Whatever happened to the school gun safety program?
Posted: Fri, 18 Apr 2014 07:59:18
I remember when this came to be and the bizarre parody of the Eddie Eagle program that the VA Board of Education came up with.
See: Virginia school kids to learn about gun safety--opponents of gun safety object
OK, just after typing the above I Googled the VA BOE and then downloaded the .pdf of the Elementary School Gun Safety Guidelines and Curriculum
What a POS!!!!
I, at one time, was an instructor and after my first daughter was born studied the best way to teach youngsters. The Children's Television Workshop was just getting national attention at that time (Sesame Street) and their extensive research showed the fast, short lessons, short catch phrases, names that roll off the tongue, etc. work best.
The Eddie Eagle program and McGruff the Crime Dog have taken those lessons to heart.
Where the hell did the VA BOE find the idiots that designed their program???
Just as an aside before I go on with this rant.
When the Eddie Eagle program first came out I asked for and got a parent's package from the NRA because my second daughter was in the target population at that time. I noticed that NONE of the material had NRA printed on it AT ALL. I believe this was mentioned in the cover letter or somewhere else because the NRA didn't want to be accused of promoting itself to youngsters.
The materials now have NRA trademark and copyright statements on them in the smallest type that they can legally use.
I suspect that this happened when Brady Bunch came out with a children's gun safety program that unabashedly copied the basic text of Eddie Eagle word for word.
ie:
STOP!
DON'T TOUCH!
LEAVE THE AREA!
TELL AN ADULT!
Notice how these rules are short, easy to remember, and easy to say?
Here's the VA BOE version:
See a gun? (Nothing about stopping what they're doing.)
Leave it alone.
Leave the area. (Couldn't screw that up.)
Let an adult know! (That really rolls off the tongue, NOT!)
How about the character name "Eddie Eagle"? It's catchy, short, and easy to say.
VA BOE's equivalent: Finnigan Fox Can anybody how a childish mind could mangle this name with X-rated results?
So, has anybody here had any experience with this program?
If so, any comments?
Are any schools using it?
See: Virginia school kids to learn about gun safety--opponents of gun safety object
OK, just after typing the above I Googled the VA BOE and then downloaded the .pdf of the Elementary School Gun Safety Guidelines and Curriculum
What a POS!!!!
I, at one time, was an instructor and after my first daughter was born studied the best way to teach youngsters. The Children's Television Workshop was just getting national attention at that time (Sesame Street) and their extensive research showed the fast, short lessons, short catch phrases, names that roll off the tongue, etc. work best.
The Eddie Eagle program and McGruff the Crime Dog have taken those lessons to heart.
Where the hell did the VA BOE find the idiots that designed their program???
Just as an aside before I go on with this rant.
When the Eddie Eagle program first came out I asked for and got a parent's package from the NRA because my second daughter was in the target population at that time. I noticed that NONE of the material had NRA printed on it AT ALL. I believe this was mentioned in the cover letter or somewhere else because the NRA didn't want to be accused of promoting itself to youngsters.
The materials now have NRA trademark and copyright statements on them in the smallest type that they can legally use.
I suspect that this happened when Brady Bunch came out with a children's gun safety program that unabashedly copied the basic text of Eddie Eagle word for word.
ie:
STOP!
DON'T TOUCH!
LEAVE THE AREA!
TELL AN ADULT!
Notice how these rules are short, easy to remember, and easy to say?
Here's the VA BOE version:
See a gun? (Nothing about stopping what they're doing.)
Leave it alone.
Leave the area. (Couldn't screw that up.)
Let an adult know! (That really rolls off the tongue, NOT!)
How about the character name "Eddie Eagle"? It's catchy, short, and easy to say.
VA BOE's equivalent: Finnigan Fox Can anybody how a childish mind could mangle this name with X-rated results?
So, has anybody here had any experience with this program?
If so, any comments?
Are any schools using it?
