It’s inevitable: Your child will hear all about that movie or videogame you’ve nixed from a friend or classmate. And unless you put your child in a bubble, he will inevitably have some exposure to frightening or inappropriate content, even if you do your best to screen what he sees on TV, in movies or on the internet. So what can parents do to protect school-age kids from violence and sex in the media?
1. Media Violence Prevention: Know your child’s friends.
Who are the children he plays with in school? Is there a particular friend who’s feeding him details about violent or inappropriate material he’s seen, or perhaps heard about from an older sibling? You can try talking to the pal’s parents about having their child tone down the media violence and R-rated material. If that doesn’t work, you can consider steering your child toward friendships with kids whose parents also believe in minimizing their grade-schooler’s exposure to mature media content.2. Media Violence Prevention: Screen it beforehand.
You don’t want any surprises while you’re watching a movie together. That's why viewing a movie or DVD before you watch it with your kids to screen for media violence or other undesirable content is a good idea. If you’re wondering if a website is safe, check it out yourself before allowing your child access.3. Media Violence Prevention: Use the DVD scene select options.
Thank goodness for this handy tool. Without it, how would parents skip over media violence or scary scenes in a movie? If your child wants to see a movie that you think is appropriate overall but may contain some scenes that could be frightening for your child, skip over those scenes and just fill him in on the basic plot.4. Media Violence Prevention: Ask other parents.
Other parents with grade-school age children can be excellent sources of information about media violence and explicit content. Chances are, they’ve struggled with the same decisions about whether or not to let their child see a particular movie or TV show. You can swap info and advice, and get the latest lowdown on what kids are into.5. Media Violence Prevention: Check out media-review websites for parents.
How blue is the language? Is there violence, and how graphic is it? What about suggestive or explicit sexual content? You’ll want to do some digging before you bring a movie into your home. One great resource to check out is About.com's
Kids' Movies & TV. Another helpful site is
Common Sense Media, a national organization of child experts who screen movies, games, TV, books and other media to help parents make appropriate choices for their kids.
6. Media Violence Prevention: Tailor choices to your child.
My son is the kind of kid who has nightmares after seeing anything remotely frightening or violent. Don’t give in and let your child see something you know may upset him just because he begs you to do so; he’s most likely reacting to peer pressure from a friend who may have seen it. By the same token, don’t expose him to content that may be upsetting for him just because you don’t think it should bother him. What’s upsetting to one child may not have the same effect on another, so go with your instinct about your own child.7. Media Violence Prevention: Talk about it.
If your child asks you about something he saw in a movie or videogame that was violent or graphic, be as candid as you can without going into too much detail. Even older grade-schoolers, who may think that they can handle more media violence and explicit material, can be frightened by inappropriate images. Explain briefly that violence and other mature content can be unhealthy for children -- and even in some cases adults -- and that your job is to protect their welfare until they are older and better able to make decisions about grown-up material.
