Carpool Candy: A Ban on Silly in Schools?

My first-grader, Aden, came home last week all a twitter about whether he was going to be allowed to wear his beloved Silly Bandz at school anymore. Like many 7-year-olds, mine tends to lean towards the dramatic when it comes to telling schoolyard tales. So I didn't believe that Marshall School would ban an accessory as innocuous as the tiny silicone bracelets.

If you're a parent of a child between the ages of 3 and 17, you are probably familiar with Silly Bandz, Crazy Bandz or Zanybandz (apparently you have to be a certified loon to wear them). Usually sold in packs of 24 for $5, the skinny bangles come in all different pliable, themed shapes: animals, letters, sports, princesses and rockers, to name a few. Lying flat, their outlines appear, but their stretch ability has helped them slide onto thousands of tiny wrists all over the U.S.—and they've arrived here in abundance.   

After doing a bit of research, I learned that Bandz-mania has indeed swept the country. There's a Facebook page that boasts some 83,000 fans and videos on YouTube for kids to show off their collections. But not everyone is a convert. Time Magazine reports the baubles have been banned in several states, including New York, Texas, Florida and Massachusetts.

So what's the deal?

I reached out to the principals' offices of all the grammar schools in South Orange and Maplewood to inquire about their Bandz policies. Amazingly, I didn't have to explain the Sillies to any of them. The Clinton principal told me they had become a distraction, so they requested that students leave them at home. South Mountain discussed it in a staff meeting this week and decided to let teachers deal with it at the classroom level when it comes up, so some teachers may ban them. A fifth grade teacher at Jefferson made them off limits. (Tuscan had no comment, and I did not hear back from Seth Boyden.)

What I don't get is why this trendy trinket is different from other fads. My boys were equally—if not more—obsessed with trading Pokemon cards, and that was never an issue in school. Is it because the Bandz appeal to both genders and such a wide age span? Maybe there's something hypnotic about the bright colors that zaps the attention of all who wear them.

Whatever it is, it seemed excessive to go to the trouble of outlawing the bracelets in school. Was wearing plastic jewelry about to go the way of dodgeball in gym and running at recess? Now a ban on Silly? But then I heard a great story.

In this saga of censoring the Sillies, Marshall's principal, Dr. Angelica Allen, said the bands were becoming a distraction in class and on the playground. Apparently students were playing with them during instruction and suffering from trader's remorse at recess, soaking the blacktop with tears. The edict came down that kids could wear the bracelets, but not trade them.

But then this Silly soap opera took another turn. An enterprising second-grader named Jonah Meisels sent Dr. Allen a carefully crafted letter appealing the trading ban. During a recent school assembly, Dr. Allen cleverly used the letter as a teaching moment and had Jonah read it aloud to the students. The letter suggested the Bandz are not only fun for kids to wear, but that trading them improves three valuable skills: negotiating, math and socializing with new friends. That pint-sized Norma Rae also sent a petition to each classroom and gathered more than 300 signatures to lift the Bandz embargo.

More than 170 more student letters poured into Dr. Allen's office with opinions on the ban. Surprisingly, not all kids were in favor of Bandz in school—some suggested they should only be played with at home.

After taking the weekend to read through the letters and make a decision, Dr. Allen announced that students would once again be allowed to trade Silly Bandz at recess for the remainder of the year. A sweet victory for Silly fanz everywhere!

What a terrific way to turn a Silly situation right on its ear. Dr. Allen showed the kids their voices count by rewarding their positive actions. The students got an education in empowerment and the right to bare arms—or ones covered in Bandz.