School assembly launches to help children who are anxious about Ukraine
An online school assembly has launched to help children who are experiencing anxiety about Ukraine.
The video was created by Rev'd Rose Hill, priest in the Diocese of Llandaff, to help primary school children process their feelings about current affairs and events in the news. As a parent herself, Rose noticed that her own children feeling anxious when watching the news.
"Over the last week or so, as we watched the events in Ukraine unfold, I noticed my own children asking questions about what is going on in the news," says Rose. "As a parent, I have always approached difficult questions in a child led fashion, that is if they're old enough to ask a question then they are old enough to get an answer.
"Often, we think of children, as needing to be sheltered from bad news, death and bad things happening in the world. This is not in itself a bad thing but children are very perceptive and easily pick up on things. Sometimes if the adults are not talking about it to them it may feel like they can't then ask the questions that are bothering them."
Children can be quite sophisticated in their grasp of complicated ideas
Rose believes we shouldn't shy away from talking to children about difficult subjects that are in the news. Often it's adults who find it difficult to talk to children in a way that doesn't create more anxiety.
Rose adds, "Church and school assembly provision for young children tends to be entertaining, light and can sometimes avoid difficult subjects. Actually, those difficult subjects are usually difficult for us as adults to approach rather than difficult for the children to understand. They just need to be pitched at the correct level. In assemblies and children's worship, I have found young children to be perceptive and quite sophisticated in their grasp of complicated ideas.
"When I led this assembly in the local primary school I asked children to name things that was worrying them. Answers ranged from the war in Ukraine to starting comprehensive school through to the rising cost of Freddo chocolate bars and disappointingly hollow easter eggs when you're expecting them to be full of Smarties!
"With this assembly, I want to give space to the children to be able to voice concerns in an age appropriate way without being patronising. It's important that we allow children to take the lead in discussions and feel safe in voicing their concerns."