Much of PBS's online guide advocates deceiving children by assuming that justification for the U.S. invasion of Iraq is more important than honest, albeit troubling, answers.
Consider the following exchange:
If your child asks, "Will children be killed?"
The answer depends on the age of the child. I would say to young children, "Soldiers and people who fight this war don't want to hurt children." I don't think young children need to know about casualties. Elementary school children who may have heard it on the news sometimes need an explanation like "Kids can be wounded or hurt."
- Betsy Groves, LICSW, Director of the Child Witness to Violence Project at Boston Medical Center, Assistant Professor of Pediatrics at Boston University Medical School.