It’s hard to be a kid right now. In-person play dates are off limits and school isn’t the same via a screen.
Grover, Sesame Street‘s beloved blue monster, gets it. He went on NPR’s Life Kit podcast with hosts Anya Kamentez and Cory Turner to talk about how he copes with missing his friends, how to stay in the moment, and why it’s OK to be sad right now.
Here are five tips from Grover that can help kids take their minds off coronavirus and stay connected with their friends.
1. Keep busy
Grover lends a helping hand around his house by picking up his toys, making his bed, and bringing his dishes to the sink.
He also picks up groceries and delivers them to neighbors who can’t leave their house. These activities help Grover pass the time and help his community.
2. Incorporate activities in video chats
Even though you can’t physically be with your friends right now, you can still do fun things together.
Grover says he likes to eat meals with his friends during video chats. They also play board and card games together.
3. Occupy your mind without a screen
It can be easy to pass the hours with a phone or a TV screen. But you can and should have fun without technology.
Grover plays with his toys and relies on his mind to take him on a journey. “You can go anywhere in your own imagination,” he explains. He also likes to read but prefers books without any monsters in them.
4. Stay in the moment
We’re all a little anxious right now so Kamentez and Turner help Grover take his mind off the uncertainty of this moment with a game.
All Grover has to do is name five things he can see, four things he can touch, three things he can hear, two he can smell, and one he can taste.
This game can help kids stay in the moment by making them observe their surroundings.
5. It’s OK to be sad
Though, Grover is a monster he says everyone who is alive gets sad from time to time. It’s OK to feel this way.
Grover has some encouraging words of advice for worried kids out there: “…this is going to pass, and we will all be able to get together and celebrate when we do.”