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I have found innumerable support for the benefits of recess in middle schools, which is refreshing because I was already on the side of recess, before actually knowing the documented research behind the benefits of it.

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Recess Providing Much Needed Exercise for Children

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Recess Providing Much Needed Exercise for Children

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I really appreciate this article because it shows that recess can actually provide the only form of exercise that some children have, and that is a crucial argument for keeping recess in schools.

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More and more researchers, educators, and parents are realizing that not only is playground time good for kids -- it is crucial. Here's why it just may be the fourth "R" in school, and what you can do to make sure your child gets a healthy dose of downtime.

Let me put this out there: I totally get it. Teachers are under pressure to make sure they've drilled reading, 'riting, and 'rithmetic deep into their students' brains--and there are only so many hours in the school day. So if you have to get rid of an "extra" activity to make way for more book timewell, you might as well go for the playtime. After all, school is supposed to be about learning, right? And what mom doesn't want her kid to ace The Test?

Still, I could see the toll it was taking on my daughter Mari, when, two weeks before fourth-grade testing, she dragged herself off the bus and into our kitchen--exhausted, tense, and frazzled. Turns out the only break she'd had during her six-and-a-half-hour school day was for a 22-minute lunch (quiet talking only). Recess had been "suspended" for two weeks so the teachers could get in extra test prep--and by this point Mari hadn't seen the monkey bars, bounced across a hopscotch board, or breathed fresh air for days.

And I was fuming.

I mean, prisoners get more time out on the yard than the fourth-graders at my kid's school--and I thought it terribly unfair that my 9-year-old was being denied something as basic as a respite from her classroom. This recess hiatus was a problem. The anecdotal proof was sitting--melting down--before my eyes. And, as it turns out, there is plenty of hard evidence, too. A recent multicenter study of more than 11,000 eight- and nine-year-olds, led by pediatric researchers at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine, in New York City, showed that kids who had at least 15 minutes of recess a day (even just 15 minutes!) behaved better in class. According to study author and developmental pediatrician Romina Barros, M.D., their conduct was likely better because, after hours of concentration, they were able to give their exhausted brains a rest before going back to absorbing information--something many young kids can only do well for about a half hour at a time.

Dr. Barros decided to conduct the study after observing a young patient's classroom--to see how antsy the student and his peers were by lunchtime. They were given no work breaks, save for 15 minutes of quiet snacking at their desks.

"They couldn't stand up or walk around, the heat was on in the classroom, and by noon -- when it was time for them to go eat--I had a headache," recalls Dr. Barros, who has two daughters of her own, one of whom is now in school. "It took the kids in that class fifteen minutes just to line up. They were fried." Think about it: As adults, we value--in fact, we demand--a little downtime during our workday. "But kids aren't allowed to say 'I need a break,' then get up and leave," Dr. Barros says.

In addition to the mental pause, recess appears to be the most effective way to keep kids active. A study by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation found that 42 percent of the nation's schoolchildren get most of their total daily exercise at recess -- more than do so in P.E. or after-school programs. For sure, in light of America's childhood-obesity problem (17 percent of kids between 2 and 19 are obese), participating in recess is one of the few inexpensive, readily available opportunities we have to get kids moving.

What's more, children who don't get recess miss out on valuable life lessons, according to Susan Ohanian, an education advocate and author of What Happened to Recess and Why Are Our Children Struggling in Kindergarten? "Anybody who knows anything about children -- particularly little kids -- knows that they learn so much on the playground: how to get along, negotiate, make and follow each other's rules, talk to one another, and fall down and get back up again," says Ohanian, who, in addition to being an instructor at an alternative high school in Troy, NY, has taught third, seventh, and eighth grade in public schools there. "But for kids these days, lunch is too short, they don't get a chance to talk to anybody, sometimes they can't even get a drink or go to the bathroom -- civilized things adults take for granted. It's barbaric."

It's been quite a while since I've experienced recess, but I have incredible memories of my time on the playground: I loved playing jacks and Miss Mary Mack with my best friend, Stacey; I almost got my butt kicked in a schoolyard brawl with the nerdy girl, Kim; and the slide gave me the perfect cover for staring at and daydreaming about Sean, who I thought was the cutest boy, like, ever. Most of all, I couldn't wait to feel the sun kiss my face as I soared higher and higher on the swing--a rare delight for this latchkey kid who couldn't go outside until my mom came home from work. Recess was everything to me.

So, if research has proven that recess is good for kids, why are more and more schools eliminating it? Studies suggest that as many as 40 percent of schools nationwide have cut recess--citing lack of time, supervision, and resources. Students most likely to get little or no time outside, says Dr. Barros, are those in low-income, urban neighborhoods where play areas are scarce--and teachers are busy trying to raise their students' test scores to meet strict federal No Child Left Behind standards. Meanwhile, there are some parents who don't object to seeing recess go away. They often have less than fond memories of the playground, and are keen on sparing their children the bullying they endured.

But there is also a large group of moms who couldn't disagree more. When Jennifer van Rosmalen, of Peoria, Arizona, heard that her 9-year-old son--and the entire fourth grade--had lost recess privileges for forgetting to bring pencils to music class, she thought it "cruel and unusual punishment." And she was flabbergasted when her 11-year-old told her that the sixth-, seventh-, and eighth-grade students in his middle school had gone without recess for six months because of an unspecified incident on the playground. "To me, it's like taking away air or depriving someone of sleep," she says. "These things are essential for health and well-being, and so is recess." Van Rosmalen says she appealed to the principals of both her children's schools--even offering to work as a recess monitor at the middle school--but with no luck. (The first principal, now at another school, doesn't recall the incident Van Rosmalen described; the second denies the mom's account.)

For Marie Walton, a Howell Township, New Jersey, mom of two, the outcome was different. She dug in, fought her children's school district to make recess a priority--and won. Walton started her mission after finding out, during a meeting about raising money to install new playground equipment, that the kids in her second-grade son's elementary school rarely, if ever, went outside for free play. "I was just shocked," says Walton. "I grew up in this town, and I immediately thought of my fifth-grade teacher--who took us outside, even if it was drizzling or snowing. I was floored that these kids were expected, at such a young age, to sit all day."

Armed with mounds of research -- and some 300 signatures from like-minded parents -- Walton spoke before the local Board of Education, arguing for playtime for all other township's schools. "So much pressure has been put on our teachers to produce high test scores," she told the board. "Perhaps you would see [the kids] perform better if they were given a chance to release the anxieties and stress of everyday school pressures."

It took many months of advocacy -- and a movement-sparking front-page story in the local newspaper--for the board to implement guidelines that, while not mandatory, ask schools to fit in at least 20 minutes of recess daily and to limit punishing students by taking away playtime.

The fight wasn't easy, Walton concedes, but was well worth it -- if only to help her kids make it through the long day. "They need fresh air," she says. "And it's up to us, as parents, to fight for their right to take a break." She and some other moms later got a more sweeping bill introduced before the state legislature. (At press time, that bill hadn't made it through the governor's office; a new one has been introduced.)

As for my own frazzled child, things--happily--turned around. A new principal, who seems to recognize the importance of playground time, has stepped in at Marl's school. Marl's enjoying her time outside, where she's found new best friends, gets to work off some steam, and, best of all, is able to just goof off for a while, hanging on the monkey bars, feeling the calluses on her hands and the wind through her locks.

What you need to know to fight for your child's right to play midday.

1. Get informed. Arm yourself with plenty of research about the importance of play to kids' development. You'll find great resources at Peaceful Playgrounds, an advocacy group whose Right to Recess Campaign includes downloadable PowerPoint presentations and studies to support the argument. You can also connect with your state's "recess advocate," who can help gather information and resources, here.

2. Get galvanized. Teresa Evanko Bilello, a Muncie, IN, mom of two, rallied a core group of parents to speak at school-board meetings so they could see she wasn't the only mom riled up about the lack of recess at her children's schools. "Make yourselves a nuisance if necessary," says Bilello, whose efforts successfully brought playground time back to the schools' schedule.

3. Get to the higher-ups. Talking to your child's principal about reinstating or extending recess is a good start. But if you're really looking to change school policy, take your case to the local school board (or higher!), where system-wide reform can be made. And remember says Walton: "We're the ones who vote these people into their positions. If they don't give your school what it needs, you can replace them with leaders who will."

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More and more researchers, educators, and parents are realizing that not only is playground time good for kids -- it is crucial. Here's why it just may be the fourth "R" in school, and what you can do to make sure your child gets a healthy dose of downtime.

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More Validation for Keeping Recess in Middle Schools

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More Validation for Keeping Recess in Middle Schools

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This is a great article because it also provides information that shows the decline of students in schools that do not have recess, in comparison to schools that do have recess. There's even information comparing schools that have too little of recess time, showing how even too little of time is ineffective in helping students learn and engage inside the classroom.

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Every schoolchild who’s ever squirmed in his seat, anxious for recess to arrive, can sympathize with students in Chicago. This year, many public…

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Validation of the Benefits of Recess in middle schools

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Validation of the Benefits of Recess in middle schools

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This is a great, reliable article as it shares the firsthand experiences from educators that can daily see the benefits of recess, such as a middle school principle. Susan Meyer is one of those principles, who says that this recess gives the kids some much needed unwinding time, and can even benefit the classroom as they might discuss previous lessons.

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The pressure for schools to improve student test scores is so intense that some are abandoning the childhood treasure of "recess" in lieu of more on-task time. Education World asked educators about recess practices at their schools and the importance of free time for kids to be kids. What might their responses tell you about the importance of recess at your school? Included: Tips for a safe and productive recess period.
"I believe quite strongly that there is great value in play. Play is learning lessons that often can't be learned anyplace else. I believe that taking away time to play will not raise test scores. It seems that with all the rush to pass standardized tests, children have less and less time to play and enjoy it," teacher Marlie Griffin tells Education World. In Griffin's school, Kent Prairie Elementary in Arlington, Washington, a developmental approach to recess was put into place to give students structure and help them to play constructively. The goal was to give the students some skills in play that they seemed to lack. "We had problems with kids who didn't know how to play with one another and kids who got hurt because they are impulsive and sometimes don't act responsibly," Griffin tells Education World. "We worked on this last year. We made recess fun. Recess had a clublike atmosphere, and the kids really seemed to enjoy it. The developmental approach worked fairly well for children who have trouble in less-structured situations and those with inadequate social skills." Kent Prairie provides three recesses per day in kindergarten through second grade. Third- through fifth-grade classes have two. Para-educators supervise the recesses, which are held on two playgrounds. Older students and younger students may mingle during the recess periods.

RECESS IN THE MIDDLE GRADES

According to Susan Meyer, principal of Meads Mill Middle School, older students also need time for relaxation and "play." "Middle school kids need to have unwinding and reflecting time just as adults do," Meyer tells Education World. "They can and do discuss stuff that went on in class too!" Sixth-, seventh-, and eighth-grade students at Meyer's Northville, Michigan, school enjoy a recess as part of their lunch period. The students have separate lunch periods, according to grade level, followed by a 20-minute break for recess. Recess takes place in the gym or outside, explains Meyer. "Students can use foosball machines, play Ping-Pong, sit and talk, or play basketball in the gym. They may play volleyball and tether ball. Outside, we allow them to play basketball, soccer, wall ball, or football. They may run or relax and chat -- whatever -- as long as the game is safe and they are in sight of the monitor." During recess, free use of the restrooms and a pay phone is permitted -- as long as the privilege isn't abused. Students may also see teachers, use the library and computers, do make-up work, attend study sessions, and enjoy "lunch bunch" groups with staff. The principal and the assistant principal are responsible for supervising recess. They have help from parent volunteers through a program run by the school PTSA. Parents at Lunch (PAL) gives the adults a chance to network too. "The school is the students' domain. Parents are always welcome, but many don't know how to become involved in the school. This is a great way to meet both the students' needs and the parents'," Meyer states. Meyer has several reasons for suggesting that middle school students need a recess.

Middle school kids are learning to socialize as adolescents. They need to try out various roles, and school is a safe environment.

They need to control their unstructured time to use it well.

They are growing at different rates and are at various levels of development physically, mentally, and emotionally. They need to be able to try out their skills and their muscles and use their energy.

The students get to relate to administrators in informal settings. Says Meyer, "It is amazing what I can find out about a kid [during recess time], or I can connect with kids I wouldn't ordinarily see. Lots of teaching goes on during this time, and I learn too!"

RECESS REACHES HIGH SCHOOL

"Many students enjoy sitting back on the bleachers or outside, just relaxing for a few minutes," says teaching assistant Brigid Heckman. "This world is so hurried up, go, go, go all the time, that we need to teach our children to stop and take time to smell the roses, even in the structured environment that school offers." Heckman remembers what spurred her to work with a superintendent last year and organize a program of community volunteers to assist with giving students a recess. With one aide watching the entire group of students, all the children had to stay in their seats in the lunchroom until the teachers arrived to retrieve their classes. The cafeteria of Greenwood Central School in Greenwood, New York, was so noisy that students were not able to eat comfortably. "I coordinated the volunteers," explains Heckman. "At the end of the school year last year, we could get volunteers probably three out of the five lunch days for recess. We generally had two volunteers per recess session." The school no longer needs volunteers because the staff has found ways to make more-efficient use of the teacher aides' time. Now every class has a 15-minute recess after lunch, even high school students. "Everyone needs unstructured time during the course of a day -- even in school! For children, recess is important; it helps kids develop social and physical skills, if in a supervised environment," says Heckman. "Recess helps kids blow off steam and take a breather. Educators need to know that high test scores are important, but so is a small amount of unstructured playtime, especially to a 7-year-old!"

Tips for a Successful Recess

Susan Meyer offers tips to help ensure a safe and productive recess period in the middle grades.

To avoid injuries, establish specific rules and make students aware of the levels of play allowed.

Invite parents to help supervise the recess period.

Cut back any bushes or shrubs on school property.

Restrict the play area to observable places.

Keep administrators moving so kids never know where they will turn up next.

Secure paid teacher help if it is possible.

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The pressure for schools to improve student test scores is so intense that some are abandoning the childhood treasure of "recess" in lieu of more on-task time. Education World asked educators about recess practices at their schools and the importance of free time for kids to be kids.

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What Do I Know, and How Do I Know It? What Could an Answer Be?

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What Do I Know, and How Do I Know It? What Could an Answer Be?

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I am fairly confident already that there are many benefits to keeping recess in middle school, I just don't have the research to back it up. I remember being in middle school and greatly enjoying the 20 minutes after lunch to socialize and goof off with friends before finishing out the school day. An answer could be that middle school recess encourages social interaction and is a nice break in the student's day to have some time to unwind and be kids.

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I am interested in finding research that shows the benefits of keeping recess as a staple in middle schools.