Welcome back to After School Tea Time! We hope that you had an amazing holiday break. We are looking forward to spilling more tea with you this year and getting your questions answered. Get your teacups ready because you won’t want to miss out! 

Question from Fairfield County – “My child’s program just went virtual again temporarily after the holiday break. They are very upset because they won’t get to see their friends or teachers. I’m concerned because I know that my child is very social and thrives in environments where they can communicate with others. How can I support my child during this time and help them cope with the situation? “

Hello Fairfield and thank you for asking this question. This is a really important topic at the moment. Some programs have decided to go virtual after the holidays due to staffing shortages and also to prevent the spread of COVID-19. I think that having a conversation with your child about why it’s necessary to protect other people from getting sick will help them understand that safety and health is important. Explain to them that if their friends or teachers get sick, they won’t be able to come together and participate in the classroom. Mention that it’s also a temporary decision and that they will return in-person again. I would also reach out to the parents of your child’s friends and ask if they would like to arrange virtual hangout sessions so that your child can still see them and talk to them after their lessons. This will help your child still feel connected to their friends even though they are in a virtual environment. As for seeing their teachers, I would just encourage your child to participate as much as they can during lessons. Explain to them that by actively participating they are actually helping their teachers and might be helping other students that are having a hard time engaging in the material. Tell them that their teachers will appreciate their participation especially since distance learning can be challenging. I would also suggest that you encourage your child to express their emotions in a creative way. This article explains how you can help your child process their emotions through music and art. This article gives 6 online activities to help your child cope with COVID-19. We hope that this will be helpful!

To send in your questions please click this link. We’ll see you next week to spill more tea!