I can’t stand knee-jerk reactions that result in banning something which enriches the lives and experiences of many. Banning balls from the schoolyard is a sure-fire way of taking the one thing most children enjoy doing at school and expecting them to just go along with it. When you take away a child’s right to let off some steam at recess through the healthy pursuit of a football game, you are potentially ruining that child’s day.
I sympathise with teachers and parents that have been hit by a stray ball. I was once hit so hard that I was on all fours during yard duty. It is an extremely unpleasant experience. But it’s still not a good reason for banning balls:
Earl Beatty Public School’s decision to ban the use of hard balls on their playground because of safety concerns has prompted an outcry from the little people in the line of fire.
Students who wish to play games like soccer and football are having to make due with foam substitutes, and they don’t like it. Some in this elementary school near Coxwell and Danforth have gone as far as creating signs and petitions to express their frustration.
“I think it’s great. They absolutely see the ridiculousness of this situation – it’s straight from the heart,” said parent Diana Symonds, who has three children in grades 4 and 5.
“It’s like kicking around a sponge,” said Joey McDermott, a Grade 8 student. “They’re expecting all the little kids to get hurt. We got hurt when we were younger and we’re fine now.”
Foam balls are no substitute. They squash under your feet and cannot be played with if the ground is even slightly wet. I know we live in a litigious society and schools are afraid of lawsuits.
That’s why I think politicians should step in and legislate to allow schools to look after their students without the fear of having to go to court because of it.
Tags: Alicia Fernandez, Balls, Ban, Bans, Coxwell, Danforth, Earl Beatty Public School, Education, hard balls, life, News, Parenting, Playground, Safety, School Rules, Sport
Topical Teaching 
November 18, 2011 at 12:21 am |
I agree completely. As unpleasant as some of the hits we took as kids were, they are also memories and stories we tell. Things that made us toughen up little by little, and maybe even helped us not be so afraid to take risks. I have had many skinned knees from doing backflips off the swings at recess, there were tears and trips to the nurse, but I loved flipping more than anything else I could possibly do, and was always ready to go again. Now I have seen swings banned at a number of schools/preschools and other places because they can pose a danger. The alternative is teaching our kids to never take risks, to sit on the sidelines and watch life happen, and always be so afraid of getting hurt that they will get used to choosing the virtual versions of activities than the actual activities themselves.
November 18, 2011 at 12:38 am |
Thanks Nicole. You are absolutely right. Swings, monkey bars and other playground fixtures have been banned or heavily modified, thereby stopping kids from being able to take the risks we learn and forge memories from.
November 18, 2011 at 7:31 pm |
Kids who do not soccer have plenty of time to get used to the daily routine of grown ups – maybe this is a fragment of the explanation why balls, swings aso are banned.