Supporting yourself and your children during lockdown

Saturday 27 June, 2020

We know that for many of our parents you are faced with no choice but to keep your children at home if their year groups are not currently back in school.  This can be a strange and frustrating time for many, especially as some year groups have been able to return. 

We are always here for anybody that feels they may need to talk about how they are feeling.  Please read on for information on normal new behaviours that your child may be showing, and how you can support both them and yourselves.

Ways that your child may be feeling:

For children aged 3-6 years:

   Regressing to behaviour they’ve outgrown, such as thumb-sucking or bed-wetting

   Showing greater fear at being separated from you

   Tantrums

   Trouble sleeping

For children aged 7- 10 years

   Expressing sadness, anger or fear

   Sharing false information that they’re hearing from their peers or seeing online

   Wanting to talk about coronavirus all the time

   Not wanting to talk about the current situation at all

   Having trouble concentrating

Take care of yourself

It’s really important right now to take care of your own physical and mental health. Children are very perceptive, and they react to what they sense from the adults around them.

Here are some things you can do to help keep yourself healthy:

 Connect with others – maintain relationships with people you care about through phone and video calls

Exercise and eat healthy meals – take some time every day to move. You could go for a walk or run. You’ll also find lots of fitness videos online for everything from yoga to dance. Find something you enjoy and that makes you feel good

 Get some sleep – being anxious or worried can have a big impact on your sleep. If you’re struggling to get a good night’s sleep, try to develop a calming bedtime routine – for example, do 10 minutes of yoga or listen to calming music. There are also apps you can download that provide guided meditation to help you get to sleep more quickly.

 Connect with the outdoors – depending on where you live, it may not be possible to spend time outside. If you don’t have a garden or terrace, you can still open a window to let some fresh air and sunlight in. Put a comfortable chair by the window so you can look outside and get some air as you read a book

 Talk to someone – during this difficult time, sharing with family and friends how you’re feeling and what you’re doing to cope can be helpful for both you and them. There are also helplines you can call for support – we’ve included a list at the end of this pack

Where to find learning resources online

There’s plenty of support for parents online for everything from tools for home learning to PE: