Pandemic Prep…Teaching Children
Nothing is quite as frightening as the unknown. This is especially true where children are concerned. If we wait until a pandemic arrives at our door or if we rely on teachers at school to inform our children they are likely to be very frightened. Remember how stressful 9/11 was on children? They had repeated nightmares. They reverted to bed wetting, thumb sucking and other more juvenile behaviors.
I had an interesting discussion with my eight year old grand daughter today. We were driving to the store and she asked her mom if daddy was going to lose his job. She said she was scared because some of the kids at school had parents who had lost jobs. We talked about how mom and dad were preparing, just in case. We talked about how she could help by not asking for things that cost money so they could save more. We talked about having faith that their family would be watched over because they are doing all they can do to be ready, just in case. Children are much more aware, than we give them credit for, of the world around them. Don’t leave the children around you in the dark. They may have concerns and are just afraid to ask or they may not know how to express their concerns. Nothing is more powerful than knowing the facts.
There is a wonderful comic book available to download from King County Washington:
http://www.kingcounty.gov/healthservices/health/preparedness/pandemicflu/comicbook.aspx
The comic book is available in 16 languages. It is a great resource to review with your children. Note, the comic book says we need to prepare to be in our homes for a week. Most experts are recommending we prepare for two months. A pandemic always comes in waves as those who are ill become well, others who have been exposed, become ill. The 1918 pandemic lasted from March 1918 until January 1919. Hopefully, this time, medicines will be developed more quickly to combat the illness.
Once you have discussed the comic book make your family aware of the steps you are taking to prepare in your own home. Post pictures around your home as reminders of good hygeine practices as they are discussed in the comic book. Developing good habits now will help stop the spread of all viruses in your home, not just a pandemic virus.
What a wonderful comic book to both have children be prepared and know what’s going to happen. I was actually looking for something along those lines, for my blog because mine about kids. THANKS
A colleague told me about this site. Glad I checked it out. Looks to be very useful. Forrest M