Bright Horizons | e.family News

It's a hyper-political year; long, loud, and historic on many levels. The first African-American candidate for president defeating the first serious female presidential candidate, and a female candidate for vice president. We are in the midst of generational change, war, and the most serious economic crisis since the 1930s. Twenty-four hour cable coverage and TV ads on the quarter hour, plus the internet, plus newspaper and traditional television, keeps the election in front of us all the time often in shallow, negative, and LOUD terms, negative partisan advertisements, filled with exaggerations, innuendos, and untruths.

So, what about our children? Kids can start becoming engaged citizens at a young age. Unfortunately, the number of young adults who vote in America is embarrassingly low. It could be apathy, or that they don't understand how the political system works, or cynicism. It doesn't matter why they don't vote, but not voting is a threat to their futures.

From a very young age, children can and should be taught about our political system: how it works, who is elected, and the identity of key leaders from their local area, as well as the president and vice president. They should also learn how the United States is positioned in the world and what makes this country's political system different than others.

What they learn from us matters. They learn from our modeling our activism or lack of it, our emotions and words, whether we listen to opposing views or hold positions on civic and global issues. Children are curious about the world, but can find politics boring. They may not connect politics with issues that matter to them. However, we can connect what concerns them with larger issues: war made real by a family member's involvement, the economy tied to family economic security and mom or dad's concern about their job, college funding, and retirement. We can involve them in our lives without scaring them. Even preschoolers can begin to make connections with voting and campaign issues. How can we get our children connected and involved?

Engage Your Child in the Political World

Children learn about politics through conversation. Asking their opinion about political races, debates, and controversial issues - "what do you think?" - helps them to learn how to express themselves, listen to opposing views, and to research politicians' views on these issues. Some things we can do:

Sharing voting with them is a good way to teach our children. Most kids are intuitive enough to understand that having the power to vote also means that they have a responsibility to understand why they want to vote for someone.

While they may be willing or interested in watching the news, the information in these programs is aimed at adults and it often seems many programs are targeting adults who are inclined to think broadly or deeply.

The news media is aimed at adults, but watching the news with your children and sharing opinions is a great family ritual. Conversing with children gives them a chance to ask questions, challenge the situation, and come up with their own viewpoint.

Time for Kids is an issue of Time Magazine that is especially for children. Consider a subscription for a child who is eager to learn not only about politics, but about other exciting science and nature facts.

Find out what your kids are learning at school. Some children as young as preschoolers are holding mock elections and discussing issues at their child care centers or schools.

Tie issues to children and their family's lives and personalize them: a family in the service, a concern about health care, retirement, job security, future college, or the environment. Providing the facts to kids and then encouraging them to ask questions and come to their own conclusions can create a critical mind.

Great Children's Books about Presidents or Elections:

So You Want to be President? by Judith St. George and David Small (ages 6 and up)

Barack Obama: Son of Promise, Child of Hope by Nikki Grimes and Bryan Collier (ages 4 and up)

My Dad, John McCain by Meghan McCain (ages 4 and up)

See How They Run: Campaign Dreams, Election Schemes, and the Race to the White House by Susan Goodman and Elwood Smith (ages 6-12)

Vote! by Eileen Christelow (ages 6-10)