Should Your Kids Know How to Bug Out…from School?

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Author of Be Ready for Anything and Bloom Where You’re Planted online course

There are many alarming trends throughout the American public school system, and two of the most unsettling relate to lockdown drills and active shooter drills:

Active shooter drills have become more common as school gun massacre after massacre has made headlines. The drills give teachers and students a blueprint to follow during emergencies, which may save lives. Forty-two states have laws requiring some sort of emergency or safety drills in schools, many of which are designed to protect against active shooters, according to the nonprofit Education Commission of the States.

But there is hardly any research on the drills’ effectiveness, and while there are some federal recommendations, there is no standard template for schools to follow in terms of how to do them, how often to conduct them and how to explain them to students of different ages. (source)

Recent reports say that sales of bulletproof backpacks are on the rise as well.

Some schools are conducting drills that look a lot like bugging out.

But a quick drill with guns pointed at children is not even the worst of the drills being performed. Another type of drill began occurring in 2012. These are called “evacuation drills” or “relocation drills” and the kids are put on a bus and taken to a location that is not disclosed to parents. Michael Snyder wrote:

All over the United States, school children are being taken out of their classrooms, put on buses and sent to “alternate locations” during terror drills…In the years since 9/11 and the Columbine school shootings, there has been a concerted effort to make school emergency drills much more “realistic” and much more intense.    Unfortunately, the fact that many of these drills are deeply traumatizing many children does not seem to bother too many people.  Do we really need to have “active shooter” drills where men point guns at our kids and fire blanks at them?  Do we really need to have “relocation drills” where kids are rapidly herded on to buses and told that they must surrender their cell phones because they will not be allowed to call anyone? (source)

During these drills, kids are not allowed to phone their parents and parents are not even allowed to know where their children are in many cases. In some incidences during which the school forewarns parents about the drill, the parents are told that they cannot pick up their children “for any reason” during the drill. Many schools now boast of having supplies to keep children at the school for 48 hours in the event of an “emergency” during which time the children will not be released to their parents.

And it gets even worse. In the name of predictive programming, do you recall a “drill” during which the police took over a school and practiced fighting “angry parents”? I’ve been plenty annoyed at different schools my daughter has attended, but in no way have I been compelled to attack the school, requiring SWAT teams to defend it against me and my band of likewise irate moms.

In fact, there’s only one scenario I can imagine in which parents would storm the school to take back their children. Mac Slavo of SHTFplan wrote about it:

Let’s consider the circumstances that would have to occur for not one, but two or more parents to lay armed siege to a school.

There’s only one real scenario that comes to mind, and you’d more than likely have to be a prepper or conspiracy theorist to even contemplate the possibility.

The schools which our kids attend have “shelter-in-place” emergency procedures that would be enacted in the event of an emergency such as a nuclear, chemical or biological attack. During these emergencies schools are to be locked down with no unofficial access into the buildings until the all-clear has been given. It’s unclear based on district procedures just what the shelter-in-place order means and what steps parents would need to take to get their kids out of school – or whether they could even take their kids out of school based on the emergency.

But basically, it boils down to this: If there is a widespread emergency, and a school locks down and refuses parental access to children, then and only then could we envision a scenario where parents might take it upon themselves to evacuate their children by force.

The ‘event’ in question would likely need to be mass scale, or perceived as mass scale, in order for a parent to be so adamant about getting their child out of the school that they would take to armed violence to get them out.

Is this what police are training for?

Someone, somewhere obviously thinks there is a legitimate reason for this type of training simulation. (source)

So when you put all of this together, it’s easy to see the future. The picture this is painting is that one day, a unilateral decision could be made to put our children on a bus, take them to an undisclosed location, and keep them.

Should you teach your child to escape?

Maybe it’s time to teach your child how to bug out from school.

By no means am I suggesting that this is a legitimate course of action for every child. Some kids are too young or too prone to panic and poor judgment to safely bug out. Some environments are too dangerous for a young person to take off on his or her own. Parents have to consider the skills and mindset of their kids before making plans like this. It can definitely be risky, and you have to compare it to the alternative of having your child herded along.

I have a huge amount of faith in my child. So much so that we performed some of our own drills back when she was still in school. She was always a lot more “aware” of events going on in the world than most of her peers because we discussed things like government encroachment and tyranny on a regular basis. She knew that she was not to get on a bus without my prior knowledge and consent.

It’s very important to be able to teach your kid how to deal with emergencies without scaring them. Here’s some advice.

If, out of the blue, the teachers just tell students to get on a bus, and there is no compelling reason for them to be doing so, it might be time for your child to use his or her own judgment on whether boarding that conveyance is actually a good idea.

If you feel that a school bug-out plan is a good idea for your child, here are a few things to consider:

  • If there are younger siblings at the school, your older children will need to plan how to connect with them, and whether or not to abort the bug-out if they can’t connect with the younger ones.
  • You need to set up a primary and secondary rally point where you’ll meet your kids. This should be within a couple of miles of the school, and it should be a place where your children can stay hidden from the main road. The plan should always be to go to the primary rally point, but if for some reason that is unsafe or inaccessible, there should be a secondary rally point that is reached by a different route.
  • Figure out the route your child will take to get to the rally point. Practice getting there from school. If possible, for reasons of safety and stealth, develop a route that does not use the main road to take them there. Hike or walk this route with your child until they are completely comfortable with it.
  • There are some situations in which evacuation is actually necessary. For example, some places are prone to forest fires and you wouldn’t want your child out on foot in such a scenario. If the school building were to collapse, it’s obvious the children would be relocated to a safe shelter. This is the point at which your child’s judgment comes into play. It is vital to discuss different scenarios in which evacuation is necessary.

It is also important that your child has the proper gear to take off on foot, as well as the ability to use all of it. It’s important to practice things like filtering water in order for a young person to feel confident doing so.

  • A hiking pack
  • Comfortable weather-appropriate footwear (winter boots, sneakers, etc.)
  • Water filtration bottle (we use THIS ONE from Berkey)
  • At least one full water bottle, but preferably two
  • Snacks like granola bars or energy bars (Clif Bars are made with good ingredients and are very filling)
  • Weather appropriate clothing (snow gear, a light hoodie, gloves, a hat for sun or warmth)
  • Fire-starting flint
  • Space blanket
  • First aid kit (band-aids are a must for potential blisters)
  • Extra socks

Most of the other gear that you’d prefer your child to have is going to be deemed “dangerous” by the school. Things like multi-tools, matches or lighters, or self-defense items are frowned upon and can result in anything from suspension by a “zero-tolerance” school system that seems unable to differentiate between a tool and a threat, to felony charges by the overzealous “justice system.” These are things you must take into consideration when choosing items for the emergency kit, and you have to weigh the pros against the cons.

Will this work for you?

This is not a plan that will work for every family. Only you can judge whether or not your child or teen can keep a cool enough head to execute a similar plan and use their own judgment in a surprise situation. Only you can assess the immediate environment and decide if it is safer for your student to set out on their own or to go with the staff from the school.

Do any of you have a similar plan for your kids? Please share your suggestions in the comments below.

NOTE: This is not a debate about whether children should be educated at home or via the public school system. This is about a specific situation that affects many families in America who have made the decision to send their children to school based on their own personal circumstances or the availability of special programs.

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Daisy Luther

Daisy Luther is a coffee-swigging, globe-trotting blogger. She is the founder and publisher of three websites.  1) The Organic Prepper, which is about current events, preparedness, self-reliance, and the pursuit of liberty on her website, 2)  The Frugalite, a website with thrifty tips and solutions to help people get a handle on their personal finances without feeling deprived, and 3) PreppersDailyNews.com, an aggregate site where you can find links to all the most important news for those who wish to be prepared. She is widely republished across alternative media and  Daisy is the best-selling author of 5 traditionally published books and runs a small digital publishing company with PDF guides, printables, and courses. You can find her on FacebookPinterest, Gab, MeWe, Parler, Instagram, and Twitter.

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  • Welcome to 1938 Germany. The Nazi Police State is here. Children held subservient to tyranny in their government schools are one of key victories. Patrice Lewis was right when she said, “Children are the currency of tyrants.”

    Parents, take your children out of government schools NOW!

  • I was a public school teacher for a good number of years. I taught science in both middle school as well as the high school. I mostly taught the middle school level. This coming June, it will be 10 yrs that I quit. I haven’t looked back.

    We were considered an urban district, but that was only determined on the number of subsidized lunches.

    During my tenure, we had lock downs, kids pepper sprayed and dragged away by the police, and emergencies where we took the kids to another place for “safety.”

    When you send you kids to the public schools, you are essentially giving your rights over to the system. The school system is now “in loco parentis.” In an emergency situation, it was my responsibility to know where the kids were at all times while they were under my immediate care, meaning, they were in my class during that period of time. I had an extensive documentation system of school stuff for my classes that included this as well.

    If a kid started to run/walk away from the school or as in one situation, outside, during this time, they would probably call the police on the kid. I certainly would not want to be called on the carpet for not being responsible for those kids. Life is too short already.

    There was a protocol in place that we would have a lockdown that would require the teachers to stay with the kids until further notice because it wasn’t “safe” for them to leave. The parents would have not been to get them out.

    I have no fondness for the public school system in any aspect.

    • Gov indoctrination centers (public school) are a joke. What they teach the kids are mainly two things. worship man/authority (man/authority can be trusted) and there is no God. The real war out there is spiritual. Subjects like math are an afterthought. The ones who would argue with me have fallen for the first lie the most. Now they’re more dumbed down than ever too. What a joke. There is no respect to be had because it is based on evil.

    • I too am a teacher (elementary school). I taught about 30 years ago and it was soooooooooooooooooooo different! I see horrendous changes. No books, no paper to print the online books, no curriculum (figure it out for yourself), misrepresentation of facts (This is NOT a representational democracy…THIS IS A REPUBLIC!), OUTRIGHT LIES ARE BEING TAUGHT! I stay because when I close that door, they are mine to educate. I still teach. My kids score incredibly well on tests and yet they still want me to “tweak” my teaching to include morning meetings, academic conversations, group activities. I do when it is appropriate. I don’t when it’s not (which is usually). They day is coming when we will all be surveilled in our classrooms. When that day arrives, I’ll retire. Until then, somebody needs stand in for children whose parents cannot homeschoo….and yes, I homeschooled mine for many years.

      • My now adult children were home schooled as well. I was considered a bit of a conundrum to the school district; I am sure they would have prevented me from doing so if they could, but my state has no interest in home schooling. What a blessing! I also taught my kids to be independent autodidacts with a solid skill base in addition to academics. They have done very well. I stand in awe. I/we also have a good relationship with all six.

        I am glad you have the freedom that I did not. I am guessing you do not live in a liberal northeastern state as I do. That is a good thing. I was able maintain my standards, even in the high school, but during a crisis situation, I would be held liable if I did not follow protocol.

        I still stand ground that it would be difficult for a child of any age to easily take off from the prison like institution of public education during lock downs. There were armed police with dogs were in the halls. There were also unarmed security guards that today may be armed. The kids weren’t allowed to go to the lav until well into the lock down, and then it was with supervision.

        During school evacuation situations in the middle school, the kids did not take off. At the HS, however a few did. That was then, I don’t know how things are handled now.

        • Sadly, I have to agree with your stand that escapees may become “truant” if they leave the drill at some point. My DH taught middle school science in southeast LA. A very tough scene. He loved the kids but scorned the administrators for their obvious agenda to undermine the education process. We homeschooled our four sons until ready for college or the military. They all have smart, meaningful and well-paying jobs.

  • This is actually something that we have talked about, down to what she can use as a weapon that would protect her, but not get her in trouble for having at school. I have emphasized stealth and speed. I know the teachers at our school are for the most part good folks, but at the end of the day, I am the parent and it is my responsibility to teach a child situational awareness.

  • This is the “conditioning” of you children, in the words of crosby stills and nash….TEACH, YOU CHILDREN WELL……..We MUST fight this. Excellent article Daisy

  • I never would have guessed years ago that those classmates of mine who were the best at skipping school or skipping class were actually bugging out and it might possibly be a much needed skill in the future.

    Not in my wildest dreams.

  • I bugged out a lot when I was in school, I roamed around looking for crap to do to make my day, I rode the subway, the bus, and everywhere.

  • Best option –> homeschool your kids.
    No worries about what the government is planning to do when a national false flag event happens.
    Perhaps many think that option is radical – not as radical as trying to find your child after he/she has been taken to some lockdown facility with a location unknown to the parents.
    THAT is far more radical (and frightening)…

    • I cannot understand why savvy parents (like the average sheeple types) would ever send kids to gov schools. If they want their kids in these brainwashing centers, they probably think the gov has good intentions when they get hauled off to never be seen again. You can’t fix stupid.

  • Your children can’t leave school grounds, unless it’s under armed escort by the government. I suggest home schooling or at least a private school that will abide by YOUR wishes on this subject. To the gov.,your children are THEIR property and possession IS nine tenths of the law.

  • My neighbor and I have been preparing our teenagers for this exact scenario for about a year now. Thank you for writing this article we have not read anything similar as of yet. The problem with us is our schools are like jails and before the teachers can even lock their doors the outside doors are locked. It’s a Brickschool many of the rooms don’t even have windows. We have not figured out what to do if they have to bug out of the school but if there walked to a bus I’m not sure if running in front of all the teachers and deans would be effective? The only scenario that would work for us is if it happens during PE because the kids know of a hole in the fence of the yard that there and when they’re in that class. But that is very unlikely to happen during one subject and my other child would not be in that subject.
    Although we agree the kids need to think on their feet we ourselves have not thought of how they would get out of this scenario. Any suggestions would be great.

  • One more thing, we have signed the kids up for a very prestigious private school starting this September so I feel a little more comfortable that this Christian school who has some very wealthy & famous parents that send their kids to this school, would not keep our kids like the government schools however we still have two months to deal with public/government school

  • Boy does it get me mad to see Obama’s private army terrifying our children needlessly. It is bad enough they are dumbing down our kids with a fake education!

  • The shelter-in-place and evacuation drills were happening a full generation before 9-11.

    When there was an actual, oncoming fire, I chose to help my family, several blocks away, rather than board the schoolbus to points unknown.

    Friends and acquaintances became a burden on their households, who did not know where to find them. Their parents eventually faced a drive out of area and a bureaucratic burden in retrieving them.

    A couple of classmates thought I was did something daring, when they heard about it, later.

    But, I was only trying to be practical. It had never even occurred the me, that someone who lived just around the corner might have gotten on the bus.

  • Congratulations Daisy, Your WELL written article is posted on Steve Quayles site!!! Stop being a stranger.

  • HERES THE WAY IT REALLY IS…….THEY PLAN TO KIDNAP “ALL” THE SCHOOL KIDS,and hold them for ransom,IF YOUR KIDS CAN’T ESCAPE,..YOU LOST THEM,..IMAGINE a group of armed government agents,loading your kids on buses and taking them to a fema camp,YOU AIN’T GOING TO GET THEM BACK,and the BS,thing WE’LL TRADE YOUR KIDS FOR GUNS,…more BS,..YOUR BELOVED “OBOOZO” SOLD THEM TO CHINA,..hahaha,FOR “ONE THOUSAND DOLLARS EACH”….better get them out of the schools,your playing russian roulette with them right now……….KIDS all over the nation are having dreams of being in a chinese slave labor camp,GODS warning to parents,GET YOUR KIDS OUT OF GOVERNMENT CONTROLED SCHOOLS,…IF YOU CARE ABOUT THEM…………..

  • Thank you for your article. More parents need to be aware of these and more issues, whether or not they choose to actually educate and train their own children.
    My 14 year old daughter has her backpack at all times.
    We home school, but she attends outside art schools and tennis lessons & camps. She is a full member of our CERT team and is trained in Red Cross CPR and First Aid.
    Backpack Contents:
    extra contact lenses and solution
    glasses
    money
    nitrile & leather gloves
    Surefire flashlight with extra battery
    AAA headlamp with extra batteries
    iPhone (Mophie) battery case (doubles life of iPhone
    Ham radio (Yaesu quad band waterproof) w. extra battery
    she is a licensed ham
    Pens/sharpie/notepad
    Leatherman Tool
    rain gear
    zip fizz/gatorade
    waterproof hat
    M&Ms/protein bars
    2 bottles water
    had sanitizer
    space blanket

  • Some families have no choice if they want their children to get an education. With both parents having to work and the grandparents unavailable or unable to home-school and private school too expensive, what is the alternative?

  • Remember….cops shoot anyone for any reason during their “drills.”
    Kids bugging out in mass can be shot on sight and the reason would be, “they were acting in a threatening way to the cops.”

  • Thought people would figure out by now that those for weapon control actually want high casualty rates in schools to help further the agenda.

  • if you are going to train your kids in a escape route, then somkewhere on that route you can bury the “tools and things ” that the kids will need for their survival….they don´t have to be on school property….under a hedge….in a secluded corner of a field…etc etc….away from the prying eys of neibourhoodwatch busybodies.

  • God and Jesus be with us. No weapon forged against us shall prosper! We will fight back if we must in the name of justice!!!!!!!

  • I was at the Y once and the fire alarm went off. This was not a drill something had set the alarm off. Anyhow I was in the pool and not allowed into the locker room but “forced” outside in the middle of the winter. So thankfully it was a spring like day with a warm sun, but there I was dripping wet with only a towel feet from my LOCKED car and BOB with no keys. Let’s just say after that experienced I started taking a small bag with a space blanket and my keys pool side.

    My point is in disaster management, from the states perspective: rules, regulations, and orders far out weigh the individual, common sense and planning. Its a good lesson for us to remember and consider in planning. Like all family disaster plans you want to have at least two rally points. For a small child alone one should be to shelter in place at school awaiting mom or dad, but you definitely should have another near the school in case the school is compromised or relocation is attempted. For an older more capable child, or smaller children led by older children, this could include some sort of bug put E&E plan.

  • I just did a similar post on my blog today, I actually lived through a scenario in which a teacher shot the superintendent, principal, and teacher when I was a freshman in high school. It happened a long time ago but I remember it like it was yesterday. Luckily it was after classes were done for the day, but just the scare of having people shot and killed at the school you attend is scary. I know that the schools are running drills and things of that nature, but I still would trust my child to make better survival decisions than his teacher any day, we have trained our kids from early on, we include them in a lot of our planning. Great post!

  • when i was with my unit in school (comprised of me, my friend and another friend) we usually just learned up to date world issues and we shrugged it off but kept to key guidelines incase anything bad happened

    well, i was the first one to bring bug-out supplies, no weapons or anything just some food, flashlight and a gp-5 gas mask (hey don’t judge, it was the closest thing i can get with my own money)

    i accidentally dropped my bag, my flashlight fell out and turned on
    my principle walked over to my table with the most annoying walk you can think of

    he had the balls to tell me to not bring it anymore, he doesn’t want to see that flashlight period,

    most of the teachers if they seen anything “out of the ordinary” they’ll ask me to put it away or something like that… this school, its like they want you to die when the bad moment happens…

  • My children were in different schools and for awhile in different communities because of age and busses to those schools. They each knew a direction to head and a meeting place. The understanding was younger children would be retrieved first. That school was 4 miles from home. The schools the older boys were attending were 25 miles away and 2 miles apart.
    The younger boy had about a 1 mile hike to a well hidden spot with a tiny stream and a shallow cave. The older boys had a prearranged spot just off a country road nearly two miles from the town their school was in. Each one carried a fire starter, space blankets, homemade bars, and water. The older boys carried legal pocketknives with screwdriver blades that folded in. At that time all perfectly legal. All of them were used to long hikes with us in the mountain or desert areas nearby. Each knew how to build a fire. What materials to collect. The meeting places offered some shelter, a small fire wouldn’t be seen unless they made a smoky fire. They were near a rural road. For the younger boys meeting place we made sure there were dry materials for a fire handy. The older boys had materials to burn in the area but they would have to gather up what they needed. A whistle was the signal to come to meet us on the road. We kept a metal whistle in both vehicles. If it weren’t available a set of whistles was the sign to meet up. If it had been long enough a fire had been built they whistled a code they needed time to drown the fire. If we were delayed and they spent a night they each knew to move to the next place closer to home. It was well chosen and a clear way to get there by rural road or alternate route. They all knew some wild edibles on their way home. Winter would have been the most concerning if anyone had to spend a night outside. We can easily see below zero temperatures. In bad winter weather the boys had to stay with their classmates.
    Thankfully they never had to follow those plans but they were prepared and capable.

  • Good article and something to think on as my grandkids enter that age.
    Many of the comments are predictable, unhelpful and full of misdirection and lies from criminals and agenda driven hype.

  • We used to live in a very small town of around 3000 in the upper midwest. The school was getting fake bomb scares on a regular basis. During one incident my husband tried to pick up our elementary grade child but it was impossible- he was not allowed to take him, even though they had all left the school and were in a secondary shelter (church) nearby. This was around the year 2000. One thing that was alarming to me was seeing and hearing my child’s conditioned reaction to having so many bomb “scares”. He had started mimicking what the teachers were saying, that’s someone is just playing a joke or wanting attention, yet they were herded into lines and led to another area multiple times. The parent is forced to trust sometimes strangers to protect their child. I think some of this is a type of gas-lighting for children and possibly could cause complex PTSD or other issues. We decided to homeschool too. There were very few back then, and sparsely located, 20 miles distance from other families that homeschool. Thank God the Internet helped find others and curriculum, and we are so thankful for articles like this from courageous authors.

  • I was shocked to read above where government school students were being pepper sprayed during drills at school. The blinding and skin irritation from that stuff is ugly. I once got to experience such “joy” during a military gas mask drill with tear gas, and it was not fun.

    In the last few days, the ex-CIA guy Jason Hanson has been writing about a counter-acting product, called Sudecon wipes, that’s carried by police, military and intelligence organizations. He made no mention as to whether schools keep them handy or whether they even know about such.

    When I ran a search on Amazon, here’s what I found:

    https://www.amazon.com/s?k=Sudecon+wipes&ref=nb_sb_noss_2

    If one is prepping a BOB (bugout bag) for school kids where there’s some likelihood of students being brutally sprayed, it seems worth considering to include some Sudecon wipes in that kit of stuff.

    —Lewis

  • I have a son in kindergarten and a son in first grade, it scares the crap out of me sending them to school everyday. My sons first day of first grade the teacher told them if they ever tried to run away from her or the school she would call the cops on them. That didn’t really click until I read this article. I always send my boys to school with extra clothes and a lot of extra snacks, they’ve only been in school 3 days this year and the teachers took everything. I only live a block away from their school so if something is happening I’ll know about it but I’m feeling really uneasy about sending them to school this year. Does anyone have any advice on what to tell my kindergartener and first grader? They’re just so innocent and trust the staff at their school.

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