There is nothing normal about this school year!!

2020 has been a strange and one of the most difficult year in our life!! The world was affected by this very infectious disease  COVID 19 and everything came to a halt since Spring. My daughter was so excited about her Spring Recital and so were we but the schools closed in March and we ended up having a Last day of School Year in our cars with teachers meeting the kids handing their artworks in a packet and wishing them from a distance. This is how the first year of preschool for my daughter ended and to top it all I was away stuck overseas away from my family.

Now comes the biggest question every parent is struggling with!!

Is it okay to send our kids back to school?

Sadly there is no correct answer to this. It totally depends on parents & kids. For me it wasn't very tough to decide because I reunited with my kid after 5 long months and I want to spend time with her. But even if that was not the case , I wouldn't have sent her back to school this year to make sure she stays safe. The dynamics of COVID19 are still unknown and I wouldn't have been comfortable if my kid would have gone to school. This being said, there are many parents who have highly demanding jobs and are facing a difficult time keeping their kids occupied at home. Also there are parents who stay home but still the kids are unhappy because they are not able to go to school &  meet their friends.

   In any case its important to keep our kids happy and make sure this lockdown isn't stressing them mentally beyond a limit. These are extraordinary times & only a parent is the best person to judge what their child needs. Parents are best to decide if their kid should go back to school or not.

Preschool kids are very young  and its difficult for them to understand the importance of wearing masks or the need of social distancing. Its hard for them not to touch their face every now and then. How do we make sure they don't do that when in school. Also online classes for kids this small is tough because their attention span is short & the online classes won't be that productive for them.

This is a big dilemma we all are facing as parents  this year and its nothing but normal to feel that our child is missing out on school which was a big part of their daily regimen. Its actually harder for teachers  and school authorities as well because they have to ensure safety of kids in their premises and we all know how contagious Corona Virus is.

Its not just school but any public place where its possible to contact COVID 19 and that's why its very important for kids (especially the small ones) to understand the current situation.  I really pray and hope that the vaccine for COVID 19 comes soon so that we all can start living safely.

How to make your preschooler aware about COVID 19?

Kids are good at replicating actions they see us doing. We have been making full use of it with T. One day she took me by surprise, when while going out she asked me for her face mask. She happily wore the mask while she was outside.

Similarly, we  have been emphasizing on washing hands all the time and now it has become a habit. The first thing we all do after coming home is wash hands with soap and water.

I even tried doing a pictorial representation of the situation in order to explain the concept of social distancing and why its important.

This would not only ensure that they stay safe at school but also anywhere where they interact outside family.

For now I am trying to keep her occupied with different set of activities during the day and it surely is a hell lot of work. I try to minimize screen time but its not an easy task and we have downloaded some nice education apps by Sago Mini & Pepi Play which she really likes. I will be sharing activities in a separate post.

All we need to remember right now is this is temporary and once things settle down the world will be different but things will return to a new normal.

Till then lets not judge anyone for their choices and be empathetic and helpful towards each other.