Speaking With Children About Frightening News

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Last Friday night, my husband and I boarded an overnight flight to London. We used to live there for many years (our older son was actually born there and has duel citizenship), and we were headed back to visit with friends and some of the teachers I used to teach with there.

By the time we landed on Saturday morning, the details of the horrendous attacks in Paris had unfolded. So, as an American and as someone who, living in London, had Paris as my neighbor for almost a decade, I would like to dedicate our Mommybites newsletter this week to the 129 victims of “the worst violence in France since WWII.”

I would also like to express my most heartfelt relief and gratitude that my dear friend Amy (who is also a member of our Mommybites community) and her husband are safe and sound after being blocks from one of the bars that was attacked.

And in the spirit of highlighting acts of kindness, a big shout-out to the thoughtful gentleman from Chase Bank who, after seeing that Amy and her husband had just used the ATM a few streets away from the attacks, tracked them down and called them to make sure they were alright.

Lastly, if anyone would like resources on talking with children about frightening news, The Child Mind Institute has written a very helpful article on this topic, Dr. Gail Gross offers advice on how to talk with your children about tragic events, and Time Magazine recently published a piece especially for talking with your kids about the Paris attacks.

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The views and opinions expressed on this blog are purely the blog contributor’s. Any product claim, statistic, quote or other representation about a product or service should be verified with the manufacturer or provider. Writers may have conflicts of interest, and their opinions are their own.

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