Some years back (many more than I would care to admit to),  I remember me and my cousins had gone out with our Aunt and Uncle and parents to the market. CP in Delhi as I recall, as posh as it could possibly get. My cousin at that point was a mere toddler, I may have been in my teens. As is quite common, not just with kids, but adults as well, he saw something in the market which he liked, and wanted. For xyz reason, he was refused. The result - he lay down in the middle of the shop, started crying, and refused to get up.  By any stretch of imagination, this scenario is not an uncommon one. Parents across the globe experience it, not just with toddlers, but even older children. Barring the last year and a half, when kids have primarily been at home, we have in our last decade of experience at Morning Glorie's preschool and daycare in South City1 Gurgaon, had many parents come to us and talk about how their baby was likely to "throw a tantrum" if they did not get what they ...

 We are now into the 8th month since the first lockdown was announced during the Covid crisis. Naturally enough time has gone by that we have all somewhat learnt to adapt to the "new normal", well, more or less. This still isn't normal, and we are all still struggling at some level or the other.  The children are facing their own set of issues, but here, we are talking about your major struggles/points of concern with regards to your children during this period. We asked you all what your major concerns were. We came up with what we thought you could have struggled with the most. This list mostly came from our discussions with our parent body, what our own teachers were facing, and what we were witnessing among our own family and friends. This is what some of you had to say (Note - we are not revealing any personal information/names. We respect your privacy): By and large, increased screen time appeared to be a major point of concern for everyone. This is irrespective of ...

I know, you read the title here, and warning bells start ringing around you. Me too. It’s how most of us are accustomed to reacting whenever we have anything to do with mental health. But you know what, that’s not how things are supposed to be. What we are only talking about here is basic stuff to begin with- our mood, our thoughts, especially now in these difficult times. Focus on yourself first-how differently are you feeling now as compared to “normal times”? sometimes good, when you think about all the good which this lockdown has brought- family time, good and clean air to breathe in, not getting stuck in traffic etc. The funny- the weird poses we all seem to take in trying to do jhadu pocha, me or my sister trying to do some kitchen work which we have never done before, with some pretty funny results (like parathas in all sorts of shapes and sizes). And then the bad- no maids, having to do all household chores yourself (or with your partner, but in any case chores you are ...