The funnest stuff to do on a playground is against the rules stuff.
We just came back from a tromp across the field to the playground behind the Christian school. Our play didn’t last very long there- because some smarty pants kid informed us that pretty much everything we were doing was against the school playground rules. Here are some of the super-fun illegal things we did:
*Sending rocks down the slide while someone tries to climb up. It’s like Indian Jones or something- trying to climb up a slide when a waterfall of tiny pebbles are rolling at you.
*Standing on the swings- totally fun! And really- what is the chance of a head injury?
* More than one kid on the parallel bars- this is just a plain dumb rule.
School rules should only apply during school- when school is out, it should be fair game- play at your own risk. This self-righteous little twit rained on our crazy play parade. As we left, it was all I could do to not turn around and stick my tongue out at him and make donkey ears. I hope he learns how to take risks and walk on the wild side someday- instead of becoming a neurotic rule-bound stick-in-the-mud of a grown-up.
Just a minute here…..! Most playground rules are based on “common” sense and should be easily understood and followed…. like, don’t throw your bat when playing softball, no hitting above the shoulders in dodge ball, one person at a time going up the slide ladder, no pushing in line. Sure, there are lots of “rules” that don’t work . . . . like, always color within the line, you have to costume like someone for Halloween and can’t be an idea, there’s only one right way to solve a problem, dessert is never served before dinner, etc. But, schools have to establish playground agreements to keep students safe and it doesn’t hurt young people to have to toe the mark and understand the difference between what might be acceptable between consenting parties in a given situation and when one might have to follow the group conscience. Carol and I used to hide in the ditches throwing rocks and pretend that we were meteorite showers until we got in trouble for hitting Walt in the head with our rocks . . . we didn’t become stick in the mud adults . . . we learned that we need to watch out for younger kids.
Oh, I know how you feel! When I was a teacher, it was a fine line between creativity and keeping everyone safe. The rule I hated was that you couldn’t climb up the slide. It was apparently meant for sliding down and it should remain that way. Who the heck came up with that rule? I would let the kids climb up as long as there weren’t a bunch of kids waiting to slide down. I think that there are a whole lot of skills requred and to learn as they climb up rather than sliding down. I also played the parent card. When I was in charge of just my kids, and there weren’t any of my students around, the rules were different. I remember reading an article written by an Early Childhood Education guru. It was about running inside. To me, that is a dumb rule. She mentioned that we spend so much time trying to get kids to not run inside and then, when they are adults, they are not exercising because they spent a lot of their childhood with people saying “don’t run, don’t jump, don’t don’t don’t (exercise)!” I think that she had a really good point.
I wasn’t saying that rules are not necessary- I was just saying that when school is out, the rules ought not to apply. The slides now – and all equipment- are designed so that you don’t get hurt falling off them- and everyone seems so worried about injury and (more likely), lawsuits. I think there need to be rules in place during school- but when we play after school hours- we should be free to do the crazy stuff, with an eye to safety of course. Hiding in the ditch and throwing rocks would be frowned upon!
Oh, I agree about the rules not applying when school is out as long as there is no damage done to the equipment. I think that little kid must have been a control freak in the making.
Who knows, maybe the teachers were secretly paying him for enforcing the rules during off times.
Walt frowned on the meteorite shower but imagine the stories you could tell about being caught in the middle of one!
It is so difficult to be straight black or white in some areas. There is nothing quite as sad as meeting a person, grown up or child, who is too cautious to take a chance once in awhile. We periodically meet rule bound people who will not sample new food, won’t understand a different opinion, or even attempt to view an idea from a new perspective. What a waste!