School Danger
Anyone else catch the news about the Russian school terrorist attack? I’m sure you did. I always turn up the radio in the car for the news but recently the kids don’t seem to ignore it quite like they used to. Now, my profanity-prone six-year-old immediately picks up any little cuss word that escapes and more disturbingly, my 11-year-old is also paying attention to the news.
This was distressingly obvious this weekend as she repeatedly asked me for update on the Russian school hostage situation. Once the siege had taken place and it was just counting bodies and injuries, she again asked for an update. More specifically she asked, “Is the thing in Russia over yet?”
I truthfully replied that it was over. I left out the part about how half of the dead were indeed children. She then of course asked how many children died. I lied and said I didn’t know.
Here is the kicker: My young ones picked up on the conversation at this point and asked what happened. My oldest then related everything the news, and I had told her. Then the barrage of questions began. How do you correctly reply to this: “Can this happen at my school?”
If you take into account all of the school shootings, fights, threats and otherwise (not even bringing up the Columbine incident) how do you relate the risk to your children? If they understood statistics, then this would be easy and they wouldn’t pester me to play the lottery either. Then again, most of the real engineers I work with play the lottery. Go figure. I tried to assure them that the likelihood of something like this happening in a school in America was very remote. I’m not sure it helped, they empathized enduringly (I’m proud but saddened how much they have learned, so young) and I know this left a mark.
Okay, now added to my wish to have a job that paid me to stay home and I’d like to include home schooling.
Fej.
This was distressingly obvious this weekend as she repeatedly asked me for update on the Russian school hostage situation. Once the siege had taken place and it was just counting bodies and injuries, she again asked for an update. More specifically she asked, “Is the thing in Russia over yet?”
I truthfully replied that it was over. I left out the part about how half of the dead were indeed children. She then of course asked how many children died. I lied and said I didn’t know.
Here is the kicker: My young ones picked up on the conversation at this point and asked what happened. My oldest then related everything the news, and I had told her. Then the barrage of questions began. How do you correctly reply to this: “Can this happen at my school?”
If you take into account all of the school shootings, fights, threats and otherwise (not even bringing up the Columbine incident) how do you relate the risk to your children? If they understood statistics, then this would be easy and they wouldn’t pester me to play the lottery either. Then again, most of the real engineers I work with play the lottery. Go figure. I tried to assure them that the likelihood of something like this happening in a school in America was very remote. I’m not sure it helped, they empathized enduringly (I’m proud but saddened how much they have learned, so young) and I know this left a mark.
Okay, now added to my wish to have a job that paid me to stay home and I’d like to include home schooling.
Fej.
posted by Fej at 11:08 PM
1 Comments:
The subjects like that are always tough to explain to kids to make them aware but you also don't want to scare them. I try to tell my 5 yr old when she asks me about similar situations that things like that are always possible. But not to be afraid to go to school, or wherever because anyone can get hurt anywhere. And just when I think she hasn't learned or wasn't listening, she surprises me. Kids are like that aren't they??
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