These days there is a lot happening all around the world and to add to it the increasing exposure to the media, all the happenings are reaching our homes. Whether it is a terror attack or a natural calamity or any other global concern; the details of all these can be easily seen on the news channel and the pictures and news stories are available in newspapers and over the internet.
The major concern for parents of young children is the way in which they can protect their children from getting disturbed by such events. As a parent, you believe that your children should be aware of what is happening in the world and be ready to face the worst of the situations, but on the other hand, you don’t want to get them affected at a tender age.
Tips for you
Some of the things that parents can do to manage the current affairs with their children are
- In case of very young children, you might not want them to know much about the world events as they may not understand as their systems are not yet mature. You can consider switching off the news channel or keeping kids away from the news pictures that might be disturbing.
- Toddlers and young kids are naturally very inquisitive and soon pick that there is something going on around in spite of avoiding news in front of them. They quickly catch the reactions of others or may hear others talking about a current issue. Kids may then bombard you with questions and if not answered, some unknown fears might remain in their minds. You can make the news simple and let them know what is happening just to reduce their anxiety, without giving any details of the event.
- Older kids can deal with the situation and usually also have these issues in their academic curriculum. You can take the help of these things and make them understand the importance of watching news. You can inculcate interests in current affairs, international news, sports news, politics and such other subjects by talking to them about it.
- Avoid making any personal comments and try to introduce them to the real situation in simple but clear manner. They will learn to analyze and draw conclusions as they grow up.
- You can take this opportunity to explain and make them understand the importance of good behaviors and values so as to maintain a peaceful family and society at large.
