Clinical psychologist offers advice on how to talk to kids about school shootings
NEW YORK -- Talking to children about school shootings can be difficult for parents but necessary.
CBS2's Cindy Hsu spoke with clinical psychologist Dr. Jamie Howard, with the Child Mind Institute, on how to address such traumatic events while keeping your children informed and feeling safe.
"A lot of kids are going to hear about it on the bus or from siblings or siblings' friends, and you want to be the one to deliver this information to them, not other kids, because it can sound much scarier when it comes from a more sensational sort of source or from someone who's not fully informed, and kids need to hear this information while feeling loved and supported and safe. So for older kids, for those, say, third grade and up, we say the whole, we say what happened," Howard said.
Watch Hsu's full interview
Howard also says you should express how you feel, ask your child what they think and invite a conservation.