Not It! Mass. Elementary School Bans Tag

[Beyond Belief]

ATTLEBORO, Mass. (AP) -- Tag, you're out! Officials at an elementary school south of Boston have banned kids from playing tag, touch football and any other unsupervised chase game during recess for fear they'll get hurt and hold the school liable.

Recess is "a time when accidents can happen," said Willett Elementary School Principal Gaylene Heppe, who approved the ban.

While there is no districtwide ban on contact sports during recess, local rules have been cropping up. Several school administrators around Attleboro, a city of about 45,000 residents, took aim at dodgeball a few years ago, saying it was exclusionary and dangerous.

Elementary schools in Cheyenne, Wyo., and Spokane, Wash., also recently banned tag during recess. A suburban Charleston, S.C., school outlawed all unsupervised contact sports.

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"I think that it's unfortunate that kids' lives are micromanaged and there are social skills they'll never develop on their own," said Debbie Laferriere, who has two children at Willett, about 40 miles south of Boston. "Playing tag is just part of being a kid."

Another Willett parent, Celeste D'Elia, said her son feels safer because of the rule. "I've witnessed enough near collisions," she said.
http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/P/PLAYGROUND_TAG_BAN?SITE=FLTAM&SECTION=ENTERTAINMENT

 

[julianne]

You've got to be kidding me! Beyond Belief---this story is beyond belief!!!!

I feel sad for those kids. I can't imagine a playground full of kids not being able to play chasing games or tag all because "accidents can happen." So, are they now going to dismantle the swings? Kids fall off of swings. How about the monkey bars? Kids fall off of monkey bars. Better yet---let's go ahead and ban baseball too, because kids could get hit with a ball or a bat. Puh-leeze.

The last part of your post where the Mom says her son feels safer because of the rule....what a joke. How about her son just not partake in those activities that he thinks are unsafe for him? She says she's seen too many "NEAR-collisions". Hello? Who gets hurt in a NEAR collision?

Shame on this school for passing such ridiculous rules. Recess and physical education has been cut so drastically since I was a kid (not TOO long ago), now they are mandating what the kids can play.....

Kids don't get enough exercise as it is. We are raising a generation of kids who have no muscle tone, too much body fat, and no initiative to get outside and play. The only muscles some kids are using are their THUMB muscles when they are playing video games and text messaging!!!

Grrr!!!! All I can say is that if I lived there, I would be throwing the biggest stink about this and wouldn't shut up!!!

 

[jilly]

I heard about this earlier today on Fox News. LOL, Shep Smith was on a roll today, firstly ranting about airport security lol and then it came to this "Tag" story. Him and Jane Skinner were discussing it - Shep said it all boils down to liability, Jane said she guesses they don't want the kids to hurt themselves. He said something like - maybe they should hire more teachers so they can just carry the kids around!! (I just cracked up!). Then he picked up a stack of papers and said forget them using paper too - you can get a paper cut.

 

[reb]

I know how the we can be *totally* 100% sure that children won't be hurt at school.... DON'T make them go to school at all! in fact, it's best to keep them locked up in a closet all day. that way, you won't have any 'near collisions' to worry about,, injuries, exclusivity, no ones' feelings will be hurt, no one will get sued or be liable for anything.

 

[deespoohbear]

Hey, kids we can protect you from getting hurt by not allowing you to play tag at recess but we can't protect you from being KILLED by your classmate who is packing a semi automatic weapon in his backpack! :doh:

The education system in this country is a JOKE.

 

[julianne]

I know how the we can be *totally* 100% sure that children won't be hurt at school.... DON'T make them go to school at all! in fact, it's best to keep them locked up in a closet all day. that way, you won't have any 'near collisions' to worry about,, injuries, exclusivity, no ones' feelings will be hurt, no one will get sued or be liable for anything.

Too funny, reb...but you're right. Keeping them home locked up is the ONLY way to ensure the little ones don't get hurt!

Man, some of the very BEST playing time I had when I was a kid didn't come from toys, or board games, or any kind of games that involved "things." My best times were when it was just a bunch of us kids running around, chasing each other and playing tag. Just pure, unabashed, giggly FUN. Sure, sometimes it resulted in skinned knees, minor bruises and the occasional tears. Isn't that part of childhood?

What really stinks about this story is that in this world today, with all the child predators and freaks who want to prey on our kids, oftentimes we cannot allow our children the freedom to play like that in our own neighborhoods. It is oftentimes too dangerous to let our kids outside to play, unsupervised, with a bunch of other kids. They at least are able to do that at school, at recess. Sure, it's within the confines of the school grounds, but it's generally a really large area where they have the freedom to run about in a safe area. Now they can't even do that in the town mentioned in the story. Unreal.

I'm really surprised to hear that some parents there are in full support of the ban. I realize it's all about liability, but at what cost? Some things are more important than the fear of losing money....namely, our kids ability to be kids. Shame on this principal, shame on this school, and shame on the school board for allowing such a ridiculous rule to be put in place.

 

[SheWhoMustNotBeNamed]

When I first read the title of this thread, I thought it was referring to Tag body spray. That would certainly fit under bizarre too, but banning the game of tag??? That is just rediculous. Everything kids do can be dangerous! First they're banning tag because it could get someone hurt, next they'll be banning kickball because some kids get picked last and it hurts their feelings. Sad, yes, but not a reason to ban it. Let the kids play!!!

 

[kgeaux]

Hey, kids we can protect you from getting hurt by not allowing you to play tag at recess but we can't protect you from being KILLED by your classmate who is packing a semi automatic weapon in his backpack! :doh:

The education system in this country is a JOKE.

You are SO right. Make a mountain out of a molehill and ignore the real mountain.....

 

[Beyond Belief]

I'll use the kids word for this and thats "it sucks".

Tag ur it! Anyone can play and its silly and fun.

 

[Jacobi]

The real issue at the heart of story is the lawsuit-happy culture that permeates society. It's only out of fear of being sued that drastic (and seemingly ridiculous) precautions have to be taken. However, I do agree that unsupervised contact sports should be banned, but I don't believe tag is a sport, so banning it is a tad extreme.

 

[SadieMae]

Oh wow! I can't believe something like that passes at a school, and then on CNN the next story was about a school teaching the children to cuss. Imagine that! Their reasoning...it takes the stigma out of cuss words. Geeze am I glad my kids are not longer in school! Kids can't play tag, but it's ok to teach em how to cuss. What is the world coming to? :doh:

 

[txsvicki]

I can't believe that any school district in the U.S. can even be sued in the first place or that anyone would even win a suit. I agree that the education system is a joke. They do and say whatever they please. Last year my grandson claimed that he was being bullied and even threatened. My husband went to the administrator wanting a transfer but we were denied. Now I find out that there is a bullying law and we should have gotten a transfer. Bullying is much more dangerous than tag. The schools are liars where I live, but they still allow tag because my grand daughter was falling all over the ground the other day playing tag and having a ball.

 

[julianne]

The real issue at the heart of story is the lawsuit-happy culture that permeates society. It's only out of fear of being sued that drastic (and seemingly ridiculous) precautions have to be taken. However, I do agree that unsupervised contact sports should be banned, but I don't believe tag is a sport, so banning it is a tad extreme.

I think the real issue is that we continue to remove the state of childhood from the world, bit by bit. Some people view children as little adults, and therefore think they need to act and behave in a manner of little adults. I realize that these rules and bans are in an effort to avoid being sued. So, it all boils down to money. When and why did money more important to some people than childhood? Where does it end? What's the TRUE cost? Are they going to remove playground equipment next? How about banning bicycles? Rollerblades? Baseballs, footballs, basketballs....you name it. In fact, why don't we have the kids, oops-I mean little adults, just stand around during recess? We could each give them a 2x2 square to stand in.

As far as unsupervised contact sports being banned....well, kids are not on playgrounds unsupervised. There are aids, teachers or even designated playground personnel supervising what is going on in the playground. I think the only times contact sports are TRULY unsupervised is when the neighborhood kids get together at the park and get a game going. We're going to ban that, too? What, should cops patrol parks looking for illegal games of childrens football? Why in the world should contact sports be banned? How about the parents who are against them just parent their own children and not allow them to participate instead of mandating what MY child can and cannot play? When you're dealing with children, almost ALL sports are contact sports...football, baseball, kickball, basketball...it goes on and on.

The state of some of todays childrens and the world we live in is in jeopardy. It has been proven time and time again that most children who are involved in sports on a regular basis do better in school, have higher self esteem and tend to not be as involved in questionable, negative and dangerous activities. That's not saying that kids who don't play sports don't have high self esteem or do good in school---that's not the case. But being involved in sports is a healthy, positive, enriching experience for most children and is a deterrent to drugs and gang activity....so, yeah, makes perfect sense to ban some of them. :doh: After all, banning them potentially saves money, and that is oh so much more important than OUR FUTURE.:waitasec:

Again, it's absolutely fine if a parent doesn't want THEIR child participating in certain sports, but it is not absolutely fine for that parent to keep MY child from participating. Just my opinion, of course, albeit a very strong one, LOL. I just think this is ridiculous with a capital R.

 

[cappuccina]

Right on the money...

 

[Jacobi]

As far as unsupervised contact sports being banned....well, kids are not on playgrounds unsupervised. There are aids, teachers or even designated playground personnel supervising what is going on in the playground. I think the only times contact sports are TRULY unsupervised is when the neighborhood kids get together at the park and get a game going.

I was only talking about children in primary school (up to ten years old). Logically, the younger they are the more supervision they require. If there is sufficient supervision then I would have no problem with contact sports being played in the playground. I agree that sports can play an important part in a child's life and development.

Again, it's absolutely fine if a parent doesn't want THEIR child participating in certain sports, but it is not absolutely fine for that parent to keep MY child from participating. Just my opinion, of course, albeit a very strong one, LOL. I just think this is ridiculous with a capital R.

I can certainly understand your opinion. If my child were not allowed to practice on the piano because of the complaints of noise, I would probably think along the same lines. However, when dealing with sports, especially at such a young age, their is a level of risk involved that I think is often disregarded. Even if you are willing to accept the risks, unless the children play in a segregated playing field, non-participating children could get injured, and at that point I would have to draw the line. I don't think it's unreasonable to want proper supervision and boundaries when dealing with contact sports.

Perhaps consenting parents should sign waivers to prevent them from suing the school. That actually might change a few minds in the committee.

 

[Amraann]

ATTLEBORO, Mass. (AP) -- Tag, you're out! Officials at an elementary school south of Boston have banned kids from playing tag, touch football and any other unsupervised chase game during recess for fear they'll get hurt and hold the school liable.

Recess is "a time when accidents can happen," said Willett Elementary School Principal Gaylene Heppe, who approved the ban.

While there is no districtwide ban on contact sports during recess, local rules have been cropping up. Several school administrators around Attleboro, a city of about 45,000 residents, took aim at dodgeball a few years ago, saying it was exclusionary and dangerous.

Elementary schools in Cheyenne, Wyo., and Spokane, Wash., also recently banned tag during recess. A suburban Charleston, S.C., school outlawed all unsupervised contact sports.

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"I think that it's unfortunate that kids' lives are micromanaged and there are social skills they'll never develop on their own," said Debbie Laferriere, who has two children at Willett, about 40 miles south of Boston. "Playing tag is just part of being a kid."

Another Willett parent, Celeste D'Elia, said her son feels safer because of the rule. "I've witnessed enough near collisions," she said.
http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/P/PLAYGROUND_TAG_BAN?SITE=FLTAM&SECTION=ENTERTAINMENT

Lady what on earth kind of wimpy whiny mama's boy are you raising?????

NO wonder everyone grows up and needs therapy and prozac.
What is wrong with these people?
Children have colisions! They fall out of tree's and off monkey bars...
THey need stitches and occasionally break a bone.
A little scrape or a cast never hurt anyone. How on earth are these kids going to survive the real world as adults?
You cannot say anything that may "upset"them.
God forbid they get chicken pox

I guess the solution is we put them all in little bubbles and they can be taught via virtual classrooms from computers at home and play tag online while they see the pretty outside landscape screen saver. For vacation ...
Change the desktop to the beach picture!

 

[Paladin]

The real issue at the heart of story is the lawsuit-happy culture that permeates society. It's only out of fear of being sued that drastic (and seemingly ridiculous) precautions have to be taken.

Ding ding ding ding ding! We have a winner!

 

[CyberLaw]

What's next hopscotch? Kids may use those "small pieces" of sticks, pebbles, chalk to OMG throw at each other.

I guess all these kids can do is walk around in circles in the playground, but OMG one might trip. Better yet, keep them safe and sound, tied to their desk, safe indoors, and forgo recess.

Please, these are kids......the only time I heard from the school with my kids is if one of them had to go to the hospital or banged their head.

Plenty of bandages....ice packs.........scrapes and cuts.....its part of being an "active" kid.

 

[cappuccina]

....games at my daughter's elementary school last year, some of the boys decided to have a cricket eating contest! There was an area of the playground overrun with crickets; the boys had a contest refereed by the girls!

After this was reported to the principal, she loosened up somewhat on the games she allowed, but the whole recess overprotection thing is a crock of ***** IMO. The kids need to let off steam...

 

[CyberLaw]

You know it is a sad day when kids cannot be kids at recess at school, getting physical exercise(could be the only time they get any exercise), running jumping playing and "learning to be social, work in a team, get along with each other, all because of the "threat" of a lawsuit from adult parents.

I wonder what the cause of action would be.....