Did kids actually unmask?

[Anonymous]

Give it a week. By the end of next week more kids will be unmasked. Right now everyone is looking around wondering what everyone else is going to do.

[Anonymous]

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Anonymous wrote:At Lafayette there were maybe 2-3 masked kids per room, everyone else had them off.

Wow, I definitely think you will notice a difference between predominantly white schools, and predominately black schools. My school is 90+% black, everyone wore a mask.

I noticed in my predominantly white ES that a much larger percentage of black students were masked than white. That makes sense to me, however. If your community has felt the effects more, and lives with a heightened sense of threat on a daily basis, you might easily be slower to unmask. Our black students who really never fully/effectively masked during the pandemic were unmasked today however.

"Slower to unmask" - so much slower, in fact, that masks will be required again before they do unmask, because of all the transmission among those who really needed a month-long mask break.

Your mask does not make you a better person. Enough with the virtue signaling- I respect your choice, you respect mine.

But ya don't - you accuse people of masking their children as being child abusers and cherry-pick pieces of studies or omicron-focused stats - and discourage vaccination. You have no virtue to signal.

I see the people who are allowing their kid to unmask to be more cognizant of 1) the protective aspects of the vaccine, and 2) the low risk to kids to begin with. So the people wanting mask choice have all vaccinated their kids, and are not anti-vaxxers. I think there are some that have read the recent study that the 5-11 vaccine did little in terms of reducing transmission, and that has impacted their thinking about whether it should be required or used as a metric in deciding when schools should unmask.

PP, I think you might be thinking of people that are largely not in DC.

My kids have had the vaccine (5-11). We are still masking and will be for at least the next couple of weeks. Husband and I are highly educated and we understand the science. We chose to continue masking. I don’t particularly care what your kids do. It’s extremely hard to judge why others are still masking or not masking.

I was responding to the PP who was suggesting that parents of kids who believe in mask choice are also discouraging vaccination. I don't think that's accurate.

[Anonymous]

I don’t care what anyone else does. My kids have done everything that was required of them these last years and everyone in my house is fully vaccinated. I sent them with masks but said the choice was their own. They both unmasked and the older one definitely got some words about it. She doesn’t care what others think of her, so she just went on her merry way and is happily unmasked. She said if the other kids don’t want to be her friend because of this, they weren’t good friends anyway since they can’t respect her choice.

[Anonymous]

I do not understand these comments about kids who choose to mask being "fearful." My kids, in ES and MS, understand that by continuing to mask indoors we reduce the odds of someone in our family getting covid. They, like we, would rather avoid getting covid so they choose to continue to mask. They don't seem to mind wearing them and their education doesn't seem to have suffered because they are wearing masks. They don't wear masks outside because they know it doesn't make a difference. They also wear KN95s, not cloth, because they know that cloth masks are pointless and if you are going to cover your face you may as well use something that is effective. Their lives are pretty much back-to-normal except for wearing masks indoors. They know that even with mask wearing there is a chance someone in our house will get covid because we are not locking down completely, but they also know that the odds are good that no one in our household will be hospitalized or die.
Seems like rational decision-making to me. It does upset them when other kids accuse them of being "scared," or don't understand that just because masks are now optional, it still might be a good idea to wear them.

[Anonymous]

My child chews through his mask regularly. His mask wearing is not doing anything for him or anyone around him.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I do not understand these comments about kids who choose to mask being "fearful." My kids, in ES and MS, understand that by continuing to mask indoors we reduce the odds of someone in our family getting covid. They, like we, would rather avoid getting covid so they choose to continue to mask. They don't seem to mind wearing them and their education doesn't seem to have suffered because they are wearing masks. They don't wear masks outside because they know it doesn't make a difference. They also wear KN95s, not cloth, because they know that cloth masks are pointless and if you are going to cover your face you may as well use something that is effective. Their lives are pretty much back-to-normal except for wearing masks indoors. They know that even with mask wearing there is a chance someone in our house will get covid because we are not locking down completely, but they also know that the odds are good that no one in our household will be hospitalized or die.
Seems like rational decision-making to me. It does upset them when other kids accuse them of being "scared," or don't understand that just because masks are now optional, it still might be a good idea to wear them.

You are right, it could be just a rational choice to reduce your risk of getting Covid. (Although you do have to wonder if they are thinking this through long-term -- the virus isn't going away, we will eventually catch it, which for a kid might actually be a good thing because they will build immunity at a low-risk age against a virus they will have to encounter over and over for the rest of their lives. Are they going to mask indoors forever?) But there are definitely kids who are scared. Maybe they are in the minority, but they are not rare. We went hiking with friends recently, and one of their young kids didn't want to take off her mask out on the breezy trail, even though nobody else in our group was. That is a sign of unreasonable anxiety, and I felt really bad for the kid.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I do not understand these comments about kids who choose to mask being "fearful." My kids, in ES and MS, understand that by continuing to mask indoors we reduce the odds of someone in our family getting covid. They, like we, would rather avoid getting covid so they choose to continue to mask. They don't seem to mind wearing them and their education doesn't seem to have suffered because they are wearing masks. They don't wear masks outside because they know it doesn't make a difference. They also wear KN95s, not cloth, because they know that cloth masks are pointless and if you are going to cover your face you may as well use something that is effective. Their lives are pretty much back-to-normal except for wearing masks indoors. They know that even with mask wearing there is a chance someone in our house will get covid because we are not locking down completely, but they also know that the odds are good that no one in our household will be hospitalized or die.
Seems like rational decision-making to me. It does upset them when other kids accuse them of being "scared," or don't understand that just because masks are now optional, it still might be a good idea to wear them.

You are right, it could be just a rational choice to reduce your risk of getting Covid. (Although you do have to wonder if they are thinking this through long-term -- the virus isn't going away, we will eventually catch it, which for a kid might actually be a good thing because they will build immunity at a low-risk age against a virus they will have to encounter over and over for the rest of their lives. Are they going to mask indoors forever?) But there are definitely kids who are scared. Maybe they are in the minority, but they are not rare. We went hiking with friends recently, and one of their young kids didn't want to take off her mask out on the breezy trail, even though nobody else in our group was. That is a sign of unreasonable anxiety, and I felt really bad for the kid.

So it’s not rare because your friends kids think that?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I do not understand these comments about kids who choose to mask being "fearful." My kids, in ES and MS, understand that by continuing to mask indoors we reduce the odds of someone in our family getting covid. They, like we, would rather avoid getting covid so they choose to continue to mask. They don't seem to mind wearing them and their education doesn't seem to have suffered because they are wearing masks. They don't wear masks outside because they know it doesn't make a difference. They also wear KN95s, not cloth, because they know that cloth masks are pointless and if you are going to cover your face you may as well use something that is effective. Their lives are pretty much back-to-normal except for wearing masks indoors. They know that even with mask wearing there is a chance someone in our house will get covid because we are not locking down completely, but they also know that the odds are good that no one in our household will be hospitalized or die.
Seems like rational decision-making to me. It does upset them when other kids accuse them of being "scared," or don't understand that just because masks are now optional, it still might be a good idea to wear them.

You are right, it could be just a rational choice to reduce your risk of getting Covid. (Although you do have to wonder if they are thinking this through long-term -- the virus isn't going away, we will eventually catch it, which for a kid might actually be a good thing because they will build immunity at a low-risk age against a virus they will have to encounter over and over for the rest of their lives. Are they going to mask indoors forever?) But there are definitely kids who are scared. Maybe they are in the minority, but they are not rare. We went hiking with friends recently, and one of their young kids didn't want to take off her mask out on the breezy trail, even though nobody else in our group was. That is a sign of unreasonable anxiety, and I felt really bad for the kid.

So it’s not rare because your friends kids think that?

Obviously, that is just the most egregious example I have observed. But any kid who still chooses to mask at the playground either has crazy parents or is scared, and there are still quite a few of those to be seen.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I do not understand these comments about kids who choose to mask being "fearful." My kids, in ES and MS, understand that by continuing to mask indoors we reduce the odds of someone in our family getting covid. They, like we, would rather avoid getting covid so they choose to continue to mask. They don't seem to mind wearing them and their education doesn't seem to have suffered because they are wearing masks. They don't wear masks outside because they know it doesn't make a difference. They also wear KN95s, not cloth, because they know that cloth masks are pointless and if you are going to cover your face you may as well use something that is effective. Their lives are pretty much back-to-normal except for wearing masks indoors. They know that even with mask wearing there is a chance someone in our house will get covid because we are not locking down completely, but they also know that the odds are good that no one in our household will be hospitalized or die.
Seems like rational decision-making to me. It does upset them when other kids accuse them of being "scared," or don't understand that just because masks are now optional, it still might be a good idea to wear them.

You are right, it could be just a rational choice to reduce your risk of getting Covid. (Although you do have to wonder if they are thinking this through long-term -- the virus isn't going away, we will eventually catch it, which for a kid might actually be a good thing because they will build immunity at a low-risk age against a virus they will have to encounter over and over for the rest of their lives. Are they going to mask indoors forever?) But there are definitely kids who are scared. Maybe they are in the minority, but they are not rare. We went hiking with friends recently, and one of their young kids didn't want to take off her mask out on the breezy trail, even though nobody else in our group was. That is a sign of unreasonable anxiety, and I felt really bad for the kid.

So it’s not rare because your friends kids think that?

Obviously, that is just the most egregious example I have observed. But any kid who still chooses to mask at the playground either has crazy parents or is scared, and there are still quite a few of those to be seen.

I have certainly been confronted by parents at playgrounds for allowing my kids to not wear a mask outdoors. And for every time that has happened, I have heard 10 passive aggressive comments about. "We still wear our mask Larla even if other kids aren't as responsible."

[Anonymous]

My son in 4th grade wanted to stop wearing masks, then talked to his friends and got convinced to keep wearing them, but forgot to bring a mask to school on Wednesday, and so changed his mind again.

I stayed out of it, except to remind him that the mask mandate may return at some point in the near or far future. (We all had COVID recently, so I'm fairly sure he is not vulnearable to a reinfection/spreading.)

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I do not understand these comments about kids who choose to mask being "fearful." My kids, in ES and MS, understand that by continuing to mask indoors we reduce the odds of someone in our family getting covid. They, like we, would rather avoid getting covid so they choose to continue to mask. They don't seem to mind wearing them and their education doesn't seem to have suffered because they are wearing masks. They don't wear masks outside because they know it doesn't make a difference. They also wear KN95s, not cloth, because they know that cloth masks are pointless and if you are going to cover your face you may as well use something that is effective. Their lives are pretty much back-to-normal except for wearing masks indoors. They know that even with mask wearing there is a chance someone in our house will get covid because we are not locking down completely, but they also know that the odds are good that no one in our household will be hospitalized or die.
Seems like rational decision-making to me. It does upset them when other kids accuse them of being "scared," or don't understand that just because masks are now optional, it still might be a good idea to wear them.

You are right, it could be just a rational choice to reduce your risk of getting Covid. (Although you do have to wonder if they are thinking this through long-term -- the virus isn't going away, we will eventually catch it, which for a kid might actually be a good thing because they will build immunity at a low-risk age against a virus they will have to encounter over and over for the rest of their lives. Are they going to mask indoors forever?) But there are definitely kids who are scared. Maybe they are in the minority, but they are not rare. We went hiking with friends recently, and one of their young kids didn't want to take off her mask out on the breezy trail, even though nobody else in our group was. That is a sign of unreasonable anxiety, and I felt really bad for the kid.

So it’s not rare because your friends kids think that?

Obviously, that is just the most egregious example I have observed. But any kid who still chooses to mask at the playground either has crazy parents or is scared, and there are still quite a few of those to be seen.

Or they are just used to it and haven't thought to take it off. I had to ask my son 3 times to give me his mask the other day on the playground between him running around with his friends. Can't wait till we get past this and dont judge/worry about being judged on this stuff.

[Anonymous]

Give the parents of young kids some slack. I'm the PP whose kids still mask inside but not out. They are old enough to understand the reasons for this. If your kid isn't old enough to understand it might be easier for parents to apply one rule that applies whenever you leave the house. Also, if your kid is going to chew through their mask anyhow (I had one who would have done this if masks had existed when he was younger), you may as well just remove it completely.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I do not understand these comments about kids who choose to mask being "fearful." My kids, in ES and MS, understand that by continuing to mask indoors we reduce the odds of someone in our family getting covid. They, like we, would rather avoid getting covid so they choose to continue to mask. They don't seem to mind wearing them and their education doesn't seem to have suffered because they are wearing masks. They don't wear masks outside because they know it doesn't make a difference. They also wear KN95s, not cloth, because they know that cloth masks are pointless and if you are going to cover your face you may as well use something that is effective. Their lives are pretty much back-to-normal except for wearing masks indoors. They know that even with mask wearing there is a chance someone in our house will get covid because we are not locking down completely, but they also know that the odds are good that no one in our household will be hospitalized or die.
Seems like rational decision-making to me. It does upset them when other kids accuse them of being "scared," or don't understand that just because masks are now optional, it still might be a good idea to wear them.

You are right, it could be just a rational choice to reduce your risk of getting Covid. (Although you do have to wonder if they are thinking this through long-term -- the virus isn't going away, we will eventually catch it, which for a kid might actually be a good thing because they will build immunity at a low-risk age against a virus they will have to encounter over and over for the rest of their lives. Are they going to mask indoors forever?) But there are definitely kids who are scared. Maybe they are in the minority, but they are not rare. We went hiking with friends recently, and one of their young kids didn't want to take off her mask out on the breezy trail, even though nobody else in our group was. That is a sign of unreasonable anxiety, and I felt really bad for the kid.

So it’s not rare because your friends kids think that?

Obviously, that is just the most egregious example I have observed. But any kid who still chooses to mask at the playground either has crazy parents or is scared, and there are still quite a few of those to be seen.

I have certainly been confronted by parents at playgrounds for allowing my kids to not wear a mask outdoors. And for every time that has happened, I have heard 10 passive aggressive comments about. "We still wear our mask Larla even if other kids aren't as responsible."

Lol. This is the most DC thing I’ve read in a while.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:At Lafayette there were maybe 2-3 masked kids per room, everyone else had them off.

Wow, I definitely think you will notice a difference between predominantly white schools, and predominately black schools. My school is 90+% black, everyone wore a mask.

I noticed in my predominantly white ES that a much larger percentage of black students were masked than white. That makes sense to me, however. If your community has felt the effects more, and lives with a heightened sense of threat on a daily basis, you might easily be slower to unmask. Our black students who really never fully/effectively masked during the pandemic were unmasked today however.

We go to Watkins park in Upper Marlboro frequently - all of the AA masked, all of the Asian families masked, only a few white families unmasked - this is outdoors. People make their own decisions about how risk-adverse to be.

When did you go? When it was cold I masked outside even if it wasn't necessary. During omnicron after our quarantine we masked outside but it was also evil cold out.

[Anonymous]

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Anonymous wrote:It's hard to un-scare people once you have scared them for two years, and politics are a powerful force especially in this town, so I'm not surprised it's hard for parents and even kids to let go of masks.

Maybe kids who lost a parent or guardian were scared of that and not a simple common sense public health measure.

At this point their parents and guardians should be triple vaccinated and shouldn't need to burden their children with the fear of transmitting the virus to somebody vulnerable.

At this point you can have an unmasked child so maybe you stop telling people how to feel. I’m sure you have no fears of anything and are incredibly socially adjusted and full of empathy for others.

NP. The forever-maskers I know are overwhelmingly anxious introverts who spend way too much time on Twitter and aren’t what I’d call “socially well adjusted” but I’m sure you got lots of likes and retweets in your head for this comeback, so as long as you don’t hassle my unmasked kid for their “selfishness” or whatever the f** then I’m glad you’re happy.

I’m the OP to this “comeback” and my kid went unmasked all day. He said it was great. I told him to do what felt comfortable and he walked to the playground masked. I picked him up I masked. He said half his friends were unmasked and half were masked.

The kids I know still masking are doing the same w their kids, letting the kids decide when they feel comfortable. But after a week of their kid is still masking they will start a nudge. One kid walked out of the school unmasked and she put the mask on to hug her dad. As her dad said “it’s her body so her choice”.

If we lived in Florida or Georgia we would all feel differently. But we are here and vaccinated and we cautiously move forward and will not shame anyone who is taking a step slower than us.

And I am the PP whom you were previously accusing of being socially maladjusted and not having empathy for others. I also don't shame people for unmasking more slowly, but I do judge parents who have instilled an unreasonable amount of fear in their kids. I have a lot of empathy for those kids, but not for the adults who did this to them because they refuse to look at the data or get vaccinated. Putting on a mask to hug her dad? Unless the dad is severely immunocompromised, something has gone horribly wrong here, and it can't be brushed off with a slogan.

calm down. she is a little kid and was holding her mask. she just put it on to hug him vs. throwing it on the floor. it was a silly little thing a kid did with their mask. she didn't do it out of fear or anything like that.

her father quit his job to stay home with both kids during quarantine and basically homeschooled them. he's done zero to make them fearful. i wish my child was so well adjusted.