What did children miss most during COVID-19 lockdown?

Details

COVID-19 was declared a pandemic in March 2020, and the world has seen significant changes since then. Spain underwent an extreme lockdown that cancelled all school classes and outdoor activities for children, potentially having significant consequences for young people.

The paper explored how young children experienced lockdown during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic and what they thought about their future lives after COVID-19. Researchers collected data from 73 students aged 7 to 9 using drawings produced by the participants and short questions, alongside descriptive comments from children and parents. They analysed the data from a children’s rights perspective and using the Freirean approach of a pedagogy of love and hope.

The results suggest that participants experienced significant changes in their routines and most missed playing outdoors with friends and visiting their grandparents. To the authors’ knowledge, this was the first study of its kind to investigate how the COVID-19 pandemic influenced the ways children lived during the pandemic and its possible implications for their futures.