That'll learn ya!

So this is my first bit of course work for my E.C.E program. Learning about playground safety. When I was a kid the playground equipment was way faster, way taller, made of way more metal and wood and was considerably more bad-ass. I kind of wonder if kids are missing out on valuable lessons in learning from mistakes when the adults in their lives are constantly kid proofing everything and making it seemingly impossible to scrape a knee and learn from it. Me having to learn about the appropriate surfaces underneath playground equipment to remove all legal implications because your kid is a dumb ass is well...sad. I have to wonder if this generation will grow up with a pass-the-blame attitude and view lawsuits as the quick and easy go to way of getting what they want. Are we really protecting our kids or are we setting them up for a life of false entitlement and legal bills?

In my town alone I know of an 11 year old who jumped off of the top of a slide and broke his arm. His parents sued. It was all over the papers. The family was compensated and the slide has been removed. An 11 year old knows that jumping off the top of the slide is not safe. He didn't slip, he wasn't pushed...he jumped. Honestly, some of these kids might as well be raised by baboons.