Kindergarten Teacher Bans Legos For Boys Citing ‘Gender Equity’

A kindergarten teacher in Washington state decided to take it upon herself to constrict who can and can't play with legos.  Even though the boys loved them and the girls barely touched them, she decided to ban all boys from playing with them as a way to entice the girls to start.

“I always tell the boys, ‘You’re going to have a turn’ — and I’m like, ‘Yeah, when hell freezes over’ in my head,” Keller told the Bainbridge Island Review. “I tell them, ‘You’ll have a turn’ because I don’t want them to feel bad.”

After purchasing pink and purple legos to try to get the girls involved, she noticed it still wasn't doing the trick and instituted the ban.

“I had to do the ‘girls only Lego club’ to boost it more,” Keller said. “Boys get ongoing practice and girls are shut out of those activities, which just kills me. Until girls get it into their system that building is cool, building is ‘what I want to do’ — I want to protect that.”

Whether banning kids from what they love is the best tactic to get others involved is up for debate.  Keller says that Lego play helps with development acceleration and math skills, while dolls offer little challenge or opportunity for growth and wants to encourage all kids to build.

In the name of "gender equity," has she gone too far?