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2019–20 coronavirus pandemic facts for kids

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2019–20 coronavirus pandemic
COVID-19 Outbreak World Map per Capita.svg
Map of confirmed cases per capita as of 9 April  2020 (2020 -04-09)
  1,000+ confirmed cases per million
  500–1,000 confirmed cases per million
  200–500 confirmed cases per million
  50–200 confirmed cases per million
  >0–50 confirmed cases per million
  No confirmed cases or no data
Coronavirus patients on ventilators at the Imam Khomeini Hospital in Tehran
Meeting of the Italian government task force to face the coronavirus outbreak, 23 February 2020
Taiwanese 33rd Chemical Corps spraying disinfectant on a street in Taipei
Passengers at Linate Airport in Milan have their temperatures taken
Almost empty supermarket aisle in Melbourne, Australia
(clockwise from top)
  • Hospitalized patients in Tehran
  • Disinfection vehicles in Taipei
  • Low stocks at an Australian supermarket due to panic buying
  • Health checks at Linate Airport in Milan
  • The Italian government's outbreak task force
Disease Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19)
Virus strain Severe acute respiratory syndrome
coronavirus 2
(SARS-CoV-2)
Location Worldwide (list of locations)
Date Nov / Dec 2019 – ongoing
(5 years)
Confirmed cases 1,196,553
Recovered 246,108
Deaths
64,549
Territories
209

The 2019–20 coronavirus pandemic is an ongoing pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The outbreak was first found in Wuhan, Hubei, China, in December 2019, and was declared a pandemic by the World Health Organization (WHO) on 11 March 2020. The International Committee on Taxonomy of Viruses named the virus "severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2" (SARS-CoV-2).

The virus is usually spread from one person to another via lung related small drops produced during coughing or sneezing. It mostly spreads when people are close to each other but can also spread when people touch a contaminated surface and then their face.

Ways people can avoid spreading the virus include hand washing, covering the mouth when coughing, maintaining distance from other people, and monitoring and self-isolation for people who think they are infected.

The disease has since evolved into a pandemic. According to the European Centre for Disease Prevention cases of COVID-19 have been reported from many countries in the world and also cruise ships.

The outbreak may have came from a coronovirus that usually lives in bats that infected pangolins and then changed inside the pangolins until it could infect humans

Symptoms

Common symptoms include fever, cough, and shortness of breath. Complications may include pneumonia and acute respiratory distress syndrome. There is currently no vaccine or specific antiviral medicine for COVID-19. Right now, doctors usually give patients supportive therapy.

What can kids do to help

Wash your hands at school
Wash your hands at school

Adults are doing a lot to keep children and adults safe so there's no need for kids to worry, but kids can play a part in reducing the spread of the virus by doing these things.

  • Make sure you wash your hands, by using lots of soap and rubbing your hands together to clean all your fingers, under the fingernails and between the fingers. Sing the "ABCs" or the "happy birthday" song a couple of times while you wash your hands for about 20 seconds.
  • try not rub your eyes or nose or put your hands in your mouth.

If you have to stay home here's some activities you can do.

Coronavirus book for kids

There's a great Coronavirus book for kids by the South Australian government about what the coronavirus is and how they can help stop its spread.

Coronavirus book for kids
Coronavirus book for kids

Other pages

Images for kids

See also

Kids robot.svg In Spanish: Pandemia de COVID-19 para niños

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2019–20 coronavirus pandemic Facts for Kids. Kiddle Encyclopedia.