Gun safety to be taught in public schools!!!

[festus]

In addition to budget issues, Virginia lawmakers are looking at changes to various bills during Wednesday's one-day session, including a bill that brings gun safety programs to elementary schools.
Firearm Safety Program Coming to Virginia Elementary Schools
One of the bills calls for the Virginia Board of Education to "establish a standardized program of firearm safety education for students in the elementary school grades to promote the protection and safety of children."

Once the program is created and made available, it will be up to individual school divisions to determine if they want to incorporate it into their classrooms.

Some Valley parents have concerns about the idea.

"It's not the wisest thing because, for instance, [my daughter]. She doesn't know what a gun is. But, if she sees gun safety, then now she's curious about it," says Nery Washington, who lives in Harrisonburg.

Dennis Golden runs a gun store in the Friendly City called Ashby Arms.

Safety is something he says he's already stressing with his stepchildren. He supports taking the message of gun safety into schools.

"Even if they're not around them in their own home, they could come in contact with firearms in other people's homes," says Golden.

The legislature voted overwhelmingly in favor of this move.

According to the text of the bill, lawmakers require "that the program objectives incorporate, among other principles of firearm safety, accident prevention and the rules of the National Rifle Association's Eddie Eagle Gunsafe Program."

"Nothing about this program should make children curious about firearms, and we don't encourage children to own a gun. So, as to any of those kind of fears, I would say they're totally unwarranted," says Alexa Fritts, a spokeswoman for the NRA.

The NRA program teaches kids if they see a gun, not to touch it, leave the area and to tell an adult about it.

"For something that [my daughter] doesn't know, you're actually opening it out there for her to be curious about it. And so, now she is going to look for the gun," says Washington.

"Video games and television are going to have more of an effect on children and wanting to see and be around firearms than a safety class," says Golden.

A spokesperson for the Virginia Department of Education says employees haven't started putting the program together yet since lawmakers were still debating language of the bill Wednesday. The spokesperson says it's unlikely the board will have a program approved in time for next school year.

© Copyright 2010 WHSV / Gray Television Group, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

[HootmonSccy]

As much as I support gun education in schools (at least the availability of it), Teach our Kids to Read and do math 1st.. America's kids keep slipping in education (Not all the teachers fault! Parents and all the other distractions of life are BIG contributors)..

We started a Rifle club in our High School (AND it was in California!).. We had 16 members... Here is a funny side note.. Out of the 16 members, 9 of them were Mike's!!!
It's was an after school activity and gun safety is taught as well as shooting competition (competency).

Funny.. We went to another High School near by, and THEY had a rifle range building.. Who would have thought in California such a thing would exist??

[MONTANA]

I like the idea of the NRA teaching a school safety program. It can also be used to enhance reading skills if it is taught correctly, so it doesn't have to be something that is non-academic. While I agree with the NRA that the course might not generate curiousity about guns, in my humble opinion, kids just have a natural fascination with guns and don't need a course to create that interest. Being a conservative, I believe the way that you handle a child's interest in guns is to take them to the range as early as possible and under close supervision allow them to safely handle and use firearms. As far as the mother who states that her daughter "doesn't even know what a gun is"---------isn't that child endangerment in today's society?

[6shootercarry]

Reading should be first priority. All true and higher education begins with the ability to read.

I applaud the effort and agree it should be taught in schools. Sex education, drivers education, firearms education. Yup it works..

Peace..

[Midnight]

I'm 22 now, but I remember having a firearm/hunting/survival safety class in 7th grade, probably the best class I ever had in middle school.

I haven't read the details of the bill, but there should be an opt-out clause for sheeple who want their kids to remain ignorant of guns. We had to have permission slips to take our class, and the few kids who opted-out went somewhere else for study hall.

[Dr Dave]

This is sweet. Agreed, reading and writing are the first priority, but to really teach that, eliminate the academically inexcusable multiple choice quiz.

[6shootercarry]

This is sweet. Agreed, reading and writing are the first priority, but to really teach that, eliminate the academically inexcusable multiple choice quiz.

Amen...

#rm multiple choice.quiz

Peace...

[HK4U]

But if you teach them anything how will they ever accomplish their goals to dumb down the students?

[Onlinedad]

It would be great if they started this in all of the schools, and the younger the kids the better. That way when they drop out and start doing drive bys they might start to hit there targets and not the inocent bystanders

Seriously though... I think its a good idea... The one comment that stands out in my head is the mom whose daughter doesn't even know what a gun is... more like the mom is disconnected from what the daughter knows, with all the movies/tv/cartoons/video games/toys/etc that kids are exposed to, I'm sure they know more than we give them credit for

[6shootercarry]

It would be great if they started this in all of the schools, and the younger the kids the better. That way when they drop out and start doing drive bys they might start to hit there targets and not the inocent bystanders

Seriously though... I think its a good idea... The one comment that stands out in my head is the mom whose daughter doesn't even know what a gun is... more like the mom is disconnected from what the daughter knows, with all the movies/tv/cartoons/video games/toys/etc that kids are exposed to, I'm sure they know more than we give them credit for

I would think that there will be some kind of permission statement that will be sent home and require a signature before this activity can be undertaken by the student.

I would fall over if one ever came home with one of my kids. MA teaching gun safety?

Na, I would be dreaming...

Peace...