The Guardian picture essay

How do teenagers live in lockdown?

– photo essay
Jean-Marc Caimi and Valentina Piccinni investigated how Italian
teenagers were coping with the coronavirus lockdown, working with them
to take pictures using video chat apps

Fri 24 Apr 2020 07.30 BST Last modified on Fri 24 Apr 2020 08.01 BST

Some can’t wait to go out again, others don’t really want to, happy to stay home connected
to the outside world only through their computer. Some are worried about the virus and
others, instead, are more concerned about the climate crisis.

To give an answer to this important question, we adopted the same means teenagers use
to study and communicate within their community. Zoom, Skype, WhatsApp … these
video chats were our eyes to take the pictures, remotely.

Teens (and their parents) allowed us to take snapshots using the camera of their computers,
tablets or mobile phones, at home, in their bedroom or where they are spending the
quarantine, while they study, read, chat, play music, watch TV or exercise.

This gives a unique portrait of generation Z.

RAMI

Rami attends secondary school in Rome. He’s passionate about computers, gaming and
app developing. Rami is 16 and was born in Jordan.

I started to do everything I couldn't find time for before, so in addition to playing computer
games, I managed to start some interesting online courses to develop computer
applications.
I consider myself a very sedentary person. Usually during the school holidays I tend to
stay at home most of the time. Quarantine is not affecting what I would normally do with
all this extra free time.

One of the things that changed is the shifting of my schedule. Since I don’t have to wake up
at 6am, I started to wake up later and later, and as a result I ended up having lunch,
dinner, and going to bed at least two hours after my usual time.

The last time I went out it was two days before the quarantine started, with some friends.
I don’t feel the need to go out yet.

🐾🐾

VIOLA

Viola, 15, attends the International School of Tanganyika in Dar es Salaam in Tanzania.
She’s been living there for four years with her parents, who are doctors. She spends her
quarantine days studying, learning guitar, listening to music and video chatting with
friends.

From the reaction of the Tanzanians, it does not seem people are worried. Here people
continue to go to the market, to church or mosques for religious celebrations, as if nothing
happened. Unlike Europe, here it is very difficult to ask people to stay at home. Tanzania
is a poor country and people live from day to day and earn the little money they will need
to buy food. So it is very difficult to ask for a total closure. Here in Dar Es Salaam, water
and soap dispensers have been put everywhere and in all the shops the temperature is
checked before entering.
  Viola sent us some photos that represent her life in quarantine in her house
in Dar es Salaam: Viola attending an online class. Right; her father and
little brother.

The first week I found it tiring being in front of the computer most of the day. Now I’ve
been home for a month and got used to it, I’ve created a new routine, and I’m also able
to do activities that I didn’t do before. I’m learning to play the guitar.

The school has been closed for three weeks. Yesterday, we were told it will be closed for the
rest of the school year. Many of my classmates have returned to their countries and so have
the teachers. We now do school online from 8.30am to 2.30pm on Zoom. Some of the
teachers who have returned to the US make video calls late in the evening, others
have the backdrop of their hometown snowy landscapes, while it is very hot here in Dar!

During the day, apart from web-school and homework, I contact friends, both Italian and
from my school here in Tanzania. I can read and listen to music much more than usual.
In the afternoon I often take a walk with my dog.

From this experience I have noticed how we kids often don’t enjoy the simple things we
have, such as going out with friends. Now that we can’t, we are realising the importance
of these little things. Surely, when it’s all over, we’ll be more grateful for what we have.

🐾🐾

ALICE
Alice, 16, lives on the outskirts of Rome and has access to a big garden. This makes the
quarantine days easier for her to stand. She’s very good at drawing, and has plans to move
to Portsmouth in the autumn to attend an English school year-long programme.

Staying at home is difficult, more than anything else, because I can’t see my friends in
person. Apart from not going to school and participating in extra-curricular activity,
the only different thing is not going out with my friends.

The connection is often slow and the video freezes, so classes are much more difficult
to follow. The upsides are probably the comfort of being at home and not being seen
by teachers. I worry a lot and also wonder whether this virus will ruin my summer. I’m
probably more concerned about the coronavirus than global warming.

🐾🐾

CHIARA
Chiara connects with us via Zoom and selects her favourite TV series Money Heist as a
background. She’s very good student, she’s a class representative and politically active.

Obviously I miss my friends and going out, but I get along well with my family and maybe
I’ve always been a bit lazy, so adapting wasn’t difficult. Instead of going out with friends,
on Saturday nights I watch movies or series with my family, something nobody had time
to do before.

I spend most of my days studying, but I also have virtual meetings with my collective
mates and chat with my friends, but physically it is different and I miss that aspect.

At first it took me a while to realise what was really happening, but hearing the number of
deaths on the news or listening to the stories of my uncle, who is a doctor in the Bergamo
area – where the virus hit hardest – has frightened me. But I’m quite optimistic: if we all
respect the rules, and stay at home we will be able to get out of this situation.

 Chiara sent us some pictures representing her lockdown days.

We feel the virus is hitting closer to home and therefore the instinctive reaction of fear is
greater. It’s more difficult to realise the damage climate breakdown will bring. The
complications caused by the virus are perhaps a consequence of the climate crisis, as
studies show the areas most affected are also the most polluted. On the other hand, the
lockdown is reducing emissions and thus improving the health of our planet. This
experience made us realise our lives had become too hectic and consumerist, which is
why we waited too long before completely blocking the economy. The courage to stop it
earlier would have prevented many deaths.
One of the fundamental aspects of the school is lost: sociality. School is not limited
to teaching notions but it is a place of sharing, participation and also of physical and
emotional contact with the web-school.

🐾🐾

ANITA

Anita, 15, attends the second year of Pilo Albertelli high school in Rome. She is a brilliant
student and spends most of her quarantine days doing web-schooling and homework. She
loves writing and reading but also doing sports. She’s a long-jumper.

Sometimes I feel the lockdown is an opportunity to rest from the frenzy and to try things I
didn’t have time to do before. Other times, I feel tired of living like this – and the fact that
I can’t go out drives me crazy. I miss going to school, I miss athletics and seeing my
friends, but I also feel lucky because I’m healthy and in a comfortable home. Having lunch
with my whole family is new – that was not a daily habit before.

During the day I read and watch TV series. Sometimes I make video calls with my friends,
sometimes I draw. We are lucky at least to be able to continue to study and see our
classmates and teachers, but there are internet connection problems and distance
learning is more difficult.

I’m worried about the victims and that someone I know might get sick. I’m scared that
hospitals are overloaded and there aren’t enough doctors. Despite the lockdown
we’re doing well in the family, but I’m amazed at how much I miss school.
I’ve learned that life and our habits can change in a second. I have never thought about
this before, but in many other parts of the world this often happens. Then I learned to
wash my hands very well!

🐾🐾

CHIARA B.

Chiara B attends the second year at the Italian school in Madrid, where she lives with her
family. She’s a Hollywood film fan and she wants to become a director of photography.
Spain is among the countries worst-hit by the pandemic. She spends her lockdown days
learning to play the guitar, watching movies and studying.

I think we will all be able to appreciate the little things of life way more. I will
certainly appreciate more the simple fact I can leave home and, above all, I know that
there will never have to be any more cuts to the healthcare system

Since I don’t go out of the house anymore and I don’t have any more commitments, life
is less hectic. This allows me to think more, but sometimes, I get lost in distressing
thoughts (for example, about our future). I miss being able to meet friends in person very
much.

I have more time now. I can write more, work out every day, read and work on
personal projects. Apart from web school and homework, I mostly video-chat to my
friends.

At the beginning distance learning was exciting. I paid more attention to classes because it
was new. But as the weeks go by, it gets harder to stay focused in front of a screen.

I am more concerned about the climate crisis than the virus, but it took a pandemic for
this phenomenon to slow down, at least a little bit. I keep myself informed, but in a very
superficial way. The numbers frighten me enough and frighten the whole of Spain.

🐾🐾
JULIEN

Julien, 15, was born in Rome but has a French father. He’s passionate about maths and
science. He spends his lockdown days mainly studying. He doesn’t feel the urge to go out.
He just went jogging a couple of times to stay fit. He’s a high-jump athlete.

I am amazed at how easy it is for me to stay at home and that I have no desire to go
outside at all.

The obligation to stay at home does not cause me any stress at all: I am very homely and
do not feel the need to go out. School and homework aside, I spend my days mainly on my
mobile phone or computer. I seldom go jogging.

The web school works well, we have regular lessons every day (even too many!). It’s
nice that it’s easier to consult books during the tests.

I don’t miss the fact that I can’t physically meet my friends. I’m happy even if we only
see each other virtually during video calls.

 The view from Julien’s room.

  The living room where Julien does his homework and spends much of his
time with his mum. The view from Julien’s living room window on to the
courtyard of a residential area in Rome.

I’m not very worried about what is happening because of the virus in the world. I’m not too
up to date on how the pandemic is developing; I watch the news from time to time. I think
when this is over, everything will go back to the way it was before.

🐾🐾

SOFIA

Sofia, 15, plays bass in a rock band. She’s loves horror movies.

I have more time to think and do what I want to do when I get back from school. On
Fridays I play with a band, but now I can’t.
  A screenshot of a chat with friends. Sofia is a keen photographer – this is
the view from her room, where she spends most of the quarantine time.

 Sofia is likes classical thrillers and horror movies.

The video lessons aren’t bad, the only thing I don’t like is that nobody shows their
face – that would be nice. The way we do web schooling is like listening to a recorded
voice and it’s boring.
I miss meeting my friends in person, also because I had just started to go out in the evening
with friends and that felt good.

🐾🐾

MICHELA

Michela has been reading a lot and keeping good care of her pet.

Being at home doesn’t bother me too much. The relationship with my parents hasn’t
changed much, we live in the same house but we don’t see each other often, each of us
has his own space in the house and we only get together to eat. At least once a week, I go
out
for a walk with my grandmother’s dog, so I’m not completely segregated like other people.

 Michela sent us some snaps of her daily life in quarantine.

Web school is a great alternative to real school, and learning through video lessons seems
to work at first, but following several hours of distance learning definitely requires
greater concentration

The daily routine hasn’t changed drastically, the main difference is when I play sport:
I used to train in the evening for about two hours with my rugby team, now I do it in
the morning for one hour at most, doing some exercises suggested by our coach.

School homework is the same as before, and the whole morning is occupied by video
lessons. But I finally found some time for myself, for example to make a jewellery
box to tidy up all my earrings and necklaces that were previously cluttered in a box.

I am more concerned about the climate crisis because the coronavirus is something to
which we will eventually find a solution, even though it will take a long time. Climate
breakdown, on the other hand, is a seemingly invisible enemy that we can’t stop,
because it’s not as obvious as the coronavirus, because it doesn’t bring “imminent”
deaths, but a slow death of the whole planet. It seems that the world is not focused in
finding a real solution for that.

🐾🐾🐾🐾🐾🐾