Bullets at school!?

[VT mountaingirl]

My son came home from school today and said the teacher found some live bullets in the classroom. He is in first grade in our local public school. I am livid! We are in Vermont and a lot of children hunt with their parents, but I feel that there is a good chance that if your child has access to bullets without you knowing then there is a good chance a gun may be accessible as well. I just don't know what to do. I e-mailed the teacher and asked her what the school is going to do about this. I have not heard back yet. I have been considering homeschooling, but have allowed my DS to continue school because he enjoys it very much. It is just scary! Am I making too big a deal about this? What would you do?

[kmeyrick]

Originally Posted by VT mountaingirl

My son came home from school today and said the teacher found some live bullets in the classroom. He is in first grade in our local public school. I am livid! We are in Vermont and a lot of children hunt with their parents, but I feel that there is a good chance that if your child has access to bullets without you knowing then there is a good chance a gun may be accessible as well. I just don't know what to do. I e-mailed the teacher and asked her what the school is going to do about this. I have not heard back yet. I have been considering homeschooling, but have allowed my DS to continue school because he enjoys it very much. It is just scary! Am I making too big a deal about this? What would you do?

I suppose the child in question may have had a few in his/her pocket because he/she thought they were cool, and wanted to show them off. Or was just fiddling with them. My students bring in stuff all the time. One kid showed me her mom's wedding ring! I put it in an envelope and gave it to her at pick up. Mom had been frantic.

I think taking your son out of school if he loves it for this reason is not a good idea. They were likely hunting bullets. I wouldn't jump to conclusions about it. Getting to the bullets was probably easier than a locked up gun- those things can fall and roll somewhere, to be found later by a child. The teacher could send a notice home to all parents reminding them to be cautious about these things if you want.

Is there corroborating evidence that the school has gang violence or something like that? If not, I think the class/particular child needs a stern warning but I wouldn't lose my cool over this.

[Emmeline II]

Originally Posted by VT mountaingirl

I feel that there is a good chance that if your child has access to bullets without you knowing then there is a good chance a gun may be accessible as well.

...or he may have had the bullets in his pocket from a recent hunting trip, like that boy who was suspended awhile back.

[VT mountaingirl]

Thank you for your replies. I appreciate your thoughts. I thought I might just be taking it a little too seriously. I just tend to be the type that worries. Thanks again!

[Momily]

Or it might have been like the first graders who went home and told that we were using "real actual diamonds" as counters for math.

I would definitely check with the teacher, but I wouldn't assume that a first grader's story, especially about something he has no experience with, is accurate.

[VT mountaingirl]

I did check with the teacher and they were actual real bullets. She said there will be a notice sent home today about the incident.

[grniys]

I wouldn't panic too much. It's very possible they were bullets left over from hunting or something like a pp mentioned.

[leerypolyp]

Yeah, I wouldn't worry too much either. My dad had hunting rifles, and to this day I don't know where he kept them, but there were shells stashed all around the house!

[Momily]

OK, I guess it's the city girl in me, but I would panic. Here guns are something that people use to shoot people, and the thought of a little one having access really scares me. The fact that the school didn't take the incident seriously enough to notify parents that day (as a school administrator, I've had incidents where I've personally called every single parent in a class to talk from home that same night -- and those incidents were less serious than this).

I also know that if a child came to my school with bullets it would be an automatic CPS call -- I wouldn't hesitate.

I understand that cultures can be very different in different regions, but I'm suprised that anyone finds this anything other than alarming.

[CarrieMF]

How would bullets warrant a CPS call? I don't see any connection there. If it was the gun I still don't see a CPS call, but a call to the parents & depending on the age(not a 1st grader) the police.

DH has taken my girls gopher hunting, they're 6, 7 & 9. i've found the empty casings in my 6yos pants. She likes to collect small things. Dh is the one who is careeless with his bullets, I tend to find them in the dryer when I pull dry clothes out. There is no way the girls can get to the gun.

[lightheart]

I don't know what to say about what your comfort level should be...

but if it bothers you, it bothers you and you should check further into things. They say they are going to send out an incident report, well, that's fine, it is something that has happened in the past and really not much more can really be done by you... well maybe but what would it be and would it make the overall situation any better?.... You could raise a huge stink and possibly be able to change/do something, but maybe not and you might just get everyone on your bad side so that you can't really be effective about getting things done (does that make sense?)

You could use the incident as a jumping off point... a way to question what is being done, act as if so this has happened, X is what you are going to do about this particular instance... but use it as the "I've been thinking and wanting to know...."

Write the school, either at the school level- the principal or the district level- the superintendent (if you do super, send CC to the principal) requesting information IN WRITING what the policies are of ALL weapon and weapon paraphernalia. ask if they have a school safety committee, who is on it, is it open, when and where does it meet.

[Momily]

Originally Posted by CarrieMF

How would bullets warrant a CPS call? I don't see any connection there. If it was the gun I still don't see a CPS call, but a call to the parents & depending on the age(not a 1st grader) the police.

I'm a mandated reporter, required to call if I know of a child who is in a situation where they might be in danger. As the OP stated in this post, in this case I have no way of knowing whether the child has access to the gun itself or only the bullets. A first grader who has access to a gun is in an unsafe/neglectful situation. In this kind of situation CPS would likely either call or go to the house and find out what's going on -- if they find that the family has legal hunting weapons that are locked up in accordance with the law, and that it's only the bullets the child has access to then they won't follow up on the case.

Do you really think that if a 1st grader brought a gun to school that wouldn't be a situation where you'd have concerns about that child's safety? Or am I reading your post wrong. Why wouldn't you call someone if a 1st grader brought a gun to school?

[CarrieMF]

I'm a mandated reporter, required to call if I know of a child who is in a situation where they might be in danger. As the OP stated in this post, in this case I have no way of knowing whether the child has access to the gun itself or only the bullets. A first grader who has access to a gun is in an unsafe/neglectful situation. In this kind of situation CPS would likely either call or go to the house and find out what's going on -- if they find that the family has legal hunting weapons that are locked up in accordance with the law, and that it's only the bullets the child has access to then they won't follow up on the case.

Do you really think that if a 1st grader brought a gun to school that wouldn't be a situation where you'd have concerns about that child's safety? Or am I reading your post wrong. Why wouldn't you call someone if a 1st grader brought a gun to school?

I'd call the parents. No I wouldn't automatically assume that the child was in danger just because they brought bullets. I also live in a country where cps isn't called on for everything.

I meant more along the lines of a 1st grader bringing a gun vs a teenager bringing one, the intent behind it is different.

[Momily]

Originally Posted by CarrieMF

I'd call the parents. No I wouldn't automatically assume that the child was in danger just because they brought bullets. I also live in a country where cps isn't called on for everything.

I meant more along the lines of a 1st grader bringing a gun vs a teenager bringing one, the intent behind it is different.

I understood what you meant -- I understand that a teenager would have a different intent. But surely you think that a 6 year old who has access to a gun at home, and the lack of judgement to bring it to school, is in danger and needs some kind of intervention. Even if you believe that kids can be taught gun safety, surely the child in question either hasn't been taught or didn't retain what was presented.

[theretohere]

Ok, I'm a mandatory reporter as well. I wouldn't automatically call CPS over bullets, but I would call the parents. Many people lock up their guns, but not bullets. Bullets without guns can't be shot.

[VT mountaingirl]

Thank you very much for all of the great input. The notice that was sent home on Friday said that the bullets were found after the children had gone to buses on Wednesday. They were found near where the students coats and backpacks were kept and they are unsure of which student brought them. The teacher talked with the students and told them what serious business bullets and guns are and that you should never touch them and always tell an adult. I do hope that other parents are a little more careful about what their children are bringing to school. I think I reacted the way I did because we do not own guns, hunt or anything like that. Maybe it would not have been such a big deal to me if I had had some experience with guns and ammunition. For the time being my DS is continuing to go to school. We will see what the future brings. Thank you for all of your help and support!

[Momily]

Originally Posted by theretohere

Ok, I'm a mandatory reporter as well. I wouldn't automatically call CPS over bullets, but I would call the parents. Many people lock up their guns, but not bullets. Bullets without guns can't be shot.

That's why I said I realized this had to do with regional culture. Where I live hunting isn't an option (major metropolitan area) and laws are very specific about how guns and ammo need to be stored. I can totally understand that in another region it would be different.

I'm still scratching my head over why someone would think that an actual gun wouldn't warrant a CPS call. I'm guessing you'd call for that.

[theretohere]

Originally Posted by Momily

That's why I said I realized this had to do with regional culture. Where I live hunting isn't an option (major metropolitan area) and laws are very specific about how guns and ammo need to be stored. I can totally understand that in another region it would be different.

I'm still scratching my head over why someone would think that an actual gun wouldn't warrant a CPS call. I'm guessing you'd call for that.

I'd be on the phone in a heartbeat for an actual gun. I can see what you are saying about being in a metro area.
Would it matter for you if it was shotgun shells as opposed to handgun ammunition? Just wondering.

[Momily]

Originally Posted by theretohere

I'd be on the phone in a heartbeat for an actual gun. I can see what you are saying about being in a metro area.
Would it matter for you if it was shotgun shells as opposed to handgun ammunition? Just wondering.

I wouldn't be able to tell the difference, so no.

[Emmeline II]

Originally Posted by Momily

I wouldn't be able to tell the difference, so no.

Shotgun shells are about as large as your thumb and about as big around as a hotdog. Bullet for handguns are much smaller and slimmer. If a child has shotgun shells the gun would not fit in his backpack as a handgun would.