IOWA, USA — There has been an outpouring of support from parents across the nation following the killing of 19 students and two teachers in the Texas elementary mass shooting.
When it comes to talking to kids about this school shooting and others, parents and experts agree: it's not a light conversation.
Tracy Branes is a metro parent who says she focused the conversation with her kids around being alert of the actions and feelings of others around you
"We actually had the conversation this morning," she said. "I think awareness of what's going on around you, always be paying attention, listening. If you have a friend that needs help, make sure you help them out so that way they don't feel like they're in that situation that that's the only option for them is to take lives."
"Our primary responsibility as educators is to educate our children. And not to stand in front of an active shooter and protect the lives of our children. We will do that," Iowa State Education Association President Mike Beranek said. "But that's not something that we had anticipated having to do in our careers."
When speaking about traumatic situations with your kids, Executive and Clinical Director of Ardent Counseling Center Dr. Scott Terry's main advice is to help kids accept the reality and be solution-focused
"To not ignore the stressors, to not ignore the fears, to not ignore and just paper over at all, but to say, 'Let's do something about this." And there [are] things we can do. And for the child who's stressed, let's come up with ways to help them feel safer and less stressed," Terry said.
Shortly after Missouri Valley Community School District Superintendent Brent Hoesing received the news of the Texas shooting, his wife who hadn't heard the news yet discovered their children playing a lockdown game.
"She just happened to be standing by the stairs, and here's them playing school and they go start talking about doing a lockdown drill and they talk about the bad guy is already here. So we need to make sure we hide behind our desk, if he comes through we need to run. So they're actively playing and having that conversation," he said.
Hoesing believes the nation must act now to help prevent mass shootings
"We have to do something, we can't sit and say, we're going to continue to pray for prayer's help. But that can't be the answer right now."