Keeping young kids wearing their masks all day long is a recommended preventive measure against coronavirus and its particularly infectious strain delta.
However, wearing a mask all day long can be a huge test on kids’ patience and level of comfort. As facemasks can create strain on the ears or feel uncomfortable after wearing it for long periods, no matter how well-fitted it is on the child’s face, kids will be tempted to take them off when they start to feel the strain and discomfort.
If you’re wondering how you can convince your little ones to wear one and keep them on when in public, here are some ways on how you can train your child to wear their mask and keep it on.
Explain the reason for wearing a mask in a positive way.
Young children are naturally inquisitive therefore you’d definitely hear them asking a lot of questions as to why they have to wear one.
Answer their questions calmly and patiently. Be careful not to scare them as to why they have to wear masks and stay away from strangers.
Try to frame your replies in a positive manner.
For example, you can say wearing a mask helps you stay safe and keep your friends and other people safe from the virus.
The mask acts like a shield of protection that prevents the virus from infecting you and other people.
Let them choose the mask design.
From their favorite superheroes to cartoon characters and toys, a child will be more open to wearing a mask that shows off something or someone he/she identifies with.
Online marketplaces have a wide array of kid-friendly masks. By having a mask the child chose himself, he will be more than excited to put it on.
Put masks on their toys.
Help your child get familiar with masks. Aside from wearing it while your child is around, you can also put a mask on their toys.
Better yet, you can ask your child to put masks on his toys to protect them against the virus and frame mask-wearing as a positive behavior that lets him protect not only himself but also his toys.
Show your child pictures and videos of people and other children wearing masks to let them know that he/she is not alone in wearing masks.
Increase their level of comfort while wearing the masks.
Much of the pain from mask-wearing comes from the strain mask straps put on the back of our ears.
You can remove this strain by putting face mask extenders, headbands or tie-straps around the head.
These contraptions spare the ears from strain and raises the child’s level of comfort while wearing a mask all day.
Slowly train them to keep their masks on.
As with all other things, a child needs time to get used to wearing masks for long periods of time.
Encapsulate the training in a game where you time how long they can keep wearing it.
At first, ask them if they can keep it on for 3-5 minutes.
Then slowly increase the length of time they have to keep it on.
You can do this while they’re doing another play activity.
It is also a great way to test the fit and level of comfort the mask gives the child.
Give them mask breaks.
Once you’ve established a good estimate of how long a child can wear their mask comfortably, you can give them mask breaks.
A child can give you a signal when they want to take their mask off and rest.
They can be taken into a safe mask-off area where they can be isolated for a while.
Training young children to wear masks all day long is no easy task. However, with these tips, you can make sure they understand why wearing a mask is important in keeping them and other people around them safe and protected.
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