SCHOOL PRAYER:

1)  Prayer is allowed in schools.  A child is free to pray whenever and wherever he/she wants to in the US.  What is not allowed is for the school to lead any student in prayer.  This can be construed by the student as the school (government) representing a belief system.  This cannot be allowed.  Parents should have the final say as to what belief system their child is taught. 

Many Christian parents would not want their child taught the ways of Muslims or or Jews or Wiccans and vice versa.  Many Christians follow the Bible's guidelines on how to pray and will not accept the prayers of other Christians that do not follow these principles.  How can school personnel possibly take all of this into account?

2)  I would not recommend moments of silence for prayers because some children have no religion and don't know how to pray and this could cause them problems.  Seeing their peers and teachers organized in prayer could cause these children to question the ways of their parents, undermining respect for those parents and causing untold problems. 

It could cause them to question the ways of the school if their parents have taught them that religion is a "crutch" or "opium of the people".  It could cause them to ridicule the value system of those they see in what, to them, is a negative activity.  We don't need to undermine authority in the homes or schools any more than we've already done.

3)  Spontaneous prayer is the perfect solution.  When a child spontaneously prays, he/she sets an example for observers and allows for the best demonstration of their spirituality.