An open letter to all parents and teachers regarding the subject of “aggression nurturance”. 

We all know that boys and girls are definitively wired differently. They tend to tasks differently, play differently, and learn differently.

In the last decade there has been a push to label lists of things “bullying” and “too rough” when these things are innately how boys play and explore their relationships with each other.

We do a disservice at the school level when we mistake boys playing for “bullying” or “rough housing”. Certainly there are boundaries to be held to for a safe environment. However, the touching, pushing, shoving, in play are innate parts of how boys explore and move objects through space–their favorite thing to do!

If you have ever watched toddlers of each gender play with a doll you will witness that most boys will want to dismantle it then perhaps nurture it,  or perhaps even throw it. While most girls will tend to it, caress it, and of course carry it.

These same things hold true on the playground. Let them get their wiggles out safely. The academic strides from releasing their inner wiggles and hormones are well founded.

Let’s let boys be boys!

A Plea for Boyhood and Rough Play

We want to hear from you, please leave a comment if you’ve dealt with any of these issues and want to hear back from us