Toronto’s Earl Beatty Public School is the latest example of a school overreacting to simple schoolyard accidents or antics. A parent at the school was injured after being hit in the head by a soccer ball. The response: ban all balls for the children.

The school issued a statement that “Any balls brought will be confiscated and may be retrieved by parents from the office. The only kind of ball allowed will be Nerf balls or sponge balls.” Soccer with the Nerf ball may not be quite as exciting as the real thing. The letter reads like a “the beatings will continue until morale improves” approach to governance.

A school cannot make school yards risk free because life has risks. I have had two children break arms, including one on the schoolyard. I accepted the break on the schoolyard as part of a child growing up. I did not call for the elimination of monkey bars or, as in West Virginia, swings. Before we raise kids who crawl into fetal positions upon seeing a real soccer ball, I think the school district needs to reconsider this over-reaction to a common fact of life.

Source: Huff Post