During the week of August 12th, the CDC reported that more than 1400 children were hospitalized with COVOD-19. The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) found 94,000 confirmed cases among children now make 15% of all cases. The AAP strongly recommends the use of masks for children above the age of 2 years. They also strongly recommend that educational institutions require masks for the safety of the children, their families, and the school personnel.
A concern has been raised that masks will delay speech and language development if the caregiver/teacher is wearing a mask. Healthychildren.org addresses this concern on their website. Their discussion talks about how children are “hard-wired” to communicate. From day 1, they are watching loved one’s faces and mouth movements. They are listening to them talk and make attempts to interact with their caregivers. The video “No Small Matter” shows a small infant looking at a caregiver as he sticks out his tongue, and the baby mimics it; the caregiver opens his mouth widely, and so does the infant.
A key part of learning to communicate for a child is watching the faces, mouths, and expressions of people closest to them. Babies and young children study faces intently, so the concern about solid masks covering the face is understandable. However, there are no known studies that the use of a face mask negatively impacts a child’s speech and language development. In fact, visually impaired children develop speech and language skills at the same rate as their peers. When one sense is taken away, others may be heightened.
Young children use many clues to help them understand and learn the language. They watch gestures, hear changes in the tone of voices, see eyes conveying emotions and listen to words.
Babies and toddlers can get all the face time they need at home with family members who aren’t wearing face masks. It is enough for good parenting to provide dedicated time to converse with your child WITHOUT screens or other interruptions.
Tips for better communication with children with or without masks are the following: Get the child’s attention, face the child directly and make sure nothing is blocking the child’s view, speak slowly and slightly louder (not yelling), as when reading, use eyes, hands, body language and changes in tone of voice to add information to the spoken word, and reduce noise and other distractions. These tips can be shared with daycare workers, babysitters, siblings, etc.
These “dedicated” times should be fun and not a time for criticism. They should be short (5-10 minutes) but frequent and can occur during feeding or bathing or changing of diapers or tummy time.
Regardless of mask use or not, some children will be slower in reaching their speech and language milestones and may need help from a therapist. If there is any concern, please tell your health care provider about your concerns.
Using masks is about safety first. Masks reduce transmission of COVID-19 and can make in-person schooling possible. Masks, safe distancing, and vaccines protect children.