Teacher explains why he always keeps a 'bathroom bucket' in the classroom

Editor's note: This article was originally published on February 24, 2023. It has since been updated.

High school teacher Larry Lexicon works for a charter school in California and often posts funny classroom videos on various social media platforms. According to My Modern Met, one of his videos on TikTok was flamed by many viewers. What started as a joke about a yellow bucket in the classroom has now become a reminder of what it is like to teach and attend school in the United States. Lexicon broke from his happy-go-lucky character and shared a serious message regarding the bucket situation. The video, which has amassed over 2.3 million views on TikTok, includes the hashtags #satire and #comedy in the description. But apparently, some people were not entertaining it.

After complaining that the students take too many bathroom breaks, Lexicon introduced the “bathroom bucket.” This yellow bucket has a lid that acts like an ordinary loo. He even provided a tent for privacy and a toiled deodorant for odor. The criticisms and backlash in the video led the teacher to post a second video about the same. After telling his class about the comments he had received and how the people wanted him to get fired, Lexicon wanted everyone to understand the real meaning behind the yellow bucket. The students gathered that the bucket could be used during class lockdowns but did not know what prompted its placement in the classroom.

The bucket is essentially a part of the teachers' survival kit in the event of a mass shooting. That is, if everyone is trapped in the classroom for an extended period, the bucket can function as a toilet. The bucket also contains packaged blankets that he can use to cover up bodies. "People being upset about our bucket video, they're upset about the wrong thing," says Lexicon, who notes that these buckets didn't exist when he first started teaching. "They should be upset that the buckets exist, that we're at a point where we need these buckets."

He also told his students that if a situation ever occurred where they needed to use the bucket, they should consider themselves lucky. I mean, how many schools do you think to know about these buckets? Not many. Or how many teachers are there who will go to these great lengths to make sure that everything is accessible for a student in such times? If you had a child who was in school, you would be at peace knowing that a teacher like him is there who will try to protect them for you. "This teacher deserves an award, for not only causing awareness but protecting those kids and keeping them safe, even if they don't understand," said @ladygoth2130.

In 2022, nearly 300 school shootings were reported, the highest number in 40 years. Hence there were just 15 incidents in 2010. Lexicon urges enraged commentators to place their anger where it really belongs and get involved in trying to make schools safer for both students and educators. He also asks people who get in touch with their local representatives to help create a society where yellow buckets won't need to be in the classroom. "Kids need CORRECT information no matter how hard these topics are to cover. Thank you for keeping it real!! You're such a great teacher!!!" wrote @msminniefresh. "It's so sad. You're an amazing teacher for addressing it and not pretending it isn't there. Thank you for being real," commented @haleylaneart.