This content was created by Dr. Jameca Cooper. This content was uploaded by Dr. Jameca Cooper. This is a YouTube video titled "Back to In-Person School: 3 Tips for Parents" (published Aug 30, 2021) in which Dr. Jameca Cooper addresses parents about preparing children to return to in-person school after prolonged remote learning. It’s a single-speaker advice/mental-health video (channel covers reality TV, personality disorders, and mental health). Dr. Cooper’s three tips: 1) Prepare – rehearse mask mandates, entry/exit protocols, hygiene and other rules; 2) Communicate – talk with children before and after the first day and inform teachers of concerns; 3) Observe – watch for signs of anxiety or behavior changes (isolation, eating/sleep changes, withdrawal).
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Hi, this is Dr. Jameca Cooper, and today I want to talk to the parents out there about what to do to prepare your children to go back to school. Make sure you subscribe to this channel before you do anything else. This channel will talk about reality TV, personality disorders, mental health, and lots of other things. But today we're going to talk about back to school. So this is a very important time for parents. My children are older now, but when they were younger, I used to be very excited about back to school. After all the running around to get all the school supplies, this is the really the time where they get back in there. And for many of these kids, they haven't been in school for 15, 16 months in person. They've been virtual learning, so it could be a bit of an adjustment for them to go back to be with their peers and teachers in person in a confined space. Again, that's what's making it difficult. Pandemic, everyone's been at home. Remember, if you think back to last year, we had stay-at-home orders, social distancing, um, businesses shut down. So these kids have really kind of been with the people in their home for a very long time. So for children under the age of 17 or 18, this could be a bit of an adjustment. So what are my 3 tips for parents to do to make sure that you're ready for this adjustment period with this back-to-school time? The first thing is to prepare. Make sure you do everything in your power to prepare your children to return to school. So what does prepare mean? It could mean that you go over all of the mask mandates or protocols that they have to do when they enter into the building. It could be that now that they have these different protocols that students enter enter in one door and leave in another one. Could be that they have to wear masks to a certain point and then they are free to take them off, depending on if it's the cafeteria. So make sure you prepare by rehearsing what these rules and what these protocols will be. Make sure that your child or children are very comfortable with what these new protocols and rules will be. Make sure that they understand the social distancing aspects of it, the hand washing, sanitizing everything. It's very important that they feel comfortable with it before they enter back into the, the buildings in person. The second thing, my second tip, is to make sure that you communicate with your children before and after the first day of school. Communicate to make sure that you hear them and you try to figure out how they're feeling about all of this. Many of them might be anxious about it all. There may be some that are even scared. Maybe some that are depressed about the fact that they have to return to school. I've heard a lot of children and adolescents say that they wanted to stay virtual, and some school districts don't have that option anymore. So for some of them, they're not happy about it. So make sure that you communicate to your children, um, to your child about how they're feeling, what their concerns are, so that you know exactly what you need to look out for on day one. And maybe some things you need to communicate with their teachers about so that their teachers can also be on notice about some, some feelings and behavior. So the second thing again was communicate with your children or your child. The third thing, the third tip that I want to give to parents is to observe, to watch, to pay attention to everything that you see happening with your children. So from the first day on they come home from school, pay attention to everything, not just the things that they say, but also the things that they don't say. So sometimes anxiety looks very different in children and adolescents, and sometimes we're looking for signs like a person shaking or crying or sweating, and that's not always what anxiety looks like in children and adolescents. Pay attention to isolating behaviors. So if they're staying in their rooms more, this will be a sign of something you need to pay attention to and try to talk to them about. Eating more, eating less, sleeping more or sleeping less, withdrawing from, from friends or from people in their homes that they typically don't withdraw from. All of those things could be signs that there is something else going on with them. This could be a really rough time for some of the students. Having to be with people and deal with them in a social space after you have not done that for over a year can be difficult, and it can be challenging for children. So just make sure you pay attention. Again, before we go, let's review my my 3 tips. First thing, prepare. The second thing is to communicate, and the third would be to observe and to watch everything. So have a great year for all of you students and parents that are watching. Make sure you follow these tips. Make sure you subscribe to this channel. Thanks for tuning in. Make sure you tune in for more videos on mental health. And this is Dr. Jameca Cooper.
