Principal's Note
Hello Shoreham Community!
Earlier this year, our district shared an overview of our ACSD safety practices and our efforts to keep our community safe.You can find that information here. At [school] we practice safety drills designed to ensure that our students and staff are familiar with how to be safe in an emergency. Some months, we practice what to do if we need to evacuate the building. Other months we practice what to do when unsafe people or hazards enter our school.
We are required to practice two options-based drills - one in September and one in January. Options-based drills introduce students to various strategies in response to a threat, such as when to evacuate from the school or barricade in a classroom. Please know that all options based drills are trauma informed and age appropriate. This means the drills are performed in a way that is sensitive to the emotional well-being of our students.
We will be holding our first options-based drill next week.
We use the A.L.I.C.E protocol for a response to an active threat. This type of drill will secure the school building and safely shelter all students, staff, and visitors inside the building. The purpose of this drill is to keep the students safe from any danger outside or inside the building. During a “lockdown drill” all of the perimeter doors to the school building will be locked and will remain locked until the danger or issue outside or inside the building is removed. To enable everyone to remain safe, no one will be allowed to enter the building or leave the building until the drill is completed.
We know that this is an emotional topic for parents and caregivers and want to assure you of a few things:
The adults in our building work together to plan and ensure students feel safe and we remind them that the drill is practice.
We talk with students in a developmentally appropriate way before and after each drill and our practice is developmentally aligned.
We are available to support families. We will share resources below to help you talk with your child about these experiences and invite you to reach out at any time.
Next week, classes will practice quickly relocating from their classroom to another space in the building. As a faculty, we spoke about this drill as a way to help students move from an unsafe or unhealthy space to another. Teachers felt confident in their ability to articulate the drill to their students, they identified a space they will move to in an emergency, and have thought about scenarios that may lead them to move from one space in the building to another.
I want you to know about it in advance and be able to talk with your children about it when they come home. Here are a few resources to support those conversations:
Talking with Your Children about Safety Drills (Johns Hopkins)
Talking with Children about Violence: Tips for Parents and Educators (NASP)
If you have questions or would like to connect please reach out to me directly.
Respectfully,
Matthew Brankman
Principal
