The nation is in mourning after a tragedy that shook the lives of families across the country. Now parents are left with comforting their youngsters and letting them know its safe to head back to school Monday morning. One local counselor offered her advice and said communication is key in any tough situation.
"I would hate for a child to be shut down and be told its nothing move on. This trauma is real stuff its real trauma and there are going to be ramifications of it," said Family Counselor Chris Cline.
Cline said the worst thing you can do is shut them down and encourages parents to let their children talk, draw or anything else they may need to do to express their feelings and concerns.
Cline says let your child know you are there for them during this time.
"Parents can put encouraging notes in their lunches and school bag um to reassure that child that mommy and daddy are still here," said Cline.
District 51 officials said counseling will be available to students struggling with the tragedy.
"District 51 has policies and procedures to handle different kinds of crisis situations to include one like what happened today and we constantly drill and train," said District 51 Director of Safety Tim Leon.
Leon said it is important for parents to let their children know that school is still one of the safest places for them to be throughout the day.
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