aggressive playground games

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Home : 2002 : March : 10

aggressive playground games
By mm

I personally feel that "recess" should be left up to the imagination of the child since so much of their day is highly structured. However,left to their own devices I often see children on playgrounds exhibiting very aggressive,
unsafe, even violent behavior. I feel strongly that a large part of this can be blamed on the TV shows, videos, and films that children are permitted to watch under the guise of "entertainment". Given enough of this exposure, it is only natural that children become desensitized to voiolence and consider it a "way of life." Simply watch and listen to the role-playing that goes on

during a typical playground session. Interesting how there almost always is an element of "danger" in the scenarios the kids make up. Although I do feel that children need to be physically active, a couple of months ago, I got so tired of the fighting and accidents during this sort of play that I went so far as to ban these "danger games". I have been spending quite a bit of time reinforcing and suggesting creative alternatives. We have had some interesting discussions as a result.