Parents and educators have been navigating the widespread impact of the pandemic on young people, from missed milestones for teens to Zoom classes affecting mental health. Concerns also exist about the lack of socialization experienced by “COVID babies” and toddlers during their pivotal early years. Recent studies have highlighted the setbacks experienced by school-age students, but new research on toddlers and preschoolers suggests that not all the news is grim. Here’s what parents should know.
A new study published in JAMA Network Open indicates that younger children may experience fewer challenges than previously thought. Researchers in Canada analyzed data from the Ontario Birth Study collected between February 2018 and June 2022, focusing on children aged 2 to 4. The research shows that preschool-age children exposed to the pandemic demonstrated improved vocabulary and visual memory skills at age 4 and a half, with no significant difference in social and emotional skills compared to pre-2020 children. Two-year-olds exposed to the pandemic showed higher-level problem-solving and fine motor skills, but did demonstrate lower personal and social skills.
Clinical psychologist Mark Wade, the senior author of the study, suggests that the pandemic may not have had a profound negative impact on all aspects of development or for all children, noting that the children studied came from a relatively socioeconomically advantaged sample.
While research on pandemic learning loss and children’s development has primarily focused on K-12 students, studies on the impact of COVID-19 on preschool-age children are limited. Concerns about learning loss due to the pandemic are valid, especially in early childhood when foundational skills in literacy, numeracy, and social-emotional learning are developed.
Experts have varying opinions on the impact of the pandemic on children’s development. Pediatrician Dr. Fae Dopwell expresses concerns about learning loss due to the pandemic. Jenny Woo, founder and CEO of Mind Brain Emotion, points to a decrease in social and emotional skills but acknowledges that the impact can vary based on individual and socioeconomic factors. Dr. Ilan Shapiro, chief health correspondent at AltaMed Health Services, believes that young kids are adaptable and will recover fast if given the tools to do so.
Despite concerns about pandemic-related learning setbacks, there is still hope for children’s recovery. Parents can play a vital role in aiding children’s recovery from pandemic learning loss by modeling skills like adaptive coping, emotional regulation, and healthy communication. Children thrive when surrounded by caregivers who create safe, stable, nurturing, and stimulating environments. Ultimately, experts are hopeful that ongoing research will provide answers on how the youngest kids have been affected by the pandemic and how parents can help mitigate any setbacks.
