Tuesday 21 May 2013

Dodge Ball

Today at work, I was discussing with my coworkers about the sport camp I'm working at over this summer. We were trying to decide what games we will be playing with the children. One of my coworkers made it very clear that we should no longer allow instructors to let their group of kids play dodge ball. She felt that dodge ball is a form of bullying. The stronger kids pick out the weaker kids, or kids they do not like and throw balls at them.  This got me thinking about phys-ed classes and whether or not teachers allow their class to play dodge ball.

I am aware that many teachers do have issues with the sport. Personally I do not have a problem with children playing dodge ball. They are developing fundamental skills such as running, stopping, throwing, catching, jumping and dodging. I do understand children can take anything too far, but as long as children know the rules, and the repercussion of their actions if those rules are broken, I believe it is okay to play. Just not every day! I do also believe that you can adapt the game to make it safer. For example letting the ball hit the floor before it hits another player. I believe children should be allowed to play the sport, but under proper supervision and not on a daily basis. I do not believe it should be taken out of phys-ed, or the camp completely. What do you think? I would be interested in hearing about everyone's opinion. :)

1 comment:

  1. I've always been a fan of dodgeball, especially when I was in school. I could dodge a wrench so I could definitely dodge a ball. I throw like a girl, so this was always my weakest area of dodgeball.
    I always got ample play time because of my dodging skills, but others are less fortunate. Some people are always hit at the very beginning, so these people are always the ones who get the least amount of activity and play time. They are usually sent to the sidelines to cheer, which may develop sportsmanship, but not provide any physical activity.
    There are a few downsides to dodgeball, but ti is still a lot of fun.
    There are also many full participation dodgeball games and variations online to ensure everyone is getting some form of physical activity.

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