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Original poster

Masks for kids

308 replies

bingowingsmcgee · 23/02/2021 19:40

Is it masks all day then for secondary kids? Can't they just offer all the staff the vaccine and then crack on? Pretty horrible for the kids.

OP posts:
Abraxan · 24/02/2021 12:00

My child is brave enough not to wear one.

Would she be brave enough to wear one if it enabled a medically vulnerable friend in her class to attend?

OrangeBlossomsinthesun · 24/02/2021 12:03

Why is your 9 yesr old wearing a mask? and where? theyre not mandatory in primaries? I live in Spain, they've been mandatory for everyone since the summer. Our schools have been open since September.

OrangeBlossomsinthesun · 24/02/2021 12:05

Perfect - so if you can link a few studies showing that it does "reduce transmission" specifically in children in school I will happily read them.

elpais.com/ciencia/2020-10-24/un-salon-un-bar-y-una-clase-asi-contagia-el-coronavirus-en-el-aire.html
This is in Spanish but if you scroll through it shows how mask wearing helps reduce transmission in different settings, you can see from the interactive graphics the difference that masks (and ventilation) makes.

palacegirl77 · 24/02/2021 12:05

@OrangeBlossomsinthesun

Why is your 9 yesr old wearing a mask? and where? theyre not mandatory in primaries? I live in Spain, they've been mandatory for everyone since the summer. Our schools have been open since September.
Ah I see. Makes sense
palacegirl77 · 24/02/2021 12:06

@Abraxan

My child is brave enough not to wear one.

Would she be brave enough to wear one if it enabled a medically vulnerable friend in her class to attend?

If her friend was medically vulnerable my daughter wearing a cotton mask is not going to help her unfortunately. Unless all kids are in medical grade that child would still be vulnerable.
OrangeBlossomsinthesun · 24/02/2021 12:09

"In areas with community transmission of COVID-19, wearing a medical or non-medical face mask
is recommended in confined public spaces"
European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control

herecomesthsun · 24/02/2021 12:10

Very happy for the kids to be in medical grade if it is agreed that is appropriate. I am considering whether we need to get that level of masks anyhow.

OrangeBlossomsinthesun · 24/02/2021 12:10

If her friend was medically vulnerable my daughter wearing a cotton mask is not going to help her unfortunately. Unless all kids are in medical grade that child would still be vulnerable. She'd be less vulnerable if all children wore a mask, medical grade or not.

OrangeBlossomsinthesun · 24/02/2021 12:16

Most people in Spain wear approved fabric masks (made with 2-layer damp-proof cotton) which are resuable and are on sale everywhere, or blue surgical masks (about a euro for 10 in supermarkets) or ffp2.

Northernsoullover · 24/02/2021 12:16

Rather than get enraged on their behalf I asked my children what they thought. They are happy to. Some of you are so bloody precious. Get a grip.
Disclaimer. I'm talking about children without any SEN.

ineedaholidaynow · 24/02/2021 12:22

My DS is happy to wear a mask too. I'm sure it is mainly parents complaining not the children

palacegirl77 · 24/02/2021 12:33

@Northernsoullover

Rather than get enraged on their behalf I asked my children what they thought. They are happy to. Some of you are so bloody precious. Get a grip. Disclaimer. I'm talking about children without any SEN.
we are precious for not wanting them to wear a mask? how precious are you that youve trained your children to be so scared to be inside a building without one. Poor things. To confirm I am perfectly happy for her to attend school without one.
palacegirl77 · 24/02/2021 12:34

@ineedaholidaynow

My DS is happy to wear a mask too. I'm sure it is mainly parents complaining not the children
See how they feel after 6 hours in one. I sat in one for 2 hours at the hairdressers and it is markedly different to a walk around the supermarket in one.
LST · 24/02/2021 12:34

@OrangeBlossomsinthesun

No he hasn't got any mental health issues. But he us 7 who just currently struggling with how shit life is at the moment. He also wears glasses and wearing a mask makes them steam up. He would probably struggle less if he could go to school and see his friends. My daughter has just got glasses (9 years old). She wipes them with an anti fog wipe and wears them with a blue surgical mask. They don't steam up.
Brilliant your 9yo doesn't struggle. Has no one told you everyone is different?
OrangeBlossomsinthesun · 24/02/2021 12:42

Brilliant your 9yo doesn't struggle. Has no one told you everyone is different? I'm sorry your child struggles. It remains true that most children don't struggle with wearing masks, at least here. Plenty of them wear glasses, they use anti fog wipes, their glasses don't steam up. It's so not a big deal for millions and millions of children, why would it be different for the vast majority of UK children? They might not like it at first, that's not the same as being unable to do it. If it means they can have in person schooling, why not?

ZZTopGuitarSolo · 24/02/2021 12:50

See how they feel after 6 hours in one. I sat in one for 2 hours at the hairdressers and it is markedly different to a walk around the supermarket in one.

My children have been wearing masks all day at school for months now. As have millions of other schoolchildren. And millions of adults at work. And people who travelling, in hospitals, in meetings...

Parker231 · 24/02/2021 12:53

@palacegirl77 - I don’t know any children scared of wearing a mask at school. They are intelligent to understand the benefits to those around them.
Why would a British child wearing a mask have any more difficulty than those in other countries whose lives have returned to full time face to face teaching.

palacegirl77 · 24/02/2021 12:53

@ZZTopGuitarSolo

See how they feel after 6 hours in one. I sat in one for 2 hours at the hairdressers and it is markedly different to a walk around the supermarket in one.

My children have been wearing masks all day at school for months now. As have millions of other schoolchildren. And millions of adults at work. And people who travelling, in hospitals, in meetings...

Completely aware of that. It was in answer to someone who asked their kids what they thought, its easy to have an opinion when you havent tried it. Im sure mosr children will be fine. But not all. Doesnt make them "snowflakes".
OrangeBlossomsinthesun · 24/02/2021 12:55

Well the tiny fraction that feel they don't like it enough to not wear a mask can stay home, can't they.
If it's more than just not liking it they can probably get an exemption.

palacegirl77 · 24/02/2021 12:59

@OrangeBlossomsinthesun

Well the tiny fraction that feel they don't like it enough to not wear a mask can stay home, can't they. If it's more than just not liking it they can probably get an exemption.
Thats true, although you could also say that maybe all those parents too scared to send their kids to school WITHOUT the masks should keep their kids at home so the rest of us can get with life now the vulnerable are vaccinated.
ineedaholidaynow · 24/02/2021 13:02

It's not going to be straight 6 hours though is it. They will have breaks, and probably more as well to also factor in ventilation of classrooms, so will have time to take them off. It's not great but needs must in a pandemic.

palacegirl77 · 24/02/2021 13:04

@ineedaholidaynow

It's not going to be straight 6 hours though is it. They will have breaks, and probably more as well to also factor in ventilation of classrooms, so will have time to take them off. It's not great but needs must in a pandemic.
Precisely, taking them on and off, reusing them, not sanitising hands - its not going to be good. As Ive said, dont properly I would be on board. Theyre not going to do diddly.
AfternoonToffee · 24/02/2021 13:09

we are precious for not wanting them to wear a mask? how precious are you that you've trained your children to be so scared to be inside a building without one. Poor things. To confirm I am perfectly happy for her to attend school without one.

My child has not been trained to be scared to be in a building without one but she accepts that it is what it is. Parents overly pushing the anti-mask message are as wrong as those who push the "everyone is going to die" message.

I am incredibly laid back about the whole thing and I have never scared my children, but neither have I told them to stick it to the man.

She will wear one, probably grudgingly, but I am not quite at the stage of wanting to police her thought patterns, and I'm ok with that.

ineedaholidaynow · 24/02/2021 13:13

But they will be told to sanitise hands. DS had to wear masks on the school bus last term. They were given strict instructions what they needed to bring and what they needed to do. Just using masks in corridors probably results in more errors with hygiene than keeping them on between lessons, as I am sure they were quickly put on and off for corridor time. There is more time to do it properly if you are changing a mask in break time.

I am sure some children will still do it incorrectly. There are also strict instructions on hand hygiene etc when using the school toilets. Again I am sure there are some children who don't get it quite right, are we going to stop children using the toilets?

LST · 24/02/2021 13:16

@OrangeBlossomsinthesun

Brilliant your 9yo doesn't struggle. Has no one told you everyone is different? I'm sorry your child struggles. It remains true that most children don't struggle with wearing masks, at least here. Plenty of them wear glasses, they use anti fog wipes, their glasses don't steam up. It's so not a big deal for millions and millions of children, why would it be different for the vast majority of UK children? They might not like it at first, that's not the same as being unable to do it. If it means they can have in person schooling, why not?
Its a moot point anyway as the UK government aren't making primary aged kids wear masks