The news is everywhere . We have 24 hour news channels, notifications on our phones, social media and digital boards at train stations. I even visited my friend’s new flat recently, and they had boards displaying breaking news stories in the lobby. It is hard for us to escape it, this can also be the same for our children, and they may have some questions about it all too.
It can be really hard to navigate talking to our children about current affairs. Here are a few tips to help you think about talking to your children about what is going on in the world.
Balancing their exposure to the news
It might feel natural to want to shell your child from the news, but this is not always helpful. Firstly, it can be completely unavoidable, children may overhear things that adults discuss and things may even be talked about in the school play ground. Children are also pretty good at picking up on if something does not feel right. Children can fill in the gaps of what they do not know and this can sometimes increase their anxiety levels. It can be helpful to talk to them about what is going on in the world.
However, there is importance for balance with this, as overexposure can be too much. With teenagers who may be on social media, you may want to discuss with them how they can take control of what they see by muting certain accounts or selecting “not interested” on things that come up to help manage the amount of new items that are coming up on their feeds. We may want to model how we get this balance ourselves, by recognising when our intake is too much and finding our own ways of controlling how much news we consume. We can also take time to look at some positive new stories as well, because whilst the world can seem like a scary place, there is lots of good that happens too, we just often hear about it less!
Try to answer questions and be as truthful as possible
Its more than likely children will have questions about certain things they have heard in the news. It is important to be as truthful as possible, ensuring that your information is from reputable sources. Naturally there will be times that you do not know the answer to their questions, and that’s ok! You can let them know that you don’t know, you may want to look it up yourself, or even find out together. There are lots of child friendly news sources such as Newsround.
Remember to keep responses to questions age appropriate, and that children’s responses and understand will very based on their age.
Some children might be asking the same questions repeatedly. Try to not to get frustrated with them, as this can be their way of seeking reassurance to something they are anxious about.
Let them know it’s ok to talk if they feel worried.
Some things that we see on the news can be unsettling, its natural to feel worried. It is important to validate your child’s feelings and to let them know that they can come to you to ask questions or to talk about what is worrying them. You may want to to work together to think about ways that you can reduce any worry, such as worry jars or limiting access to news as mentioned above.
Taking Action
We can feel quite voiceless in a big world, however there are ways that we can make our voices heard. Your child might feel strongly about certain topics, and it can be helpful to let them know that they have a voice. There’s lots of things you can do such as posters together, writing to your MP, signing petitions etc. Unicef has a great resource on ways children and young people can take action.
Sources:
https://www.bbc.co.uk/bitesize/articles/zqkfb7h
https://www.bbc.co.uk/newsround
https://www.savethechildren.org.uk/what-we-do/how-to-talk-to-kids-about-hard-things
https://www.unicef.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/Youth-Advocacy-Toolkit.pdf
https://www.youngminds.org.uk/young-person/coping-with-life/worries-about-the-news-and-the-world/
Reflections 
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