How to Get Kids to Understand Why They Need to Wear Masks
Even with a mask that fits properly, some kids may refuse to wear it – they are still anxious or comfortable at the prospect.
At this point, Solomon advises parents normalize masks by wearing them themselves and by having a bigger conversation about "the why of it all."
Solomon said: "Children love to be heroes and helpers, and children love the idea of fairness. This is a good place to start – we wear our masks to keep ourselves and other people safe. You can talk about how little people can do big things to help. 'Wearing a mask is a big way to help. It doesn't help if we don't do it the right way though.' If you explain that masks need to stay clean, that is a simple and effective umbrella explanation encompassing all the reasons children can't leave their masks on the floor, get them wet at the sink, chew on them, or wipe their nose with them."
She also said parents should let kids pick out their own properly-fitted masks that cater to their personalities or interests – "they can have multiple masks to go with their outfits or with their favourite characters or colours or matching masks with their friends or family" – and to appeal to their child's sense of fun.
"Find a way to tie wearing a mask into their favourite game," she said. "They can pretend that their mask has a special forcefield around it so they can't touch it." Or for those rule-following kiddos, she suggests putting them in charge of "mask checks" for the whole family. "They can inspect and inventory all the family members to make sure they have and are wearing their masks."