Parenting in a Pandemic

Grandparents Could Ease the Burden of Homeschooling

It’s a win-win: Elders get a way to combat loneliness, teachers and parents get help they desperately need, and children get another grown-up to guide them through remote learning.

• Robin Marantz Henig
• September 10, 2020

I Run a Tutoring Company. I Get Dozens of Calls a Day About Learning Pods.

This is what the scramble to teach from home looks like.

• Brian Platzer
• August 12, 2020

There Are Other Options Besides Reopening Schools

Alternative solutions to parents’ dilemma just require more time, money, and imagination.

• Ashley Fetters
• July 31, 2020

Will Kids Follow the New Pandemic Rules at School?

Students are generally capable of doing what public-health experts ask, but not all of them, not everything, and not all the time.

• Joe Pinsker
• July 29, 2020

What My Kids Learned When They Weren’t in School

This time since school was canceled—since life was canceled—has given them an education they couldn’t have gotten any other way.

• Frank Bures
• July 22, 2020

This Isn’t Sustainable for Working Parents

The pandemic has already taken a toll on the careers of those with young children—particularly mothers.

• Joe Pinsker
• July 9, 2020

Don’t Build Roads, Open Schools

The idea of child care as women’s (unpaid) work holds the issue back in political discussions.

• Helen Lewis
• June 30, 2020

What Happens When Kids Don’t See Their Peers for Months

Socializing is a crucial part of growing up. The pandemic brought it to a halt.

• Lydia Denworth
• June 24, 2020

What America Asks of Working Parents Is Impossible

More and more, the goals of being a dedicated employee and being a dedicated parent seem to be in conflict.

• Joe Pinsker
• June 24, 2020

Virtual Parental Visitation Could Have Unintended Consequences for Abuse Survivors

Court-mandated video chats with their kids could give abusers intimate glimpses into their victims’ homes.

• Jessica Klein
• June 23, 2020

The Sexual-Health Supply Chain Is Broken

Condoms, birth control, and other items are harder to get in the developing world because of the pandemic. That is putting lives at risk.

• Anna Louie Sussman
• June 8, 2020

The Coming Setback for Women in the Workplace

Countries across Europe are setting out schedules for reopening businesses, yet schools remain closed. How will that work?

• Rachel Donadio
• May 28, 2020

Being a Parent Has Made My Pandemic Life Simpler, If You Can Believe It

Hear me out.

• Tom McTague
• May 4, 2020

I Can’t Stop Thinking About Patient One

Italy shows us that controlling the pandemic will require reshaping family life in much of the world.

• Rachel Donadio
• April 16, 2020

The Atlantic Daily: Parenting During a Pandemic

“The good news is that the parent you are today is not the parent you have to be tomorrow.”

• Caroline Mimbs Nyce
• April 8, 2020

How Are Parents Supposed to Deal With Joint Custody Right Now?

The rules of the pandemic require every person to stay put in one household. The laws of joint custody require the exact opposite.

• Deborah Copaken
• April 8, 2020

It’s Okay to Be a Different Kind of Parent During the Pandemic

When something outside your control changes your life, it’s what you do with what you can control that really shapes your children.

• Mary Katharine Ham
• April 8, 2020

Dear Therapist: What’s Your Advice to Parents Whose Kids Are Stuck at Home During the Coronavirus Lockdowns?

I’m making sure that our kids exercise, have a schedule, spend time outside each day, and try to maintain as normal a life as possible. What more can I do?

• Lori Gottlieb
• April 6, 2020

How the Coronavirus Is Influencing Children’s Play

Play is children’s language, and parents shouldn’t be concerned if the pandemic has been showing up in kids’ games lately.

• Kate Cray
• April 1, 2020

The Child-Care Crisis Is Even Worse for Health-Care Workers

Medical professionals need to be at work more urgently than ever, but their child care has essentially evaporated. Eager (but fragile) networks of volunteers have stepped in to help.

• Ashley Fetters
• March 26, 2020