What a scary time!!

amyhedlu

[font size="1" color="#FF0000"]LAST EDITED ON 09-24-03 AT 02:42PM (CST)[/font][p]I just had to post this to get it off my chest. I live in MN and today we had a school shooting with at least 2 high school aged kids injured. Yesterday there was a different school in MN that was on lock down because of a person in the parking lot with a gun. I know there are many states that have had to deal with these horrible situations but here in MN we haven't. It just scares me to think that our children now need to worry about things like this. I remember the worst thing in school happening was a fist fight. I can imagine the concern and questions that my children will have for me when I get home tonight.

As sad twist to this story, the shooter is a freshman and his victims are a freshman and a senior. The news is now reporting that one of the victims has died. My daughter has already called worried that something like this could happen at her school. Any advice out there to give to a 6th grader?

Whatever

While it wasn't a shooting at school, when my daughter was in 7th grade one of her classmates was mistakenly shot by a police officer who mistook a toy watergun for the real thing. That night, all I could do was provide a shoulder for my daughter and let her talk it out. She didn't want to go to school the next day, but I took her. On hand were grief couselors, child psychologists, religious leaders from many different religions to provide support for the kids and to answer the parents questions and concerns. My daughter and many other children didn't go to class that day or the next. Instead, she spent the day in "group therapy." The hardest part was when the police sent representatives to work with the kids. My daughter and others were angry and, also, afraid. The quick intervention by the school system was a Godsend. It made the best of a terrible situation. So, first thing is to contact her school and see what they are doing. Second, respect your daughters feeling and fears. Don't make any promises you can't keep. But, try to reassure her that the likelihood of this happening to her is slim. Watch her carefully, for any changes. Most important, just be there for her. Hope this helps.

amyhedlu

I know my first instinct is going to be to tell her that it won't happen at her school but I know that I can't promise her that. Thanks for the advice. It just saddens me to think that this is what our world has come to.

Human Resources Manager

I know that there is fine line to walk when addressing these types of issues with your kids. You don't want to be dishonest and tell her it won't happen at her school, but you don't want to be so disparaging as to frighten her too much.

I think the best you can do is to provide honest answers to any questions she may have.

System

Although I don't have any good advice for you as you struggle through this, I can tell all of you that I am extremely embarassed by the fact that 'IT' all started right here near where I live, in Pearl, Mississippi, on the Eastern fringe of Jackson, Mississippi. Luke Woodham, killed his mom and dog at home and then shot up the school, taking out two beautiful girl students, one of them his prior girlfriend. I live on the North fringe but worked in Pearl for nine years. That's the school where the first of these terrible school shootings happened about 7 years ago. I will never forget the morning at work. People going about their normal work activities, then the rumors flying, then the phone calls coming to the building, then people running to the largest TV set in the building to try to catch the local station running the live news. For several years when I would go to the airport to pick up candidates flown in for interviews, I would actually point out the school while driving down the interstate.

By the way, the only thing that brought this thing to a sudden end was an assistant principal running to his truck and getting his gun from under his seat and forcing a standoff with the kid with the rifles. The principal was roundly criticized by the 'anti gun group' but may have saved lives.

Ons second thought, I do have advice for all of you who have kids at home: Hug your kids super tight and go in their room to look at them at least three times tonight after they are asleep. If they are not able to go to sleep, climb under the sheets with them and stay up all night if you need to and call in tomorrow morning and stay home with them. Saying, "Baby I don't know" is an honest thing to say.

Whatever

[font size="1" color="#FF0000"]LAST EDITED ON 09-25-03 AT 08:29AM (CST)[/font][p]Good morning. Just want to know how your daughter is doing.

amyhedlu

She seemed to be doing okay. She was filled with lots of questions last night and paid a lot of attention to the news. She said that they were going to be discussing the shootings in school today with teachers. I was surprised about how calm she seemed about it and that she understood it could happen anywhere. I have younger boys and so they were asking questions also and she was answering them. The moral that she said should be learned out of all this is that teasing other people affects them more than you realize. I hope alot of children realize that also. Thanks for the concern. My heart now goes out to the families that were directly affected.