One mother recently went to her daughter’s Maryland elementary school to ask why children weren’t allowed to play tag during recess, or even close their eyes.
“We were recently transferred from another area, and my daughter was surprised at how many rules there were,” said the mother, whose name is being withheld to protect her identity.
The girls’ new school does have a lot of rules – four printed pages of them. The mom found out after a school administrator handed her a copy of the Montgomery County Public Schools Playground Aide Playground Supervision Recess Procedure. Among other things, it states:
- Baseball and football games will not be allowed at any time.
- Random running, chasing and tag games are not allowed on the asphalt.
- A student may not begin swinging on the rings and rod until the student in front has finished.
Once they swing or climb, they must use an “opposite thumb grip.” (versus their teeth?)
The rules also instruct playground staff to “warn children if their mood and excitement levels appear to be rising to a level that could quickly lead to inappropriate behavior.”
After my mom sent me the rules, I contacted the Montgomery County office responsible for recess safety. They didn’t respond.
“It really feels like we’ve lost something developmentally appropriate,” my mother told me.
An administrator who met with the mother explained that the school’s main job is to keep children safe at all times. Mom disagrees; the main job of schools is to educate children and avoid interfering with their development.
Boston College psychology professor Peter Gray feels similarly.
“These rules demonstrate a distrust of all children, even playground administrators,” explain Gray is the co-founder of my nonprofit, Let Grow. “When we treat people irresponsibly, they become irresponsible.”
The mom said she felt a little sorry for the administrators, who had no say in the rules. (Just like kids.) She adds that today’s kids do seem a little rough when they play tag—probably because they get so little practice.
I’ve heard this from others who work with children, especially occupational therapists Angela HanscomHe points out that when children don’t move enough, they don’t develop proprioception, the ability to understand where their body is in space and how much force it takes to do some physical activity.
All the more reason to let children begin to adapt to each other in the simplest, most natural way: through play.
In his new book, Anxious GenerationJonathan Haidt recommends keeping Friday afternoons free so children can play nearby and bring more play into children’s lives. He also recommended that schools remain open before or after school so that mixed-age people can play freely in phone-free zones: we call this “let grow game club” (Haidt is another co-founder of Let Grow. Our Play Club materials are herefree.
Denying children the opportunity to play in the name of safety is dangerous. Even more dangerous than two kids using a climbing ring at the same time.
