I Can Relate
Like many many people out there...I have those precious children, teachers, staff, and parents on my mind. The largest reason this tragedy hits home for so many of us is we're parents. That doesn't mean that you can't feel sad or a sense of loss from this if you aren't. But, honestly...there is a love you never knew you were capable of until your children entered your lives. Especially as a mom. I can't speak for dad's out there, but this child was my responsibility from day 1. 9 months, completely and solely my responsibility. There's a connection there that can't be explained and that no one else will ever have with your child. As my kids grow and change...I can see them at school, and it's not easy to send them off for time away from you. You are giving up a large part of what you were put in their lives to do. Take care of them. Raise them. Protect them. But, the moment your child enters that school, you are entrusting their well being to an entirely different, and at first, unknown group of people.
I hope that the parents who are suffering this terrible loss, and really, ANY parent out there knows that when you drop your child off at school that precious child is spending their day with someone who loves them deeply and truly. (And yes...there are even some wacko teachers out there, but they are few and far between and we will not focus on them today.) For 6 years I had the privilege of being that teacher. Many students passed through my classroom in those 6 years. Many smiling faces, so willing to please, learn, absorb...the giggles, the focus.... I LOVED those kids.
Every year I made a point to let my classes know that I loved them like my own children. That when they left those doors at the end of the year...they NEVER ceased to be my students. My kids. That's what I call them when they're not around...my kids. Most teachers do. Because they are. You can't spend that much time teaching, helping, and caring for a child without loving them.
I taught 1st grade for a portion of those 6 years. The kids that died on Friday were first graders. Every child I ever taught at that age flashed before my eyes. I can't imagine what that scene must have been like from the child's point of view. But, as a teacher, who practiced lock downs with her classes/school...I can honestly say that I would have protected them with everything I had in me. I would have given my life for any single one of theirs. It is not fair, it is not just, for a child to have their future stripped away from them. It is not fair to rob those parents of their future with that much loved child. The child they prayed would enter their lives.
Following a lock down practice, I always took time to talk with my kids about why we had that drill in place. It's not an easy thing to talk about, but they have to take it seriously. So, we always took time for questions. I remember, vividly, a first grader asking me what would I (the teacher) do if someone came in and tried to hurt them. I told them that if that ever happened, and odds were slim, but, if that ever happened, I would do everything I could do to keep them safe from harm. That I loved them like my own and just like their parents it was my job to protect them.
An intense conversation to have with first graders. And while I hope they don't remember the conversation in total, I do hope that they carry with them that I cherished them. Loved them.
I have had a student who brought a knife into my classroom. I stood up to the principal and told them that student was not welcome back in my class. That I had a duty to protect my students. Even if that was from another student.
I had a student who tried to hit me with a desk drawer and tried to stab me with scissors. But, I did my best to make sure that he NEVER harmed another student. I took a special training course to learn how to restrain this particular child so that he could stay safe, I could stay safe, and the other students could stay safe. It's a sad world we live in when a teacher has to learn how to restrain a student.
Both of these children were in desperate need of some mental healthcare. I don't know what happened to the first child the rest of his schooling. I do know that the second student, a first grader, made it all of the way to third grade before the mother acknowledged there was a problem, and he was sent to get some help in a special facility.
I think gun control laws are something that we desperately need to discuss, but maybe equally as urgent is the need to discuss how we deal with mental health in this country. In schools and in homes we pass the buck. We move these children along through life, not able to, or not willing to deal with the problem at hand. I know because I lived it as a teacher. Desperately wanting to get help for these children, but running into a brick wall at every turn.
And in the end, sadly, it may not only be that child we hurt by not getting them the help they need. What if my child had been in that school in Newtown? What if yours had been? What if you knew that young man had been in need of help for years, but nothing was, or could be done to help him, and YOUR child, your family suffered because of it.
So, on Monday, THANK your child's teacher from the bottom of your heart for their love, care and guidance that they give to your child day in and day out. And then...start a conversation about what needs to be done to help those with mental health issues. Talk to people about gun control. It's an uncomfortable conversation for sure, but maybe, the more we talk, the more we can come together to save our children whether they be perfectly healthy, or the ones who need some extra help in life.
Now I'm off to go get my kid's dressed for bed, sit on the couch with one in each arm, and thank God that I have the privilege of being their Mommy.
I hope that the parents who are suffering this terrible loss, and really, ANY parent out there knows that when you drop your child off at school that precious child is spending their day with someone who loves them deeply and truly. (And yes...there are even some wacko teachers out there, but they are few and far between and we will not focus on them today.) For 6 years I had the privilege of being that teacher. Many students passed through my classroom in those 6 years. Many smiling faces, so willing to please, learn, absorb...the giggles, the focus.... I LOVED those kids.
Every year I made a point to let my classes know that I loved them like my own children. That when they left those doors at the end of the year...they NEVER ceased to be my students. My kids. That's what I call them when they're not around...my kids. Most teachers do. Because they are. You can't spend that much time teaching, helping, and caring for a child without loving them.
I taught 1st grade for a portion of those 6 years. The kids that died on Friday were first graders. Every child I ever taught at that age flashed before my eyes. I can't imagine what that scene must have been like from the child's point of view. But, as a teacher, who practiced lock downs with her classes/school...I can honestly say that I would have protected them with everything I had in me. I would have given my life for any single one of theirs. It is not fair, it is not just, for a child to have their future stripped away from them. It is not fair to rob those parents of their future with that much loved child. The child they prayed would enter their lives.
Following a lock down practice, I always took time to talk with my kids about why we had that drill in place. It's not an easy thing to talk about, but they have to take it seriously. So, we always took time for questions. I remember, vividly, a first grader asking me what would I (the teacher) do if someone came in and tried to hurt them. I told them that if that ever happened, and odds were slim, but, if that ever happened, I would do everything I could do to keep them safe from harm. That I loved them like my own and just like their parents it was my job to protect them.
An intense conversation to have with first graders. And while I hope they don't remember the conversation in total, I do hope that they carry with them that I cherished them. Loved them.
I have had a student who brought a knife into my classroom. I stood up to the principal and told them that student was not welcome back in my class. That I had a duty to protect my students. Even if that was from another student.
I had a student who tried to hit me with a desk drawer and tried to stab me with scissors. But, I did my best to make sure that he NEVER harmed another student. I took a special training course to learn how to restrain this particular child so that he could stay safe, I could stay safe, and the other students could stay safe. It's a sad world we live in when a teacher has to learn how to restrain a student.
Both of these children were in desperate need of some mental healthcare. I don't know what happened to the first child the rest of his schooling. I do know that the second student, a first grader, made it all of the way to third grade before the mother acknowledged there was a problem, and he was sent to get some help in a special facility.
I think gun control laws are something that we desperately need to discuss, but maybe equally as urgent is the need to discuss how we deal with mental health in this country. In schools and in homes we pass the buck. We move these children along through life, not able to, or not willing to deal with the problem at hand. I know because I lived it as a teacher. Desperately wanting to get help for these children, but running into a brick wall at every turn.
And in the end, sadly, it may not only be that child we hurt by not getting them the help they need. What if my child had been in that school in Newtown? What if yours had been? What if you knew that young man had been in need of help for years, but nothing was, or could be done to help him, and YOUR child, your family suffered because of it.
So, on Monday, THANK your child's teacher from the bottom of your heart for their love, care and guidance that they give to your child day in and day out. And then...start a conversation about what needs to be done to help those with mental health issues. Talk to people about gun control. It's an uncomfortable conversation for sure, but maybe, the more we talk, the more we can come together to save our children whether they be perfectly healthy, or the ones who need some extra help in life.
Now I'm off to go get my kid's dressed for bed, sit on the couch with one in each arm, and thank God that I have the privilege of being their Mommy.