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Discussion Topic: Gun Safety In Gym Class?
From Florida’s Local 6 news:
Sixth-graders could be required to take dance and gymnastics and high school students may have the option of enrolling in a gun safety class or going water skiing to fulfill a physical education requirement.
Those are some of the proposed changes to Florida's physical education standards that the public is being asked to comment on.
Of course, the idea of teaching gun safety in PE classes is bound to draw fire, but honestly, as a parent, what sounds more potentially dangerous to you: gun safety or water skiing?
I think gun safety is a great idea to teach in school. That's just plain brilliant! Although, I'm not sure how many people it would benefit if they had to take it against their will - so there is some tweaking that needs to be done, here, but the general idea is a good one.
Posted by: Tom Sorenson | July 09, 2008 at 12:32 PM
I support firearm saftey education in elementary school. Antis would hate it though, because if the number of accidental shootings by minors were to decline, they'd lose their sympathy talking points.
Posted by: Mike Diehl | July 09, 2008 at 12:38 PM
I think this is a great idea, I took my hunter safety course in 9th grade gym class, but we weren't allowed to touch any firearms. This would've been a great addition to that.
Posted by: steven j | July 09, 2008 at 02:09 PM
Shooting is a very, very safe sport. FL sportsmen need to pull up the statistics and show that it is 100 times safer than golf. Don't quite remember the rest of the contact sports, like football, baseball, soccer, hockey but it has to be 1,000 times safer. Plus, shooting is a sport for either gender and one you can do for your lifetime. I'm all for more people shooting skeet, trap, sporting clays, competitive rifle, archery, and of course hunting.
Posted by: gary Tompkins | July 09, 2008 at 03:16 PM
I wish they could have started this a couple of years ago. I graduate from high school next spring and they won't start until the 09-10 school year if its voted in.
Posted by: Michael | July 09, 2008 at 04:45 PM
Here in Florida, waterskiing can be very very dangerous. Not so much gators and sharks, but ameobas. I personaly know a family who lost a son to a brain eating aemeobid. Got some water up his nose while skiing and the doctors couldn't do anything for him. It's untreatable. indoor gun safety(probably with unloaded guns)= very safe in my book. BTW I still love skiing.
Posted by: | July 09, 2008 at 05:26 PM
This weekend is my 30th high school reunion. When I was in high school (not even a rural setting) it was nothing for kids to work on their .22's in shop class. First year shop project, almost everybody made a gun rack.
Times have changed.
Posted by: Carney | July 09, 2008 at 06:21 PM
It's a great idea!!! Get Eddie Eagle into every elementary school and teach them the proper etiquette around firearms - that's why I work so hard for our Friends of NRA dinner!
When I went to school in Northern Virginia I used to take my .22 rifle and two boxes of ammo on the school bus and no one thought twice about it - because I was on the rifle shooting team.
Let's take the 'mystery' and 'fear' out of firearms and introduce these young people to their (2nd Amendment) heritage. We are, as our enemies have found out, a nation of riflemen, and it has preserved our independence.
Posted by: Harding | July 09, 2008 at 07:27 PM
We teach traffic safety, personal safety, water safety, even some first aid, why not gun safety? Even if the person does not ever use a gun after the class, at least they know the fundamentals of safe gun handling.
Posted by: Karen Carroll | July 09, 2008 at 07:53 PM
My daughter got her hunter's safety card and her boater's safety card in her science class during her 7th and 8th grade years. One of her better classes thanks to a well intentioned teacher.
Posted by: Russell | July 09, 2008 at 08:52 PM
I like that it's optional. If you don't want your child to learn about gun safety, then don't enroll him in the class. Water skiing is fun, too. That the school is giving choices is key. It's too bad some people think choices like these are bad, yet insist that their own choices be accepted.
Posted by: Teak Phillips | July 09, 2008 at 09:56 PM
I think that gun safty classes should be a manditory class in schools no matter if the child intends to participate or not. I have two daughters whom I have been trying to get through hunters safty since 2005 when they were eligable at ages 12 and 13. I can get them through the written part on line through Michigan's DNR website. I just cannot find a hands on course in my area that coinsides with my parenting schedule, and my ex-wife refuses to take them on her days because she knows that its something that I want them to complete, and she will not ALLOW them to go with me because it interferes with her schedule.
Posted by: Walt Smith | July 09, 2008 at 10:19 PM
In 1975 the 7'th grade woodshop main project was a gun rack snd hunters safety class was an elective. This was in the San Joaquin Valley.
Posted by: Nathan Pinney | July 09, 2008 at 11:00 PM
Alright, I'll be the dissenting opinion today. I don't think that gun safety is a viable PE class. I'm not saying that gun safety shouldn't be taught at school- I think that's a great idea. I just for the life of me can't figure out how a gun safety class is going to raise the heart rate for 20+ minutes or offer any form of cardiac, anarobic or aerobic activity for our children which is what PE [physical education] is all about. We are the fattest country in the world and we need to teach our children in PE class how to exercise properly and our children absolutely need to be burning more calories than ever in a time where Pizza Hut, Coca-Cola and Pepsi are everywhere in our schools. Gun safety-yes; but not at the expense of exercise. Perhaps if people jogged in place for 10 minutes while holding rifles over their heads it might work as a PE class.
Posted by: William | July 10, 2008 at 02:11 AM
The Thing is this is the students Choice Gun Saftey or Water skiing i dont know about you guys but in high school i would have taking the latter for two reasons.. one i already knew all there was to know about gun saftey and 2 the chace to see my female classmates in bikini's and swimsuits would have been two much for my hormonal Driven Mind to pass up... I would say that most high school students would take the water skiing because they will prolly think tht gun saftey is to boring which is sad but one will never know i guess...
Signed,
The Sexiest Man Alive!!!!
Posted by: Sexy Man | July 10, 2008 at 05:27 PM
Great idea! That's where I got my hunter education back in the 70's.
Posted by: Cool hand Luke | July 10, 2008 at 05:41 PM
I graduated in 73 from a very large suburban high school in Kansas City, Mo. In 7th grade wood shop I think everyone made a gun rack and was encouraged to do so. In 9th grade, you didn't get a choice. The girls came over to the boys gym and you took hunter safety together. I don't remember who provided them but We shot very accurate daisy bb guns inside and out of the gym. It remains one of my favorie school time memories. I wish they still did it around here. don salyer
Posted by: Don Salyer | July 10, 2008 at 07:13 PM
Great idea period.
MPN
Posted by: MPN | July 10, 2008 at 08:37 PM
common sense, excelent idea, in contrast to nyc, where mention the word firearm and the liberals run screaming from the room.
Posted by: r napolitano | July 12, 2008 at 11:42 AM
my kids took hunter safety in air cadets handled fire arms and got to shoot, they loved it. neither are gun crazy or antigun. I took hunter safety one night a week for three months shot every night .22 rifles, hand guns .22,.32 .38, 357 mag .44 mag .45 plus recurve compound and crossbows all indoor and 12 gauge at our outdoor wind up. loved it. wish every one had the chance they would see there is a lot of fun to be had and to enjoy shooting does not make you into a crazy.
Vern
Posted by: vern | July 12, 2008 at 03:08 PM
I'm all in favor of making gun safety optionally available in schools, much like drivers ed.
But calling that part of gym class? Get real. Kids these days are fat enough without spending gym class sitting down in a classroom.
Posted by: Jackson Landers | July 16, 2008 at 12:13 PM
I agree with the people who say it shouldnt be part of gym. Good idea though.
Posted by: Nicholas | July 22, 2008 at 09:37 AM