How to talk to children about Coronavirus

Helpful advice for adults and children from children’s charity NSPCC.

Advice for adults

During these unprecedented times, it’s important not to shy away from taking about the Coronavirus with your children. They may have already picked up snippets of information from social media or other news, and even though they may not have discussed it directly with you, they may be wondering what it means for them and the people they care about. Try to be calm, honest and informed when talking to them about news related to the Coronavirus.

To try and offer some help during this period of global uncertainty, we have turned to the children's charity NSPCC for their advice on how to talk to children about the Coronavirus:

• Ask them what they already know about the facts
• Don’t dismiss their fears and reassure them that you are there to listen.
• Encourage them to use Childline’s message boards to talk to other young people.

Encourage children who are worried to visit the Childline website, where they can find lots of tools and ideas to help them cope with any feelings of uncertainty.

Advice for children

Coronavirus is a new virus that people have been catching across the world, including here in the UK. It’s important to remember that although fears around the virus are completely valid, cases of people who have the virus and fully recovered are regularly reported.

Some young people have told us they’re worried about how to avoid it or scared that it might spread. If you’re feeling like that, here are simple things you can do to cope and stay safe:

• Wash your hands regularly and try not to touch your face
• Make sure you only read news sources you trust, like Newsround
• Ask questions when you’re not sure, you could ask an adult you trust or talk to Childline

Click HERE to visit Newsround for advice about what to do if you’re worried. Watching this with your child could help start the conversation.