No balls at recess; kids might get hurt! No crazy cartwheels either
A middle school in Port Washington, N.Y., has banned footballs, soccer balls, baseballs and lacrosse balls on its playgrounds.
The students at Weber Middle School on Long Island also cannot roughhouse -- no jarring games of tag or cartwheels, unless supervised by a coach, reports the local CBS outlet. School officials said there’d been a rash of playground injuries.
Nerf balls are OK. Woo-hoo.
Those of us who grew up careening around without bike helmets, clambering over metal monkey bars with only concrete to break our falls and taking numerous dodgeballs to the kidneys may scoff.
Kids today are soft! Right?
But there’s a new emphasis on the danger of brain injury to children, and the statistics are sobering. The Brain Injury Assn. of America says traumatic brain injury is the leading cause of disability and death among children and adolescents in the United States.
In June, the L.A. Times’ Melissa Healy reported on a study done in Canada that found one in five adolescents had probably suffered a traumatic brain injury. Such injuries may be linked to poorer grades, underage drinking and drug use.
Caution seems wise. Still, parents were a bit disgruntled. One told WCBS it’s “ridiculous” to ban cartwheels and tag. “You have to let them live life,” said another.
What do you think? Tell us in the comments below.
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