Ridiculous. I've volunteered weekly in my daughter's classes for K and 1st grade. When the little ones see you every week and get to know you guess what they do? They come up and hug you.

I'm not sure how a ban on hugging would work. Would the children be punished for hugging me? Would I be punished if I didn't hold my hands up in the air in an obvious non-hugging gesture?

Goodness! Kids hug. Especially at the grade school level. I taught third grade and fourth grade for a while and taught the kids to side-ways hug. No little heads nestled right between my breasts! I love hugs, but my students seemed to be touch starved and it would sometimes get to be wayyy too much.

I am reminded of 1984, in which unorthodox thoughts of ownlife does not serve Party needs, and which can only lead to thoughtcrime.
Big Brother is no less real for having no name and many heads.

Well, c'mon, these kids might hug somebody and then chew their sandwich into little hearts instead of little guns. We couldn't have that now could we?

PTA President Trisha Post explained, "The idea of being on a playground and having somebody come up and hug your children makes some parents uncomfortable."

I think that's the tell right there. I'm not convinced this policy has anything to do with killing expression, or as one commenter on the linked story put it, power or control over the children and their parents. It's more mundane than that. The school administration is less worried about somebody hugging a child than about a parent raising a fuss about the possibility. St. Mary's Public Schools is covering its collective posterior, and in this sue-happy age, while I can't condone the position, I kind of understand it.

"Wouldn't parents feel safest if schools didn't have dribbling idiots managing them?"

Absolutely. Because in a real emergency, people like this would hide under their desks and leave the children to fend for themselves.

Well, goddammitalltopieces! There goes that catchy slogan. Now that we can no longer say "Hugs, not drugs," what are we supposed to replace it with?

Mugs, not drugs.

The kids could give each other coffee mugs.

Bugs, not drugs.

Perhaps the spread of lice could be marketed as a positive thing, as it's better than hugging children.

Slugs, not drugs.

The kids could punch each other, but at least they're not hugging.

Pugs, not drugs.

We could give each kid a new puppy!

Jugs, not drugs.

We could give the kids lots of soy products, so they'll all have boobs by age seven.

Rugs, not drugs.

Ah, they could take up carpet weaving, and share them as gifts.

This makes me sad. I used to love volunteering at the school and getting to know all the kids. I would get hugs from lots of kids. I guarantee you that this didn't just come out of the blue. Some hysterical mom complained about another parent giving her kid a hug, probably a father. This is more of that "everyone is a predator" mentality that seems to be sweeping across the country. Yes, molestation occurs, but not on the school playground and its usually by someone you trust...not some mom or dad who volunteers at lunchtime.

Off topic but how cool is this: today is picture day at school. They now shoot the kids in front of a green screen and sub in the background later. Yeah I'm geeky and probably late to the party but I thought it was cool.

They are literally killing all that's good about schools and making them little prisons for children. No love, support, caring. Instead of teachers, you'll get prison guards, people who stand there just to make sure that the kids do their work until the bell rings. Sad.

Dr. Gabrielle Principe on the science behind why the overstructured, overscheduled childhood is bad for kids.
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I can think of at least ONE valid reason for giving kids many organized activities: There is only so much homework and chores you can give kids before you have to figure out what to do to keep them from becoming couch potatoes - or running around unsupervised, with or without other kids, getting bored, and getting tempted into things like shoplifting. I'm guessing even SAHMs have this problem, since even they can't make their kids get all their exercise indoors - and they don't WANT to escort their preteens everywhere, and they shouldn't have to! But at least, they want their kids to have alibis when other kids get into trouble.

Would the children be punished for hugging me?

If the child is male? yes. This is mearly the most recent case

http://www.opposingviews.com/i/society/education/middle-school-student-ryan-blackmon-suspended-trying-hug-teacher

Youngest boy I read about being suspended for hugging was a kindergardner

Soon school will resemble a veal operation. Stick them in their pen when they arrive in the morning and don't let them out until the day is over.

This makes me really sad. When I was in kindergarten, nothing made me happier than running into the principal and throwing my arms around him. He was tall and heavy while my parents were short and thin, so he was like a lovable giant to me.

Leona, I disagree - at least for the younger kids. I want my kids to be comfortable by themselves, to be resourceful and learn to solve problems (such as, we only have one pair of roller blades and two friends, not world peace). They have to spend some time relatively unsupervised to do that. Mind, this can be inside - no couch potatoes here (no TV solves that). :)

This isn't to say that I think structured activities aren't useful (my youngest goes to preschool and I find it makes my life much easier), or beneficial to kids at times, but not LOTS of them.

My 6-year-old does scouts & gymnastics. Sometimes he does something else such as robotics, Mad Science, art, etc. Any more than that would just be adding stress - and it's nearly impossible to set up time to play with non-neighborhood kids as it is.

To me, the biggest advantages of structured programs are 1.) they can teach things I suck at (like art) 2.) they provide mixed-age groups, which are lacking during the school day 3.) they can help a kid either "go deep" in a subject/activity or gain confidence and improve a weak area.

You're right, I shouldn't have said "lots." After all, that would likely cut into their homework time and ability to entertain themselves.

But an awful lot of parents foolishly assume that THEIR kids would never do anything bad, with or without peer pressure (and plenty of kids shoplift out of simple boredom and loneliness, not because other kids dare them to do it) and so they take no steps to give kids "babysitters" of any kind. Even if you can't afford ANY extracurricular activities, it's seldom safe for preteens to have little or no time with adults. E.g., even latchkey kids who stay home all afternoon can easily get involved with drugs, after all.