Talking to your kids about school worries following rise in school threats
EVANSVILLE, Ind. (WFIE) - Officials with the Evansville Police Department say two eleven-year-old EVSC students have been arrested after making threats to a school using a fake social media account.
They say this is causing a panic among many students, parents, and teachers.
EPD officials say they believe this is part of a social media trend prompting threats across the country, and our area hasn’t been exempt.
They say this is causing panic among many students, parents, and teachers; and experts say there are things parents can do to help their kids with that anxiety.
Local mental health experts say when there’s violence at a school, anywhere in the country, it can have an effect on people’s mental health.
The feelings get more intense when these threats are so close to home.
“It’s causing a lot of panic, a lot of fear for our students, our parents, our educators; and it’s all understandable,” said Evansville Police Department Public Information Officer Sgt. Trudy Day. “We’re trying everything we can to try to get parents and the community to work with us.”
For parents, mental health experts say to emphasize simple things like acknowledging your child’s feelings and giving examples of the ways you deal with stress.
They say it’s often the easy things that make a big difference, like spending time together, talking things out, taking walks outside, or just taking deep breaths.
“Be kind to yourself, be kind to your kids, pay attention to the moments that you have with your kids, your family, others in your life,” said Lampion Center Executive Director Lynn Kyle. “Try to keep your own stress level low if you can, for the parents; and for the kids the same thing, take care of your friends, hang with the good people.”
EPD officials say they need parents to talk to their kids about social media accountability and responsibility; that even if you mean to post something anonymously there are still consequences.
“Unfortunately, I think some juveniles are thinking this is a prank, and that’s why we’re really trying to get parents involved,” said Day. “Check your kid’s social media, make sure that they’re being responsible, and that they understand how serious this is.”
EPD officials say it may have started with those two eleven-year-olds posting from a fake account, but now they’ve been arrested, and will go to juvenile court and be involved in the justice system.
They say they hope everyone takes these things seriously, because that’s not an outcome anyone wants.
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