The UNICEF office in Ukraine has created videos to help preschoolers aged two to six cope with stress during air raids. This is reported on the organisation’s website, Kommersant Ukrainian reports
In the new series of videos, child psychologists offer comprehensive advice on various topics, including adult-child interaction, educational games for children, stress and fear management, assistance in child language development, and aggression management.
It is noted that these videos will be useful for parents of children who cannot attend kindergartens.
The short videos are part of the UNICEF project “Play and Don’t Be Afraid ” as part of the All-Ukrainian Mental Health Programme “Are You OK?”.
Munir Mammadzadeh, UNICEF Representative in Ukraine, said that despite the challenges posed by the war, it is very important to continue to provide education for children and create conditions for their development and leisure. This is especially important for those children who cannot attend kindergarten due to the security situation.
According to him, UNICEF is developing tools to provide parents of preschoolers with resources that help relieve stress, entertain and calm children.
According to national surveys conducted by UNICEF together with the Rating sociological group in January 2023, two out of three children aged 3 to 6 do not attend kindergarten in Ukraine. This is most noticeable in the frontline areas, where 76% of respondents are unable to enrol their children in kindergartens. In addition, about 75 per cent of IDP families do not enrol their children in pre-schools for a number of reasons, including closed kindergartens, lack of shelter and fear for the child’s safety.