The Atlantic

What We’ve Stolen From Our Kids

School provides so much more than an education.
Source: David Vaaknin / The Washington Post / Getty

In the beginning, the pandemic was a child-care crisis. School was closing today, and then maybe tomorrow. Who would leave work to get the children? Who had to cancel everything? Then it was clear that there wasn’t going to be school, for a week, maybe two, then a month, then the rest of the school year. And then a little while after that, it became clear that in-person summer camp was out too.

And now here we are, staring at September and realizing how much we have taken from our children. Because this pandemic is not just a child-care crisis. At some point, this experience is our children’s actual lives, and they’ve lost something enormous. From the perspective of the

You’re reading a preview, subscribe to read more.

More from The Atlantic

The Atlantic5 min read
The Strangest Job in the World
This is an edition of the Books Briefing, our editors’ weekly guide to the best in books. Sign up for it here. The role of first lady couldn’t be stranger. You attain the position almost by accident, simply by virtue of being married to the president
The Atlantic5 min readAmerican Government
What Nikki Haley Is Trying to Prove
This is an edition of The Atlantic Daily, a newsletter that guides you through the biggest stories of the day, helps you discover new ideas, and recommends the best in culture. Sign up for it here. Nikki Haley faces terrible odds in her home state of
The Atlantic3 min read
The Coen Brothers’ Split Is Working Out Fine
It’s still a mystery why the Coen brothers stopped working together. The pair made 18 movies as a duo, from 1984’s Blood Simple to 2018’s The Ballad of Buster Scruggs, setting a new standard for black comedy in American cinema. None of those movies w

Related Books & Audiobooks