FEW OF THE 12 POINTS ARE:
1. Encourage open discussion with children about COVID. As the family watches TV together, children might be more aware of the infection than we think. Also, getting them to realize WHY we need to wear masks, wash our hands with soap, and avoid playing with friends help them comply better.
2. An undiscovered benefit of lockdown could be the close contact time that parents now have with their kids. This “restriction” can be easily changed into an opportunity of engaging, learning, creative activities, as well as of bonding. Children can learn to provide the helping hand when much domestic work needs to be shared.
3. Time structuring really helps when the phase gets long (discipline often sounds like school). Time to rise, time for chores, time for exercise (yoga), time for TV and entertainment, time for creative engagement, time for social interactions on phone, time for news watching, time for movies and so on. A short term and long term of goal setting helps.
4. Dealing with bad behavior can be a challenge. As parents do not now have schools and school teachers to blame, they must learn to tackle it. Scolding and punishing can, make matters worse as children are as frustrated as adults with these new restrictions. Getting them involved in a common creative activity such as singing or painting can be a win-win situation. This may help parents to rediscover themselves and peep into the interests and talents of their children.
5. Visit to the internet is often inevitable. Instead of prying and monitoring all the time, it may be a good idea to let them undertake tasks, such as learning or making a project on a topic. That would help them stay focussed and not stray.
6. Studies and scholastics are important, but let them discover and enjoy the process of learning try to beat the teachers at this game during these times.
Every challenge can be turned into an opportunity. Think how you would feel if your children remember these months years later as the best time of their lives bonding, sharing, working and learning with their parents!