High School Threat

Even though it sounds like a prank and most likely isn't true... I would keep the kids home just to be safe

It sounds like a prank.
No attack has ever been preceded by such a blatant warning.
If it were in the spring I might call it a rather inappropriate senior prank.
It amounts to a bomb threat.
The authorities can take it seriously and have a presence at school but students should go.
You can't live in fear.
It gives creeps too much power over you.

I agree with Oneanddone, just take a day off to enjoy with your child! As for the excuse note for the next day, I would be completely honest about the reason you choose not to send your child to school on Oct 2.

I wouldn't. (Sniff, cough)
No chance for a do over if this is true.

My first thought is that I would keep my kids home...and my 7th grader has only missed TWO days since kindergarten. However, if its "real" and the kid was going to bring a gun and shoot kids, he would likely just do it on a different day, if that is his true intent. So in that case, I don't know that I would keep them home as my head tells me that nothing likely will happen, especially if there is hightened security. However, my heart would probably win and I would keep them home. =)

I would leave it up to my children. They are going to know what rumors are going around and from who a lot better than the school's administration is going to. If THEY feel it is a real threat, and THEY are truly scared that some harm may come to them, then let them stay home. If THEY think that its just stupid rumors and there is more than enough security to control any situation that might happen, let them go.

9 times out of 10, situations like these are blown way out of proportion to what was actually said or done. And I personally believe that your children are going to be a better judge of the safety level in their school than just about anybody else. Trust their judgement, and put yourself at ease by doing some further research.

My kids would be going, it's in reference to 12-21-2012. The end of the Mayan calendar. I guarantee you some kid thought it was funny without thinking through the repercussions of what he wrote. No kid who is going to go into a school and start shooting is going to post it for all of the school to see, they loose the element of surprise.

With all of the extra security...you're child is safer then any other day of the year.

My older kids school went through something like that twice, and each time I sent them.

Sorry, but even if there were no one to stay home with the kids, they'd be staying home tomorrow. That's pretty freaking scary.

If I had a school 'alerting' me in this manner, I would think that this is damage control in the most politic form. Sort of 'we don't want to give this perhaps idle threat credence, but we are informing you just in case'. If they truly didn't take it seriously, they wouldn't be taking the time to send something home.

And frankly, if this is going around school, do you think any kid in the know would be able to concentrate? I'm not sure my kid would feel I had his best interest at heart if I blew off something like this.

Nowadays with all it's madness, whether its a prank or not, you do not know for sure..............I'd keep my kids home.

I would feel fine. The "according to the Mayans" bit pretty much says that it wasn't an actual threat, but the fact that the email was sent and that police presence is being amped up would make me feel like it's safe. They will probably have a hard time concentrating at times but I like that the powers that be are taking it seriously and being transparent about it.

As a parent, I would send my child to school--its the days where no threat is given that we need to worry about.

my kids would be staying home, maybe for the rest of the week!!

Sounds like a prank.

Did you check the address to make sure it's from the school?
Did you call the school to find out what they are saying about it?
Did you check your school's web page to see if there is any credibility to this?

I know there have been times when I have received e-mails that LOOKED like they were from Paypal or ebay.....but looking VERY closely at the address or the link - it was wrong and a scam.

While it's too late to call the school, check the school website and call the school in the morning.

I would NOT keep my child home over this.

Sounds like a complete prank.. They did not even get the date right..

If it was in the newspaper, I am sure the police know.

My child would go on to school and I would also be there to volunteer.
Probably in the office or library..

There is no way to predict the intention of this.
BUT... the school, SHOULD have reported it to the Police.
Because, it is a "threat."
However, some schools try to handle it themselves, without professional Police input, and therefore, they are basically fuddling around the issue.
And meanwhile, they do not even know how, to professionally conduct an "investigation" into matters like this.
So they should contact the local Police.

At least you have, contact the Police.
The school did not say they did so.

Again, there is no way to predict things like this.
Nor the date of it that the threat projects.
No one can predict the "author" of this message.
And even if it is a prank, the message writer needs to be, punished.
And the school needs to FOLLOW THROUGH, even after October 2nd. To still investigate it. Or if after Oct.2nd, are they just going to scrub the message off the wall and forget about it?

At my kids' school, they send home to ALL the families, the laws about "threats"/bullying etc. and how it pertains to the school. For example. AND the kids, are given workshops on it and the kids are all explained to, about the laws and school rules, about it.

THEN the other thing is, how do you know it was sent from the School Administration... and it is not a fraudulent e-mail???
Did anyone CALL THE school Principal, to verify it all???
And if it is a fraudulent e-mail.... then the other problem is.. that their computer system security was compromised and hacked into... in order for that person to get all the "parents" e-mail addresses and e-mail them. Or, some school employee, may have done it. Therefore, the PRIVACY of the parents, were compromised. Not everyone in a school, has access to the parent's private information, for example.

"Scrolled a message on a lavatory stall". Does the principal mean "scrawled a message"? If I'm understanding what I'm reading here, somebody wrote on the bathroom wall.

Someone should do a search and see if indeed the Mayan calendar shows that the world is supposed to end on Oct 2nd. If it is, then I would consider this to be a historical reference that extrapolates "on/in school". The kid who wrote it obviously has some problems, or he wouldn't have added the "implied threat" of "on/in school" to the message. However, I doubt that he is so troubled as to shoot up the school.

Although I think this is a harmless "stupid remark" some kid wrote, I wouldn't blame you if you kept your child home on Oct 2nd, but I do think that there is nothing to worry about. I will just bet, though, that every single locker will be checked between today and tomorrow.

Dawn

We went through this with our kids school. They do take it seriously. They had someone call in a bomb threat. The pulled all the kids out and did a seach of the school with bomb sniffing dogs. Nothing! It was a prank. This has happened several times. Unfortunately.

I think I kept the kids out once. Most of the time, the kids knew who had sent the message because someone was trying to get out of taking a test or something equally stupid. Police are ALWAYS involved. Our school system has their own police department.

My brain would say it was probably a prank and to send my kids to school, but my heart would say "what if," and I'd end up keeping my kids home (and possibly homeschooling for the duration of the year).

I would keep my daughter home. Better safe than sorry.