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Carlo Allegri / Reuters
People walk past a makeshift memorial in Sandy Hook after the Dec. 14, 2012 shooting tragedy , in Newtown, Connecticut, on Dec. 28, 2012.
Students from Sandy Hook Elementary School will go back to class Thursday in a borrowed building that one police official described as “the safest school in America.”
They will enter classrooms that have been furnished to look like the ones they left last month, as Adam Lanza carried out his massacre.
Desks and even abandoned backpacks and coats have been brought from Sandy Hook in Newtown, Conn., to the new school in Monroe, seven miles away.
Greeting the youngsters will be Donna Page, who was the principal of Sandy Hook until she retired in 2010. She agreed to come back after her successor, Dawn Hochsprung, was killed in the rampage.
Pupils and parents had a chance to tour the new building – an unused former middle school – on Wednesday after Connecticut Gov. Dannel Malloy met with teachers.
When they return at 9 a.m. Thursday, they will find counselors and extra police on hand.
“It feels extremely secure there,” Newtown School Superintendent Janet Robinson told reporters.
Police declined to say what security measures were in place, but Monroe Lt. Keith White said parents don’t have to worry.
“Right now, it has to be the safest school in America,” he said.
David Connors, 40, who has 8-year-old triplets, said he knows that sending his kids back to school will be difficult – but crucial.
“The past three weeks have been just crazy,” he told NBC Connecticut. “Getting back to that sense of figuring out what the new normal is going to look like, I think, is important. Everyone is waiting for that to happen.”
His children, he said, are ready for the transition.
“They want to see their teacher. They want to see their classes. They want to get back into a routine,” he said.
Students from Sandy Hook Elementary return to school in a new building, seven miles away from the scene of the shooting. NBC's Jay Gray reports.
The 500 students have not been in school since Lanza blasted his way into Sandy Hook on Dec. 14 and killed 20 children, six staffers and himself. He had earlier killed his mother.
Teachers from Newtown and Monroe spent their holiday break readying the new building for the children, and Robinson said it looks “cheerful and happy” and is decorated with paper snowflakes sent in from around the world.
She said the first day back will be as ordinary as possible, and the school will wait some time to honor teachers for their bravery during Lanza’s killing spree, which was largely confined to two first-grade classrooms.
Watch the most-viewed videos on NBCNews.com
"There's certainly going to be children that are scared,” Thalia Andernen, a counselor with The Center of Hope, a nonprofit family support center, told NBC New York.
“They're going to be frightened and feel very insecure about going back, but a lot of them are going to be resilient.”
With no decision on what will happen to the Newtown building, the former middle school in Monroe has been renamed Sandy Hook Elementary, and the sign has been removed from the old school.
After so many funerals, there are signs of Newtown’s slow recovery. The large memorials that overtook the town have vanished and the Fire Department’s flag is back at full mast, although the station roof still bears a reminder of the toll: 26 stars.
In Monroe, officers were stopping cars that tried to stop near the new school and asking them to move on. Down the road, someone from the town had hung a sign for the Sandy Hook kids who will be coming there for the foreseeable future: "We Are So Proud Of You.”
Brendan Smialowski / AFP - Getty Images
A nation mourns after the second deadliest school shooting in U.S. history left 20 children and six staff members dead at Sandy Hook Elementary.
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Leave a Comment:
Children are so much more resilient than adults... They simply don't exactly get it yet so I hope the healing process go well for them.
Being an adult myself, I realize it's something you have to "live" with and never get over it.
Good luck to all the students and staff. You have a long road ahead of you guys....
CD, true for adults as you said, but especially for the parents who lost children. It usually takes many, many years for bereaved parents to accept it; and few parents, if any, ever get over it.
I agree inMYday (love your nic!) I've spent time trying to put myself in the shoes of both sides, I'm 100% certain I wouldn't survive the death of my child, whether it was because she was one of the 20, or because she was the shooter, the guilt would be overwhelming either way. I pray for this town, like CD said good luck.
I totally agree with everyone on CD's thread. I have thought of the families in Newtown so much over Christmas. My heart cries for all the families. I pray for this community, its wonderful people and innocent lives resting. My best wishes to you all.
Well said CD, hopefully getting back to routine while hurting when not seeing some of their friends any longer, will aid in the moving forward.
CD I agree... the parents will have a very hard time indeed.
I hope that these kids get help at the time when they need it, both now and in the future. What they witnessed was horrific, and the mental ramifications may not be felt for some time. That said, kids will likely move on quicker than the adults. But they will always be reminded of what happened to them, and around them.
Since this happened, we've all clung a little tighter to our children and grandchildren. Wishing you all the best of luck in your new school.
There are prayers around the world for these families, hoping that the events are the impetus for the changes that need to be made in the USA. Together we are strong, and LOVE does prevail.
Give the kids the whole year off.
What good would that do?
Cody,
I have to respectfully disagree with you on this, a year off could actually do more harm than good psychologically. It is best that they get back to their routine according to a great number of studies dealing with kids and traumatic situations.
Goes to show that old colloquialisms like "get right back on the horse that threw ya" were actually right on occasions.
Oh, and I take it you're both certified Psychologists with degrees? I think it would be good for the children to get away from it for a while as they have obviously associated school with the situation now. People need time to heal. Would you go running if you just sprained your ankle? Your logic is lacking...
Cody,
No, I am not. I did a lot a research on this matter after a bus from the school my youngest children attended crashed, killing 4, one of which was a friend of my son's. While there is no end all, be all answer, the experts do agree for the most part that parents should get them back in the saddle again. Amongst other things, you can only truly evaluate where someone is at by observing the kids when they are functioning. I don't disagree at all with anyone who says they should be watched closely, that will be key to ensure that those that need some additional help to get back to a comfort level get it. Unfortunately, these kids will never, ever feel the same level of safety and security again. Innocence is lost.
You analogy is completely off, the sprained ankle is a trauma to the head, it is an injury to the body. There is absolutely no comparison between the two
see http://fortsmithpsychology.com/news/2011/03/post-traumatic-growth-better-than-ever/
or http://www.cdc.gov/masstrauma/factsheets/public/coping.pdf
Sorry to bust your bubble on this, I can post many more links if you like.
Cody, as someone who works in the mental health field, I have to agree with Tracy and Kjosee. Children need to stay active and build a routine. For many children, familiarity is calming. It brings them a sense of security and it does build resistance. If the children were out of school, they are at risk of learning negative coping skills. They would think that with any crisis, the answer is to hide away from the world or do nothing. Second of all, this would also bring an added stress to the parents who need to accomodate their children at home while they try to get back to their own routines and earning an income to continue paying bills.
Paragraph two of my post #5.4should read
Your analogy is completely off, the sprained ankle is a physical injury and often requires rest to heal, while the the trauma to the head (mental not physical) needs to be exercised to heal. There is absolutely no comparison between the two.
I posted before reviewing, sorry.
Thanks for the backup Liccy
The longer the kids are out of school,the harder it will be for them to go back.
Cody King, #5- I don't know about a whole year, but I do think there is absolute legitimacy in your questioning interjection. TRAUMA IS NOT a "Collective" thing, it's "Individual". Chances are more than good that the Ones who survived in those 2 classrooms are going to have a different kind of (((((TRAUMA))))) than the Others. The very WORST thing you can do to a TRAUMA-Person, no matter the age, is make them "get back on the horse", if they're really not ready to. Apparently, there is one little Girl that is TRAUMATIZED from what went on over the loudspeakers, just as an example.
I saw a video of 2 Psychiatrists yesterday talking about what preparations were in place and was very unhappy with the "perspective", AND OF COURSE, the hand-off to "Clinicians" as the Save-alls and today's article refers to "Counselors", only, without any specifics about "credentials". Last I knew, a "Clinician" was specifically a "Social Worker". That interview with those two, AGAIN, talked its own conceptually and incohesively collective "magical" thinking; and "Social Workers", per se, have done more DAMAGE to the Mental Health Field than any other with just this kind of detrimentally across-the-board MISUNDERSTANDING AND MISINTERPRETATION of "Exposure Therapy".....a.k.a...."Their" Behavior Modification. (tactical techniques)
I know for sure that, if it were my Kid, I would not let them go back to School until and unless they were evaluated,(with Myself as part of that process) by a Child Psychologist and "signed off on" as being okay to return to School. And if they weren't, then They wouldn't be and some kind of arrangements would have to be made for that; including obviously the need to keep them somehow home from School, AND suing the State for insufficient and inadequate mitigation of the circumstances, if my Kid was forced to "get back on the horse" when not ready, because everyone else is and has to, etc...... I've seen the other article, too. Asking "permission" to sue the State is BOGUS, at best; right along with claiming some kind of "preclusionary" Government Immunity. BOGUS!
CD as usual well said my friend, I do question setting the school up exactly the way it was though. Will it help or hinder?
G-Afternoon Mrs. Fitz...
I really am not sure however, I think setting it up the same way would help make the children more comfortable and not feeling like they're in a place that they don't belong if it were unfamiliar after going through what they did.
I would think that after going through such a tragedy, they would feel better off in a familiarized area as in, if something crazy ever happened again, that they would know where they are, what they've been through and how to get out. Just me though...
Have a nice day ;-)
I wondered that myself, but feel that sense of normalcy and continuity will be more of a help than hindrance as most, if not all children, prefer the same routine, setting etc. day after day. I suppose the flip side though is the identical layout could cause more harm than good.
I think for children the school should appear the way it was before the shootings.
For adults it would probably be better if things were to appear very different, including the location of the school.
Obviously that is a dilemma, but the needs of the children supercede the needs of the teachers, parents, staff and other adults.
I wondered the same thing, but I have to guess that they must have consulted trauma experts about this. Myself, I think I'd want things to be completely different--no memories. But maybe with kids it's different.
My heart goes out to all these kids and families. I think the kids in different classrooms may bounce back surprisingly quickly (kids tend to), but I can't imagine what it's got to be like for the kids in new combined first-grade classrooms with so many of their little peers missing. Horrible. And for the siblings who lost family members and now have to go back to school. I wish them all the best, whatever that may be under the circumstances.
I understand their rationale for setting the school the exact same way. But it can actually be kinda freaky. I know I would be sitting there like this is where i was when it started and stuff like that. I particularly wouldn't set it up exactly the same... its a way to relive that moment in time for the rest of the school year... =\
I think we should all step back and respect the Sandy Hook families and teachers decisions on the set up of the new school. It is not our place to criticize or second guess them.
We're not disrespecting, criticizing or even second guessing them.
It's just "our" opinion of how "we" feel if we were in their shoes. That's all. No biggie...
Pretty much what CD said, I wasn't trying to criticize anyone, I've had a personal tragedy (nothing of this magnitude of course) and when I had to go back I completely redid everything and the place looked nothing like it originally did. That's how I personally coped, but then again I'm not a 6 year old child either.
Good luck Newtown citizens. Parents, stay close to each other and your kids, work togeather. The whole nation is behind you and we support you.
Good luck and take care of each other.
These children are surrounded by loving relatives and an extremely loving community. They'll be just fine. A lesson for all of us.
Best wishes for a strong recovery and happy lives. :-)
This is not the typical first day back.. My heart is pounding just thinking about those who lost half their class and the one girl who was the only surviver in her class. She obviously will be placed into an entirely new class. Oh my heart goes out to them all. Such brave little souls.. May God wrap his arms around them and comfort them today and the days ahead.
"Extra security"? Are they as leery of the NRA recommendation as the President?
Extra security would be needed to keep back quote-sucking reporters and in-your-face photographers and emotional vampires (the people who have to go to every disaster and sob) and rubberneckers. Some people have to show up at every news event, like storm watchers chasing tornadoes.
Extra security is to keep away those people that do not have a heart and may call in or act on a threat, just as they did during some of the services. At least that is what first came to mind.
My thoughts and prayers to all of those affected by this tragedy. I hope and pray for a smooth first day for all the staff, teachers, parents and of course the students of Sandy Hook. My continued prayer is for God to provide comfort for the days, months, and possibly the years ahead for all involved, may he wrap his arms around each one and hold them close.
Tragedies like this will be repeated until we stop declaring our schools 'gun free zones' where no one but homicidal nut cases will carry guns. How many times does this have to happen before we learn? If there is no risk of anyone shooting back at a crazed gunman, where the F**K do you think they will strike first? And for all you bleeding heart religious types....if there really WAS a god do you think it would allow this to happen? If god really cared for human beings perhaps he would have had the shooter get hit by a bus or have a heart attack on the way to the school. Don't use your stupid pagan religion for comfort after the fact when it didn't do you any good beforehand.
Invoking God's blessing is more than using a "stupid pagan religion for comfort." You might be angry the whole thing happened to begin with, and it is obvious you don't believe in God--but you don't need to criticize others for believing, and asking their God to watch over these people, to protect and heal them.
My heart goes out to the families of the victims, and the many who have suffered emotional and psychological trauma from this event. Best wishes on this step forward from tragedy. I hope that healing and joy come swiftly.
Geez they're not back yet? Well I hope they have to stay an extra 3 weeks into the summer then.
They probably only missed an extra week. Two weeks would have been for the winter/holiday break anyway, at least that's how it is in our school district.. The timing made for a long break, though.
I was wondering the same thing, as our schools here don't go back until the 7th, I know there's laws on how many days the kids are supposed to be in school but I would think this tragedy would be an exception.
My heart goes out to them all, what a tragedy. I cannot say what is better but what ever it takes to help healing process I am all for it. I also don't have an answer to the evil of this world or how to prevent it, but I do believe evey little bit from the ideas will help protect us just a little bit better from these tragedys. My love and prayers go out to them all. Just love and hug your loved ones as much as you can everyday! God Bless us all and may we have better New Year!
You mean like god blessed all the victims? With that kind of blessing, no thanks.
Our family continues to pray every day for these families- the survivors and the ones who lost loved ones. I think if they don't get back to school now then it makes it harder for them to go back at all next year. In light of a terrible tragedy they are learning an early life lesson they should have never had to learn this young- that life throws unexpected challenges at you and the resiliency of human beings is tested during these times to see how they can rise above those challenges to presevere. God bless you all.
Bless them and keep them safe!
Exactly! The next school shooting should be somewhere else.
The Asterino Sisters put together a very nice tribute for these families. Thank you. :)
Please look at the Asterino Sisters You Tube page for a very nice tribute song that was made famous by Very Lynn during World War II.
return to school-rooms designed to be like the ones they were attacked in?.... there really must be a bunch of imbeciles running the show.... are you serious?.... is it that hard to understand that they NEED A CHANGE from anything that brings them to dwell on this tragedy... for at least a little while, NOT anything that would remind them of where they were, what they were doing when the attack happened...i train animals for a living and associations with things they fear works but it is still stressful... and in this case it is terrifying and above any semblance of normal... im just saying, there is no need to promote ptsd any more than needed in these kids...
ease them around for a year or 2
if a soldier has ptsd and hears things that remind him of combat, you dont put him in the same environment that caused the ptsd....you change things up to fill their minds with other things until they can handle the bad stuff....
i cant put the entire idea into words in a way that is understandable... it is an empathetic thing
I feel the same way jay, but we're also looking at it with "adult" minds, maybe it's better for children to be somewhere "familiar"? It's obvioulsy not exactly the same considering it's not the same building or anything so maybe it's a good combination? I've forgotten what it's like to be a six year old, so i can only guess.
Informed - you are an ass hat.
Every child is different. Some children can go through extreme trauma at a young age and want an ice cream cone the next day and never give it a second thought. Some children will develop some sort of anxiety and possibly carry it with them for the rest of their lives. Some children will never figure out how to cope. I am not sure what makes the difference, but I think that getting the school back together is a smart move, especially for those who are ready. I am hoping that the parents of these returning children (as well as themselves) have considered at the very least talking with a counselor a couple of times if they have concerns. Not saying they have to get into full on therapy, unless behavior warrants it, but just a quick overview of everything. Schools are relatively safe places to be. Yes, there are "nut-jobs" and "mentally ill" out there, thankfully.. it doesn't happen very often.
I wish these kids the best.
These schools aren't safe as long as nuts have incredibly easy access to weapons that can murder multiple children in a matter of seconds. Notice this story is getting less and less attention as time goes by. Pretty soon it will be ancient history, with absolutely nothing done as usual. Back to stories about Snookie and piano-playing cats, things people really care about. Sad.
And when the assault weapon ban was in place, they were never used in a mass shooting right? Oh yeah, Columbine.
Yes that will stop the law abidding people from shooting students, of of course they don't shoot students anyway, so no change. Of course the criminals will obea the laws not to buy assult weapons or large clips. Keep trying to ban them, it only fuels the fire for them. background checks for December were up 2.8 million people looking to get guns, because they are afraid Obama will try to ban them.
Hugs to Sandy Hook kids and parents as you start back to school! The Best of Best Wishes!
I still cried when reading this.
my parents buried 2 daughters....& I know they will NEVER get over it......You just have to live your life the best you can.