How to Keep Children Safe, Part 3: At School

safe-children-3[Editor’s note: This is a 6-part series regarding my views and plenty of common sense on how to keep your children safe in a dangerous world. It is generally geared toward children 12 and under. I hope it helps you.]

I always look forward to sending my kids off to school (is that wrong?) because it means a good 8 hours that they’re someone else’s problem! Ok, they’re not THAT bad and, in fact, are actually pretty good kids. Of course, even when they’re at school I occasionally wonder how they’re doing and worry about their safety. Certainly, tragedies like Sandy Hook bring up child safety at schools in the worst way but there’s more to it than that.

In my opinion, it starts with getting to school. If your children are car-riders then there probably isn’t much to worry about as you likely drop them off right at the front door. If, on the other hand, they need to walk or take the bus then there’s more to consider.

If they walk or ride a bike then their age with respect to the route they take needs to be considered. Are there busy streets, bad neighborhoods, narrow alleyways, stray dogs, or mean old ladies houses? Obviously, my parents wouldn’t have trusted me to get myself to school across the nearby very busy street when I was 6 but at age 12 (or whenever it was) that was acceptable. And, of course, ensure you children know how to obey traffic signals if they need to know.

Moreover, does the route your child take involve “hidden” or potentially “dangerous” spots? I’m thinking of places where they might not be highly visible to others such as alleyways or shortcuts that remove them from the “beaten path” if you will. In some cases these routes are preferable but I simply ask that you have a clue as to how and where they travel. Maybe even walk the route once or twice with them to be sure. With all that in mind, it might be a good idea to encourage your child to walk to and from school with a friend or sibling, you know, safety in numbers.

I might also suggest that time of day is a concern, depending on whether or not your children have before and/or after school activities that might require them to travel when it’s dark. Consider adjusting your schedule if you can to ensure they make it there safely or have them check in when they get to where they’re supposed to be. And have a plan for what will you do if they didn’t check in.

Now, what about the bus? Our kids ride the bus and the best part is the bus actually stops in front of our house to get them so they’re not walking to a nearby bus stop. Fortunately, most school districts seem very cognizant of the desire not to have children walk a long distance to get to a bus stop but, again, know how your child gets to the bus stop regardless.

Likewise, it seems that most school districts are pretty good about controlling behavior while on the bus but I’m sure there are plenty of exceptions. What to do if your kid has problems? It always starts with being aware of the problem, from ensuring you know, the bus driver, even the school, if need be. Granted, as the kids get older they will be less likely to tell you if they’re having trouble but it can’t hurt to ask on occasion. How was the bus ride? Who did you sit with? What did you talk about? Any problems I should know about?

What about at school?

Well, bullying situations are a start. Talk to your child about their day. Ask what they did. Probe a bit. Then, if there is a problem, talk to their teacher, counselor, principal, or whomever to help with the situation or at least to keep an eye on it. And, of course, teach your child to stay away from situations where these problems can occur, ensure that they can be seen by an adult as often as possible (such as on the playground), and eventually to stick up for themselves if absolutely necessary.

With respect to their safety from disasters, it’s up to the school to develop those plans but it can’t hurt to (1) know what those plans are and (2) give your child additional “guidance” as you see fit. Sometimes schools are secretive about their emergency preparedness plans due to “security concerns” but if you ask specific questions like “what’s the plan if a tornado is heading this way” then you’re more likely to get an answer. If not, get snotty… but in a concerned parent sort of way. 😉 Because, after all, it’s your kid’s safety that they’re responsible for and you want to know that their plans are adequate and acceptable to meet said responsibility.

As for the extra “guidance,” well, that’s one for you to figure out. I’m not saying you should tell your child to overtly ignore or countermand your school’s plans but if their plans do not meet your expectations then teach your child what those expectations are.

Now, what about the scariest situation we can think of, that being an active shooter? This is a tough one. On the one hand you want to believe that your school will do what they need to do to keep your child safe. Unfortunately, however, history has shown this just isn’t very likely. As such, it’s incumbent upon you to drill into your child’s head precisely how they should react to such a situation. (Personally, I have failed in this respect and need to do this myself.) If that means doing exactly what their teacher says (such as to hunker down in their classroom) or to blatantly ignore them and run at the first chance they get, then do as you see fit.

This might sound like I’m telling you to teach your kids to run regardless of what their teacher says, but that’s not true at all. Sure, there are times where this action might make the most sense but there are also times when it may not. For example, if your child’s classroom really does utilize very solid doors and locking system for this specific purpose then perhaps hunkering down is the best option. On the other hand, if your child is in the playground and such a situation occurs then perhaps the best course of action is to run away as fast as possible? That’s assuming that the playground isn’t completely fenced in, of course.

I should point out that a lockdown order is for far more than just active shooter situations. My brother-in-law (who is a teacher) says that they would only get issued a lockdown order but not be given the details. As such, the reason for lockdown could very well be something like a rabid dog and NOT an active shooter that you think you’re preparing your child for. And, of course, many people cannot recognize what a gun shot actually sounds like, especially children. So, I’m saying be very careful with countermanding teacher’s orders.

Ultimately, you’re responsible for your child’s safety whether or not they’re at school. Teach them how to react and what you expect. Role play, talk about it, or whatever works for you… you’ll never be disappointed that you’ve taught your child to think for themselves but I would imagine that you will forever blame yourself if something tragic did happen, especially if it could possibly have been averted if your child had been taught to obey your expectations and think on their own.

If you have your own suggestions feel free to share them below…


by

Discover the 5 Minute Survival Blueprint course and get yourself prepared fast, easy, and inexpensively! It’s my gift from one prepper to another. 🙂

Comments

11 responses to “How to Keep Children Safe, Part 3: At School”

  1. mybus24

    Just had to pitch in about your comment of: most school districts seem very cognizant of the desire not to have children walk a long distance to get to a bus stop but, again, know how your child gets to the bus stop regardless.
    I am 56 years old, and I remember having to walk to the bus stop and when I was young, MY MOTHER WALKED WITH ME. Our state (Ohio) guidelines that children may walk up to 1/2 mile to their bus stop, (our district has a 1/4 mile policy). My point I’m getting to is that the SCHOOL DISTRICT is only responsible for your child to get them to the school from the BUS STOP and back home to THE BUS STOP. What happens before that bus arrives IS THE PARENTS RESPONSIBLITY!

    1. I’m not saying there weren’t exceptions but in my experience my children haven’t had to walk much at all.

  2. Different states have different laws on homeschooling. Fortunately, our state practically promotes it by offering their program online and requires a minimum amount of time per WEEK “in class” like a webinar.

    Most teachers are not degreed in the course(s) they teach, rather their degree is in teaching or education. Our decision had been made and I was putting my last two weeks in at work when I mentioned to a fellow worker (who had been a high school teacher) that I wasn’t sure I was smart enough to teach. He laughed and said, “Just do what teachers do, teach yourself the lesson the night before and teach it to the kids the next day.”

    Some reasons for our decision to homeschool were; Sex ed started in 3rd grade and there was a daycare center attached to the high school for the children of the students. Heather’s two mommies and daddy’s friend were being introduced in early elementary classrooms as perfectly normal. Classmates were drinking cough syrup and taking diet pills to alter their consciousness. And, yes, bullying was a problem that the victim got suspended for because “we don’t fight back”. I almost didn’t care if my kids didn’t learn anything as long as they didn’t learn what they were teaching in the public programming system.

    I’ll have to share the whole story another time.

  3. millenniumfly,
    I was addressing your concern with 8 hours of teaching but put the reply in the wrong place. I also failed to mention that some states had a minimum of 3 hours for four day each week that children must be homeschooled.

  4. You do not homeschool your child 8 hours each day. State regulations will tell you how many hours/day or hours/week, days you can teach, how late you can teach, and who can teach them. Any parent can usually homeschool his own child. However, as a teacher with an MA, I can teach a child other than my own in this state. Another parent without a teaching degree cannot homeschool other children.

    I have tutored homeschooled children who were not taught. One young woman could not spell on a 7th grade level and was in 12th grade. She did not have to spell since she was gorgeous and had no other goal than to be a mother. Heaven help her children when she homeschools them.

    I also taught (not tutored) a child with undefined medical problems. The fact that I was a licensed teacher with a valid license in this state was the only reason I could tutor the child while her mother worked. I had to go to the board of education and fill out paperwork, furnish a copy of my license from the state, and get permission.

    Field trips count as hours taught and so do hands-on lessons–baking cookies after you have doubled the recipe by adding or multiplying fractions to determine the amount needed for a doubled recipe. Measuring with a tape on boards cut for a birdhouse or some other project; locating stars at night (night teaching is not allowed in the official time ranges but would be okay in this case) would be a project that would not cause a problem. Making uniforms for history class, putting on plays after learning a history lesson.

    There are homeschooling blogs and sites with lessons for you to use.

    1. The 8 hours I mentioned was just comparing to what my children’s day is like now, from start to finish. Obviously, I’m not just interested in meeting state minimum requirements but to ensure my kids are well educated and I”m not sure I can do that as well a teacher.

  5. GoneWithTheWind

    Your children are 50 times more likely to drown then be harmed by an “active shooter”. 200 times more likely to be killed in an auto accident. 40 times more likely to die from a drug overdose or misuse.

    1. And I think I mentioned some of those problems (drowning, poisoning) in part 2.

    2. Oh, and this post talked about far more than just an active shooter scenario.

  6. Have you ever toyed with the idea of homeschooling?

    1. Yes, I have but I’m not sure if I would be patient enough to teach my kids for 8 hours a day. I’m sure it’s a lot more difficult than it looks.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *