Getty A woman and a girl leave tributes in the Place de la Bourse after the Brussels attacks today

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Adults sometimes avoid difficult conversations because their natural instinct is to protect children, according to Di Stubbs, a family services team member at child bereavement charity Winston's Wish. But Ms Stubbs said: "That impulse may be unhelpful to children who can be more confused and frightened by partial information than by the truth when that is explained simply and clearly." Here is a summary of her advice on how to talk about the Brussels attacks with your children.

Use simple, direct language that is clear and appropriate to the child’s age Ms Stubbs said parents could show Brussels on a map and say something like "all this news is because something very bad and very sad happened to some people" there. For example, she suggested saying: "What seems to have happened is that people were killed while they were at an airport or on the underground. It is very unusual that something like this happens. "This is one of the reasons why it is on the news and lots of people are talking about it; it is also because it is very upsetting that something like this could happen."

Getty A woman and a girl embrace as people leave tributes at the Place de la Bourse

Show that you are willing to talk about it, even though it is difficult Ms Stubbs said adults should try to be honest with children and take care to avoid euphemisms such as saying 'gone away' or 'lost' instead of died. "This will avoid confusion, build trust and reassure children that it is ok to talk openly about difficult things," she said. "This may lead to many more questions about death and dying, and also to questions about what happens after death." If children want to know why the attacks happened, she suggested saying: "No-one can completely know why. We know it wasn’t an accident. "These people have been hurt simply because they were in the wrong place at the wrong time. It’s so, so difficult to understand why anyone would be so cruel as to kill strangers." Older children will appreciate more details and the opportunity to explore why people do terrible things and the impact on victims' families, she added.

Worldwide tributes to Brussels victims Wed, March 23, 2016 Tributes for the Brussels attack victims began pouring in as soon as news of the devastating attack spread globally Play slideshow PA/Twitter 1 of 52 Tribute poor in for the Brussels attacks

Stick to the facts Ms Stubbs warned that it may be unhelpful for children if people repeat assumptions made in the media as to what was behind the acts. "If you find it possible, try and distinguish between bad acts and bad people," she advised parents. "Children find the idea of bad people particularly frightening. Children are also very fair-minded and will want reassurance that the people who did this will be punished. "It is really important to make the distinction for children between the beliefs and actions of these very few individuals and the beliefs and actions of the very great majority of people who share the name of their religion."

Expect children to ask questions It is natural that children will ask whether attacks might happen where they live or affect people they know, Ms Stubbs said. "When high profile events such as this happen, young people may temporarily lose their sense of security," she said. "Children who are concerned will appreciate a lot of reassurance and maybe more hugs than usual. Keeping a reasonably normal routine going will help them feel secure."