Filed under: Family
My family moved to Illinois in the mid 70s. Illinois is tornado country, as is much of the Midwest. I remember practicing tornado drills in my elementary school. The intercom would buzz, we’d hear the announcement from the principal, and class would be suspended for a few minutes. We’d file out in single lines, follow the teachers to an inner corridor without windows, face our lockers, and drop to the floor. We were instructed to “curl up like turtles,” crouch on the floor with our heads touching our knees, hands protecting our heads from imaginary flying debris. We’d stay in this position for 10 or so minutes, occasionally stealing glances upward at our teachers, who solemnly paced the hallways and reminded us to stay silent.
We did have a few severe storms that I can remember, but they always were predicted days in advance and never seemed as bad as the dire forecasts. (But boy, once you see the “pea soup” sky, you never forget it!) In any case, I think my grade-school friends and I felt pretty confident that as long as we were indoors, in a basement, and away from windows when a bad storm hit, we’d be OK. Maybe the roof would be ripped up or something, but we’d be fine, our families would be fine.
The new reality is that children these days practice lockdowns. Last year, a West Coast mommyblogger that I follow talked about her 6-year-old’s drill, during which the teacher turned off lights and locked the door, covered the door window with black paper, and had the children hide silently by their cubbies while the principal walked through the hallways, rattling the doorknobs. I was naively shocked to read about it – and sorry as hell that as a society, we have stooped to the point where these drills must be practiced.
What kind of life are we living, that young children nationwide routinely are being prepared to face a surprise attack by a lunatic with an assault rifle and hundreds of bullets? Is teaching my children how to play dead going to be part of my Mommy-skillz arsenal? And how am I supposed to tell them that there may be no warning for these attacks and no reassurance that if you do what you practiced during the drill, you’ll be OK?
I’ve cried with the news. I’ve hugged my children. I’ve written to my local government representatives (you can, too). I don’t know what else to do in the meantime, so it’s just back to working, making dinner, doing laundry, wiping runny noses. And being sadly grateful for the mundaneness of it all.
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I’d say that drill is overkill, and maybe would cause some emotional damage in some kids, even slightly? But theN I remember being 12 (1980) and I was CONVINCED that I would die before age 18 because we’d end up in thermonuclear war with the Soviets any day now. So I think most kids will be able to put and keep it in perspective. I hope.
JO replies: I know, I grew up under the nuclear war ghost, too. But that seemed… more remote, somehow? I mean, I didn’t know of other towns or schools that got bombed, so to speak, whereas kids today *have* seen explicit media coverage of kids who were killed.
Comment by Angela 12.18.12 @ 4:16 pmWell, as a (sometimes) teacher, I have to say that it’s a necessary drill. Say there’s a fire – you want students to know what they’re supposed to do, where they’re supposed to go, and to stand still and quiet in the designated spot so that their teacher can count them and know whether they’ve got everyone. Think about how many lives they could save, in the event of a fire. Not that I’ve ever heard of a major school fire. Or a tornado drill – if there’s a tornado, do you want 500+ students running around screaming and scared? No, you want them in the safest possible spot, accounted for, being bored because, well, not another tornado drill again. You knew to go to the basement because of those drills, right, and you felt pretty confident and safe?
Schools have been doing lockdown drills for at least twelve years – that’s the first one I participated in. There are usually two versions – one, a stay-put drill, where doors are locked and kids just stay in the classroom with shades drawn, and the other a get-out-of-sight one. Teachers really don’t play it up; the stay-put drills usually happen without even mentioning it to the kids. The second kind we treat like a fire drill, just a vague “if there’s someone who shouldn’t be in the building” or some such. And I have no doubt but that lives were saved last week, by teachers and students knowing, without having to think it out on the fly, of where is out of sight and which doors lock. It’s a shame that we have to, yes, just like it’s a shame that we have to have fire drills and tornado drills. But they’re all three just building automatic responses to potential – if blessedly rare – scenarios.
The events of last week were completely shattering. I cried a lot. But it makes me -slightly- more comfortable to know that schools are thinking things through ahead of time, as best as they can.
JO replies: I do see the value of the drills and don’t question that it is important to be prepared for a dangerous event. In a similar vein, Mayo routinely does drills for mass casualty events and goes through a simulated staff mobilization (including intercom announcements broadcast throughout the patient care areas) as if we are expecting to receive dozens of critically injured patients. But when the alarm sounds, I tend to think we’re preparing for a big “car accident” or “train accident” – not “school shooting.” Innocence lost.
Comment by Laura 12.18.12 @ 10:02 pmI’m a teacher and the ‘lockdown’ drill is one of several we do. It is sad that it is necessary. I did not sign on as a teacher years ago with this responsibility in mind, but it now comes with the territory. How ever the guy from Texas that says the teachers should be armed?!? Is he kidding! I would put myself between an armed man and my students but I cannot imagine myself or my colleagues in the ‘vigilante’ style shooting anyone. Fewer guns…honestly…
JO replies: I don’t see more guns as a viable answer, either.
Comment by Helen 12.19.12 @ 5:32 amYou’ve articulated what I am feeling as well. My 8 year old (2nd grade) is having a lockdown drill today, and he showed me the drawing he made of a “burglar” getting into the school, the kids hiding in their safe places, and an invention he created as a “burglar killer” to get the burglar from the outside. I’m proud of his cleverness, he is unfazed, but I just am filled with rage, grief, and disbelief that he has to imagine what a lockdown drill is for.
Comment by Jen 12.19.12 @ 11:35 amsometimes going on with our lives is the best (and only) thing we can do in the midst of a tragedy like this…hang in there, and give the girls some extra hugs (for your sake)
Comment by terri 12.19.12 @ 5:16 pm