. Make that into a practice. If your children are well aware that they can come to you or their teachers for assistance any time they want, they’ll be less likely to get sad, worried, stressed out or depressed about schoolwork. If they are having a hard time coping or they are struggling to adjust, then get them to ask for assistance.

Practice Different Scenarios

Help your children get ready by going over multiple scenarios with them. Practice at home, so they will know what to do when they meet up with their friends in school. If you’re letting them go back to in-person classes, playing through these scenarios will help your children remember to keep their masks on, to maintain social distancing, and more.

Make Them Understand

Do your children understand the importance of keeping their masks on? If they know why it matters and why they should keep their distance from other people, then they will likely be more vigilant about following the rules. That is the kind of mindset you want to instil in your children before they get back to their in-person classes.

Going back to school this year comes with several new challenges. By preparing your children, you can help them navigate through the changes calmly.