How Social Withdrawal Impacts Social Emotional Learning for Kids & Ways to Reverse this!
Social Emotional Learning for kids is incredibly important to provide for their holistic development. Sadly, parents’ social withdrawal due to numerous factors like pandemic times, hectic lifestyle etc., kids are having a hard time with very minimal social exposure. It’s time to realize this gap and adopt simple yet conscious ways to help kids get some social exposure and a better hang of their emotions.
There is no denying the fact that there has been a drastic shift in our social interaction patterns over the last few years, especially post the pandemic times. Be it for keeping ourselves and our families safe from the virus, our increasingly hectic schedules with new work from home modules, altering mood swings due to the abrupt lifestyle alterations etc., it has all deeply impacted our level of social interaction. All this and more has pushed many of us into our own private bubble, unfortunately resulting in a major social withdrawal. And while we as adults may be able to cope with this change in our social mingling levels to an extent, it is an altogether different ball game for our little ones. Kids are struggling to cope and the overall social emotional learning for kids is taking a complete back seat.
As the world is slowly accepting the ‘new normal’ scenarios, most kids are still grappling to adjust with the new ways. And this social withdrawal is undoubtedly having an adverse impact on the social emotional learning for kids as they are deprived of even the most basic social exposure like going to school, meeting friends for playdates or picnics etc. It’s now time that parents, teachers and every adult dealing with kids realizes this predicament and acts upon bridging the widening social emotional gap in certain ways. Conscious effort is required to pull kids out of this social lag so that they are not left with serious limitations that are highly likely to hamper their growth and future life scenarios. Let’s take a look at some of the ways parents can reverse this impact and enhance social emotional learning for kids even with all the current limitations.
Virtual playdates with close friends
While this may seem like an already explored idea to many parents since the kids are already doing a lot online. From online classes to school events to hobby classes, almost everything has been happening virtually. But how often do parents make the effort to organize a one-on-one virtual playdate with their close friends, just to talk, play or maybe show each other their new toys. This kind of personal bonding is missing in group interaction online and this can be a great way for kids to interact more freely with the social connection of their choice.
A Pet Friend
It is understandable that with all the extra work, chores and everything else, getting a breather is hard for parents and of course, their quality time with kids is compromised as well. Simple things like taking kids to park is also a far-fetched goal on some days and then comes the pain of keeping kids occupied. Giving them a pet friend is the best and easiest way to majorly minimize the social emotional void from their lives. They can play with the pet, feed him, share their mind or just cuddle, when you may not be able to do that. Sure, a little effort goes into taking care of the pet but with time, even that can be a nice activity for kids to help with while learning to show compassion, empathy & care towards the pet.
Meaningful & Engaging Screen Time
Let’s face it, keeping the kids away from screens is an unrealistic goal and not practical. While parents can definitely limit screen use, there is still a lot of time that kids end up spending on screens. Although they may like it at first, eventually it can get boring and just a mind-numbing option to while away time. To make screen time more productive for kids, learning apps like SKIDOS can be the perfect solution. SKIDOS offers fun learning games that not only help with academic performance but also teach many key social skills in an organic manner. It is bound to affect social emotional learning for kids positively. All games at SKIDOS are customized as per the age & interests of kids and offer a safe online atmosphere. Parents can relax as their kids play and learn at the same time while they also get to track their kids’ progress through weekly reports. With new games & features added every month along with informative video content, there is a lot to engage your kids constructively.
These are just a few ideas on how parents can help strengthen the social emotional learning for kids while also managing their hectic schedules and other commitments. However, these are just alternatives and can never replace the social experience of going out and meeting people or the emotional support they can get through interacting with their parents. So, striking the right balance among everything is the best way to go with it. Kids are precious and make the society of tomorrow that we adults are responsible for nurturing in the right manner.
