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The police declined to say why the child, a second grader, was carrying a .22-caliber handgun or how it had been discovered. It was not fired at the school, Wave Preparatory Elementary School in Far Rockaway, they said.

Students there described a nervous few hours that began when the principal went on the intercom to say that the school was being locked down and that they were to remain in their classrooms.

"I thought we were going to get killed," said Javier Ferrufino, an 11-year-old in fifth grade. "We went to the back of the classroom. I hid with my friend behind some computers."

Officials at the school declined to comment.

The city's Education Department released a statement confirming that a gun had been found in the backpack of a second-grader and that the school had been locked down, but it did not provide further details.

When parents arrived in the afternoon to pick up their children, more than a dozen police officers were still at the school.

A notice given to parents said: "Due to an incident today there was need to secure all students in their classrooms. This procedure is called a lockdown. Our school-based support team is prepared to assist you with any emotional needs as a result of today's lockdown."

Giovanni Dennis, an 8-year-old third grader, said he hid under his teacher's desk after the principal announced the lockdown.

His mother, Cecelia Dennis, said she was upset that she did not know about the lockdown until she arrived to get Giovanni.

"I think they did a good job of locking down the school," she said. "But they could have notified the parents earlier. I am very upset."