First, apologies to our subscribers and readers for cancellation of the April and May issues of ParentsWorld. The magazine was all set to go to press, but the national lockdown announced on March 24 by prime minister Narendra Modi following the Covid-19 pandemic and closure of courier and postal services threw a massive spanner in the works. However, though our print issue was cancelled, our team working from home has been uploading daily education and parenting updates on our portal www. educationworld.in. Also check out our new reader-friendly hi-tech e-magazine. The Covid-19 pandemic, which has infected 6.19 million people and killed 3.7 lakh in 198 countries worldwide including 2.08 lakh infections and over 5,800 killed in India, has disrupted everyday life on an unprecedented scale bringing schools, colleges and universities around the world to a grinding halt, upending the lives of millions of parents and children. Work-from-home and study-from-home orders have created unprecedented pressures and stress within households across the country. Anxiety about the health of elders and loved ones, loss of taken-for-granted freedoms and mobility, and fear of job loss and pay cuts, are playing havoc with the psychological and emotional well-being of parents as well as adolescents and children struggling to cope with the realities of shut down societies countrywide. Between March 25-April 8, the Central government’s Childline India has reported 92,000 calls from abused children — a 50 percent increase over the fortnight before the lockdown announcement on March 24.
Therefore, in this issue of ParentsWorld which in normal circumstances would have featured a menu of summer activity camps, we highlight the unprecedented problems of parenting children in the lockdown era. In this carefully curated cover feature we present useful coping strategies gathered from experienced psychologists and parenting experts to manage children in these troubled times. There’s valuable advice on teaching personal hygiene and safeguarding the physical, mental and emotional well-being of children; work from home guidelines for parents; tips to manage pandemic anxiety; how to balance children’s studies and play and the best ways to talk to children about this lethal pandemic.
Moreover, check out Vellore-based pediatrician Dr. Gita Mathai’s column on boosting body immunity the natural way; the Academic Advantage feature on home-based initiatives to develop children’s computational thinking skills and recipes featuring cool summer treats.
We would love your feedback on this special issue and also first-hand reports of your experience of parenting children in the lockdown era. Stay safe and follow all safety prescriptions and guidelines of the government, health and law enforcement agencies.