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‘They’ve been so confined’: Teachers say post-pandemic tots are terrors

The kids may be back in school, but they are not all right.

Early childhood educators say that post-pandemic preschoolers and kindergarteners are struggling with behavior issues, emotional resilience, motor skill development and language acquisition after spending their formative years wearing masks, distance learning and having limited social interactions.

“Students are having extreme difficulty with the structure of the school day: following directions, sitting in their seat for hours, working independently, being quiet and even sharing space with other students,” Vanessa Brancato, 30, who teaches preschool in Laurelton, Queens, told The Post.

Vanessa Brancato is a preschool teacher in Queens.

Instead, her students — who are ages 3, 4 and 5 — are doodling in their notebooks during lessons, asking for snacks on demand and chatting with friends while she’s teaching. They’re throwing tantrums when it’s time to leave the playground and struggling with new skills, such as reading and writing.

“They’re having trouble working together and [waiting their turn] in conversations,” Brancato said. “They have a low attention span, possibly because they’ve been using iPads and other devices that provide instant gratification during the pandemic.”

‘Emotional fires’

Maggie Sosa, 34, an early childhood special education teacher at P723X in The Bronx who teaches kindergarten, agrees that a lot has been lost since the pandemic hit.

Just this past Wednesday, she said one of her students shoved his desk in protest over a phonics lesson. She said that this year has introduced the most aggressive behavior she’s seen in the classroom, particularly among boys.

“They’ve been so confined to the house — and not exposed to the standards of society,” Sosa said, explaining she’s had to dedicate a period to teaching kindness in class.

Last year, her kids followed a blended learning model coming into school only two days per week, but that didn’t cut it when it came to socialization. 

Maggie Sosa teaches kindergarten students in The Bronx.

“We’re still working on skills that should have been mastered at this point. These kids are having such a difficult time regulating their emotions because a lot of them have been in the house way too much. When you’re home, you’re comfortable, but it’s bleeding into the classrooms. We’re spending our days putting out emotional fires.” 

More deficits

One Upper West Side preschool teacher, who declined to give her name due to concerns about keeping her job, said masks have had a lasting side effect on her kids.

“As much as I’m an advocate for mask-wearing, there are still downfalls when it comes to learning and development,” she said, explaining that face coverings got in the way of children’s language acquisition because they couldn’t see their teachers forming words with their mouths.

Now, “with masks optional, I’m starting to notice it,” she said. “I’ve recommended two or three kids for speech evaluations,” whereas before the pandemic, she explained, it would be one child, at most.

The Upper West Side teacher also admitted that behavioral problems are on the rise.

“The kids also seem to have extreme pent-up energy. We even bought a trampoline in the school just to let the kids get some energy out,” she said.

Bouncing back

Getting young kids readjusted to the structure of the classroom has been difficult, teachers say. Getty Images

Occupational therapists, who often work with children who need support beyond what a school can offer, say they have seen a surge in students with challenges such as motor skills and sensory processing.

Jenna Fanelli, an occupational therapist in Westchester, said that demand for her services — which include teaching tots how to hold a pencil properly or follow directions — has surged since kids returned to the classroom in 2021.

“A lot of kids don’t know how to self-regulate their bodies [yet],” Fanelli said of her youngest charges. “Now that they’re with 11 other children or more, they’re learning how to regain composure after an emotional upset.”

Meanwhile, Sosa is taking matters into her own hands.

To help bring kids up to speed, she has shelled out $500 of her own money since the beginning of the year on prizes, food and treats to reward her kids for good behavior to enforce positive feedback. 

“We’re implementing games together to teach how to take turns because the kids have missed a lot of that preschool interaction,” Sosa said. “I have to put more behavior support in place to create an environment where they want to be kind to each other.”