I remember that just shortly after I went into High School the district cut out recess for 5th and 6th graders for a year. However, due to public outcry it came back, but was shortend to 15 minutes instead of the 25 that it was. Recess IS crucial, but unfortunately there IS alot of pressure on teachers to get things done. It's a sad sorry business.
Ha! You might a be homeschooler if...you kids know how to play and have time to do so! When did 'the test' become the god of education?
Don't you know children aren't suppose to have time to think, they might develop as individuals. Recess could be the pill that unplugs them from the matrix
I retired from ps 12 years ago, but even before that, at least one of the schools I worked at (I was itinerant and went to several during my work week) cut out recess because that's when the kids tended to get into trouble more often (playground fights, etc.). Each class had a scheduled restroom break, so they all had a chance to "go" and get a drink of water, but that was it. Cut way down on suspensions (both in school and out of school).
I loved this quote from the article: "I mean, prisoners get more time out on the yard than the fourth-graders at my kid's school...." I'm not sure why parents are shocked that when you send your kids to an institution, they are institutionalized. That's kind of the way it's set up.
In my state there was a principal that wrote an open letter to the governor begging him to turn his school into a prison so all his students could have internet access, medical care, and a fully stocked library. Priorities?
Talked to a ps friend this morning and she said her kids school has two 'fruit breaks' and a lunch break. During the fruit breaks the kids are suppose to sit outside and eat a piece of fruit, they aren't allowed to play until lunch break. She gets the impression that the fruit breaks aren't long enough for her son, who has always been a slow eater. She thinks the breaks are scheduled so that the juniors eat at a different time from the seniors. And now she's concern because she's just realised she doesn't know much about her kids school life.
I been working part time as a sub teacher and yes they have all but taken the recess away from the children so sad. Kids need that time. Why they need a break. Yes we all need breaks but when you are younger you need it more. What I see is the teachers are standing around chatting among them self and not watching the children. Yes the children do seem to get in more trouble during recess but if you have something for them to do like a game they are great out there I always have chalk, jump ropes and we play a good game of kick ball they love it and when they come in they are ready to rest for me. I think teacher need to have things for them to do and there would be less fighting. We all not just children like to stay busy and keep going.
When I was a kid, we'd sometimes have extended recesses (45-60 minutes) on particularly nice days and/or days that kids were feeling too antsy to sit through lessons. Teachers could just tell we needed a break, and they'd even put together kickball tournaments by grade/class to see who could win... older vs. younger. It was great!
First of all, I agree with all of you that recess is needed. When I was a kid, we had 15 min mid-morning, 15 min mid-afternoon, plus a half-hour at lunch. When I was teaching, we had the half-hour at lunch, and that was it. I'd like to see the two 15 min ones, too. BUT!!! I'm afraid I'm a bit paranoid!!! Some of the things in the article could be twisted to where teachers couldn't take the "right" of recess away from a misbehaving student. I can even see having the whole class stay in under certain conditions. Yes, kids need to be able to play, but they also need to behave, and it's certainly OK to take away the privilege of recess!
I wrote a paper on this in a college English class. I think it is awful to force kids to work, work, work without any play time. I don't even know how to express how backwards the whole educational system is and how it keeps getting worse and worse. One glaring thought comes to mind: When are they going to figure out that all of the "reforms" they are implementing are NOT working.
I feel that children need recess to process all the information they're drowning in at school, they need time to play so they can work through their theories and make sense of their world. Unfortunately too many children are experiencing abuse of some form and of course that is going to come through during recess. Take recess away from the trouble maker for a sensible length of time i.e. the rest of that day and the next day. Not weeks or months. Maybe if todays children were allowed the same kind of recess time Jackie and I had growing up, there wouldn't be as many kids labelled with ADHD because they'd have more opportunities to use some of their 'extra' energy. (No, I don't have a child with ADHD so it's just a theory of mine.) Unfortunately it doesn't matter what our personal opinions are when it comes to ps. That's part of the reason many of us homeschool, so we can each give our own children what we feel is best for them. PS parents often don't like certain things schools force on their children but feel powerless so they swallow whatever story is fed to them so that they don't have to feel so bad. One parent recently told me that it's good that their child's school has swapped to 'fruit breaks' "...because it cuts down on bullying and healthy snacks improve concentration so they learn more." True, but having the healthy snack AND time to run around would be even better JMO
