With the world amidst a global pandemic in the form of the coronavirus pandemic, more commonly known as the covid-19 pandemic, it is advised to stay at home in quarantine. This means that families are living together most of the time. With your child at home, now that their schools are also shut, this will be challenging since you’ll even have to cater to your little one’s whims and fancies amid professional commitments, aside from other chores.
In this article, we will discuss 11 best coronavirus (covid-19) parenting tips for you to take care of your little ones and retain your sanity too.
- Modify your routine
If you are working from home, then it does not mean you give up your daily routine completely. It is recommended that you simply maintain your regular routine–from having breakfast on time to doing other activities during the day. But now that your child may also be at home with most schools being shut, tweak your schedule–your professional work hours and other chores–to be able to spend some time with your child as well.
- Plan your day in advance
To avoid confusion, mark your schedule on a calendar beforehand. Keep track of your child’s schedule and therefore the household chores you would like to finish while performing from home and assign the duties among members of the family accordingly. Doing so will ensure that you are not overwhelmed at the beginning of the day, because that can lead to stress and you might end up venting in an unhealthy manner. This can affect your kids mentally and physically.
- Share duties
Do not overburden yourself by trying to take up childcare duties and all other responsibilities while working from home, or it may only lead to chaos. Divide duties together with your partner who can take care of your child for a couple of hours while you complete your professional commitments, as an example. Make sure that you and your partner act as equals, instead of catering to defunct and toxic gender roles, which only burdens the woman with housework and childcare and leaves the man with zero responsibilities.
- Engage your child
During the time you’re working, get your child involved in interesting activities like playing virtual games, reading books, taking note of podcasts, art, and craft online activities than on. That way you may not be interrupted too many times as you work. Children have very fast minds and lots of energy, which is why it is important to keep them occupied; otherwise, they will end up with mayhem in the house.
- Set realistic goals
Keeping realistic goals in your professional and private life will save you from unnecessary anxiety and stress. You will also be able to manage the expectations of your child and others better. Don’t be too harsh upon yourself. Remember that you are a human being at the end of the day. Be realistic about what you can and can’t do, and then you’ll see that it is easier to manage everything.
- Talk to your child
It is recommended that you talk to your child about their lives. You have to try to be their friend and confidante. Involve your child in planning the day’s activities; ask them about why you need to work from home and the way they will help you approach the daily routine.
- Tell them properly about the pandemic
As the virus spreads, many parents are getting lots of unnecessary updates and forwards on social media. Take some time and educate your kids regarding the myths and fake news. Find time to talk with your children about the covid-19 outbreak. Children worry more when they’re kept within the dark.
- Teach them how to live in quarantine
Share facts and answer their queries about covid-19 in a way that your child can understand better. Teach them how to adjust and live with others during this period.
- Avoid excessive exposure to news coverage of covid-19
The covid-19 being a new disease, there are chances that your child may misinterpret what they hear or see on social media and can be scared of something they do not actually understand.
- Do not pressurize your child to attend online classes
With the lockdown and the quarantine in effect, most of the well-to-do schools have started with online classes. This is a new thing for kids, and it is natural for them to be overwhelmed with all this work and cooped up at home. Let your kid miss classes now and then if they want to. Learning happens outside the classroom too, so it’s not that your kid will miss out on much.
- Make sure your kid is leading a healthy lifestyle
Quarantine means your children can’t go out to play. Lack of outdoor activities means your kids can put on weight or fall ill. Make sure that your kids are eating as much as they need and get some basic activities done at home.
Happy parenting!
