Don’t take the play out of playground.
Attleboro school officials received that message this week when one elementary school’s ban on tag ballooned into national news. CNN broadcast the story. Jay Leno cracked jokes about it. And the superintendent received a concerned letter from a group in California fighting childhood obesity.
The episode prompted the 6,000-student district about 40 miles south of Boston to clarify that only one school, Willett Elementary, banned tag because the playground is too small, not because school officials are against exercise or fun. The ban happened at least five years ago, but hit the spotlight this week after it was reported in a local newspaper. |