A helpful tip for parents in line with the English curriculum and the media when it comes to COVID news...
It may be worth discussing media coverage of COVID-19, physical distancing and self-isolation.
It’s good to talk with your teenage child about where they’re getting news and information about COVID-19 from – government websites or apps, news websites, social media and so on. It’s also worth talking about how different news media and social media platforms are covering the pandemic.
You could ask your child whether they’ve noticed any differences among platforms. For example:
Are some media sources or stories more fact based than others?
What sources or stories seem trustworthy? How can you tell whether a source or story is reliable and trustworthy?
Are any platforms using click-bait just to get users?
Are some just interested in showing distressing scenes?
It’s also worth looking at how much media about COVID-19 you and your child are both seeing. If you have the facts you need, it’s often best to switch off or switch to something else.
Adapted from the Raising Children’s Network
