To ask. What age is most difficult to look after during lockdown?

[louise5754]

Those with primary age children I think it's will be hard to remember back to having babies and we haven't had the teen years yet to compare.

But.....

I reckon the most difficult age to keep entertained would be the toddlers 1.5-3 ish?!

Anyone else?

I have a 4 month old and 5 year old. Entertaining them/educating the older one isn't too bad but what is hard for me is managing their competing needs, as the current situation means I struggle to get any 1-1 time with either. I am very grateful not to have a child in the toddler stage I must admit

Teenagers who want to see their friends. Yes toddlers if you don ' t have a garden.

Struggling with a 2.5 year old and a newborn any day soon as well!! But at least she’s too young to understand what is going on

I don’t think many people forget how difficult it is having babies and toddlers!

I am very grateful that mine are all 10+ during this lockdown-they are happy as anything to be home. They occupy each other and themselves and take it in turns to cook! Things would have been a lot more stressful for us if this had happened 5/10/15 years ago!

DSD (6) is much harder work to keep entertained than either DS (10) or DSS (3). But she’s always harder work than the other two.

I think personality has as much of an impact as age really. It really does depend on the child.

I'm struggling with my 4 year old but only really balancing trying to entertain him whilst still working from home fulltime as a single parent. I feel like I'm nust about managing both but neither of then well.

Another struggling with a 2 year old (and pregnancy). She needs constant attention but both me and DH have full time jobs.

My dh is 58 he's quite hard work

My 14mo is absolutely fine but we have a big garden and she's a pretty laid back and independent toddler anyway who can amuse herself for quite a while. I think kids who are old enough to really notice the change in their routine and missing other people like friends and grandparents must be a lot harder. As it is, my DD's life isn't hugely altered and in some ways is 'better' because DH is always at home now.

I think according to mn it's the over 70s.

Toddlers are a pain in the arse at the best of times. I wouldn’t fancy being cooped up with a moody teen 24 7 though.

We live in a flat and have a 3 year old who has been going through a clingy phase for the last year. We're both key workers who are expected to work through the day. Life is not easy.

I’m going to go with 2-3 year olds.

Not old enough to understand why you won’t take them to a park, nursery, play place, see friends.

Not old enough to play alone so need constant attention.

Get bored easy.

Up from 7am til 7pm

It's totally a how long is a piece of string question.

Depends totally on the type of child, the combination of children/ needs/ ages, the personality of the parent/s, whether there is a SAH or furlough parent or parent/ s are full on working, whether you have a big house and big garden full of play equipment or live in a tiny flat with no outdoor space, whether you live in the middle of nowhere or in a busy town or city etc etc etc.

What's the most difficult age threads turn into competitions for who has it hardest, but the truth is age is only one part of the puzzle - without the other factors it is not a determinant of difficulty.

Oh and 2 or more of any age 🙈😂

So glad I've got a teenager. She entertains herself and just needs forcing out into the garden everyday for a bit of sun and fresh air.

Kid-wise, I'd say 2-3 years.

Human-wise, those with dementia. That must be awful, as those poor people have no idea why they're being forced to isolate.

Mine are 3 and 5 both with additional needs especially the oldest. Stuck in a TINY 2 bed garden less flat

toddlers 100%

I'm finding my 19 month old pretty challenging! He's awake from 6am - 7:30pm with only an hours nap in the day

He's bored and whingy but too young to have the attention span to play solo or stick to any activities I do with him for more than a couple of minutes

I think anything from 6months to 18 is probably difficult to keep up entertained and contained under lockdown conditions, for different reasons. The younger ones ideally need exercise to wear them out, the primary years need constant activity and the teenagers want to be with their mates.

I think I feel the most sorry for those cooped up with toddlers or lovelorn teenagers, but it’s all hard work really.

Luckily two of mine are uni age and fairly adult about it all, leaving just one (much younger) to wrangle.

It must be toddlers. I have said many many times that I'm glad mine are older during this while things. I'm also very glad that they have each other to play with.

Newborn to walking = easy peasy

Toddlers = hellish

Primary age = easiest age imo

Secondary age/teens = physically easy but mentally exhausting.

I have a primary age DC and a secondary age DC.

Right now I'm upstairs watching TV in peace while doing my hair...they're watching TV downstairs. However the back chat, attitude and rudeness I get from my eldest is draining the life out of me.

It must depend on the child rather than age. DD6 is a dream, DS8 (ASD) is an utter nightmare at the moment. I know he's struggling but if I hear ' I don't know what to do' one more time i'm going to really lose my cool, again!

I have a 1, 4 and 6 yr old. I agree it depends on personality. My 4 yr old is happy to play independently/watch tv whereas the 6yr old needs constant attention. Obviously 1yr old is constantly trying to injure himself on anything and everything so he is hard work but we have a big garden so he is quite happy to dig/eat mud/play with water etc. I feel lucky that my older two play together a lot but I personally am struggling with doing any activities with them as they all have such different needs.