It’s Election season. Your kids may have questions, your kids may have concerns. Be prepared to answer questions, do some research and maybe learn a thing or two yourself. Whether it is on social media, on the school bus or on the playground, kids will hear things that are true and untrue. Listen carefully to their questions and concerns. Assess what they know and age appropriateness. Depending on their age, a simple answer may be best or if they are in high school, a more detailed explanation could be appropriate. You want your kids to be interested in their community and who better for them to hear it from than YOU. I remember being in the second grade and there was talk of meat shortages and because my Dad was in the restaurant business, I remember being worried when I went to bed at night that my Dad would have to close his restaurant. Now this probably was not a possibility, but for a seven year old who heard something from someone this weighed on my head and heart. Be mindful of concerns your kids may have and talk through their thoughts.
Former Arkansas governor, Mike Huckabee‘s staff has put together a free election guide for parents
https://thekidsguide.com/presidentialelection/
which may be a useful resource. Some vocabulary you could start with to go over would be, ballot, absentee ballot, polls, precinct, candidate, electors, popular vote, electoral college, write in candidate, and I am sure you could add some to the list.
Explain to your children that every vote counts and it is a citizen’s responsibility to do their homework and vote intentionally in every election. A good discussion to have with your children is that everyone needs to be respected whether they vote for the same candidate you do or not and no one should be singled out or expected to speak about politics unless they wish to, it’s everyone’s personal business. Period. Reinforce The Golden Rule, “Do Unto Others as you would have them do to you.” Everyone human being deserves to be respected. How many great days we all would have is everyone lived by The Golden Rule. Elections are part of our history. Explain that there are many places around the world where elections do not occur. The United States is a government by the people, of the people and for the people. Layout expectations of what kind of behavior is expected whether your candidate wins or looses. Most likely, further discussions will spring from these conversation starters. There’s so much information out there, a child can be overwhelmed or confused, especially with access to social media. Be the resource your child comes to for accurate information.
