Good start, but then Officer Poynter jumps the rails: "But he and others who organized the program they are not teaching children how to use guns safely, but rather how not to use guns at all."
Well, "It's a First Step". We can always fine tune it later.
http://www.kypost.com/news/guns042600.html
In Bellevue, gun safety starts early
By Shelly Whitehead, Post staff reporter
They sat on little chairs and gazed up with big eyes as Bellevue Police Officer Jimmie Poynter held up a 12-gauge shotgun for them to see.
''It's real, it's cold, and it's heavy. And it's not a toy,'' Poynter instructed, then paused to accentuate his message.
''Never touch it.''
Powerful image. Powerful message.
The 50 kindergarten and first-grade students at Grandview Elementary School who were Poynter's audience on Tuesday were among the first to participate in a new gun safety program begun this week in two Bellevue schools.
It's premise is that early prevention education is key to reducing accidents involving children and firearms.
''I just think if there are guns in the home, it's better if children know what to do if they come across them,'' said Grandview teacher and safety program coordinator Patty Grever.
''The kids are certainly aware of guns because they see them on TV.''
The message that cartoons and other shows may not get across, Ms. Grever said, is that guns can injure and kill.
But the issue of teaching gun safety at schools is not without controversy. In New York City this week, the police commissioner declined to discipline a police officer who last month used a video produced by the National Rifle Association to teach children about gun safety. Gun control advocates and some parents had objected.
In Bellevue, Officer Poynter's half-hour presentation also has ties to the NRA. It's based on a comic book produced by the pro-gun group. But he and others who organized the program they are not teaching children how to use guns safely, but rather how not to use guns at all.
Poynter said the NRA program's main character, Eddie the Eagle, is familiar to children through other safety programs. The track-shoe shod hero relays the safety message through a story which Poynter reads aloud to the class: ''When you find a gun here's what you must do. . . . Stop. Don't touch it. . . . Leave the area. Tell an adult what you've found.''
Poynter said even parents who don't own guns must prepare their children for circumstances where there are firearms. And he said, those circumstances are on every street in just about every neighborhood in America. He recalls once finding a loaded assault rifle resting against a living room wall in a home full of youngsters.
Poynter said he received the free education materials through the Kentucky Crime Prevention Coalition and was not aware they were produced by the NRA. Coalition director Bob Douglas said the American Red Cross also has a similar program available to schools, ''Play It Safe.''
Today, first- through third-graders at Bellevue's Catholic elementary school, St. Michael's, were scheduled for the gun-safety program. Thursday, Bellevue police will return to Grandview Elementary to provide the training to two more classes of kindergarten and first-graders.
Douglas said he believes that these are the youngest students participating in the program in Northern Kentucky. However, he said gun-safety education is becoming more prevalent. In fact, two weeks ago the Kentucky Crime Prevention Coalition sent a newly released video to 520 Kentucky middle schools on the impact of gun violence.
Douglas said school administrators feel a greater need for this type of safety education. One parent at Tuesday's presentation at Grandview agreed.
''If they don't have this knowledge, they think it's a game, because they don't have knowledge of what guns can do to you,'' said Shannon Swope, a mother of two children under the age of 6.
''It's the same thing as sex. Schools teach sex education.''
The program urges children to share their desire for gun safety with their families. Sarah Maloney, 6, was planning to do just that, after learning realistic-looking toy guns can be dangerous, too.
''My little brother has a toy one and it looks real,'' said Sarah.
''I am going to go home and tell him about safety. I'll say, 'Don't point that at people.' ''
Copyright 1999 The Kentucky Post
[This message has been edited by Oatka (edited April 26, 2000).]
Well, "It's a First Step". We can always fine tune it later.
http://www.kypost.com/news/guns042600.html
In Bellevue, gun safety starts early
By Shelly Whitehead, Post staff reporter
They sat on little chairs and gazed up with big eyes as Bellevue Police Officer Jimmie Poynter held up a 12-gauge shotgun for them to see.
''It's real, it's cold, and it's heavy. And it's not a toy,'' Poynter instructed, then paused to accentuate his message.
''Never touch it.''
Powerful image. Powerful message.
The 50 kindergarten and first-grade students at Grandview Elementary School who were Poynter's audience on Tuesday were among the first to participate in a new gun safety program begun this week in two Bellevue schools.
It's premise is that early prevention education is key to reducing accidents involving children and firearms.
''I just think if there are guns in the home, it's better if children know what to do if they come across them,'' said Grandview teacher and safety program coordinator Patty Grever.
''The kids are certainly aware of guns because they see them on TV.''
The message that cartoons and other shows may not get across, Ms. Grever said, is that guns can injure and kill.
But the issue of teaching gun safety at schools is not without controversy. In New York City this week, the police commissioner declined to discipline a police officer who last month used a video produced by the National Rifle Association to teach children about gun safety. Gun control advocates and some parents had objected.
In Bellevue, Officer Poynter's half-hour presentation also has ties to the NRA. It's based on a comic book produced by the pro-gun group. But he and others who organized the program they are not teaching children how to use guns safely, but rather how not to use guns at all.
Poynter said the NRA program's main character, Eddie the Eagle, is familiar to children through other safety programs. The track-shoe shod hero relays the safety message through a story which Poynter reads aloud to the class: ''When you find a gun here's what you must do. . . . Stop. Don't touch it. . . . Leave the area. Tell an adult what you've found.''
Poynter said even parents who don't own guns must prepare their children for circumstances where there are firearms. And he said, those circumstances are on every street in just about every neighborhood in America. He recalls once finding a loaded assault rifle resting against a living room wall in a home full of youngsters.
Poynter said he received the free education materials through the Kentucky Crime Prevention Coalition and was not aware they were produced by the NRA. Coalition director Bob Douglas said the American Red Cross also has a similar program available to schools, ''Play It Safe.''
Today, first- through third-graders at Bellevue's Catholic elementary school, St. Michael's, were scheduled for the gun-safety program. Thursday, Bellevue police will return to Grandview Elementary to provide the training to two more classes of kindergarten and first-graders.
Douglas said he believes that these are the youngest students participating in the program in Northern Kentucky. However, he said gun-safety education is becoming more prevalent. In fact, two weeks ago the Kentucky Crime Prevention Coalition sent a newly released video to 520 Kentucky middle schools on the impact of gun violence.
Douglas said school administrators feel a greater need for this type of safety education. One parent at Tuesday's presentation at Grandview agreed.
''If they don't have this knowledge, they think it's a game, because they don't have knowledge of what guns can do to you,'' said Shannon Swope, a mother of two children under the age of 6.
''It's the same thing as sex. Schools teach sex education.''
The program urges children to share their desire for gun safety with their families. Sarah Maloney, 6, was planning to do just that, after learning realistic-looking toy guns can be dangerous, too.
''My little brother has a toy one and it looks real,'' said Sarah.
''I am going to go home and tell him about safety. I'll say, 'Don't point that at people.' ''
Copyright 1999 The Kentucky Post
[This message has been edited by Oatka (edited April 26, 2000).]