The War on Boys

Article here. Excerpt:

'In a time with such a delicate political climate, basic schoolyard games such as tug-of-war have changed into tug-of-peace, and tag in one way or another has either been banned or adjusted at several schools around the country. While most of the reasoning behind these bans or reforms are said to be for the child’s safety, it may be harmful psychologically, especially to young boys. From an early age, the ways boys and girls play differs greatly. This type of reform in the schoolyard and within the classroom puts a burden on young boys and unfairly suppresses their masculinity.

On the playground, boys choose to play as superheroes or cops and robbers as a way of ridding themselves of energy and pent-up aggression. This type of play, however, is highly censored by teachers and staff when it should not be. Roughhousing allows for children to communicate non-verbally and verbally, and negotiate on rules in which they abide by during their games they create, as well as building emotional intelligence. This also gives way to the importance of recess; children cannot be expected to sit in a classroom all day and should be allotted up to 30 minutes of daily leisure. Some schools only have a 20 minute recess, even though organizations like the American Academy of Pediatrics recommend them to be an hour long.

Recess itself is crucial to the growth not only of boys but girls as well. Young children need to have downtime between the complex challenges of their classes. Without recess, children are more likely to not pay attention and become more fidgety, therefore it does no good to keep the children from being outside.'