Betsy Brown Braun

Child Development and Behavior Specialist. Parent Educator. Best Selling Author

Search Results for: Mass shooting

Oh No! Another Shooting to Talk to Kids About

by on , under Adolescents, Behavior, Communication, Elementary School Children, Environmental influences, Parenting, Safety, School, Sensitive Topics

Can this really be happening?  Again? Every parent I know is feeling the same thing. The anxiety we already feel about our children’s safety when they are away from us is just getting worse and worse.  The horror of the school shooting in Uvalde is, simply put, overwhelming. Too many times I have written blogs about how to talk with your child about shootings, school shootings in particular. This difference for me this time is the extent of my anger, my fury, my disgust, and my frustration. … [Read more...] about Oh No! Another Shooting to Talk to Kids About

Talking to Your Child About the Synagogue Shooting

by on , under Adolescents, Behavior, Child development, Communication, Elementary School Children, Environmental influences, Parent modeling, Parenting, Safety, Sensitive Topics

How I wish I didn’t have to write about the mass murder of 11 human beings at the Tree of Life Synagogue in Pittsburgh.  What a burden it is to have to explain to our children something so heinous, something that I cannot explain.  I am sick to my stomach. As always, I am being asked, "Should I tell my children? How much should I tell my children? How can I make them feel safe in the world and especially when they go to religious school? How do I answer, 'But why?'  How do I explain someone … [Read more...] about Talking to Your Child About the Synagogue Shooting

The Aurora Shooting: How to Talk to Kids About What Happened in Colorado

by on , under Adolescents, Behavior, Child development, Communication, Elementary School Children, Environmental influences, Learning, Parenting, Safety, School, Sensitive Topics

The horrific tragedy in Colorado has left us all speechless, shaking our heads in disbelief. How could this have happened? Could anything have been done to stop this mad man?  And what can we possibly tell our children…if they ask? Parents are rendered tongue-tied when it comes to talking to their kids about many different kinds of things—sex, death, God.  But when it is a topic that is terrifying and may create fear where none existed previously, then we are dumbstruck, reduced to being … [Read more...] about The Aurora Shooting: How to Talk to Kids About What Happened in Colorado

Another Tragedy to Talk About.

by on , under Adolescents, Communication, Environmental influences, Parent modeling, Parenting, Safety, Sensitive Topics

I hate to have to write this blog. (And yes, I mean the strength of that word HATE.)  Another and another and another mass shooting? I am spinning, filled with horror, disgust, and tremendous despondency.  I am desperately searching for answers. A parent reached out yesterday, begging for a script for talking with her now high school age children. The majority of my previous blogs about tragic events (and I have written 23 of them, found under the category SAFETY), are directed at … [Read more...] about Another Tragedy to Talk About.