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As we were watching a pre-recorded episode of Sesame Street today an Amber Alert came on.  I explained to Isaac that a girl was missing .  Isaac ran to the window to look  for her.  When he didn’t see her he asked if this was happening in ‘our world.’  I told him that it was and saw an opportunity for a teaching moment.  I explained to him that the girl had gone outside without her mom or dad so now she was lost.  As the show progressed I left the room and soon the alert was repeated.  Isaac ran to me saying “mom, mom!  The words are back on!”  He was concerned that she hadn’t been found yet.  When Zach came into the room shortly afterwards Isaac said “Dad!  A girl went outside without her mom and dad and now she’s lost!”  Isaac asked if a police car would find her and tell her to go home.  After not seeing her out the window again, he instructed the cat ,who was sitting at the window, to ‘meow’ if he sees the missing girl so that we can call to police to take her home.

 

The third time the alert came on he ran in saying “It said to call a apartment.” <<you mean the police department?>> “yeah, are her mom and dad traveling to her?  She will go all the way to our great grandma’s house? Then will great grandma call the police?”

When Sesame Street was over he said “mom, should we watch Polar Express and see if the words are on it.  Mom, on Polar Express it will say ‘the girl is lost, call the police’ then will we call the police to tell where she is?  When the train is at the North Pole, that’s when it’ll be on.  Then will we call the police that time?”

“What happens if a girl got lost at ‘Jump on it.’  Would someone call the police and tell them that someone is lost at our ‘Jump on it?'”

After explaining that he wouldn’t see words on the DVD because DVDs don’t have words to tell about missing girls he asked ” What about missing boys?  Will the DVD tell me about missing boys?”

I again explained that only TV shows can have the missing words and he asked “What happens if there was a missing mommy?  Would words come on whatever you watch, like a DVD on Television.  At the end of the DVD there will be words that say there is a missing girl.”