mphomotloung

[mphomotloung]

Supporting your child during Lockdown

On the 9th of April 2020, President Cyril Ramaphosa announced that the national lockdown would be extended by an additional 2 weeks. The extension will test your patience to the limit as a parent but you need to remember to stay calm. You are the one who sets the tone for the younger ones to follow. Children can easily detect your frown or notice the slightest irritation in your voice or body language, then instinctively blame themselves for your mood. Try by all means not to make them feel responsible/bad for staying home for this additional 2 weeks and taking up your free time.

Such an announcement is bound to create a high level of devastation in our kids as they are now faced with a sudden transition and have to adapt. Their normal weekly routine has become disrupted without prior warning and are now lonely as they are without their friends for prolonged periods. The lack of social interactions could heighten their levels of anxiety and boredom, increasing the underlying urge to visit close friends during this lockdown extension, as expected.

It is up to us as parents to calmly sit them down and remind them of the dangers involved with  resorting to visiting friends at such a time and how that could easily spread the Corona virus. Talking to your children about social distancing and its positive impact will give them a broadened understanding of what's happening in the world today. Simply shouting at them and ordering them to sit still will not get the message across: instead it will create resentment, anger and misdirected emotional outbreaks. As much as this will require a lot of listening and patience, always remember that once you as  the parent are calm  and collected, the kids will relentlessly follow suit.

During this time of academic disruptions, parents need to remember that even the world's best teachers say their hardest students are their own children. Children are not wired to learn under a state of pressure, so parents need not worry if they are unable to teach their children as schools will make a plan when they re-open. Those that are able to teach are doing so at their level best. Right now the highest priority is giving your kids love, attention and healthy coping mechanisms. As a parent all you can do is be a pillar of strength and support to help make this easy on your young ones. Make it your regular goal to keep their minds  captivated by doing what they enjoy doing throughout the day. Worrying  about matters beyond your control will only make you feel hopeless and such emotions are projected onto children more than we realise.

 Activities to for parents and children to during the lockdown period:

Use positive talk: instead of saying, " I'm locked in", rather say "I've now got extra time to do a, b and c"

You have probably heard this one before, “create a daily routine to follow” this is true, impactful and can be done along with your children as a fun activity with paint, colour pens and crayons (be as creative as you can be) Planning out your days together will make the children feel more involved and allows them to feel accountable for each task or chore on a regular basis. If their school holds online classes, work with them on developing functional timetables and make them feel supported during this time.

 Avoid fixating on the circulating news concerning  the Corona virus. (this increases anxiety). If your coping mechanism involves speaking out, then feel free to do so with your friends and not to the child.

 Play indigenous games with the family (this will create a healthy routine plus give the family time to bond and relax while they laugh at games you used to play in your childhood) Who knows, they might find them interesting and make them a regular family ritual.

 indoor home exercises to keep fit and healthy.

 Arts and craft can be a fun and creative way to pass the time. Building paper planes and flying them around can be a challenging game-changer.

 The lost art of writing letters can help strengthen the relationship with your teenagers. It will allow them the freedom to open up to you about sensitive issues they are afraid to discuss in person, while strengthening their writing ability.

 Playing hide and seek and treasure hunts  with the little ones is a fun pastime that will make them realise how cool you can be.

Card games, board games and puzzles are a classic favourite for teenagers.

 Allow your children the freedom to also teach you the morden  games they play. Dance along to their tick-tock videos and crush away on those never-ending candies of candy crush. Make this lockdown period a fun-filled time that will grow the bond with your children as we are constantly swamped with work and responsibilities throughout the year.

[mphomotloung]

You know at times we have many thoughts that we don’t think about as much as we should. At times we have a lot of things to say but we don’t say it in a manner to be understood. At times, we do things and follow things without questioning our actions because it’s how we’ve been taught to do it…...