As a parent of 3 teens whose NJ public schooling was interrupted starting mid-March and had to do online learning, and as someone who grew up in Vietnam at the tail end of the Vietnam war, offering my thoughts to US parents re: kids' education this coming school year. 1/

Coronavirus is a world disruptor. We must adapt as we learn more about this health crisis. Figuratively speaking, we will survive this. Literally speaking, not all of us will survive this. So start w this big picture and set your expectations and mindset. 2/

During the "Vietnam War" and after the Americans withdrew, indeterminate bombs were still blasting piercing your ears, shaking the ground beneath you. Being carried and hiding under grandma's kitchen sink is still a memory of safety and comfort for me 3/

Once the quiet would come, I would be back outside with a stick making circles and drawing in the dusty dirt. After dark, I would run, jump, and catch fireflies. In the years after the bombing stopped altogether, I would make a jump rope looping rubber bands together 4/

Years of not having any schooling of any kind. No online instructions, no homeschooling, no books, no reading, no educational TV shows. Nothing. My dad was working in a hospital saving many lives. My mom was murdered but that's a story for another time. 5/

My grandparents raised us and my 4 uncles were jailed for aiding Americans. There was no guilt about the lack of education for us during all those years of war & after. We learned so much regardless. Make no mistake: we are at war with coronavirus & we should treat it as such 6/

The kids are not going to "fall behind." Behind whom? Behind what benchmarks? They are learning invaluable critical thinking skills and life lessons. Have frank discussions on the emergence of novel pandemics, how accuracy in data can drive our decisions w unknowns 7/

and how we assess different levels of risk v reward. For younger kids, how you spend this time with them will shape their memories. For the in-betweens (elementary and middle), it's okay to leave them be when you need to work - (as long as they safe) reading, even gaming 8/

It's really all okay. Boredom begets creativity. Give them and yourselves a break. Treat this world pandemic like the the war and crisis that it is. The unknown of "when will this end" is driving a lot of anxiety. We didn't know that either during the Vietnam War. 9/

And for any parents complaining - and there are - about how onerous it is to have their kids at home with them: you have your kids and they are healthy. Change your mindset. For bosses complaining about their employees' disruptions from kids while they work - same change! 10/

We are at war with an unseen virulent and deadly pathogen. If I said to survive this war, you just need to stay home and wear a mask if you need to venture out in public - until science catches up to the invaders- that seems like an easy ask, isn't it? 11/

The more we stayed home and wore our masks, the quicker the invaders will be stamped out, the sooner the kids could go back to school, parents could go back to work, workers could earn money, then spend that money, then the economic engine is revved up again - doable right? 12/

It IS doable. It is imminently and easily doable. Change our mindset and let's defeat this invader that has killed over 137,000 people in the US. Your kids' learning and education can still be attained without formal schooling. They are learning now. Listen, talk, learn. /End