I remember first reading about this new-wave organic parenting twaddle round about 2007. A small clutch of namby-pamby parents out west decided that tag wasn’t fair, and those parents became the trumpeters of a movement banning the activity from local public schools. Slowly but surely, the anti-tag movement spread across the nation and has now landed in the South Texas Suburbs.
Naturally, the banning madness didn’t end with tag. As of now, there exists a laundry list of banned activities, and out of all of them five are just downright daft.
The Banned List:
1. Freeze tag (in addition to garden-variety tag)
2. Whiffle ball
3. Kick ball
4. Dodge ball
5. Red rover
Why is it ridiculous?
Try as I might, I can’t seem to find statistics on the body count resulting from these childhood activities. Therefore, I’m going to go out on a limb and assume it doesn’t exist.
Childhood games never killed anyone. In fact, the physical activity is a lot better for your little nippers than letting them sit stagnantly on the couch playing Xbox (or whatever their weapon of choice) and shoving their face full of potato chips.
I played these games as a kid, and I turned out alright -at least according to my therapist. I know other people who played these games who turned out just fine too -therapist not included. So where are all of the injury statistics? Do we want our kids to wear a helmet every time they leave the house?
If you answered, “Yes,” to that last question, please stop reading this article.
As a parent who worships at the altar of old school parenting ideals, I find myself rolling my eyes at the sheer ridiculousness of these recess banning proclamations. Children’s games that most of us enjoyed on the playground are now being nixed because they “aren’t fair” or are “too dangerous. This might shock some of you, but life isn’t fair, nor is it safe. In light of that epiphany, how exactly does banning harmless recess activities equate to superior (or responsible) parenting?
Stopping the Madness My biggest problem here is that we, the outraged majority, sit back and do nothing; allowing a bunch of doe-eyed near-do-wells to decide on children’s activities, lunch menus and more. This lily-livered approach to parenting has led to my passion to be involved in the school district, and to shut down some of this widespread nonsense, bringing a dose of reality back to some parents who have clearly lost their minds. And if that doesn’t work, I’ll make them play tag.
By the way, you’re it. So what are you going to do about it?
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Why I Nixed Home Schooling
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