Monsters are not real, so we don’t need to slay them, chase them away, spray them with magic potions, or cast a spell on
them. When adults act like monsters are real, they become even more real to children.
We want children to know that they are safe and that we will protect them, but kids are very smart. They think, “If I need to be protected from monsters, they must be real and I am right to be afraid.
If we want to reassure the children, we can explain that monsters are pretend. We can put the emphasis on calming the child’s feelings – which are real – rather than on “monsters” – which are not real.
Picture Book Parenting 