What’s going on? My 8 year old daughter wants to watch the news?

Is it a new sign-of-our-times that my 8 year old daughter came in from playing on the beach today and requested to watch the news? What’s going on? She didn’t want to watch cartoons or animal shows, she specifically asked to watch the news.

“Put the news on dad!”

Let’s be clear, most of the news she doesn’t understand. For every five minutes of news she watches I have to spend another five minutes explaining to her what’s going on. In fact, how do you explain to an 8 year old that the President of the United States is having a Twitter fight with his Supreme court? Well, I tried and she seemed happy with my explanation.

Now, before you start reporting me to child services for abusing my child with toxic, American politics, I’m not really sure it’s all the details that she’s interested in. It’s great for her to learn about such things as the justice system and what constitutes justice. She is, after all, home-schooled. Meaning that her classes have the freedom to follow paths that we weren’t necessarily planning on. But, I think the main reason she is interested in the news is because she knows that my wife and I are. She’s picking up on our vibe. She get’s that what is going on in the world is important to us, and she wants to be part of that, in her own little way.

So, the question is not;

Is it right for me to expose my daughter to the toxicity of today’s news cycle?

Instead,

Is it the right thing to do to have your child engaged in adult things that interest their parents?

There is no right or wrong answer to this question. It really depends upon so many variables. Children need to be children. It’s a given that they should have lots of creative, playtime and be allowed to develop their imaginations through fantastical things not necessarily featured on CNN or FOX.

But for me, I’m pleased my daughter, at such a tender age, wants to be socially engaged and make a difference. She genuinely wants to learn about the world around her and how she can positively change it. Her desire to watch the news is an educational add-on that she has identified for herself. I will not overly encourage it, but I certainly will not shield her from it.

What about you?

In these ‘interesting’ times, do your children show interest in the news or do you actively protect them from it?

Thanks Richard Scotford.

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