Question of the Week: Have You Talked to Your Kids About the School Shooting?

Did you tell your children? Do you have advice to share with other parents on how to approach this delicate conversation?

The morning of Dec. 14 came as a shock to all parents. We watched news of the mass shooting at an elementary school in Connecticut with tears in our eyes and a lump in our throats. While the rest of us went about our mornings on Friday, 26 innocent lives were lost at a suburban school much like the ones where we send our own children. Many questions were raised throughout that day and over the weekend, not the least of which was: "How do we explain this to our children?" Counselors, psychiatrists and others have offered ideas for talking to children about what happened at Sandy Hook Elementary. Social media has been abuzz with parents asking each other, "Will you? If so, how?" Some parents decided it was best to say nothing, while others …

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Moms Talk Q&A

Public Education or Endangerment?

Are our public schools providing our students with education or abuse and exploitation?

Two Cherokee County teachers have made headlines recently, and it was not for their excellence in education. On Feb. 21, Woodstock High School teacher Laurie Peavy pleaded guilty to false imprisonment. In 2008, Peavy and former paraprofessional Nancy Cheek were accused of duct-taping an autistic boy to a chair and confining a blind girl under a desk. They were both arrested in 2009 on counts of false imprisonment and first-degree cruelty to children. Last Friday, Mill Creek Middle School teacher Raymond Watts was arrested on child pornography charges after officials said he shared more than 1,000 explicit images of underage boys with an undercover agent. Watts came under investigation after law enforcement agents were made aware of his …

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Unsung Heroes

Super Mom

Knox Elementary parent Selena Smith doesn’t just volunteer in her son’s classroom. She’s “adopted” others, too.

Selena Smith is at Knox Elementary every weekday. She arrives before the school store opens at 7:15 a.m. Some days, she never leaves. Smith isn’t a teacher. She isn't even on the district’s payroll. But if you ask anyone around Knox, they'll tell you she probably should be. “There have been times," bookkeeper Teena Coogle said, "that I’ve called her and I’m like, ‘Could you come by this afternoon or tomorrow morning?’ And she’s like, ‘Well, I’m here now.’ She’s always here, just willing to do whatever she can." * * * Smith's son is a second grader at Knox. Ever since Chase was in kindergarten, Smith has been involved at the school.  The plan wasn't to spend entire school days there. Back then, she said she spent one day, two hours a week …

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