Kids and Tarot

Now here’s a complicated subject. Kids and Tarot, is it an okay combination and if so, how do you go about such a thing?

First of all let me state that I believe that when you’re working with kids you have to be extremely careful and conscious of what you’re doing in any case. Kids are impressionable and have a lot to learn about interpreting and processing information. They are easily spooked as well, something to take in careful consideration. I feel reading for kids under twelve is simply not done, better yet I feel kids under twelve should not be bothered with any form of spirituality, mysticism or anything that deals with the deeper machinations of the human spirit or psyche.

When a child is curious though, or has pressing questions about matters of a spiritual nature or are interested in Tarot, a subtle introduction could be attempted emphasizing on the “down  to earth” as much as possible, taking into account that anything you say will most likely be magnified and elevated to a fantastic level by the child anyway. Then again, attributing magical properties to pieces of painted cardboard is not unheard of with adults either…

When the kid gets older things tend to get more complicated. On one hand a child’s intellect and dawning awareness will improve the way they can interpret things and filter information, on the other hand the emotional turmoil of puberty make it like walking on a razors edge where obsessive behavior or irrational fear can both be serious dangers. However interest in occult and spiritual matters also seem to grow during the teen years as the kid tries to make sense of the world. I strongly believe it is better to guide and inform then steer away and ignore sparking curiosity. Letting a kid do his or her research in secret can do great harm and lead to all kinds of problems ranging form strong or an indecisive personality to taking part in cult activity or over zealous behavior.

In the end it’s all about knowing who you’re dealing with, one kid can handle things just fine, while another could flip out completely. As a rule I do not do readings nor accept clients in my workshops under 16 years old. When I do make the odd exception the parent is required to stay present.