San Francisco Frontiers - Oregon families grapple with explaining school shooting to children

"He kept hearing the sound of gunshots" ringing through his head, even as his parents spent all of Thursday night comforting the Silver Rail Elementary pupil, she told AFP.

Parents and caregivers in this city, known for its mountain skyline and outdoor activities, are reeling from the tragedy and searching for ways to discuss what happened with their children.

Sixteen-year-old Griffin John II killed three children and a teacher in the same special needs class he previously attended, before a father who happened to be passing the school grabbed his own gun and killed the attacker, authorities said.

Another student, a seven-year-old girl, and another teacher were wounded, but are in stable condition.

- Vigil -

Communication is crucial after such an event, local pediatrician Logan Clausen told CNN.

"Talk to them about what they know, talk to them about what they're feeling. You can gently correct inaccurate facts," the doctor said.

Dozens of people gathered on a street in Bend, many accompanied by children of various ages, to hold a vigil late on Friday.

Jeff Michaels, a father of three, told AFP that he and his wife have let their children know it is OK to talk about what happened and ask questions.

"We want to know how they feel, and they do ask questions," he said, hugging one of his daughters. "They want to know why this happened, why people are sad."

- Special needs -

The challenge of helping little ones process the trauma is acute for caregivers of children with special needs.

Since the Thursday rampage, Sherry Lauer, 56, has been watching her five-year-old granddaughter for signs of how she is processing the tragedy.

"She's nonverbal, so we're not sure how much she is comprehending about what is going on at the moment," Lauer told AFP.

While the little girl is not a student at Silver Rail, she "stopped what she was doing and paid attention" to a news conference about the school shooting.

So far, the girl has not shown any negative reactions, her grandmother added.

Art centers, restaurants and parks in Bend, a city of around 100,000 people in central Oregon through which the Deschutes River winds, opened their doors and organized special activities for children over the weekend.

- 'She missed me' -

"My mom's been crying a lot, and I'm sad too," an eight-year-old girl who attended the Friday vigil with her aunt told AFP.

The girl attends another school, but when news alerts about the shooting began circulating, her mother picked her up and took her home, where she explained what had happened.

The aunt, who asked not to be identified, said her sister has been encouraging the girl "to just ask questions and just answering them as they come up."

"She kept saying she missed me so much after it happened," the child said.

Q.Nelson--SFF