How to Help Kids Manage Back-to-School Anxiety in the Covid Era

For many children in the U.S., the usual back-to-school jitters are likely to be a lot more intense this year amid the coronavirus pandemic.

Among students slated to attend school in person, “there are worries about illness and germs and am I going to be able to see my grandparents if I go back to school,” says Muniya Khanna, a clinical psychologist and research instructor at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia. Children may worry about forgetting masks or running afoul of social-distancing rules. And many students—whether they’ll be learning in-person or online—may be anxious about missing milestones and special events, such as dances and band concerts, like they did in the spring.

We talked to psychologists about how to ease children’s back-to-school anxiety…