It came in like a storm and disrupted life like no other. The black swan event of 2020 wounded the world deeply. Come 2022, the COVID-19 pandemic seems to be gradually losing its grip. People and the institutions that make up the society we live in are slowly getting the space to breathe again.
Aligned with this rejuvenation are schools that are opening their gates once again, and gaining back their physical strength. On one hand, it is a matter of glee that children, who were confined to a screen to gain knowledge, will return to physical classrooms after two long years of hiatus, but an issue lingers under the shadow of this joyful transformation.
According to many experts, a plethora of mental health problems are simmering and persist as children return to normalcy. Social anxiety, problems coping with rigid schedules, lack of concentration for longer periods are some of the elements in the list that mental health experts are warning parents about.
How to help children cope with new normal?
While reopening of schools have some underlying benefits that will naturally cater to the development of children, multiple ways are also being devised, that parents and teachers can adopt, to smoothen the transformation from digital to physical. A soft surveillance needs to be established wherein parents identify and screen signs of distress, anxiety, or any other mental health-related difficulty.
In addition to this, parents can metaphorically hold their children’s hands while they begin or resume their journey to school. They can do this by being verbal about the positives of school, the excitement of meeting up with peers, and the benefits of learning and grasping outside a screen.
While doing so, parents also need to be patient with the process and not let their own fears cast a shadow on their kids. These fears can be related to adaptation of the physical world, still-lingering and malevolent coronavirus, or stunted coping abilities of children who had been wandering in the virtual world for quite a while.
With adequate guidance and proper COVID-19 measures, the old normal might return adeptly and children can once again walk the roads of holistic development. They can once again hone the skills to socialise, adapt, and learn.
