FARGO -- In the wake of the mass shooting in Minneapolis, some parents say their children are asking questions or sharing fears that the same thing could happen to them.
"Of course, I always think about my own child," said Jen Walla, a Fargo mom and childcare provider.
Walla said every time there is a school shooting, she considers homeschooling her son. To limit his exposure to traumatic events, she said her family avoids watching TV news.
"Being afraid isn't going to help him learn at school. It's not going to help him be safer in school," Walla said.
At the same time, many children are aware of school shootings and often feel anxiety about going to school, said Sherie Madewell-Buesgens, a behavioral health therapist at Sanford Health.
"I think a lot of times there's fear that it could happen to them," Madewell-Buesgens said.
She said it is normal for children to worry about their safety. If children come to parents with questions or express fears, she recommends validating their feelings, limiting details to age-appropriate language, keeping personal opinions out of the conversation and managing emotions as a parent.
"You can take some deep breaths, and a lot of times your kids will even kind of mirror your behavior. And so that might help calm them as well as you're talking to them," Madewell-Buesgens said.
She added that giving children healthy coping skills, such as deep breathing and listing what they are thankful for, can help them process fear and build long-term stress management.
Madewell-Buesgens and Emily Sargent, a clinical psychologist at Sanford Health, said now is a good time for parents to encourage children to focus on the positives.
"Good things happen to you more than bad things happen to you every day. And what are those good things? Tell me the good things that happen at school," Sargent said.
Sargent said walking through safety plans with children can also help increase their confidence and sense of control in unpredictable situations.
More resources on how to talk with children about traumatic situations are available through the Treatment Collaborative website at