AIBU to think a 6 year old is too young to be forced to where a mask?

[Meadow1203]

This is now the law [in France] edited by MNHQ for clarity. I think this could be very frightening for a small child.

@flaviaritt *3.5 years old not 'almost' typo

She is consenting to wear a mask because I taught her the benefits of wearing one. Just like doctors wear them.
It's a great opportunity to teach about biology and protection.

Again no one is forcing their toddlers to wear masks, they don't need to because unlike you they are not putting the fear of masks onto their children.

BlueberriesCream

That’s not what I asked.

Anyway, I am leaving the thread now. Good luck to you and all your kids.

I'm in France. One of my DC is under 6, so legally does not need to wear a mask when they go back to school on Monday. But school has recommended it, so she will. Even if it lowers the transmission just a little, we have to do everything that helps.

63% of ICU capacity in the country is occupied by COVID patients and the cases are exploding, so in a couple of weeks, they will be overwhelmed. We're now in lockdown and can only leave the house for very limited reasons, but they have decided to keep schools open while taking all measures that could lower the risk of infection there, and this includes masks.

So yes you can call me an abusive parent if you like, but I will make them wear a piece of fabric, to avoid that they infect someone who then goes home and kills their grandma, or that there is no hospital capacity available should they need it, covid or other reasons.

Bye @flaviaritt my child dosent need luck, he is a well adjusted compassionate child who understands the risk to others if he dosent wear a mask. Good luck to you because with your parenting you are going to need or.

Most 6 year olds (and children over 2) in France are already wearing masks particularly on public transport and in shops as well as around their grandparents, pregnant women and other vulnerable people. They have seen adults and older children wearing them since March.

6 year olds in Spain have been legally required to wear masks since the start of the pandemic.

@flaviaritt
You asked what would you do if she said no?

It's just that hasn't happened because she;

1. Knows the biology behind why we wear masks and wash our hands - after I showed her how & why.

2. Finds it fun to have a sense of responsibility over having her own mask like the grown ups and doctors. Hers has special paw patrol on it which is fun for kids

3. I wore mine with positive energy and purpose

4. Children like doing things that help others..

Not all 5/6/7 year olds have that level of reasoning ability. Mine doesn't.

It took several hours of play therapy to get her able to tolerate the sight of others in them or to not claw mine off my face. She has never been able to cope with faces being covered since she was a baby. We have tried and tried to get her to wear something over hers and she can't. Not all 6 year olds can and it doesn't make someone a crappy parent or selfish if they can't.

@flaviaritt

Cocomobile

It’s not an “attitude of entitlement”. Children under 11 are exempt, so it literally is entitlement. I think forcing your 3 year old into a mask is horrendous. But you do as you like with your child within the law. I will do the same.

your exaggerated language really doesnt help your cause flaviaritt. Horrendous? How can you possibly decide that without knowing me, my child, nor witnessing the interaction where I tell him he needs to wear a mask or not go in, and HE chooses for himself whether he wears one or stays outside?

I do not think it is horrendous obviously. If I did, then I wouldnt be doing it. I am ultimately making what I think is the best decision, balancing my childs physical needs with his emotional needs. But, in agreeance with some other comments, I dont think that setting clear boundaries and keeping them is hurting his emotional/psychological development. In fact, I believe it is doing the opposite.

And yes, it is a sense of entitlement. That YOU can do what YOU like (based on a still yet unheard valid reasoning), and YOU can forcefully tell others that they are wrong and that what they are choosing to do is 'horrendous', to the detriment of others around you who may potentially be exposed to something infectious YOU may be carrying.

and of course, if my child reacted much more strongly and showed signs of actual distress (which he hasnt), then I would in fact just avoid that situation and not take him into situations where I wasnt comfortable with him not wearing a mask.

I have an actual brain, use scientific and medical knowledge, dont obtain my facts from social media or trash news, and apply this to my decision making with my children

and of course, if my child reacted much more strongly and showed signs of actual distress (which he hasnt), then I would in fact just avoid that situation and not take him into situations where I wasnt comfortable with him not wearing a mask.

Which is (of course) what I have said. I would remove my child from school (or any other situation) before I forced her to wear a mask because I think that to do so would be horrendous. Your opinion on my brains or where I get my information is irrelevant to me. I AM entitled not to force my child into a mask.

The average six year old is capable of wearing it and understanding in age appropriate language why it's needed, IMO

It's impossible to actually force a child to wear a mask.

Spikeyball

Well, you could argue it’s impossible to force anyone into anything. It’s not, really. With a child, you can punish them with consequences if they take the mask off. I just won’t do that to my 4 year old.

**TheTrollFairy

@Kinny14 you really need to reconsider what you see as abusive to a child hmm... em no I don’t and if you don’t think its abusive then you’re a scumbag. It’s sick not allowing children breath fresh air. Imagine a virus so dangerous that you have to be tested to even know you have it.

Fuck me. I just felt some of my brain cells die reading this. There should be an iq test before people can go online🙄

Imagine a virus so dangerous that you have to be tested to even know you have it.

Yes, I'm sure all the 36 000 people who have died in France were just imagining they were ill. It was actually 5G and Bill Gates, right?

Well, I do think the virus is dangerous, primarily to the elderly and the unwell. I don’t think a proportionate response to that risk is to behave abusively towards little kids.

"Well, you could argue it’s impossible to force anyone into anything. It’s not, really. With a child, you can punish them with consequences if they take the mask off. I just won’t do that to my 4 year old."

Punishment with consequences doesn't work with some children. They don't have the understanding for that or they are so distressed with it on a sensory level that thinking skills don't function and they go into fight mode. You cannot punish someone out of that.

That is what distressed means.

Punishment with consequences doesn't work with some children. They don't have the understanding for that or they are so distressed with it on a sensory level that thinking skills don't function and they go into fight mode. You cannot punish someone out of that.

Generally it works with my child. She knows what consequences are. If she was uncomfortable in a mask and couldn’t breathe as easily as she wanted there is a chance I could coerce her into keeping it on. But fuck that.

The most ridiculous thing is that the whole thread is now about a child who doesn't actually even have to wear the mask. 🤦

SchrodingersImmigrant

The thread is about whether 6 YO children should be made to wear a mask through mandatory legislation, or whether they are too young. Some people think even younger children (like my child) should have to wear them, and I am saying no to that.

So she is uncomfortable but not distressed. If someone is distressed they are allowed not to wear one at any age.