Canberra lockdown: Children battling loneliness while learning from home

Ms Eriksson is not worried about her 11-year-old falling behind academically, but she is worried about the mental health impacts of being isolated from her friends.

"She's missing social interaction, absolutely. They get the interaction through a screen, but meeting a friend, just having a bubble, to meet one friend, two friends that would be wonderful," she said.

Canberra schools will continue with remote learning for the rest of term 3, prompting parents and schools to consider strategies to sustain students' motivation and improve their emotional wellbeing.

Australian Catholic University's Professor of educational psychology John Munro said people became anxious when they perceived a threat that could result in them losing something.

"In relation to children and their study, it's that they're losing access to improving their knowledge, particularly with the older secondary students who really see their future relying on them being successful," Professor Munro said.

"It's critical that the students can see that there are bits that they can manage that they can control.

"And also that in five minutes' time, their brains has got more in it than it has now."

Parents shouldn't see themselves in the role of the teacher but they can help to scaffold their child's experience.

Professor Munro said parents could help build new learning routines and encourage their children to be independent learners by asking questions like: 'what do you already know about this topic? How did you solve this problem last time? What do you know now that you didn't before?'

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Emmaus Christian School principal Erik Hofsink said his school was trying their best to replicate the routine of a school day remotely.

"Loneliness and lack of social interaction has just become the number one enemy of lockdown," Mr Hofsink said.

The school's wellbeing coordinator and psychologist have started up friendship group chats over Google Classroom to help bring the social side back to their remote school day.

Mr Hofsink said some families thrived on having a set routine and regular tasks to hand in while other were just trying to keep things together.

"That's why we say: hey, don't worry when the work is not finished. When we get back to school one day, we can course correct, it's not the end of the world.

"And let's do quality over quantity."

At St Edmund's College, Principal Joe Zavone has ensured no remote classes are scheduled every second Monday and every Friday afternoon to allow students to catch up or do what they want. He's advised teachers not to make every lesson a video conference to make sure there are plenty of screen breaks.

The school has also introduced some fun activities, including a trick shot video competition and the principal's photo competition.

"You've got to keep up this sense of fun and this sense of positive engagement all through this time and not give up those fun activities that you would have had at school," Mr Zavone said.

The teachers at Emmaus Christian School have also gotten out of their comfort zone by producing fun videos.

"I think fun and humor is one of the best remedies for this time at home," Mr Hofsink said.

While in lockdown, Stella has been playing online games with her friends and trying to beat her mother at table tennis.

"Even though I hate lockdown, I think it's the worst thing ever ... we try to do something fun, more or less every day" Ms Eriksson said.

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