1010 WINS 9/11 Series: Growing Up In The Age Of 9/11

NEW YORK (1010 WINS) -- On Sept. 11, 2001, Emma Rosenzweig  and the rest of her fourth grade class looked out the window and saw the Twin Towers burning.

"You saw the smoke - it was just really thick, dark, black smoke," Rosenzweig recalls.

Her classroom at the Lindell Elementary School in Long Beach had a clear view of Lower Manhattan.

1010 WINS' Eileen Lehpamer reports: Growing Up After 9/11

Principal Karen Sauter tried to protect the children from seeing the horror unfolding outside and directed the teachers to move the students away from the windows.

"I went and I spoke to each one, trying not to alarm them, trying to calm them," Sauter said.

Link: Remembering 9/11

Rosenzweig said her teacher logged into a computer to get more information and never told the class what was going on. The students knew, even at 8-years-old, that something was wrong.

"She got a little bit jolted and she shut off the computer really quickly and said, 'Everybody go sit down; it's time to learn,'" Rosenzweig  said. "We didn't learn the rest of the day, she tried but there was no use."

Rosenzweig  said even though no adults spoke of the attacks she knew something wasn't right and even now, as a sophomore in college, the horror of that day still hasn't sunk in.

"It's in textbooks already, it's bizarre. It's one of those things you think your kids are going to ask you about one day," Rosenzweig said.

Now, 10 years after the event, educators are presented with a new challenge: how to approach the topic with their young students.

Principal Lucille McAssey has made it her mission to make sure her students never forget 9/11.

It started with a garden behind the Waverly Park Elementary School in Lynbrook and thanks to the efforts of one teacher, a piece of World Trade Center steel now sits in the lobby of the school.

1010 WINS' Eileen Lehpamer reports: A Visual Reminder For Students

"For each of us to see that piece of steel, it's going to be very moving," McAssey said.

Link: 1010 WINS Reflects

The steel serves as a visual reminder of Sept. 11 but it's in the classroom where students learn the history of the event and about the heroes who put their lives at stake that day.

"Something terrible happened in our history but now it's up to them, the next generation, to make a difference in the world," she said.

Please share your thoughts in our comments section below...