My Hero is You: Story book helps children to cope with COVID-19
A new story book that aims to help children understand and come to terms with COVID-19 has been issued on 9 April 2020.
A new story book ‘My Hero is You, how kids can fight COVID-19!’ aims to help children understand and come to terms with COVID-19.
With the help of a fantasy creature, Ario, this book explains how children can protect themselves, their families and friends from coronavirus and how to manage difficult emotions when confronted with a new and rapidly changing reality.
The book – aimed primarily at children aged 6-11 years old – is a project of the Inter-Agency Standing Committee Reference Group on Mental Health and Psychosocial Support in Emergency Settings. It has been produced by a collaboration of more than 50 organizations working in the humanitarian sector, including United Nations agencies, national and international nongovernmental organizations and international agencies, including UNICEF providing mental health and psychosocial support in emergency settings.
“All over the world, children’s lives have been completely upended – the majority of them living in countries with some form of restricted movement or lockdown. This wonderful book helps children understand and navigate this new landscape and learn how they can take small actions to become the heroes in their own stories,” said Henrietta Fore, Executive Director, UNICEF.
During the early stages of the project, more than 1700 children, parents, caregivers and teachers from around the world shared how they were coping with the COVID-19 pandemic. The input was invaluable to script writer and illustrator Helen Patuck and the project team in making sure that the story and its messages resonated with children from different backgrounds and continents.
