Tips for Talking to Your Kids About the Las Vegas Shooting

When tragedies happen, even adults have a hard time making sense of things. These tips can guide you as you try to help your children understand the shooting.

As a parent, we want to protect our children from the tragedy in the world - especially when they're young. The October 1st shooting in Las Vegas, where more than 50 people were killed, and hundreds injured, is difficult to explain to children, and even more difficult for them to understand.

According to child psychologist Katherine Lamparyk, Psy. D., of the Cleveland Clinic, it's important to talk to your children about these events, but only when they're ready.

Dr. Lamparyk also suggests that you use concepts that are simple for children to understand, and are honest with your answers and information. You can read the rest of her tips at health.clevelandclinic.org.

What about media images and information? Family therapist Susan Stiffelman has a simple solution: turn off the television.

She tells Us Weekly that it's important that kids feel safe sharing their thoughts about big things like the Las Vegas shooting, and so it's important not to minimize their fears and concerns. She suggests you answer only the questions that are asked, and that you stay away from abstract concepts when describing what happened. You can read her everything she had to say at usmagazine.com.

Mass shootings and other terroristic events are sadly becoming all too frequent events. Using these tips, you'll be able to comfort your children while giving them tools to help them make sense of current events.