Should a 6 year old be suspended from school for pretending a pencil was a gun?

1. 84

   Express10posted 10 years ago

   Should a 6 year old be suspended from school for pretending a pencil was a gun?
   
   Was the child just being a child and using his imagination, pretending to be a Marine like his father, or was this an overreaction by the school?

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   duffsmomposted 10 years ago

   I remember when we were kids back in the days of dinosaurs, we played with toy guns all the time.  If we didn't have a toy gun, we used or fingers.  We have become so over sensitive in our attempts at being "PC" it is just sad.
   
   In my mind unless the child had the intent to injure someone he was just being a child.  The school overreacted.

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      Express10posted 10 years agoin reply to this

      I agree they over reacted. No threats were made and no one was in danger. Common sense is not so common these days, eh?

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3. 60

   FadedLevelposted 10 years ago

   Think it was a bit of an overreaction on the schools part, but if your in the states I wouldn't doubt that they might take it too that extent. Especially considering all of the violence seen in the media. Probably a good idea to tell the kid, it's not the smartest move.

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      Express10posted 10 years agoin reply to this

      Yes, this happened in the US. The kid really appeared to just be doing what millions of kids his age (six) do. The overreaction is well beyond and without common sense.

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   lburmasterposted 10 years ago

   It seems like an overreaction by the school, but they all overreact. I use to pretend fight with swords (sticks), leaves (fireworks), etc. There is so much to do with imagination.

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   Jayfortposted 10 years ago

   It seems that most schools have adopted ZERO tolerance programs while exercising ZERO common sense.

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      Express10posted 10 years agoin reply to this

      Well said, even the Marine father mentioned that the school officials lacked common sense.

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      Jayfortposted 10 years agoin reply to this

      Thanks, Express! Much appreciated.

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6. 0

   Deb Welchposted 10 years ago

   I never heard of this incident in school.  A first grader acting out in the classroom with a pencil pretending it is a gun - years ago - would not have been given a second thought but today a child must know that guns kill and pretending is not a cute idea anymore when mass killings are happening too many times.  Suspension was too strict because the child probably is not aware of past killings in school.  The issue should have been addressed with parents & counselor.  A customer where I work took her hand out of her jacket and pointed her index finger at me like a gun - for a moment there - what was I supposed to think?  We are not children but adults.  The child's father didn't need to be a Marine, an Army soldier,a Police Officer or a Seasonal Hunter - what was true is that the child had a knowledge of weapons at 6.  Dangerous.

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      Express10posted 10 years agoin reply to this

      This incident recently happened in Suffolk, Virginia. By most accounts except for the school officials, the child was playing and his father is a Marine which is who the child said he imitated. I'd rather have that than likening himself to a thug.

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7. 71

   stanwshuraposted 10 years ago

   6 or 16, that is just plain ridiculous, wrong, stupid and counter-productive.   All it will do is confuse the 6 year old and give the 16 year old just cause not to trust or respect "authority". 
   
   It should incense anyone who cares about the welfare of children, and the way in which they are NOT being taught in any substantive way about violence, society, values, and forging their own paths to responsible, caring and proactive adulthood.

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   Kevin Peterposted 10 years ago

   No, such punishments should not be given at such a small age. The child should be stopped from doing so.

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      Express10posted 10 years agoin reply to this

      People from all over the country have been calling the school administrators to complain about the lack of common sense shown with regard to an imaginary gun.

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   Mazzy Boleroposted 10 years ago

   I think kids know the difference between playing and reality.  In ancient times, i.e. when I was a kid, we watched so many westerns on TV that much of our games were based on them.  We would gallop around slapping our thighs riding our imaginary horses and point our fingers at our schoolfriends saying "Kerpow!"  We had no wish to harm our schoolfriends and none of us grew up to be violent.
   
   It seems to me that it may be the things that are suppressed rather than acted out harmlessly that tend to cause problems in later life. I'm not sure that suppressing every sign of aggression in children, even pretend aggression, is ultimately helpful.
   
   They seem to be turning an innocent game into something sinister - making the child feel guilty and that they are bad and wrong.  I wonder if that could have a long-term effect on a child.

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10. 70

    ladydeonneposted 10 years ago

    It seems that every since Columbine, school systems have been going overboard with punishing kids when they believe that a behavior is indicative of a child's suppressed desire to commit acts of violence against their fellow students.  In all  probability, the child was acting out something he had seen on TV.   Educators need to use a common sense.approach in dealing with their students.  I'm wondering if the child acted in an overly aggressive manner and if his intent was to make his fellow student "think" that he really did have a gun.  I have heard and read of incidences whereby very young students have actually carried guns and knives to school.  It is my opinion that if the child was simply  playing or using his imagination that suspension was "over kill"  and unwarranted.  6 year olds should not be suspended from school for playing in a non aggressive manner.

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    Borsiaposted 10 years ago

    I would have been expelled from Kindergarten and every grade above a thousand times over.

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    DDEposted 10 years ago

    Six year olds have their own imagination about life and in such cases one just have to let it go, you can't punish a child at this age for something he doesn't look at like the way you do.

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       Express10posted 10 years agoin reply to this

       I agree, the child was playing with a friend using their imaginations. No one was being threatened, poked with the pencils, and no one was being harmed. The adults severely overreacted & have gotten numerous complaints from around the country.

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    CertifiedHandyposted 10 years ago

    Of course not. Kids aren't allowed to play cops and robbers any more. Expressing any interests in guns or bows and arrows is out of the question. I got first gun when I was 12., a 14 gauge shotgun. I learned responsibility and a respect for life. I was taught to only kill what could be eaten as  food. Even snakes were off limits. We simply walked around them unless we or our dogs were in danger which never happened really. You are right. We have left common sense far behind. We need to rediscover it...His In service

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    LoisRyan13903posted 10 years ago

    Ridulous I hope the father files a complaint against the school

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       Express10posted 10 years agoin reply to this

       Many people have been complaining from around the country and so have a number of parents in Suffolk, VA. The child is back at school now and his parents say that they will continue to allow him to use his imagination to play. Good for them.

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