NEWS for North Dakotans
Agriculture Communication, North Dakota State
University
7 Morrill Hall, Fargo, ND 58105-5665
April 30, 1998
Parent Line: What's Bugging You?
This week the phone is really buzzin' with bug calls. In our climate we have so few chances to go outdoors we really don't want to miss out on a single day. So when that toddler or preschooler refuses to go outdoors because of insects, those darn bugs become a cause for true concern.
As adults we know that the fear of something so tiny is not rational, yet many grown-ups jump at the sight of a spider, feel their skin crawl at the gentle touch of a wood tick or, as any child care provider will tell you, stop breathing momentarily at the thought of a lice epidemic. Watching an adult frown and jump to brush the mosquito away from the baby or chase a buzzing fly around the house—fretting and swinging with a newspaper—might be just enough of a cue for a 2-year-old to perceive danger.
Summer brings other opportunities to reawaken fears as well. Children playing outdoors will have access to dangers lurking in garages, barns and sheds and around power equipment and noisy machines. City animals such as dogs, cats and squirrels are out everywhere. Add to that the variety of large animals one might see on a farm or ranch. And don't forget standing water, thunder and lightning, and the occasional tornado siren.
Because spring and summer can be especially scary for young children, some of them will need extra time and patience to again get used to all the sights and sounds that the great outdoors has to offer. Parents can help children with their fears when they are aware of their own responses.
When we can pull ourselves together enough to say something like, "It looks like you would like to go back outside, Mr. Fly—let me help you find the way," we will help the child see that bugs and other potentially scary situations can be handled calmly.
Oftentimes our fears come from lack of information. For years I feared running across rattlesnakes at our relatives' home in southern Minnesota. I would park as close to the house as possible, avoid walking in the grass and simply did not go out after dark. Recently I asked my uncle and aunt how many rattlesnakes they had seen in their two-plus decades in that area.
"One," my uncle replied.
It was in a parking lot, not on grass, in town, not near their home, and it was daylight when they spotted it. I guess I don't have a lot to worry about. A little information can go a long way in helping people get over their fears.
Young children don't always know the right questions to ask or exactly what they are worried about. They also don't learn best when adults try to minimize their feelings or lecture.
Picture books about insects might help the child to begin to warm up to bugs. Some books even come with their own plastic replica bugs. In other places fake bugs are sold separately. Examining something that looks like a bug but isn't real and won't jump or fly or bite can help some children feel that they are in control.
Some children feel safer armed with miniature fly swatters and spray water bottles. Others just need permission to swing their arms and say, "Get away from me you pesky old fly."
As the parent it is important that you give your child the tools that fit with your beliefs about nature and insects and the food chain. Talk about the hard work ants do, the good honey the bees make and how tasty birds find mosquitoes.
Modeling appropriate reactions, giving the child information, listening to her feelings and helping her work out a solution will help the child to play outdoors today—and later will empower her to take on even bigger things that are bugging her throughout her whole life.
As I get older I think I am more likely to fear a 10-month winter than any creature or insect summer can bring.
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Source: Kim Bushaw (701) 231-1070
Editor: Dean Hulse (701) 231-6136