Just mind blowing and mind numbing. How on earth anyone one handles being a teacher these days is beyond me. I raise my hat to everyone who works in a school.
I don’t think I’d have let my kids take part in those drills at school. I did occasionally bring up the subject and always said just run as fast as you can in the other direction, out a window or a door. Get out of the classroom.
It’s completely terrible and unacceptable that anyone accepts the possibility of being shot at school as a price they must pay for freedom. It’s not freedom. It makes zero sense. It’s fear and it is 100% abnormal. How are we tolerating this? Why are we tolerating this?
Every time another senseless shooting occurs, the Founding Fathers are rolling in their graves. There is no way they would condone what is happening in America. They didn’t intend for Crimo’s father to purchase a weapon “similar to an AR-15,” enabling his son to kill 7 people. This is messed up.
Not to mention shooting and injuring dozens more and traumatizing hundreds. Think about the PTSD that has been created in those few moments. The bad dreams, , the triggering and flashbacks, the future substance abuse as people grasp for ways to cope, the probable relationship troubles/divorce, etc. All from one sick individual and his easy access to a weapon of war. It’s disgusting what we as a society are willing to tolerate as collateral damage to preserve perceived “rights.”
One month after the Twin Towers were attacked, my D went on a much anticipated school trip to visit Mrs. Bush at the White House. The school had debated about the wisdom of going or cancelling. But our school had a special connection with the First Family, so we all decided to go forward. We felt we had insulated our 10 year old from most of the details of the attacks. However, our daughter told us upon return that when they were at the tea with the First Lady (outside), she heard an airplane and began wildly looking around for “a bush to dive into.”
I hated that my daughter had to have that inner dialogue. When I was ten, my worst moments revolved around gym class and the dreaded rope climb. I never worried I would be murdered at a school function.
Multiple kids were shot and some died in my kids high school. I had 2 in high school at the time. Two of my kids know some who died and others who were injured. Thankfully none knew the shooter. Their friend groups held a lot. They are okay, but really, not okay. They will never be okay fully. Sometimes we talk about it a lot and sometimes not at all. I am incredibly thankful for active shooter drills and locks on the doors as I am sure they saved lives that day. I am thankful my kids were not near the shooter and feel bad when I think that as I’m friends with others not as fortunate. I know enough details that I can picture the entire thing like a movie in my head. Loud noises and fast movements terrify me and I was not there that day.
Middle school kids were locked down for a while because no one knew what was happening. When they did know, it was terrifying for them, even in another building. Many have siblings and friends there. Lot of district teachers have high school kids and those classes were pretty much abandoned for the afternoon, so those kids were affected even in elementary. It trickles to so many people very quickly.
I think being with their peers was the most helpful. There were multiple school sponsored gatherings for months after and that really helped. Kids weren’t isolated just because they were not in school. Counselors were available for free in many local spots. Therapy dogs are a huge hit with kids and teachers.
I don’t know if any of us really feel safe with school any more, but we carry on and do our best.
I am sorry your kids are freaked out about it. It’s so awful for everyone.
My D was in grammar school in the town over from an infamous school shooting. The kids were all wondering what was going on when a bunch of police cruisers came tearing up to her school (cops were scared that it could be a mass terrorist event targeting multiple schools), her teacher was called out of the classroom and when she came back in it was obvious she was crying. The kids all took out their phones and found out for themselves what was going on. …. A couple of years later, my H’s new job had him working in bad neighborhoods. In the six years at that job, about 20 coworkers had been murdered (in the neighborhood, not on the job).
My D was impacted by this. She always has a plan to escape from movie theatres, restaurants, etc, always scopes out the people in a room, and has hit the floor several times when she’s heard noises that sound like guns. And maybe this is even sadder to say, but I’m glad she’s so vigilant.
On foxnews.com today was something that was near and dear to my heart. It was an article about a Pastor in the South Side of Chicago who commented that the Highland Park shooting was tragic and he sent his prayers. But he also wanted people to know that they shouldn’t forget about the Pastor’s community, which suffers more shootings per year than what happened in Highland Park. This is so close to my heart because of my H’s experiences, and when he worked there, I kept thinking about those little children who live there, and lose siblings, parents, etc to stray bullets or wrong place/wrong time situations. How can these poor children not be traumatized and scarred for life? I’d like us all to think about those children and what their daily life is like.
I went through active shooter training a few years ago, and while it was definitely scary, we all thought it was excellent. Our trainers were wonderful. Afterwards, my friend who had a child in 4th grade said that she wanted to be sure that what was taught in her child’s school aligned with the training we had (ALICE). She was adamant that the threat of gun violence in school made this training essential. As it turned out, there was a mass shooting last fall in the next school district over. Now I have a grandchild, and all of this just hits me in the gut.
My DS#1 was randomly shot from a passing car by a paintball marker during a halloween celebration about maybe 10 years ago. We are very lucky it was “just” a paintball gun.
That is scary! There have been random shootings at cars in our metro area the last couple weeks, and it is always at the back of my mind when I’m on the freeways.
As a special ed teacher that is responsible for kids with mobility and cognitive issues. Active shooter training has basically caused me PTSD. My class would all be sitting ducks and no one is coming to help us. I have 2 exterior doors and two exterior walls that are entirely windows. My coworkers and I now park our cars as close as we can to the door of our classroom in hopes that we could at least throw kids in our cars and drive them away. I was told that this is the last thing we should do, but in reality, there is absolutely nothing I can do. I have nightmares all the time about school shooters as my only real recourse to protect my students is to shield them with my own body.
I once tried corralling them all into the bathroom that is in our classroom to see how many staff/students could fit. I would have to ultimately make a decision as to who to save as not everyone fits and I have a number of students that can’t be in close proximity to others without becoming dangerously aggressive.
I was not working when Newtown happened as I took time off to be home with my kids when they were little. I remember writing notes to my kids’ teachers (2nd and 3rd grade at the time) because I just couldn’t understand how they were possibly going to hold it together to teach the next day. Now, every time there is yet another school shooting, I feel like it’s basically a slap in the face. We’re supposed to show up the next day as if nothing happened. There are many things that make it hard to be a teacher at the moment, but watching politicians offer “thoughts and prayers” while doing nothing to protect teachers and students is one of the most difficult to stomach. (And no, I don’t believe arming teachers, locking doors or “hardening targets” is the answer)
This says it all. I’m so sorry you have to experience this every working day. Is there a single person who would offer to be in your shoes? No one else has the guts.
There is almost nowhere else in the world where teachers have to work in these conditions, worrying if today might be the day they decide which kids they can protect. It’s absolutely terrible that you have to live like this.
My kids luckily haven’t had a negative reaction to
a tragedy at their school. They have unfortunately had to deal with bullying issues which seem to be happening everywhere these days.
I am very glad that the latest gun legislation that just passed has increased funding for school safety and mental health resources. I think these are areas that could certainly be improved upon.
The whole arming teachers thing is idiotic. The bulk of the classes I teach are 7th grade. I basically herd cats for a living. I’m supposed to wrangle 20 12-13 year olds with a loaded gun in my classroom? That is the most nonsensical crap I have ever heard. We have a school resource officer that I assume is armed, and I’m glad for it, but arming teachers? Hard pass.
@kelsmom yes it was very scary! It was a night so he didnt at first see what hit him, and without protective padding, paintball paint bullets hurt! No one should be shooting at anyone with anything!! It was on Halloween. People were supposed to be out having fun!
My kids and I are happy there is an armed school resource officer at school to potentially protect them. Hopefully some of the new funding can be used to ensure that every school has this resource. I’m not opposed to more safety measures being put in place to protect these schools.
My kids had three incidents in their school careers (k-12). When they were in first grade, they were on the ‘upper playground’, which was across the street from the school/lower playground and was about 1/8 of the city block with an alley separating the playground from the residential houses. Someone in one of the backyards was shooting at squirrels and a bullet came down the alley and nicked a classmate in the ear. Quite scary. And yes, it is illegal to shoot guns in the city, even at squirrels.
Next was in 5th grade. Someone escaped from the police substation which was a few blocks away so all the schools in the area went on lockdown. It would have been fine except that the 5th grade had spent the entire morning discussing how a classmate would die soon and what her funeral would be like. They were all in tears as they crossed the street to the cafeteria for lunch. Suddenly they were on lockdown, had to sit in the dark away from the windows, in a basement (so windows were up high anyway), and be totally quiet and still.
Third was their first day of high school at a new school. They started at 8 and at 8:30 the school received a possible threat by a marine at Camp Pendleton. They were first hustled to the gym (about 2400 in a hot gym), then sent to the football field (it was 100 degrees that day), then finally to a grocery store parking lot where I picked them up at about 2. When I arrived, there were helicopters (police and news) circling, marines on the ridge surrounding the school (freshman campus up on the ridge, others below), dozens of police dogs patrolling, marines, cops, sheriffs everywhere. No one allowed to get cars from student parking lot, no idea where any personal belonging were. My kids knew each other and about 3 other kids at the whole school.
They remember it all. Just the other day my daughter mentioned Michael getting shot in the ear and that was 20 years ago.
Our schools have a police officer assigned to each as well. However, we have thousands of students in our high school and only 1 officer.
I agree that there is a huge need for mental health resources for our youth and teens right now. We need better access to mental health for all really. However, I don’t feel that continuing to allow for easy access to guns is the best solution.
I am not anti-gun. We have a gun at our house. I grew up in a deer hunting household. My oldest son has shot trap for fun.
But my logic tells me that we have to hit the pause button somehow right now until we can figure out how we can do better.
Believe me, the community my friend lives in is a community where no one would have expected a mass shooting to occur. That’s the thing … there is no rhyme or reason to these shootings, so no place is safe from the possibility.