Trying to explain the COVID-19 pandemic to children is no easy feat - with parents around the world expressing their uncertainty about how exactly to approach the daunting topic.
One of the world’s leading children’s charities Save The Children, is calling on Australia’s Prime Minister to give parents a helping hand.
Principal Adviser of Child Protection at Save the Children Karen Flanagan told SBS News having Scott Morrison reassure the country’s young people can be powerful.
“He doesn't talk about children very often, so it would be great for him to show children and young people that he definitely is thinking about them and their wellbeing,” she said.
Ms Flanagan said it was vital children were heard by adults and were a part of the conversation about COVID-19, both at home and at the national level.
“Children have voices and ideas and they also are directly impacted by this, either because their parents have lost jobs, or grandparents are at risk of being sick,” she said.
“So they would probably have a lot of questions for the prime minister.”
Save the Children’s request to the Prime Minister comes after two of his counterparts in Norway and New Zealand held special children-only press conferences to reassure their youngest citizens.
Ms Flanagan said it was vital children were heard by adults and were a part of the conversation about COVID-19, both at home and at the national level. Source: Getty
Norwegian Prime Minister Erna Solberg and her cabinet ministers held a kids-only press conference about the COVID-19 disease on Monday 16 March, in an effort to answer all the big questions from little ones and to acknowledge that for now, their lives would change.
“Because of the coronavirus, our lives have become very different, both for adults and children,” Ms Solberg said.
Norwegian Prime Minister Erna Solberg during a children-only press conference on the coronavirus. Source: AAP
“I know that many children think it is scary, and I understand that very well. It’s ok to be scared when so many things happen at the same time.”
A few days later, New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern organised a similar event, where she was joined by two female science communicators.
“Kids ask a lot of questions most of the time, and right now they understandably have plenty about COVID-19,” Ardern posted on Instagram.
“That’s why we put on a press conference just for children and their questions. I hope it will be a useful resource to help answer some of the questions from the young people in your life.”
Ms Flanagan said children are more aware of their surroundings than sometimes they are given credit for, and it’s very important to address their concerns head-on.
“Parents are very stressed and anxious... they hear conversations about mortgage payments, rental payments, and children internalise those messages and they don't really know what to do,” she said.
“We are concerned about the short, medium and long term impacts on their emotional and psychological wellbeing.”
Save the Children has been collecting questions for the PM from children across Australia:
Nine-year-old Rosario asked, “when will I be able to go back to school?” and, “when can I play with my friends?”
16-year-old Alex asked, “What is the government doing about my dad who’s at risk working at the hospital?”
Kupa, 19, asked: “What are the things that are going to be put in place to help my friends and some of my family members who’ve lost their jobs so they’ll still be able to do things like pay the mortgage and rent?
TheKids Helpline is also reporting a surge in calls from children struggling to come to terms with the impacts of the pandemic.
Ms Flanagan said it was “a real range of issues that people are ringing up about: people are lonely, isolated, and they're anxious.”
She said family violence is also a real concern.
Unfortunately, we know in times of great stress, families who were already vulnerable, or families where there was violence... chances are that that can escalate and children can be directly impacted physically and emotionally,” she said.
The Kids Helpline is also reporting a surge in calls from children during the COVID-19 pandemic. Source: AAP
