Adults across the city have been placed in a role few of us were prepared for: stay at home parent, remote worker, and homeschool coordinator for children across the full pre-K through 12th grade education spectrum. Presented with an unprecedented crisis, many grown-ups are left searching for answers to questions from housebound school-aged kids. I reached out to parents and caregivers for some examples of questions they had been facing at home.
Many children had questions that adults in the highest offices of government are struggling with:
- When will it end, and why don't we know when we can go back to school?
- What will go back to normal eventually and what will be different?
- They all want to know in my house if summer will be canceled
Some elementary school aged children had questions about the science of viruses and sickness:
- If coronavirus is a germ and germs are everywhere, why is it so much worse?
- There are so many people in the world. How could we ever make enough medicine or a vaccine for all of them?
Other children share our concern for the safety of our friends and family:
- Are Nona and Babo [grandparents] going to die? Am I ever going to get to see them again?
None of us know what exactly will happen the next year or two as scientists work across the globe to create a vaccine. When talking to children about current events and new developments in science, it’s important to remember “I don’t know” is sometimes the right answer. There’s much we don’t know about COVID-19. However, many resources exist digitally that can help adults and children find some answers while we wait.
Where to Start
The Centers for Disease Control recommend caregivers start by informing themselves so they can give calm, factual answers to children’s questions. Their guide, “Talking with children about Coronavirus Disease 2019” is a great place to start. This guide focuses on safe principles for hard conversations, basic facts for informed families, and an emphasis on healthy habits to build at home. Their guides are also downloadable to share with friends and family offline in both English and Spanish.
Staying at home can be hard for everyone in a household. While the Girl Scouts of America focuses on the development of young girls as leaders of tomorrow, caregivers for all genders can find something useful in their COVID-19 guide. From keeping the peace at home, to helping children deal with the disappointment of missed milestones, they offer suggestions to setting up a safe space at home to adapt to new circumstances. (They’re also selling their famous Girl Scout Cookies online, if you think a box of Thin Mints might make days at home a little easier!)
Where Kids Can Learn
Breaking down the science of viruses and how they spread is challenging. For young children, you might focus on what is a germ, how germs get us sick, and how we share our germs with others. Older children may be curious about the details of viruses and how they are unique in the microscopic world, or the origins of COVID-19. More advanced students comfortable with scientific data, graphs, and computer models can examine data locally and globally, and tackle the real-word questions scientists are asking today. Knowing what information exists, and how we can use it to learn more, may spark a young scientist into a future career researching disease.
The resources below are grouped roughly by age. But you know your children best, and can estimate what would be the most useful for learning together.
Multiple parents of young children I spoke to recommended Ask the Storybots - How do People Catch a Cold? (S2E8 – available to Netflix subscribers) as a place to understand germs with little ones.
On YouTube, Stated Clearly: Where Do New Viruses Come From? helps layout what makes viruses different from bacteria and other germs.
Doctor Li and the Crown Wearing Virus is a new digital children’s book by Francesca Cavallo, author of Good Night Stories for Rebel Girls. This picture book walks children through the origins of the virus, and how we got to today. It is available for free download as a PDF.
The New York Times podcast sat down with a scientist to answer questions from children about Coronavirus in March. While this podcast doesn’t include the latest information, it answers many of the questions your child might be asking at home.
Rockefeller University’s RockEDU program has two great online resources aimed at kids learning at home. The first is their COVID-19 Q&A, which includes a recording of a live zoom meeting on Coronavirus. RockEDU also has an interactive course online, designed especially for the outbreak. What is a Virus, Anyway? is written for high school students, but can provide an interesting and interactive insights for many advanced learners on what viruses are, how we identify them, and what you can do to stay safe.
If you find yourself getting even more questions about the science behind the outbreak, there are two programs that specialize in live chats with scientists:
- BioBus weekly virtual townhalls are an opportunity for young people to ask questions on health and outbreak related topics.
- For remote learners, Skype a Scientist “matches scientists with people from around the world,” and offers free remote experiences for classes that want to meet scientists directly. Scientists can be requested based on a class’ age, or the topic they are interested in. Their scientist volunteers are great at explaining complex topics in clear, engaging ways.
Lastly, if your child is comfortable with computers and curious about how we are tracking COVID-19, there are several interactive maps that offer up-to-date data of what we know:
Anxiety and Preparing for “Unpause”
None of us know exactly when we will return to school, see our friends in person, or enjoy outdoor events in New York City. That uncertainty can be tiring and scary. When the worst of the infections have passed, it will be a jarring experience to return to crowded spaces and regular urban life. That’s why it’s important for grownups and children alike to seek out help for self-care and mental health now and develop strong mental supports that will last us for a long time.
The city has many resources for families looking for support, including call in helplines, free apps for smartphones, and digital resources for the entire household.
The Brooklyn Public Library is committed to serving Brooklyn’s families no matter where they look to learn. Learn how to access the library’s large ebook and audiobook collection, including a wide array of fun to read aloud children’s books, non-fiction books for youth, and ebooks for caregivers looking to take a mental break.
Our virtual programs can offer a welcome break from schooling at home, including Storytime for little ones, Book Adventures for elementary school students, and virtual meditation and DIY artmaking for Teens.
Your household’s needs will change as our city changes around us. While none of us have all the answers, we can learn and share with each other to find what we need.
Are there digital resources your family has found useful for answering your child’s questions? Leave a suggestion in the comments!
*Opening photo courtesy of PBS
This blog post reflects the opinions of the author and does not necessarily represent the views of Brooklyn Public Library.
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