For toddlers, pandemic shapes development during formative years

[marmar]

For toddlers, pandemic shapes development during formative years
Normal toddler behavior like touching and playing became suddenly unsafe. Kids suffered psychologically for it

By LEAH GULLET
PUBLISHED JUNE 18, 2021 9:00AM


CASTLE POINT, Mo. — Lucretia Wilks, who runs a small day care out of her home in north St. Louis County, is used to watching young children embrace, hold hands and play together in close quarters.

But the covid-19 pandemic made such normal toddler behavior potentially unsafe.

"It's weird that they now live in a time where they're expected to not hug and touch," said Wilks, founder of Their Future's Bright Child Development Center, which cares for about a dozen children ranging from infants to 7 years old. "They're making bonds, friendships, and that's how they show affection."

Day care and other child care providers said they are relieved to see covid cases drop as vaccines roll out across the United States. But even as the nation reopens, mental health and child development experts wonder about what, if any, long-term mental health and development consequences young children may face.

In the short term, medical and child development experts said the pandemic has harmed even young children's mental health and caused them to miss important parts of typical social and emotional development. Besides not being able to get as close to other people as usual, many young children have seen their routines interrupted or experienced family stress when parents have lost jobs or gotten sick. The pandemic and its economic fallout have also forced many families to change caregiving arrangements. ...........(more)

https://www.salon.com/2021/06/18/for-toddlers-pandemic-shapes-development-during-formative-years_partner/

[Freddie]

1. Seeing this a little in my granddaughter

I watch her during the day, she’s 2 yr 8 mo. She’s scared to go to new places. Couldn’t take her to normal places you’d take a toddler (shopping, restaurants) during the year she’d get used to it. I tried to take her grocery shopping recently and she had a major tantrum before I could even get her in the store, I gave up. She’s a very sweet, loving and bright girl, totally normal in every way. I’ll try again soon.

[Harker]

2. Being a child during any calamitous situation can leave scars.

Bad parents. Wars. Great Depression. Republicans.

[Phoenix61]

3. I'm calling bs on this.

Prior to women joining the work force most children played with siblings and/or a few close neighbors, think covid pod. There’s been little research on the effects of early daycare which isn’t surprising. Who would fund it? We don’t have national maternity leave and we know that benefits both mother and baby.

[3catwoman3]

4. I have wondered about possible influences on speech development...

...in young children who spend all day if daycare around masked adults. They are not getting the usual full facial expressions or subtle lipreading clues that we all take advantage of even if we don't know we are doing it.

We shall see.