Sanyukta Baijal
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Hitting children gradually reduces the effect of your scolding on them. In such a situation, you should keep calm and explain to them. Hence, it would be best if you had a lot of patience.
The COVID-19 pandemic has all of us locked up at home with offices, business and educational institutes shutting down. The condition doesn't seem to improve anytime soon. While all this is impacting adults, kids are also having a tough time staying at home for so many days. Like the grown-ups, children are also equally affected psychologically by the lockdown. According to a data released by UNICEF (The United Nations Children's Fund), more than 1.5 billion children and young people are affected by the closing of schools in 188 countries. This is almost 90% of the global population of students. Though schools are arranging online classes for children, studying at home is taking a toll on the mental health of your little ones too. This whole situation, coupled with the panic all around, is making them irritable, anxious, insecure and stressed out. All these can affect your child's cognitive functioning as well. While you try to make your child aware of the current pandemic scenario and help him cope with it, make sure you take care of his mental health too.
When kids go to school, they have a fixed schedule for everything. right from waking up in the morning to dozing off at night. During the lockdown too, fix a proper schedule for your kids at home. A fixed routine gives a sense of security to kids. Schedule proper study hours, mealtimes and playtime too. Doing this will help them get more organized enhance their cognitive functioning like decision-making skills.
It is understandable that you find it irritating to stay at home and manage everything including work. This may make you take it out all on your kids. Researchers from the University of Houston in the US conducted a study which was published in the Journal of Occupational Health Psychology. It says that the amount of self-control parents bring to parenting is linked with the mental stress which their child may feel. Therefore, it is very important for you to stay calm and have patience while dealing with your kids, especially during trying times like this.
Lockdown has made people especially children stick to TVs and mobiles for a longer period of time as compared to earlier. It is important for you to limit the screen time for your kids as it can have an impact on their development. Yes, according to a study conducted by the University at Albany, the National Institutes of Health and New York University Langone Medical Center, the average time a child spends in front of screens increased from 53 minutes per day at 12 months to more than 150 minutes at 3 years. This is impacting kids' growth and proper development. Also, it may cause poor eyesight. So, make sure you cut down on your little one's screen time. Encourage him to indulge in other co-curricular activities.
As your child stays shut at home, give him a congenial learning space to take the stress out of studies. Remember, restricted movement has already taken a toll on his mind. So, make learning an easeful process. Create a study environment for your kids which includes a de-cluttered and clean space. A study conducted at the University of California-Los Angeles showed that messy homes and surroundings increase your chances of depression. Therefore, it is important for you to clean up the clutter in order to boost your child's mental health and reduce stress.
Prolonged hours of sitting and studying in the same posture can lead to long-term back achein children. This, in turn, can add to his irritability. Therefore, encourage your kids to sit straight and not slouch. This will keep back and neck pain at bay. Also don't force him to keep sitting at one place and study. Show him how to change posture.