Parents of fourth-grade students at a Florida charter school are outraged after their children were shown a disturbing horror movie during class time. According to Michelle Diaz, her twins who attend The Academy of Innovative Education in Miami Springs, were traumatized after their math teacher put on “Winnie the Pooh: Blood and Honey” in class. The film, which is unrated, includes graphic violence, murder, torture, nudity, and profanity.
Diaz claims that her children and their classmates begged the teacher to turn off the movie, but their pleas were ignored. In an interview with CBS News, Diaz said, “He didn’t stop the movie, even though there were kids saying, ‘Hey, stop the movie, we don’t want to watch this.’” She also expressed her disappointment in the teacher’s decision to show such inappropriate content to young students. “It’s not for them to decide what they want to watch. It’s up to the professor to look at the content,” she said.
“Blood and Honey” is a British indie film that depicts the beloved children’s book characters, Pooh and Piglet, on a murderous rampage. The film includes scenes of sledgehammer attacks, decapitation, and feeding people into a woodchipper. It is not suitable for children of any age, let alone fourth graders.
In a statement issued by the school, it was revealed that some students met with a counselor after being exposed to a portion of the film. “The Academy for Innovative Education has become aware that a segment of a horror movie was shown to fourth graders, on Monday, October 2, 2023, that was not suitable for the age group,” the statement said. The school also confirmed that appropriate action had been taken to ensure the safety and well-being of students.
Head of School Vera Hirsh addressed the incident, saying, “As soon as the teacher realized what was being shown, the movie was turned off.” She also stated that only a small portion of the film was seen and that most of the gruesome scenes happen later on. Hirsh assured parents that the incident had been thoroughly addressed with teachers, students, and parents and that the students who saw the movie were “doing fine.”
This unfortunate incident is reminiscent of a 2016 case in Tennessee where a high school teacher was suspended for showing his class the graphic and violent horror film “Human Centipede 2: Full Sequence.” These incidents highlight the importance of monitoring what children are exposed to and enforcing age-appropriate content in educational settings. The school has since apologized for the incident and has implemented measures to prevent similar incidents from occurring in the future.