Scampering about the linoleum floor in her bare feet, 4-year-old Sydney Watson eyed her mom from the opposite side of the kitchen table.

Her cavorting ended when Kristina Watson called her name and asked her to put on her shoes and socks. Sydney disappeared into a bedroom, reappearing with a comb stuck in her hair.

Watson called Sydney over and removed the comb, gently untangling her hair.

"On Wednesday, when war was inevitable, I realized she had no concept as to what war is about," the English graduate student, who is a single mother of two, said while sitting down at the kitchen table. In the dim light behind her were pieces of modern art and book shelves filled with texts.

Watson, who lives in a cozy Spartan Village apartment with her daughter Sydney and her 14-year-old son Spencer, found herself having to explain to her children the U.S. military's invasion of Iraq - something she herself struggles to understand.

When President Bush's 48 hours were up and U.S. forces began to invade Iraq, Watson knew she would have to explain to her daughter the meaning of war.

"When you are 4, war is not a concept," she said as Sydney plopped herself down at the kitchen table with a pad and pencil, innocently asking what her mom was talking about.

Watson replied very slowly that she was talking about the war with Iraq.

"War is where people get killed," Sydney said, quickly returning to her drawing.

"You see, no frame of reference, but I think that is typical of all Americans, whether they be 4 or 44," Watson said, quietly drawing her daughter onto her lap.

Watson said she wants her children to know the tragedy and wickedness of war.

"We are a pro-peace family," she said.

Her family watches the news but only on public broadcasting stations and mostly when Sydney is in bed.

For his part, Spencer has been active in protesting the war, going to the state Capitol with friends from school.

He said the political activism has made him and his friends targets for other kids at school.

"I have a very small-knit group of friends," he said. "It's very difficult."

Still, Spencer said he will stand up for what he believes is wrong.

Anne Soderman, child development professor and Department of Family and Child Ecology chairperson, said it's important parents take an active role in educating children about the conflict. If children have questions, she said, parents need to give them answers.

"Children are very aware," she said.

At the same time, she said, don't force them to worry unnecessarily.

"Sit down and talk with children, but I wouldn't create any stress that is not there," Soderman said.

"I think the best approach is talking about the fact that war is very, very far away."

Older children should be given a chance to learn their parents' values, she said, and parents should do their best to bring them into the discussion and give them a chance to talk about various aspects of the war.

Kristine Grunwald teaches government, psychology and American history at Williamston High School.

She said students benefit from discussing the war in class.

"There's a lot of need for people to talk about it," she said, adding the classroom offers a unique opportunity for students to examine the war objectively.

"There is a lot of discussion," she said.

"We try to talk about both sides of the situation."

Grunwald said she uses the Detroit Free Press and Channel One News, a nationally televised news broadcast for middle- and high school students, to provide unbiased sources of material on the war.

"There is a lot more somberness this week as the death toll rises," she said.

"People are realizing that it is real."