What would you do if a school shooter entered your building and threatened your students? That's what Heidi has only a few seconds to decide when she hears the LOCKDOWN! announcement repeated three times and shots ringing out in the halls. Part 2...
A week later, students and teachers were back in the swing of things. Review day was the best! There were worksheets and discussions that skillfully connected one fact to another. There were online games and drills. And at the end of class...the Whiteboard Showdown! The room would be divided into three groups. One child from each group would approach the board which had lines drawn on it dividing the whiteboard into three sections. Questions were asked, answers were written as quickly as possible, and Heidi would declare which team was the winner for that round.
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Swiftly students would place the marker back on the board as the next student on their team grabbed it and prepared to answer. Grammar, vocabulary, literature, writing, anything language arts related was covered. Over and over they did this: student after student, question after question, until finally there was a winner. The accumulation of points under each team number meant that winning team got the most coveted prize of all...extra hall passes. Heidi's review games could turn even the most mild-mannered student into fierce competitors, and her test scores always reflected it.
On this day, team two had beaten out the other teams by seven points. Cheers rang out among the winners while nothing was said by the losing teams. She handed out the passes and told them to collect their materials and clean up.
As the students began to settle down, an announcement rang out from the front office. "Lockdown, lockdown, lockdown! This is not a drill!" Suddenly the students fell silent and looked at Heidi with concern.
She hesitated in shock, but only for a moment. With a calm voice she said, "You know what to do."
Immediately the children climbed under their desks as Heidi quickly locked the door and shut off lights. Within seconds the room was completely silent. A minute went by, then two. Heidi assumed it was probably just an angry parent who'd made an empty threat and that law enforcement would be there any minute to calm the person down and escort them out of the building.
They waited. Silence. They waited longer. Then, there was a pop, then another, and another. A boy and a girl gasped. She pointed at them and said, "Shhh!" They both covered their mouths.
Heidi's heart sank and her mind raced. Oh dear God! She thought. Don't let there be a gun!
Although she was panicking on the inside, she wouldn't let it show on the outside. She placed one finger over her mouth reminding them not to make a sound. They knew this meant to be still and calm. She sat on the floor and prayed it would all pass soon. Don't let them touch my door. Don't let them hurt the kids. Don't let them hurt the staff. She repeated in her mind.
By now she had her phone and dialed 911. As she whispered, the operator assured her that the police were on their way. The man asked if she'd locked the door, hidden the children, and many other questions. By the end of the conversation she knew there was nothing else to do but wait.
