by Susan Chernesky

Imagine that you are sitting in the living room, watching the evening news, and the President of the United States is discussing an improper liaison. Your seven-year-old sits beside you, reading a book or playing with toys. Suddenly, she turns to you and asks, "Daddy, what's sex?"

Lately, there have been many issues on television and in the news media that include adult content. Due to the crisis in the White House, that has consumed the media for most of this year, the evening news is littered with phrases like "inappropriate behavior." Television shows, even those in the so-called family hour, have episodes involving sex, alcohol and violence, and children will inevitably have questions about these things.

Parents and caregivers must choose their responses carefully. According to Brother Arthur Bangs, of La Salle University's Education Department and Counseling Center, it's best to reply with language from the child's own vocabulary.

Older children, especially those over 12, have reached an age where parents can give clear definitions, using language the child knows. Bangs also suggests that parents who are posed with questions that deal with adult issues ask their kids questions about the topic.

"Feed the volcano of discussion," he said. "Find out what your kids already know about issues such as sex or violence."

By discussing these kinds of topics freely, children will feel encouraged to ask their parents about serious issues, in an appropriate setting.

While discussion is the best solution for older children, most young children are incapable of understanding certain issues-like the Clinton scandal. When confronting this issue, parents should approach it very gently, as in "You know, dear, the president did something wrong, and now he is saying he's sorry." Again, parents should be alert to what their children already know.

Bangs also points out that children under the age of ten do not understand abstract language or thinking. "For example, if parents need to deal with justice, they should say, 'That's when the bad guy goes to jail.' Young children can only understand concrete examples."

While sensitive topics need to be discussed at some point in the child's life, caregivers should use discretion when allowing children to view certain programming.

"Parents should do their best to fend off television shows or movies that deal in content that their children cannot handle," said Bangs. But when that's not possible, these occasions can be used as opportunities to begin instructive discussions on topics that might otherwise not come up. Here at TV12, we call them "teachable moments."