What to say to kids about school shootings to ease their stress

If you have school-age children, chances are they've already talked to their classmates about the school shooting in Uvalde, Texas. So what's the best way to know how they're feeling and what they're thinking? Ask them.

"Children's questions may be very different from adults'," says David Schonfeld, a pediatrician who directs the National Center for School Crisis and Bereavement at Children's Hospital Los Angeles. And the best way to determine how much information they need is to listen to them, he says.

"Before we can offer reassurance or help them with what's bothering them, we have to understand what their actual concerns are," Schonfeld says. His group has developed guidelines for talking to children after a tragic event.

Kids often ask who is to blame, what could have been done to prevent the tragedy or could it happen at my school? Truthful answers are important to build trust. In a year when the U.S. has already seen 27 school shootings and more than 200 mass shootings, the unfortunate answer is: Although school is typically a safe place, there are risks.