A Long Island school bans all balls during recess

Weber Middle School in Port Washington, New York has banned all types of sports balls at recess in an effort to prevent injuries. The school also banned “rough” games like tag. Superintendent of Port Washington Schools Dr. Kathleen Maloney said: “We want to make sure our children have fun but are also protected,” adding that injuries during recess can be “unintentionally” quite serious.

The school district also said that the new rules were made because there is “limited space” for the children to play due to construction on the school building. “With children in close proximity to each other, it is not safe for them to be engaged in unstructured play with hardballs,” said the district. Instead, students will be given soft nerf balls to play with.

The school is receiving mixed opinions from parents and others, but many think the rule is over-the-top. Former Weber student Malcom McCready told News 12 Long Island: “I think that’s crazy, because when I was there for three years that’s all we did at lunch — we just played football and soccer. I had tons of fun and I think that’s kind of like taking away from [students’] experience. They have to go outside and just stand around and talk.” Parent Francoisc Decarzalo added: “Kids are kids and plus with the obesity problem, that makes [the new policy] worse. So I’m against it.”