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How to help young children understand what’s happening.
These extraordinary times are frightening, confusing and difficult to explain to young children. Many wonder why they can’t see family and friends and miss them terribly. Nosy Crow has launched a free online book, illustrated by Axel Scheffler and written in conjunction with leading medical experts, headteachers and child psychologists, to help parents answer those difficult questions.
During the current crisis it is difficult to juggle how much information to share with our young children. Explaining our current extraordinary situation in simple terms that doesn’t frighten, confuse or overwhelm young children can be challenging. Annie Tierney, Head of Operations talks about how children can be affected by the crisis and how parents can support them.
We are all being affected by the crisis and children, of any age, can find this time as difficult as adults. This can manifest itself in many ways and children can react differently and at different times.
Children may respond emotionally and be stressed, showing this through being upset, distressed, anxious, angry and agitated. They may also respond behaviourally by becoming clingy, withdrawn and bed wetting; or physically by having stomach aches, not sleeping.
Nosy Crow has developed a book that helps answer key questions about the pandemic in a simple language that children can understand. By reading this story to your children it may help them to understand and feel less anxious about things they are seeing and hearing. Children always benefit from being able to express and communicate how they are feeling.
As you read the story children will ask questions, providing you with an opportunity to hear what is worrying them, acknowledge their concerns and comfort and reassure them. After reading the story parents can talk openly about what is happening in the world and provide answers to questions using words and explanations that they can understand. The main message children need to hear is that everything is being done to keep them and their families safe. Talk about actions you have taken as a family. This is a great opportunity to remind them about regular hand washing.
Nosy Crow has made this book is accessible to every child and family and so the book is offered totally free of charge to anyone who wants to read it. However, they have suggested, at the back of the book, that families might make a donation to help our health service if they find the book useful: https://www.nhscharitiestogether.co.uk/.
If you do download the book we’d love to hear how your children respond to the story.