Mommy - What's This? 

First Grader Brings Crack to Class:

An Orange County first grader who brought to school more than $1,000 worth of crack cocaine has been suspended and her mother is under investigation.

Sheriff's deputies say the 6-year-old girl said she found the bag of more than a dozen pieces of crack at home. But her mother said she must have gotten it trick-or-treating.
...
The girl was removed from the classroom in accordance with district policy.

School policy is to suspend a 6 year old for bringing drugs to school? Am I the only one that thinks that this is a stupid policy? I'm not even going to go into someone who gives crack away to trick-or-treaters... or how lame a cover that is by the mother.

I'm sure school officials are trying to look tough on drugs, and don't want to encourage it's use by any students, as they should. Parents I'm sure don't want their child's schools to be some place where their children can buy drugs, and I don't blame them. But a 1^st grader is not a drug dealer. A 1^st grader is a curious kid who found a bag of something funny and brought it to school because she didn't know any better. You don't suspend a child for that, you explain how bad that is, and if she ever finds more of it to tell her teacher. By suspending her, you have scared her into never saying anything about other drugs she may find in the future. And that is even more dangerous.

My aunt teaches second grade in a growing district here in Wisconsin. A few years ago one of her fellow teachers found a student of hers showing off several $100 bills and giving them away to friends. Upon further investigation, the child had found his dad's stash of money he called his "slush fund" in the basement. The father was grateful to have his money back, and had a little explaining to do to his wife. But the kid didn't know what he had. He couldn't see that $100 bills had any more value that a $1 bill, or some monopoly money.

We can't and shouldn't hold kids up to those kind of adult standards... because they're not adults! Let's try to bring some realism back to our policies.