School bans out-of-control game of tag

A Toronto elementary school is freezing a “very physical” game of tag after it left students with bumps and bruises.

A rough-and-tumble version of the playground ritual, played by older students at the St. Luke Catholic School, involved kids tackling each other, the National Post reports.

“The only type of tag that was suspended was the very physical contact” version, Toronto Catholic District School Board spokesperson John Yan told the newspaper Wednesday.

Yan said several students who played the game reported bumps and bruises, with one student suffering a serious sprain and another a hairline fracture.

The school is set to participate in a program next week with Toronto Public Health that encourages friendlier play and less bullying, Yan added.

A game called red rover, where two teams would link arms and students would try to run and break the barriers, was banned in many Ontario schools in the 1990s, the National Post reports.