Stay At Home Because Of Corona: What Can My Children Do?

Nationwide schools and day care centers were closed, more and more public facilities are being closed, people are advised to stay at home if possible. The idea behind it: The less contact people have with each other, the less the risk of the virus Sars-CoV-2 spreading further.

Parents face the current situation with a double challenge: in addition to the fear of infection, they also have to deal with the question of how they keep their children busy in this corona-free time. Here you can find out how to motivate your children to learn in school-free. But in addition to the challenge of motivating the children at school, there is also the question of how the children can best deal during these many free times.

And in this context, many parents - and their children - have questions. Can I take my child to the playground? Can my kids ride a bike outside? And what about teenagers who like to meet their friends in the park?

Social distancing - but how does it work with children?

Kindergartens and schools too, mom and dad in the home office: The idea is obvious to look after the children together and thus leave at least some of the parents to work in peace. But the German Society for Infectious Diseases (DGI) expressly advises against this - especially if the care group meets in a constantly changing cast.

So should children and teenagers stay at home alone for weeks now? Yes and no, says Christian Dorsten, head of virology in Berlin in his podcast The Corona virus Update: Of course it would be ideal if everyone were always sitting at home. But that is not compatible with everyday life. Because the subject of social distancing during the corona virus is extremely difficult for adults (here we will tell you again in detail how you should behave with friends and family), but for children and adolescents the challenge is even greater.

Can my kids meet with their friends?

So what to do and what not to do? The German Society for Infectious Diseases (DGI) advises to avoid crowds of people in general. Above all, this applies when there are constantly changing contacts (different children, different parents), because this creates new contact networks and thus infection risks, press spokeswoman for the DGI. And it becomes even more specific: it recommends no meetings with more than five people. And at best, these people should always be the same and not changing groups of people.

Agree with the relevant parents that your children are the only childlike contact persons for each other.

And let your child only meet with these children. This also means that, as parents, you can rest assured that the other parents will also keep to these appointments.

You can find out what you can do when dealing with corona refuses and how you can convince them here.

Can I go to the playground with my child?

Again, you should always keep in mind the rule with the five people. When many children play together in the sandpit, hold molds in their hands or play on climbing frames, it is clear that this is a potential source of infection. For this reason, the playgrounds have already been shot in some federal states. In the others, the following applies: Make sure that your child also keeps the distance to other children. And wash your hands and your child's hands thoroughly when you get home.

We show you here in detail how you can wash your hands and your children properly.

Can I take a trip into nature with my child?

Exercise outdoors and in the fresh air is good in principle. Virologist Christian Dorsten also expressly recommends outdoor walks. But - and this is important - it should also be kept in mind that this happens in the smallest possible groups (ideally always with the same contact persons) and that there is sufficient distance from other people, so the recommendations of the DGI. So neither spontaneously play football with other children on the meadow or climb or romp with others on the forest playground.

Are children and teens allowed to meet outside?

As long as the children are small enough that you, as parents, can determine their radius of action, you can rather control.