Some students in San Antonio, Texas have been told they can’t bring sunscreen to school.
The concern is that children may be allergic to it, or they may eat it or spray it in someone’s eyes, according to the school board.
“If a student brings a doctor’s note, sunscreen can be kept in the nurse’s office,” a representative from San Antonio’s North East Independent School District told TKN in an email.
“In addition, sunscreen bottles actual say to keep out of the reach of children,” said Aubrey Mika Chancellor.
However, some parents are concerned. One mother told Keye TV, a news broadcaster in Texas, that her 10-year-old daughter went on a field trip and got a sunburn.
Not only are sunburns painful, but getting too many of them has been linked to possible skin cancer later in life.
Students in San Antonio schools “are in air-conditioned classrooms and during recess, play on a covered playground,” says Chancellor.
She said that for outdoor field trips, the school board’s Medical Advisory Committee, which includes several doctors, reviews the policy for those days.
Sunscreens need to be reapplied frequently when skin is exposed to the sun.
In San Antonio, unless a student has a doctor’s note, their sunscreen has to stay at home.
CURRICULUM CONNECTIONS
By Jonathan Tilly
Writing/Discussion Prompt
Do you agree with the school board’s decision? Why or why not? If not, what solution would you suggest in its place? If yes, do you think all school boards should follow San Antonio’s example?
Reading Prompt: Extending Understanding
What are some of the rules at your school. Which rules do you like and which one do you dislike? Why? What steps can you take when you disagree with a rule or when you would like to see a new rule created?
Primary
Extend understanding of texts by connecting the ideas in them to their own knowledge and experience, to other familiar texts, and to the world around them (OME, Reading: 1.6).
Junior
Extend understanding of texts by connecting the ideas in them to their own knowledge, experience, and insights, to other familiar texts, and to the world around them (OME, Reading: 1.6).
Intermediate
Extend understanding of texts, including increasingly complex or difficult texts, by connecting the ideas in them to their own knowledge, experience, and insights, to other familiar texts, and to the world around them (OME, Reading: 1.6).
Language Feature: Word Origin
The words “allergy” and “allergic” are just over 100 years old. That means that they are fairly new. The word “allergic” is a combination of two Greek words: “allos” which means “other, different, strange” and “ergon” which means “activity.”
Does knowing the origin of the word “allergy” help with your understanding of what an allergic reaction is? Why or why not?
