Kids are WAY more resilient then we give them credit for.
I work with high schoolers every day and have heard many different stories about what they did during Covid. Educationally, students suffered across the board, especially for 20-21 academic year, but they did have plenty of real life experiences. In fact, I’d say that their experiences would have been considered mostly normal in the days before computers and smart phones.
Yes, many missed out on “normal” social activities. But actually, many formed new friends with students they wouldn’t have hung out with at school. In our area, during the worst of lockdowns, kids met outside. They hung out at the end of the street or met other kids in the woods for hikes. Or, if they weren’t meeting outside, they started zoom chat groups and similar. Many kids I’ve worked with since 2020 have told me about new friends they made during Covid.
On the downside, yes, there were other kids who isolated themselves on purpose, or whose parents were very strict about any kind of social interaction, maybe due to a compromised family member. Those kids seem to have fared worse. But I do know a couple of kids who loved zoom school. They are both kids with a lot of social anxiety, so for them it was a relief not to be at school. Unlike the many kids whose grades took a big hit, these two students had excellent results.
I think the biggest positive effect I’ve seen on students is that most of them took up something new. They learned to cook, bake, sew, learn a language, take up kayaking, teach themselves how to ride a ripstick, a bike, and a unicycle, start reading books again, redecorate their rooms, finally make photo albums, and many other great things. A lot of kids have told me how much they enjoyed spending so much family time together. I’d say that doing a number of these things helped a lot of kids learn some adult skills.
As far as getting themselves to and from places, when my kids were 15 I let them both take the train down to the city by themselves or with friends. I knew who they were meeting and where, they had to check in with me, etc… I told them what to do and they did it.
My youngest had no sleep away camp experience. (Most kids in the country don’t.) When he had just turned 18, I let him drive himself to a college three hours away to do an overnight visit. I wasn’t worried about it. And for reference, this was three years ago, not in the prehistoric 00’s😆
There’s no preparation needed for a first flight. My daughter flew across the country when she was 15. We just did whatever the airline mandated. It was fine. They don’t need preparation to get on a train by themselves for the first time. I’m not clear why doing that with a current 15 or 16 year old is more problematic than before the pandemic.
It’s a case of being comfortable with your child’s maturity. You know your kid best and if you aren’t confident they can handle traveling on their own, don’t let them do it. But if they are bugging you to let them go, have an honest conversation and determine if they are mature enough. Don’t project your fears on to them.
