You’re Out!

This spring, as children run outside for recess and physical education, many traditional games will be called foul. In recent months, games like tag and touch football have been chased off playgrounds and called dangerous and detrimental to emotional and physical health.

Donna Thompson, executive director of the National Program for Playground Safety, doesn’t think any game that keeps kids moving should be tagged out. “With the introduction of No Child Left Behind, people have put more emphasis on the intellectual part of learning and have forgotten about the physical part,” she says. “Kids need to learn how to play nice.”

But if your district already has blown its whistle on certain games, take a peek at the playbook in Fort Worth, Texas, where yoga, ballroom dancing, and rock climbing have replaced tag. Program directors there say the activities, which are introduced in fourth and fifth grade, encourage cooperation and provide children with a better understanding of lifelong health and fitness.

-Lisa Rassenti