Check this out. It's amazing how often I come across these kinds of stories nowadays, as I look for evidence of sanity in the way we encourage kids to play.


A "trouble-free playground"? It sounds pretty boring to me. I'm sure these educators mean well, trying to protect children from what they perceive as traumatic experiences, but that principal seems downright out of her mind. They're trying to get away from the "I'm on this team, you're on that team, throw me the ball"? Why? What's wrong with being on a team? What's wrong with playing ball sports like basketball, football, soccer, and baseball?

I honestly don't understand this recent obsession with making sure kids never lose. Maybe we should be happy about it, since there's nothing more non-competitive than using imagination to play with a Kids Crooked House, but we obviously believe in a mix of all kinds of play. Sometimes, it's good to collaborate and create and see where the idea takes you, but it's also competition that can bring out the best in us. It's the challenge of the opponent that forces us to find out what we're made of.

If mediocre is always good enough, why be great?

Part of our active play manifesto is to let kids be kids. Educators, you've got the rest of the day, stop trying to meddle in recess. Just let them play and stay out of it.