This Just In: Kids Can Organize Their Own Games

In case you forgot.

I'm not sure whether to file this under "refreshing" or "obvious," but a Canadian teacher who reads Lenore Skenazy's Free Range Kids blog has written in to report that

a few teachers at my school have decided to run a soccer house league during lunch hour for our students in grades 4-6. We have about 150 students in these grades. Typically, our extra-curriculars are very popular because most of our school population stays for lunch and we are a high needs, low-income area so free programs are usually filled quickly. My colleagues and I were very surprised that only 12 kids signed up! I asked my students why they didn't sign up. Did they not know about it? Are they going home for lunch now? Do they not have running shoes? "No," one of my students explained, "We'd rather go outside and play our own game of soccer." What??? "We don't need a teacher to help us play a game."

That's right! My students are capable enough that they can find a bunch of kids, a ball, some grass, organize their teams and a code of conduct for scorekeeping. Imagine that! Kids organizing their own sports and games!

Comments

[R C Dean]

Obviously a precursor to some kind of right-wing militia activity. It is unmutual, after all, violating the creed "Nothing outside the State."

Alert the DHS! Release the drones!

[Whiterun Guard]

Pfft. Canadians don't have drones.

Well they have geese with hellfires that we gave them attached, but someone lost the arming codes after a 3 day Labatt's bender.

[R C Dean]

Pfft. Canadians don't have drones.

Neither do Pakis, Somalians, or any number of others subject to drone process.

[Pro Libertate]

To be sure, other countries may develop drones, but only the U.S. can use drone process beyond its borders. It's in the Outer Space Treaty or something.

[Harlequin]

They may not have drones, but apparently these guys do Drones for you, drones for me, drones for everyone!

[MikeP]

The government needs to fund a study to look at this!

[Pro Libertate]

Calvinball?

[Whiterun Guard]

Kids can organize games. The Hunger Games.

[$park?]

Apparently you read the comments:

Nanci, on October 10th, 2012 at 3:49 am Said:

That is awesome! I love kids coming up with their own games! My daughter is in 5th grade, and is currently a huge Hunger Games fan. A few weeks ago she told me she had made up a Hunger Games game to play at recess. The first day 3 kids played. Everyday it is grew and grew and within a week she had about 25 kids playing. Basically the kids grabbed mulch as their "weapons" and from there it was a tag game.

[Clich? Bandit]

Is this for real or some kind of complex trolling? Her amazement seems genuine in which case I may start to favor soylent green.

[edcoast]

I got the impression she was like us and was being sarcastic.

[darius404]

I got that impression as well.

[Rich]

Imagine that! Kids organizing their own sports and games!

The nerve of those little snots causing people to lose their jobs!

[sarcasmic]

Better make this program mandatory before these kids grow up into adults who think they can make up their own rules.

[T]

One of the cousins (much younger) was in a no score participation trophy baseball league when he was younger. We picked him up from a game, and he mentioned that they won. Befuddled old people that we are, we asked him how he knew, since they didn't keep score. He looked at us like we were retarded and said "the adults may not be, but we all know who won".

This cemented my belief that kids are not nearly as dumb as adults think they are.

[Spoonman.]

I could tell my niece was manipulating my sister for months before my sister seemingly thought she was rational enough to consider disciplining.

[Clich? Bandit]

I did some reading (being an older first time parent) and there are many studies about how INFANTS have latent abilities to manipulate to achieve their needs. It is scary stuff when you start recognizing it and they saying "Damn, fooled by a baby." Ego = smashed.

[The Hammer]

This is why I think the Spartans were on to something.

[Clich? Bandit]

I have a 2.5 year old with a better vocabulary than most public school teaches. She can reason (kind of) and makes abstract connections. Next stop Harvard Law Review...she can't write but that apparently doesn't matter.

[Aresen]

This cemented my belief that kids are not nearly as dumb as adultsthink they are.

FIFY

[Zeb]

I am absolutely amazed whenever I hear about leagues like this. The entire point of sports is the score. Yes, it is fun to play, but part of the fun is that you are trying to accomplish something.

When I was a little kid playing soccer and baseball, I always seemed to end up on the shittiest team. I would have liked to be on a winning team, but it wasn't some big blow to my sense of self worth. The other teams were clearly better and deserved to win.

I'm not that old. When the hell did this happen?

And while I am remembering what elementary school was like, we used to have some epic soccer games at recess. Probably at least 50 kids on the field at any time. No adult control at all. I can't remember how we decided who was on what team. Pretty chaotic, but anything with more than 3 young kids involved will tend to be that way.

[The Late P Brooks]

The HORROR.

I foresee thousands of poor hapless children with their tongues flash-frozen to flagpoles.

[Zeb]

I think Canada has already mandated heated flagpoles.

[The Late P Brooks]

"We don't need a teacher to help us play a game."

UNMUTUAL

[BlogimiDei]

I like the "SOCCER ANARCHY" photo the most though.

[Mitchell Jones]

After ten years of marriage, my husband left me and left me with our four kids. I felt like my life was over, and that it was falling apart. Beyond my control I contacted prophetharry@ymail. com and after I explained everything to him, what my problems were, he suggested a marriage spell to be casted for me.just in 3 days after his spell was done, my husband came back to us. We solved our issues, and we are even happier than we were before.
Mitchell Jones

[Mitchell Jones]

After ten years of marriage, my husband left me and left me with our four kids. I felt like my life was over, and that it was falling apart. Beyond my control I contacted [e-mail] and after I explained everything to him, what my problems were, he suggested a marriage spell to be casted for me.just in 3 days after his spell was done, my husband came back to us. We solved our issues, and we are even happier than we were before.
Mitchell Jones