2020 didn’t exactly play out to how I had planned it to be. It was supposed to be the year that my 4 year old attends school for the first time (which he did, but was kind of cut short). I was excited and looking forward to cheering for him on sports day, sending him off to his first school trip, and being that mum that jumps off her seat in excitement for her son’s first school concert. Obviously, that didn’t happen.

 

Everything that I had in mind and was looking forward to fell to crumbs the moment COVID-19 hit our shores and the Movement Control Order (MCO) was implemented. Forward to a few months later, we’ve had our fair share of going in and out of school. Classes moved predominantly online, parents were encouraged to work from home and going out was discouraged in order for everyone to be safe and healthy.

 

My son was confused. He had to stay inside, take online classes, not meet his friends, and avoid playgrounds. This in-turn caused him to be restless, anxious and at times difficult to handle. Top that off with a mum struggling to stay positive and patient, well let’s just say no one was happy.

 

So what are the signs that your child is under too much stress?

According to Dr Esther Yong, Senior Centre Manager, REAL Kids and General Manager, Centre of Learning & Training, REAL Education Group, some of the signs that you need to look out for include:

• signs of rebellion
• impatience or intolerance,
• getting angry quickly
• fatigue
• behaviour change or behavioural issues.
• signs of ‘sickness’ such as headaches and stomach aches, or even lose their appetite.

Physical development is also key for children during these times. Thus, REAL Kids encourages parent-child interaction like playing games or singing together, etc. Without it, children may exhibit signs of stress.

 

 

KEEPING CHILDREN HEALTHY & HAPPY

Despite the ongoing pandemic, REAL Kids believes parents should not defer the academic year of their children. Enrolling into preschool is still essential to build a child’s strong foundations in SEL or socio-emotional learning and to provide vital brain stimulations. A lot can be lost in a year and not having these solid foundations could actually add more stress to a child later on.

 

REAL Kids’ online classes are designed to be ‘developmentally appropriate’ (according to curriculum and age); which helps a child’s social, emotional, and cognitive development. Here, interactive or two-way communication is important, such as having a teacher on screen while teaching or giving children instructions and them responding.

 

Additionally, REAL Kids’ online learning nurtures children to be independent learners, helping them to develop autonomy through selected activities that REAL Kids provides. All these combined, enable children’s preschool needs to be met.

 

But there’s no doubt that getting your preschooler to sit through their entire online class can be a challenge. This leads to point No. 1:

 

#1 Don’t force a child to learn through ways they are not comfortable with.

According to Dr Esther Yong, experts advised that the screen time for 3 to 4-year olds is only about 15 minutes while for 5 to 6-year olds is about 30 minutes or so. Most of them are unable to focus or to give their full attention for more than 15 minutes and that we shouldn’t force children to learn through ways which are not comfortable to them.

 

“Parents are supposed to partner teachers in educating their children. They shouldn’t look at themselves as merely ‘helping’ but supporting their children’s learning (virtual learning per se) by assisting and accompanying their children during virtual lessons,” she says.

 

#2 Create a supportive environment

My son is a social person, he loves going out, playing with his friends and enjoys riding his bike. But ever since COVID-19, he was mostly stuck at home with little to hardly any interaction other than the ones on video calls and Zoom classes- which is totally different than physical interactions.

 

 

This is where it’s our job as parents to provide those interactions and activities that they crave for. As Dr Esther explains, “Teachers and parents should create a supportive environment for children by providing them with activities that they enjoy doing at home. Keep them occupied with small projects (such as small-scale gardening or culinary) which they will be rewarded upon completion.”

 

At REAL Kids, we even introduced a ‘fitness challenge’ programme for our children. This fitness challenge is assigned to children via our remote learning platform and they would be rewarded with certificates upon completing the challenges. – Dr Esther Yong.

 

And I agree! I now have a mini sky garden on my balcony thanks to MCO and my boy enjoys a little gardening with me from time to time. But as a working parent with deadlines to meet, i admit that it isn’t easy taking time off away from the screen to spend quality time doing activities that we know are beneficial for them. This brings us to point no. 3:

 

#3 Quality Vs Quantity

I’m a firm believer in spending quality time with my boys. To me it’s not about the number of minutes or hours, but the quality when we do spend time with them. That means time free from distractions such as your phone, the TV and other things that might be lingering on your mind.

 

On a weekday, I try to spend about an hour after dinner and before bedtime to play or read with them, while on weekends we do more activities together, from cooking, gardening, painting and lots more.

 

What to do when time is of the essence?

At preschool age, leaving your child to fend for themselves might be a struggle. They’re constantly seeking our attention and want us to play with them. Dr Esther’s advice to working parents is to spend after-dinner time with their children instead of watching TV, or plan a few hours to spend with their children for some ‘parent-kid’ project over the weekend (now that we are not encouraged to go out too often).

 

“In the event that parents are unable to sit down with their children for virtual learning sessions on working days, they can perhaps request for the recording of those virtual lessons from teachers for them to go through with their children when they have the time after work or during weekends. Alternatively, to discuss with the teacher if certain virtual lessons can be conducted during after-work hours. There is no ideal solution to this,” she continues.

 

There’s no doubt that this pandemic has been a really tough time for all of us, and especially for our kids. In these testing times, mental well-being is more important than ever for both parents and children.

 

“What children need most during this period is love, understanding, and encouragement. Thus, it is important for parents to be more supportive and patient with their children, allowing them to express their feelings and thoughts by lending them their ears,” says Dr Esther.

 

As part of its ‘New Year Celebration Offer’, REAL Kids is offering parents who enrol their child by 15 January 2021 the following goodies:

1) 50% off Registration Fee
2) Savings of 5% in Tuition Fees*
3) FREE Accelerated Learning Programme (worth RM800) that includes:

• Zapzapmath and ABC Learning Eggs (English)
• 4-day holiday camp programme during the March school holidays

*T&Cs apply.

Visit www.realkids.edu.my for more info and contact any one of REAL Kids’ 45 centres nationwide today!

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