Hear them out, acknowledge their concerns and then comfort them. Listening to your child's fears and not minimizing them is the most important thing you can do. Children may, for example, be afraid of mom or dad dying and being left alone. These are the issues to zero in on.
Nothing reassures less than a discussion with a badly distracted parent.
Some Metro Detroit children plan to stock up on canned soup, snacks and Spaghetti Os. Others worry that computers will crash or, even worse, their beloved Nintendos and other video games won't work. Several kids wonder what it would be like to live like the Pilgrims or Amish, if power fails and the planet goes dark on New Year's Eve. Also like adults, several youngsters pointed out that, despite the hype, the real millennium isn't until 2001. Classmate Donald Martin of Southfield, as many kids do, envisions himself at home in front of the TV on New Year's Eve, uncertain of what's to come.