children in emergencies toolkit

This page contains links to key guidance and easy-to-use resources to support local communities and organisations in the ongoing child-focused response to COVID-19. For more examples, stories and ideas from Viva’s partner networks, see our network response page. For more programme development tools see the guidance page. For Viva’s child and family phone mentoring programme, see this page.

Versión en español disponible aquí (actualización próximamente)

How can we protect children during the COVID-19 pandemic?

COVID-19 presents risks to children’s wellbeing on many levels: 

As local organisations and community groups, what we can do on the ground on any of these levels can have a significant impact in keeping children safe and minimising the negative impact of the pandemic.

Direct work with children

Share correct information with children

• Save the Children, 7 Simple tips on how to talk to kids about the coronavirus
• ‘My Hero is You’, A story developed by children and for children aged 6-11 around the world to help explain and understand COVID-19 in many languages
• Use this new comic book produced by National Public Radio to help children understand the outbreak and how it is affecting those they love
• Unicef, Key messages to help adolescents and teenagers through COVID-19

Help children to cope and provide psychosocial support

• WHO, Helping children cope with stress
• Psychological First Aid (PFA) and Guidance on providing remote Psychological first aid during COVID-19
• Mental Health and Psychosocial Support messages during the COVID-19 response

Respond to abuse and exploitation

• Reporting and referring child protection concerns in your context:
  • Child Helpline International is a worldwide network of 173 helplines across the world 
  • IASC, How to support survivors of gender-based violence when a GBV actor is not available in your area
• Keeping children safe online
  • A series of resources and tools to keep children safe online during COVID-19 isolation
  • The FBI’s Safe Online Surfing (SOS) programme teaches students in grades 3 to 8 how to navigate the web safely

Including all children

• Quick Tips on COVID-19 and Migrant, Refugee and Internally Displaced Children (Children on the Move)
• Including children with disabilities: Unicef – COVID-19 response: Considerations for Children and Adults with Disabilities
• Understand the gendered implications of COVID-19 through this brief, which was developed by CARE International
• Unicef, Tips for engaging adolescents in the COVID-19 response

Working with families

Share correct information with families

• Unicef, What parents need to know

Supporting parents and caregivers

• Six evidence-based key messages to support positive parenting during COVID-19 available in 60 languages
• A regularly updated set of resources and guidelines for parents from Unicef
• Resources for families from Save the Children
• Guidance on providing remote support to caregivers

Psychosocial support and activities for families

• Psychosocial support for families
  • Help children better understand the outbreak by using this brief, created by the National Child Traumatic Stress Network. It lays out how to help children of various ages, including pre-school aged children, ages 6-12, and ages 13-18. 
  • Six relaxation exercises to do with children
• Activities to do with young children
  • Tips for families including age-appropriate responses to common questions, a guide to self-care, and activities for young children experiencing social distancing
  • Every day I learn through play: Activities to do with your infant or toddler
• Activities to do with children aged 4 and over
  • Daily activity guides from Save the Children
  • Scholastic is offering day-by-day projects to keep children learning and growing at home

Alternative care and children living in institutions

• Guidance note from the Alliance for Child Protection in Humanitarian Action
• Guidance note from Better Care Network

Community-level support

Promoting hygiene and safety

• Share correct information and practice on COVID-19:
  • World Health Organisation (WHO), Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) advice for the public
  • WHO, Myth-busters

Education provision

• INEE, Key Messages and Actions for COVID-19 Prevention and Control in Schools
• Enabling access to education
  • A one-page decision tree from Unicef to help you decide how to provide remote learning
  • A list of educational platforms for children out of school from UNESCO
  • Many tools and resources available from INEE
• Providing psychosocial support through education
  • INEE, Guidance note: facilitating psychosocial wellbeing and social and emotional learning

More education-focused tools and resources here (coming soon!)

Engaging remotely with communities

• BBC, Practical Guide to Community Engagement at a Distance 
• IFRC, Unicef, WHO, COVID-19: Key tips and discussion points for community workers, volunteers and community networks

Resources for churches

• Humanitarian Disaster Institute, Coronavirus resources for the church

Supporting staff, volunteers and childcare workers 

• IFRC, Mental Health and Psychosocial Support for Staff, Volunteers and Communities in an Outbreak of Novel Coronavirus
• Psychosocial support for staff and volunteers working with children

Society-level responses

Advocacy messages to share

• CARE, Ensuring a Covid-19 local-led and gendered response that meets the needs of all people, including those most left behind
• Save the Children et. al, Learning must go on: Recommendations for keeping children safe and learning, during and after the COVID-19 crisis

Key tools and resources

• Parent and Child education materials in a range of languages
• Child Protection Area of Responsibility Resource Guide (regularly updated)
• End Violence Against Children: Protecting children during the COVID-19 outbreak (excellent updated resources including working with children and families)
• Save the Children Resource Library: Covid-19 information and guidance
• Alliance for Child Protection in Humanitarian Action, Technical note: Protection of Children during the COVID-19 Pandemic
• Child Protection Hub, Support in Pandemic times (a library of resources)
• INEE, COVID-19 resources for education
• Minimum Standards for Child Protection in Humanitarian Action