Yes, because for schoolkids, Omicron is literally a cold, if that. The other variants, call it a bad cold. The only reason to stop them catching it is to stop them spreading it. Had someone three years ago been that concerned about someone with a cold, yes, that would be minutiae.
There are many cultures that strongly value parents, elders and extended family, and Covid is 'a cold' that could kill random loved ones in their extended family, such as their favorite grandmother or their aunt's best friend. For a teenager, being the vector of infection that leads to such a death would result in critical emotional trauma and lead to a much higher risk of suicide — a fact they are well aware of, given the significant uptick in suicides within their age group since Covid began.
They may be teenagers, but they're not wrong to attend to the minutiae; whether for selfish or for social reasons, that awareness may be all that is keeping them and their loved ones alive. It is cruel and unjust and wrong that they alone are attending to the minutiae of masking, but here in the United States our social support systems often require them to bear that responsibility, as the adults responsible for them often do not.
School kids live with their parents/guardians, and if they get it it will most likely mean that those guardians also will. That can be very serious for a kid who literally depends on them for everything including food, clothing, housing, essentials to life, etc. This is especially so if those guardians are older and at higher risk of death. A child is absolutely right to be more worried about it than they would be about a cold, because if it spreads to their family (and it likely will), that could well be a life ruining event.
