Helping Your Child Make Sense of Advertising Advertising is the
art of convincing people to spend money they don’t have for
something they don’t need. —Will Rogers, American humorist
Advertising is everywhere: on TV, on pop-up ads through the
Internet, in magazines and newspapers, on billboards, in your
mailbox—everywhere where someone hands you a flyer or sticks one
around the handle of your front door. How do you help your child
make sense of all these messages? Consider these ideas. Tips for
. . . - all parents - Be aware that advertising is a powerful
force. If you don’t help your child make sense of advertising,
your child may be influenced in ways that you don’t value. As a
parent, be a guide to help your child become aware of
advertising and how it affects him. - Talk about advertising and
how you interpret it. When do you pay attention to it? When do
you ignore it? Overall, are you happy that there are so many
advertisements? Why or why not? Start discussions with your kids
to learn what they think ab