A Return to Quarantine

The virus scare in my child's class was inevitable, but I didn't expect it to come so soon.

Read online Subscriber-Only Newsletter October 23, 2021 Continue reading the main story SUPPORTED BY A roundup of new guidance and stories from NYT Parenting. Golden Cosmos I started the school year assuming that one of my two children would be quarantined for Covid exposure at some point. I just thought we would make it more than three weeks in a classroom before we returned to remote-learning, shut-in purgatory. Sure enough, my kindergartner's classroom shut down for a full week earlier this month. We were lucky: Our daughter did not contract the virus. But I would not recommend the experience! I thought I was intellectually and emotionally prepared for having a kid underfoot all day every day again, but it was surprisingly upsetting for the whole family. Which is all to say, I wish I had Dr. Perri Klass's guidance for how to prepare a kid for a coronavirus exposure at school before we had to live through it. The hardest part for us was probably Dr. Klass's advice to model appropriate coping strategies. What my husband and I really wanted to do after our kid got quarantined was take to our beds and scream expletives into a pillow. But instead, he took the morning shifts with our daughter, I took the afternoon shifts, and we muddled through with some grandparent assistance — just like we did at the beginning of the pandemic. In Opinion, Spencer Bokat-Lindell explains why the U.S. government has been so resistant to spending money on child care. And in Well, Jake Halpern writes a wonderful essay about taking his son on a grueling four-day hike, and why it's important for him and his family to embrace physical risks, even as they are aware of potential dangers, because their son has a bee-sting allergy. Lisa Damour explains how to talk to your kids about weed edibles, which may be riskier for them to take than other forms of marijuana, in part because it's hard to control the dose (something I learned the hard way during an unfortunate brownie incident in college). Also this week, we have a host of guides to help you teach your kid mindfulness, have better family meals and learn how to raise a reader. Finally, Dr. Trisha Pasricha, a physician at Massachusetts General Hospital, answers a reader question: Should you get a Covid booster shot if you're pregnant? The experts agree: yes, and the sooner, the better. "Not only does an earlier booster likely mean a lower chance of a breakthrough infection (which could increase the risk of preterm birth), but, as is the case with other recommended vaccines in pregnancy, an earlier shot could translate to more antibodies passed to the fetus," she writes. Dr. Pasricha, who is pregnant, got a booster herself recently. Thanks for reading. — Jessica Grose, columnist, NYT Parenting THIS WEEK IN NYT PARENTING Janice Chang How to Prepare Your Kid for a Coronavirus Exposure at School Because even classrooms with the strictest safety protocols might have to deal with some cases. By Perri Klass, M.D. The New York Times; Photographs by Westend61 and Kseniya Ovchinnikova via Getty Images Spencer Bokat-Lindell Why Is Raising a Child in the United States So Hard? Family welfare policies never took off in the United States as they did in the rest of the wealthy world. Some Democrats think the country is ready. By Spencer Bokat-Lindell Luke Wohlgemuth I Couldn't Let My Son's Allergy Stand in the Way of Adventure Because the clearest views in life can be seen while standing at the edge of a scary cliff. By Jake Halpern Nicole Morrison for The New York Times How to Talk to Teens About Edibles Pot brownies and colorful gummies may look harmless and can be easy to hide, but it's important for caregivers to help adolescents understand the risks. By Lisa Damour Sam Kalda Guide Mindfulness for Children Children of all ages can benefit from mindfulness. It can help parents and caregivers, too. Here are tips for children and adults of all ages for how to be more present, every day. By David Gelles Amrita Marino Guide Have Better Family Meals Sometimes it's hard to find the time to eat as a family. It's important to take advantage of whatever opportunity you have to nourish the mind, soul and stomach of everyone at the table. By Tara Parker-Pope Dan Yaccarino Guide How to Raise a Reader The benefits of reading at every stage of a child's development are well documented. Happily, raising a reader is fun, rewarding and relatively easy. By Pamela Paul and Maria Russo Aileen Son for The New York Times Ask Well Should You Get a Covid Booster if You Are Pregnant? Experts strongly agree that the shots benefit the mother as well as the fetus. By Trisha Pasricha Continue reading the main story A MESSAGE FROM OUR SPONSOR When the video ends, they're just getting started There's a whole world waiting to be discovered on YouTube Kids. From family-friendly fitness classes to kid-centric cooking tutorials, art lessons and beyond, join creators from all over the world, and find videos to inspire kids of all ages. Learn More Tiny Victories Parenting can be a grind. Let's celebrate the tiny victories. Trying new foods is always hard, so I convinced my three-year-old that if he ate his broccoli, I'd be able to SEE him grow. With each bite, I acted at amazed about how big and strong he was getting. It worked!— Jodie Meyn, Fort Thomas, Ky. 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