Surviving High School in a Pandemic

May 15, 2021

A roundup of new guidance and stories from NYT Parenting.

Golden Cosmos

When I spoke to Lisa Damour, a clinical psychologist and the author of The New York Times's Adolescence column, about the experience of teenagers during Covid, she said: "Pandemic conditions are at cross currents with normal adolescent development." In other words, the work of being a teen is growing away from your parents and spending time with your friends, and the virus curtailed both of those things.

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I thought of our interview when I read Susan Dominus's essential piece, "'I Feel Like I'm Just Drowning': Surviving Sophomore Year 2020," from The New York Times Magazine. Susan followed a group of high schoolers and one of their teachers in Columbia, Mo., all of whom struggled with issues, from mental health to substance abuse to financial troubles, during this strange year.

Describing the teacher, MacKenzie Everett-Kennedy, and her feelings about the loss of in-person learning, Susan writes: "She had never better appreciated that school was more than just a building; it was like a community-ordained safe space, a place where her students could experiment messily in the exercises of adulthood, with stakes that felt high even as they were safely low."

Also this week, Dana Goldstein reports that Randi Weingarten, the president of the American Federation of Teachers, the nation's second-largest teachers union, is calling for a full reopening of schools this fall. "There is no doubt: Schools must be open. In person. Five days a week," Ms. Weingarten said. Dana also talked to families that are hesitant to return to in-person schooling. If your children are heading back to the classroom now, Christina Caron has tips for how to tame their anxiety.

Emily Peck looks at how policymakers are now taking child care seriously because of the way it fell apart during the pandemic, and how the idea of child care as "human infrastructure" became mainstream.

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Finally, I want to talk to parents who are going through perimenopause as their children are going through puberty. Is this the emotional hellscape you inhabit? Drop me a line here.

Thanks for reading!

— Jessica Grose, columnist, NYT Parenting

THIS WEEK IN NYT PARENTING

Kholood Eid for The New York Times

'I Feel Like I'm Just Drowning': Sophomore Year in a Pandemic

A group of high school students try desperately to make it through an isolated and dire year.

By Susan Dominus

Ira Lupu for The New York Times

President of Key Teachers' Union Shares Plea: 'Schools Must Be Open' in Fall

About half the nation's schools are not fully open despite rising vaccination levels, and teachers' unions are getting much of the blame. Randi Weingarten hopes to carve a path forward.

By Dana Goldstein

Cécile Gariépy

5 Tips for Taming Back-to-School Anxiety

After months at home, some children may feel anxious about going to school or camp. Here's how to smooth the transition.

By Christina Caron

Ilana Panich-Linsman for The New York Times

Schools Are Open, but Many Families Remain Hesitant to Return

Even as fears of the coronavirus abate, many students are continuing to opt out of in-person learning. Some school leaders are trying to woo — or push — them back.

By Dana Goldstein

Maria Nguyen

Policymakers Used to Ignore Child Care. Then Came the Pandemic.

Experts who sounded the alarm about the care economy were often shunted to the side of policy discussions. Not anymore.

By Emily Peck

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Tiny Victories

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When I want to sleep in, I make sure to leave in the middle of the living room floor a toy or game the kids haven't played with in awhile. And markers and blank paper. Lots of blank paper. — Sarah Howlett, Boulder

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