Returning to school in a pandemic is undiscovered territory and disturbing to students. Here, is an advice on how parents can help their children to be prepared for schooling.

As a parent, if you think going back to school is OK, so will your child

Back to school usually means falling into a familiar routine, but now everything is different, from the one-way system to playground rules. If your child is nervous about returning, communicate with calm words and actions that it is safe. This will significantly increase their chances of a smooth transition. Prepare your child with information before the term starts. Reassure them that it’s OK if they forget the odd Covid-19 regime rule; it takes time to learn anything new.

 Support your child to face their worries

Periods of separation can make us anxious and some children are worried about returning to school. The Parents’ job is to help them tolerate anxiety and hold the bigger picture. Even young children may have overheard frightening news headlines or conversations, so model a calm, pragmatic attitude which will decrease their anxiety levels. Remember, avoidance is never the answer when anxiety is in the mix. The thought of something is often more worrying than doing it, so support your child calmly, kindly and firmly back to school using a step-by-step plan. Reward the one who is achieving the first steps as these are most challenging.

Young brains learn best when they feel calm

For pupils who are ready to get back to learning, parental enthusiasm is important. Others may not be ready yet and for them, too much academic pressure will backfire. We know the brain needs to feel calm before it can learn effectively, so a child’s wellbeing needs to be the priority for parents and teachers and then successful attainment will follow. Now more than ever, kindness and connection will see us through.

Friendship groups are likely to have shifted

School is as much about relationships as schoolwork, so there may be trepidation when children think about their position in class or small friendship groups. Talk about shifts in friendships as a given, this will help them adapt and be open to change, which is conducive to relationship building. At the same time, you may need to set up some scaffolding to ease socially cautious children back into things, so organize some events with classmates.

Listen, reflect and (this is the hard part) sit with it

hatever your child’s communication style, the advice is similar: listen first (it’s hard) and rephrase what they said, then they know they have been heard. This sounding board means children can figure out their thoughts and feelings. Simply listening and accepting is enormously healing.