"We want kids to be safe and to look after them, but we end up wrapping them in cotton wool when in fact they should be able to fall over."
The link is about a school which scaled back its physical rules on the playground, which I think is a fine idea.
It's better to let loose safely and frequently, rather than pent everything up and explode into a brawl. The latter is what happens when you forbid kids from playing and sit them down at a desk for hours. Those who are energetic eventually do something foolish when they aren't allowed to go crazy, and by "crazy" I don't mean bouncing balls in PE class. I mean climbing trees and wrestling in pits, activities which aren't allowed in most schools.
It's better to let loose safely and frequently, rather than pent everything up and explode into a brawl. The latter is what happens when you forbid kids from playing and sit them down at a desk for hours. Those who are energetic eventually do something foolish when they aren't allowed to go crazy, and by "crazy" I don't mean bouncing balls in PE class. I mean climbing trees and wrestling in pits, activities which aren't allowed in most schools.
This also reminded me of how I got sent to the principal's office for messing around with my friends in elementary. We occasionally gave each other little shoves and jabs, but I was usually unlucky, for there was always a teacher behind me who made it seem like I was murdering my pals. If I wanted to fight any kid when I was younger, they would be crippled or dead by now. Even after explaining how my buddies and I weren't serious, they would punish me anyway "because rules."
Either the staff think kids can't roll on grass without dying, or they simply want to get as many students in trouble as possible, essentially making a serious deal out of nothing because they crave school drama.
"Oh, you gave your best friend a smack on the arm? I, the righteous guardian of children, cast you to the principal's office!"
I see what these control freaks are doing, and they can fuck right off with their mollycoddling.
Considering how schools are fine with students being drugged up on Ritalin and anti-depressants, I doubt they really care about the well-being of their youth. They're just afraid of lawsuits if a child gets injured, but that's the paranoid attitude which is ruining childhood fun these days. Quit worrying about what may or may not happen and let kids be kids.
I see what these control freaks are doing, and they can fuck right off with their mollycoddling.
Considering how schools are fine with students being drugged up on Ritalin and anti-depressants, I doubt they really care about the well-being of their youth. They're just afraid of lawsuits if a child gets injured, but that's the paranoid attitude which is ruining childhood fun these days. Quit worrying about what may or may not happen and let kids be kids.
