Gun safety starts at home; too many kids are dying
however, is that most children do not know how to properly respond when they come across a firearm.
As a member of the American Gun Association’s Onyx Gun Club, I have undergone the rigorous training required to properly handle a firearm and understand the complexities of identifying whether a gun is loaded and ready to fire. Even so, I am still hesitant to carry a gun, especially around my little one. That said, it is important to expose our kids to age-appropriate gun safety education so that they know what to do if they ever come across a weapon to prevent tragedies before they happen.
Earlier this month, my school — The Shepard School by Eagle Community Schools of Ohio — collaborated with the Onyx Gun Club and the Columbus Police Department to equip our scholars and parents with critical gun safety training and resources.
We handed out gun locks to parents and asked our students to sign a pledge in classrooms, with learning stations corresponding to each part of the 5-part oath. Columbus Division of Police officers also instructed our scholars on how best to communicate with 9-1-1 operators in the event of an accident to ensure mistakes do not turn fatal.
Instilling these potentially life-saving lessons in a secure location is critical to making progress on this issue, and we were proud to have received enough positive feedback from participants to plan on hosting the event again next year.
While making tangible progress on this national issue often seems overwhelming, it is critical that leaders in the classroom, out in the community, and within the halls of government take readily available, concrete steps to help us move forward.
Environments that emphasize safety, awareness, and caution regarding firearms, like the one my staff and I have worked tirelessly to foster on our campus, better prepare our children for the often-violent world in which we live.
Every victim of gun violence was somebody’s son or daughter, and it’s time that we each do our part in shaping a safer community for the next generation.
Amber Estis is the founding principal of The Shepard School by Eagle Community Schools of Ohio and has served as an educator for over 17 years. She earned a bachelor’s degree in human development and family science from The Ohio State University and a master’s degree in educational leadership from Concordia University.