After ten weeks of home-schooling, are our children mentally prepared to return to school?
MyTutor – the UK’s leading online tutoring service – unveils advice from a clinical psychologist
The Government has pushed forward with plans to reopen primary schools from Monday, with Years 1 and 6 prepped to return to the classroom in groups of 15. Some children – and indeed, some parents – are feeling nervous about schools resuming, especially given the pushback from multiple councils.
To help ease these worries, MyTutor – the UK’s leading online tutoring service – unveil top tips from Senior Clinical Psychologist Dr. Shrenna Ghelani about how to handle the return to school:
Preparation
Treat it like the beginning of the school year – do a test run of getting ready in the morning, make sure school uniform fits, and practice packing bags and walking the route to school. For younger children, they may need a settling in period again – parents may have to come into the classroom and ensure their child is settled. For older children, use this time to keep their friendships alive by video call so returning back to their peer group doesn’t feel so unfamiliar.
Managing worry and anxiety
If you know your child might struggle with going back to school, try developing a toolbox of things they can do when they are worried at school. This might include a song to sing to themselves, visualising a calm place, some affirmation cards, practicing breathing techniques and identifying safe staff they can tell. You can make this box together and the child can take some bits with them to school.
Speak to your children about the impact of Coronavirus
Let children know that it is likely that other families may have been impacted by the virus, whether that’s keyworking parents working hard, or family bereavements. Encourage your child to be patient and kind to other children. Let you child know what they might still be expected to do – not hug friends, wash their hands more often, or not share toys.
For those students who are unable to return to school for now, Bertie Hubbard – CEO and Co-founder of MyTutor – discusses how EdTech can help students at home, until schools re-open to full capacity:
“Pupils working in isolation from home because of containment measures could face learning challenges at a critical period. Fortunately, online platforms can be accessed in a convenient and hygienic way across the globe. Online tutoring in particular can help alleviate the pressure felt by students and their families, as they can continue their schooling with one-to-one support all without leaving the house. Those who provide remote, on-demand services, such as MyTutor, can be relied on to support a large number of people as required.”
