Psychologists will be studying "pandemic children" for years to come. While I haven't seen any speech or language deficiencies in Niall, who's worn his mask faithfully since turning two and who talks more and articulates better than most four-year-olds I've ever met, some educators feel that mask-wearing in kids has hindered speech and emotional learning.
I often wonder how the pandemic has affected (my) kids in more subtle (or less easily studied) ways. When we go to playgrounds, Niall seems to bristle when there are lots of (unfamiliar) kids around and often says things like, "I want the playground to myself!" We're not sure if this reflects him being conditioned to social distance and being used to playing solo/far away from others (although we did have a short playdate indoors this weekend with Kellie's daughter, Ada), or just more simply that he's not a kid who wants to "share" any playground equipment...
No comments:
Post a Comment