There were 127 kids out on the playground, when 9-year-old Khoa Nguyen and 8-year-old Grayson Pope noticed a gun sitting in the wood chips by the swing set.

Suddenly, all those important lessons about guns we hope our kids pay attention to, paid off.

"Not to touch them and when you see one, go tell an adult and don't pick it up," recited Grayson.

What the two students from Machias Elementary didn't know yet -- they had found a 9mm handgun, loaded and missing the safety mechanism.

"It was actually pretty frightening. I told the teachers because I was afraid that if I didn't - the other class of second and third graders would come out and play with it," said Khoa.

One boy stood guard, the other ran and got a teacher who called 911.

"To see a real metal gun out there...the playground was jammed with kids," said teacher Terese Evans. "And then to see the kindergarteners coming right out for recess, I was thinking, 'Oh my goodness... what if those boys hadn't reported it?' Who knows what could have happened?"

The school called the boys' parents to let them how the children turned a dangerous situation into a positive ending.

"It was just overwhelming when the principal called," said Grayson's mother Alison. "She said, 'We had an event at school, no one is hurt, but your son found a gun.' I had to sit down."

Police will try and track down how the gun got on the playground, but more importantly, they credit and Khoa and Grayson for making sure it got off the playground.