Texas School District Gives Elementary Children a Winnie the Pooh Book About How to Survive a School Shooting and Parents Have Feelings

As the mother of school-age children, I let out a huge sigh of relief last week on the last day of school. It wasn’t just because school is out and I’m looking forward to relaxing with my kids, though that is certainly a factor. It wasn’t just because I’m finally done signing “Friday folders” and monitoring online grade reports and waiting in the carpool line, though those are things I am glad to have a break from. If I am being honest, the primary reason for my end-of-school relief is that for a few months, I don’t have to worry about my kids being involved in a school shooting.

This is the reality of parenting a school-age child in America. And in Uvalde’s home state of Texas, where 19 children and 2 educators were massacred a year ago, one school district is employing a unique tool to help deal with this crisis: a Winnie-the-Pooh children’s book about how to survive a school shooting.

Yes, you read that right. No, I am not kidding.

The book, which features the beloved bear and friends, is called “Stay Safe” and was sent home in the backpacks of elementary children in the Dallas Independent School District last week. The book tells the kids how to “Hide, run, and fight” per the FBI’s recommendations of what to do in an active shooter situation.

I could NOT believe it when I read this story. Yes, this is something we need to talk to our kids about. It is a very tragic and unfortunate reality. But I feel like instead of scarring kids for life by having their favorite character drop some survival advice on them, Texas lawmakers could you know, pass some common sense gun laws that would make this kind of educational tool unnecessary. Like honestly? We’re just going to accept that school shootings are a fact of life and let Winnie the Pooh break it down for our kids instead of trying to actually protect them and stop school shootings??

It boggles the mind.