This post was contributed by a community member. The views expressed here are the author's own.

Community Corner

Laguna Beach Moms Talk: All the News That's Fit for Kids?

Violence, whether on the news or in a video game, can affect your child. But guidance and time spent with you, away from the screen, can help children soak up confidence and more clearly judge what's going on in the world around them.

When the world gets crazy, how do I explain it to my kids?

Intense news embedded in bleak images roll across our screens 24-7. Natural disasters, financial upheavals, celebrity blunders and local crime compete for our attention. Sometimes the chaos grabs our kids.

Where do you stand with the news in your house? What defuses it?

Find out what's happening in Laguna Beachwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

You probably have some pretty clear ideas on what works and what does not.  Do you track what your kids watch, and when?  Do you set limits on screen time, including television news, computers and video games?

Do you watch the news with them and talk about it? Some moms tell us they have involved their children in activities to raise money for countries that have been hit by disaster. Tell us how you handle the news at your house and we will share it on Laguna Beach Patch Moms’ Talk.

Find out what's happening in Laguna Beachwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

The field of communication is an ongoing force in our world. Our kids need to master technology and understand what it offers. If they are old enough you might spend some time talking about the amazing differences in today’s media compared with the past—how tweets can have an instant effect and how cell phone pictures shot in the midst of an upheaval can tell the real story. Social media has provided new paths for people in repressive countries seeking their freedom.

The American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry  gives advice on talking to children about natural disasters. Violent images, whether on the news or in movies, have an impact on children, the group says: “Children and adolescents are prone to imitate what they see and hear in the news, a kind of contagion effect as “copy cat” events. Chronic and persistent exposure to such violence can lead to fear, numbing and in some children aggressive and violent behaviors.”

The academy suggests guidelines to help you talk with your children:

  • Monitor the amount of time your child watches news shows.
  • Make sure you have adequate time and a quiet place to talk if you anticipate that the news is going to be troubling or upsetting to the child.
  • Watch the news with your child.
  • Ask the child what he/she has heard and what questions he/she may have.
  • Provide reassurance regarding his/her own safety in simple words emphasizing that you are going to be there to keep him/her safe.
  • Look for signs that the news may have triggered fears or anxieties such as sleeplessness, bedwetting, crying, or talking about being afraid.

As you monitor your house, you have another asset.  There is a strong individual family dynamic that makes your house unique. It’s the way you react to and handle the world.

The time you spend at the dinner table just talking can be great competition for world craziness.  Family interaction in sports, theatre and art projects can trump the outside world. That time your children spend with you—without a screen—can help them soak up confidence and more clearly judge what's going on in the world around them.

Finally, adding a healthy dose of outside activities leaves less time for TV, computers and video games.  Hiking in the Laguna wilderness, time at the beach, after-school play time with friends, music lessons, library excursions, hands-on building or science projects, individual and team sports all enrich their world.

Being straight with your kids and interpreting all of the shades of grey is a big task.  Kids have that wonderful way of keeping you honest with yourself and them. They look right at you and they see all. Kids know when the world is good and when it is not, when you are worried, when you are not.

So keep the doors open, listen to what they say, and make it as right as you can.  Then they can deal with the world on their own terms.

Stay in touch and let us know what the best moms, dads, and grandparents are doing.

Got hot mom tips or advice? Tell us in the comments.

We’ve removed the ability to reply as we work to make improvements. Learn more here

The views expressed in this post are the author's own. Want to post on Patch?