C ovid and kids

cj maxx

The kids (6&7) were playing together yesterday.
A dinosaur was attacking a paddock of horsies !
I noticed that the human and some horse figures were lying down and were dead/sick. There was a virus making the people sick/die !
Is this effing virus going to always be their psych. With not going anywhere and constant hand washing it's bound to leave a life long impression
Has any one noticed their children doing similar ?

Big Bag of Chips

I think it's childish imagination. It's also topical. We would have played games and indeed I have heard my children playing games about zombies, ghosts, earthquakes, volcanoes (lava is always very popular!), floods, etc.

I wouldn't worry too much about them playing a game. They're processing what they're hearing. When a vaccine is brought out and the virus has been gone for a few months they won't even really remember it all. Unless they seem overly anxious or worried then I'd just let them continue without offering any input.

Sarn

Ring a ring a roses was from the plague, so children have been doing this for a long time.

cj maxx

Ah I know and I'm sure when they're back at school to some normality returns they'll forget all about it. I hope !

lazygal

Play is how children process their world. Better than bottling up their feelings!

Loveinapril

Adding to what Lazygal has said, kids process their emotions through play so it is really good that they are actively playing out scenarios they are hearing about regularly. I studied and practiced play therapy and this sort of play is really important for children's development. Be sure to let them do it without interfering. Just keep an open and honest dialogue when they are ready to talk about it.

Sunrise_Sunset

Kids on my road were playing tag coronavirus yesterday

shesty

Yeah it is how they work it out.Notice how quick they take to handwashing and avoiding people when out.
I know what you mean though, I wish it hadn't such an impact on their lives.

witchgirl26

Just to say that the handwashing might leave a life long impression but not necessarily in a bad way. My mam was recalling how my granddad was quite insistent on people washing their hands when they came into the house. It was only during this that her & her brother were talking and realised that my granddad would have been 13 during the Spanish Flu pandemic where handwashing was pushed in a similar way.

shesty

Yes, nothing wrong with the increased hygiene awareness with the age groups for mine anyway!!

6 year old gave me a bit of a shock earlier when she said she wished she could "go back to the old days"....when I tried to figure that one out she told me "when we could play without worrying about touching". Stopped me in my tracks a bit I admit because the few kids we have seen lately, we haven't bothered too much about touching or non-touching (all outdoors, same couple of kids over and over) and I kind of thought she was well-used to this. Didn't quite realise she would like it all to go away as much as I would, especially since things have improved the last while.

jlm29

Every time someone coughs or sneezes my just turned 3 year old asks them if they have the coronavirus. It’s amazing how much they take in.

skallywag

I see nothing wrong with it at all. My own youngster was in the garden the other day and would yelp and run from spot to spot when I pointed out that I could see the virus on the grass beside them in various positions.

I really would not worry on the kids behalf though. Kids process things much different than we do as adults. They will just accept the situation and get on with it, usually without as much as batting an eyelid.

Neyite

The only thing to watch out for is if they might misinterpret what they hear. When the virus was at it's peak I had a chat with the 8yo about it. I was honest but in a child-friendly way. He's the kind that would hear something and dwell on it for days getting worried. At the time you literally could not escape it being talked about - the numbers who got sick and the numbers of people who died. I didn't want him to think that everyone who gets the virus died but did explain that for most people it's something that would land them in bed for a couple of weeks feeling very bleh (idea of hell for an 8yo) but that for some who already had a health issue or condition it was a bit more dangerous so we had to protect them. Then I kind of explained household bubbles with a drawing and so on.

drunkmonkey

I was asked last night by the 5yr old when are the zombies coming to eat us. We've moved on from the virus but no idea what direction were heading now.

nikpmup

My six year old has taken to exclaiming loudly "that man/lady isn't wearing a mask! They must want to catch the coronavirus!" I do a token shush, but I'm secretly delighted that he's mask shaming on my behalf

lazygal

I let mine shame away. A good life lesson on how some adults are idiots.

SouthWesterly

Mine play soldiers with the eldest marching around the house with his stick rifle every evening after putting the Chickens in for the night.