Worried about not being the perfect teacher for your kids at home? Don’t stress! We were forwarded this letter from a teacher to the parents of her students. Whilst we don’t know which amazing teacher wrote it, it really resonated with us – providing reassurance that we can only do, what we can do. Let’s get through this together.
Dear Parents with school aged children,
You might be inclined to create a minute by minute schedule for your kids. You have high hopes of hours of learning, including online activities, science experiments, and book reports. Youโll limit technology until everything is done! But hereโs the thing…
Our kids are just as scared as we are right now. Our kids not only can hear everything that is going on around them, but they feel our constant tension and anxiety. They have never experienced anything like this before. Although the idea of being off of school for several weeks sounds awesome, they are probably picturing a fun time like the summer holidays; not the reality of being trapped at home and not seeing their friends.
Over the coming weeks, you will see an increase in behaviour issues with your kids. Whether itโs anxiety, or anger, or protest that they canโt do things normally – it will happen. Youโll see more meltdowns, tantrums, and oppositional behaviour in the coming weeks. This is normal and expected under these circumstances.
What kids need right now is to feel comforted and loved. To feel like itโs all going to be ok. And that might mean that you tear up your perfect schedule and love on your kids a bit more. Play outside and go on walks. Bake cookies and paint pictures. Play board games and watch movies. Do a science experiment together or find virtual field trips of the zoo. Start a book and read together as a family. Snuggle under warm blankets and do nothing.
Donโt worry about them regressing in school. Every single kid is in this boat and they all will be ok. When we are back in the classroom, we will all course correct and meet them where they are. Teachers are experts at this! Donโt pick fights with your kids because they donโt want to do maths. Donโt scream at your kids for not following the schedule. Donโt mandate two hours of learning time if they are resisting it.
If I can leave you with one thing, itโs this: at the end of all of this, your kidsโ mental health will be more important than their academic skills. And how they felt during this time will stay with them long after the memory of what they did during those weeks is long gone. So keep that in mind, every single day.
Stay safe.
