Socially distancing children?!

[Waves12345]

I have Primary aged children-we’ve been at home doing school work, and have done our best like everyone to stick to the distancing. Obviously everyone has different ways of living through this, but how should I do it if I want to be sensible to protect the older grandparents in our family and for the children to have their social emotional needs met with just normal play? I’ve tried the 2m, and thinking maybe going for a walk is better and the children just running. The children are going to be in bubbles at school when they return, so is it ok to start that early with no distancing with those children? Arghhh, my anxiety is through the roof!

We don't have family near and my children have been at school and playing without distancing out of school with the same kids.
I cannot see any problems playing with the children they're going to be at school with now, the virus is going to be no different between now and then - if anything there will be more of it around in September as it will be colder so I think you're safer now.
Why don't you ask your older relatives what they would prefer?
In my opinion you can't keep your children from their peers forever though and summer is a long time

In Scotland children under 12 don't need to socially distance from other children and adults outdoors. Wonder why it differs in England. Children age 12+ are supposed to still stay 2m apart.

Like you mine hadn’t really seen anyone throughout lockdown. I’m now letting them play with friends in parks/gardens. Hands washed/hand sanitizer afterwards, especially after being on playground equipment. They needed it desperately. As a result though we aren’t having close contact with grandparents just in case, so 2m apart in the garden when we see them.

Corona virus isn’t going anywhere, I personally wouldn’t want my children to not interact with other children for 6months, a year etc...

That’s interesting in Scotland, would make this so much easier. To be honest their grandparents and great grandparents just want to see the children happy. I just thought if I could keep up the distanced play dates then I wouldn’t feel too guilty at combining both. We’ve only seen grandparents outside and for brief catch ups. We live in a low case area that has got busier with tourists. It’s so hard, of course I want the children to play normally it’s so important and natural-if I’m just keeping it outside and lots of running around. Very hard I feel like the only one in my area that’s doing any kind of distancing and then there’s the huge bubbles some people have created-do I want to not distance with them... my head hurts!

dementedpixie
In Scotland children under 12 don't need to socially distance from other children and adults outdoors. Wonder why it differs in England. Children age 12+ are supposed to still stay 2m apart.
I think because in Scotland their death rates are down to 0.

The guidance changed at the start of July when we weren't at 0 deaths. Maybe its because children aren't seen as super spreaders of covid 19.

Ah, ok, I didn't realise that's when it changed....I think the risk is seen as a lot less outdoors as well.

I think it’s now indoors in Scotland for under 12s as well?

Yes I've just checked and it says this:

Children aged 0-11 may meet outdoors with members of up to four households at a time without the children following physical distancing. From 10 July, they can do this as many times a day as they wish. Where adults are accompanying them, the limits on those adults meeting with adults from other households still apply.

From 10 July children can meet up with up two households indoors without physical distancing. Children are not required to be physically distant from adults from other households who are not shielding. It remains the responsibility of the adult to manage their own distancing. Outdoors, children aged 0-11 should not meet in groups larger than 15 people in total at a time and indoors they should not meet in groups larger than eight at a time.

The moment your child is back in school, social distancing will not be a thing. If I were you, I'd be seeing grandparents etc now.

I'm happy to social distance myself, but am not forcing unnatural distancing upon my children. They are advised to keep their distance from strangers, but it would be odd in normal times to be rubbing up against random people anyway.

The people that we are meeting/ would meet are at very low risk of exposure so the risks of anyone being infected are very, very low.

DS1 has ASD so does not need his social development hindered long term by temporary, unnatural rules which at this point of time,.and regularly emerging evidence that children are at very low risk spreading the virus meaning that the benefits of social distancing are outweighed by the social/ developmental cost.

I do abide by the rules though as the social cost is much lower to me and the benefits much higher.

but it would be odd in normal times to be rubbing up against random people anyway

Not until their late teens at any rate.

@dementedpixie Scotland has 10% of the number of cases of England. They went into lockdown around the same time as England but they had far few cases than England at the time and their lockdown has been ‘harder’ but much more coherent.

I've been allowing my 3 year old to play with peers for the last few weeks. She has been with 6 children in total (not all at the same time), which is fewer than would have been in her "bubble" at preschool or nursery. None of the other kids have been in childcare either so for me the risk is very low and far outweighed by the social and emotional benefit of playing with kids her own age.