I am more than a little irritated and amazed at the news that schools are banning tag and other “unsupervised contact sports” during recess. Apparently, it is not enough that they spend all day in school and most of the rest of their waking hours in lessons or guided activities. Are we really going to rob them of running around and chasing each other on the playground?
There are things children learn on a playground that they don’t learn other places. I didn’t say that they CAN’T learn them other places, I said they DON’T. There are lessons about community, accountability, following the rules, taking your turn, being the odd man out and on and on and on.
My son is 5. He likes to run. He likes to be outside. He likes to play with his friends. He likes to chase things. Guess what? He also likes to run WHILE he is outside WITH HIS FRIENDS and CHASING THEM. Yes, he could get hurt. Yes, he could get hurt seriously. If he did, I would feel bad about the situation, but I wouldn’t blame the school. SOMETIMES, THINGS HAPPEN AND THERE JUST IS NOT ANY BLAME. Is my son’s school a bad school because they allow kids to play tag at recess?
Forgive me if I find this whole thing ridiculous and if I don’t play the part of an overly paranoid parent. Let the kids play tag and touch football and whatever other games they want. Sometimes, they need to play more than they need to be protected!
Copyright, RPL Communications, 2006
Hi Rachel — thanks for leaving a note on my blog. Yours is funny, reminds me of my sense of humor.
I totally agree with you on this. I thought I was the only parent not overly paranoid or protective, and I’m glad to see that I’m not!
Comment by Diane — October 19, 2006 @ 3:20 pm