Experts break down how to prepare kids for COVID-19 vaccine

A children’s vaccine clinic for ages 5-11 at Mall of America was fully booked for the fourth day.

Experts said talking to your kids about the COVID-19 vaccine is an important step that could be tricky for parents.

It’s a long-awaited day for the Wrigley family.

Elin, William Wrigley’s 7-year-old daughter, got her first dose of the vaccine Saturday at MOA’s clinic.

“We’ve been talking about getting this done for months now,” William Wrigley said. “We’ve talked a lot about vaccines over the last year so that she kind of already had awareness.”

He said talking to his daughter about getting the shot was a simple conversation to navigate, but having that talk may not be easy for everyone.

“How you prepare your child will be based on what you know about your child,” Kathy Dichtor, Homeland Health Specialists nurse, said.

She said how you explain to children why they’re getting the COVID vaccine depends on what works best for the child. There’s not a "one size fits all" approach.

“Some children love to have warnings. Some children like to know right before they get in the car. Some children are told in line and it’s all based on that parent’s view of that child,” Dichtor said.

But Dichtor said the parents aren’t on their own.

Homeland Health Specialists and the Minnesota Department of Health teamed up with Northstar Events to deck out the MOA’s vaccination clinic with colorful decorations to help keep kids at ease.

“They enter the clinic and they go into a line with a hopscotch. You can see some of the parents hopscotching with the kids down their line until they wait their turn,” Dichtor said.

Parents can book MOA child vaccination appointments online. The clinic is open Wednesday through Sunday.