Anonymous wrote:My 4 yr old understands that there's a virus that travels from person to person through the air, and that's why we're not being around people right now, and when we go for walks even if we see someone we really like, we're staying a bit away from them. She understands the germs can make people very sick.

She understands that the deliveries that come have been touched by people who might carry the germs and that's why we're wiping everything down carefully and washing our hands for the ABC song each time we've gone outside.

Same, and same for all of the friends and classmates we've video chatted with. My 4 year old knows everything is closed and we have to keep space between us and other people because there's a virus that is making people sick. And even if she doesn't feel sick, it's possible to make other people sick so we have to be extra careful when we take walks and have to wash our hands really well. She's talked to enough friends that she understands this is everyone's reality and often asks for confirmation that things are closed (is the beach closed too? Are all of the restaurants?). We were just saying germs, but everyone seems to be using the word virus, so we switched to that. I think it helps differentiate normal germs from THIS one that is dangerous for people right now.

We told our daughter (3.5) that a lot of people were getting sick so we need to stay inside the key people healthy. She sort of understands, although she still asks about daycare a lot of days and clearly misses it. Her imagination play revolves a lot around stuffies being sick, but that's been a thing before (she was sick in late January and it kind of took off then).

Her routine is so disrupted that she needs to hear something and her experience of being sick isn't people going to the hospital or dying so I'm not as worried about her being upset by the disease itself. It's mostly about helping her understand why she isn't seeing her friends, going to dance class, going to restaurants, etc.

My Braxtinn is 3 years old and she's just as dumb as a sack of hammers. She isn't asking any questions. I think it was the lead paint exposure.

My 4 yr old understands that there's a virus that travels from person to person through the air, and that's why we're not being around people right now, and when we go for walks even if we see someone we really like, we're staying a bit away from them. She understands the germs can make people very sick.

She understands that the deliveries that come have been touched by people who might carry the germs and that's why we're wiping everything down carefully and washing our hands for the ABC song each time we've gone outside.

I have a 4 year old too. I'm not telling her about everyone. I just said that her day care teachers are sick (which they are) and that they closed school to clean it. And when everyone feels better she will go back to school. I try not to focus on it and redirect. We don't listen to the news or have the tv on around her about it at all.

At 4, the difficult time is now because it's difficult to entertain them. This will not be a bad memory for them. It won't affect them long term at all as long as Mom & Dad maintain a relatively calm household.

OP, this is only kinda similar. When I was 4 yrs old one of my brothers was deathly ill and was isolated in his bedroom for 4 months. The only memory that stayed with me was knowing I could not cross the line into his bedroom. I didn't remember stress or sadness or worry, though I'm sure it was there. The intense memory was a few years later being taken to a funeral of a young boy who had just died of the same disease. I truly think if I hadn't been included in that, I wouldn't have had any impression that our family had had a serious event.

My 4 year old is stir crazy and we have explained this as “People are getting sick. So we are doing our part by staying inside”. I’m not sure how much she truly understands.

How are you explaining to your little kids?