A plane carrying more than 200 passengers explodes just after takeoff. Two children are injured in the most recent incidence of school violence. Story at 11. Today's news provides parents with both an opportunity and a dilemma. Learning what's going on around them can be an enriching experience for children, and an integral part of gaining the skills they'll need to become conscientious citizens and critical thinkers.
Some parents hope to shield their kids from news stories about violence and other tragedies.
Others assume that in our media-frenzied society, children will inevitably be exposed to these events. Either way, your goal should be to help your child deal with any pain, confusion, or fear stirred up by the events that they do hear about. Child and adolescent psychologist Adele Brodkin offers the following tips. Your own strategies will vary depending on your child's age and level of intellectual and emotional sophistication. If kids ask questions, says Brodkin, answer them factually and at a level they can understand.