Election Results - a teachable moment to reinforce your family's values

Former Vice President Joe Biden has won the presidential election, an election that saw record voter turnout in many parts of the country and votes took days to count in many key states. So in this election like no other, kids are going to have questions based on what they see from you at home, what they hear at school, or what’s on the news. It’s a chance to talk with your child about your values.

If the candidate you supported won, you can talk about what values put you in that person’s camp. You can talk about their character, their stances on different issues, etc. and why those are important to you. Relate those values to the way your family makes decisions and the members treat one another.  You can ask your children,  "What do you hope will happen with that person as president? And, if you are disappointed in the election results, you can have a similar conversation. What had you been hoping for? What might change? What might stay the same? And how, as a family, can you continue to work towards the kind of world you want?”

It’s important to teach children to respect those with different views.  We can say,  “We can use words like, ‘I strongly disagree with our neighbor’s support for X, but we do have a choice, and they’ve made a different choice than we did.  And this is why we made our choice...’”

Yours in Faith,
Lauren