Link between Recess and Classroom Success There have been many studies on the link between recess and classroom success. Although aware of these proven studies, schools all over the world are still trying to squeeze recess out of a regular school day. Recess breaks maximize children’s performance and behavior in school. It allows them to take a break from learning, making them more focused afterwards. There is no way kids can stay focused for a whole day, when adults get distracted after an hour of work. Teachers are trying to keep the students in class instead of having physical play time, so they can spend more time on academics. Children should be given at least 15-20 minutes of recess every day. Recess is proven to be beneficial to a child’s …show more content…
She says,” The kids’ attentiveness decreased when they had to wait longer for recess, and rebounded after they played.” The longer kids have to wait for recess, the less concentrated they become. It is kind of like a bomb. The longer you wait, the closer and closer you come to it just completely shutting off. The kids slowly shut down the longer they have to sit in a classroom and learn. Wong adds, “ Preliminary results from an ongoing study in Texas suggest that elementary-school children who are given four 15-minute recesses a day are significantly more empathetic toward their peers than are kids who don’t get recess.” An ongoing study in Texas has proven that recess also affects the outward behavior seen from classmate to classmate. Students given a recess everyday, are obviously better behaved, and exhibit more kindness to his or her …show more content…
Hobbs’ article, “Dallas ISD trustee pushes mandatory recess in elementary schools,” he explains the major advantages that come along with recess. It has become more common for schools to take away recess. The reason being is either that they use this extra time for academics, or they take it away as a punishment. He added, “Numerous studies have discussed the importance of recess in improving social and emotional health and learning”(Hobbs.) Recess is a vital part of a child’s day. Although recess has been a traditional practice in elementary schools, many schools around the United States are starting to reduce or completely take this time away from the kids. Recess contributes many positive attributes to a child’s growth physically and mentally. It challenges not only their social skills, but also their physical kids. It allows them to gain confidence in making friends. It also allows them to get the proper exercise needed
As I wearily sat in my seat, writing an essay on the importance of electricity in the modern world, I caught myself glancing repeatedly at the clock that was so carefully perched above the teacher’s desk. “Ten minutes, only ten more minutes left until school is over and I get to go home!” I told myself. In most schools, the average school day is about eight hours long. Eight hours of continuously sitting in a chair taking notes during lectures, doing classwork, projects, etc. During these eight hours of school, students deserve a short, outdoor break in which they can isolate themselves from the stress of working all day and just relax. Studies have shown that people who take short breaks throughout the day to do light, outdoor breaks are more productive than those who do not. A short, outdoor break will benefit students due to the fact that students will have time to relax; students will be able to focus more, concentrate, and be more productive; and teachers will have more time to prepare for the next class coming.
With an increasing demand for higher standardized testing scores, schools are finding themselves in a tough position. The huge question being asked is how do we create more time for students to learn common core. The simple answer is, we don’t! Incorporating more time for recess is the key to success for students everywhere. Many researchers and educators alike agree that participating in recess increases students’ cognitive, academic, and social skills. The amount of time allotted for recess should be increased for students of all ages. A child’s well-being encompasses more than just academia. Children spend almost eight hours a day at school, sometimes more. The school system and
Some people might say that middle schoolers shouldn’t have recess, but, middle schooler don’t always have gym, and they don’t get enough exercise, so recess would be beneficial to middle schoolers.
Students may need to nap to compensate for energy expended throughout the day. However, if schools were to start later, adolescents would not have to nap, allowing for a larger window of time to spend with their families after school, even with a later start time. Another opposing argument is that students would have less time to participate in extracurricular activities. However, this issue can be resolved by making practices for sports and club meetings shorter and more frequent to accommodate the schedule variation. Overall, the benefits of later start times far outweigh the drawbacks.
A time that I did something that I thought I couldn't do, was to stick up for others. When I was in sixth grade, during recess, I saw a girl named Melissa crying. I went up to her and asked what was wrong. She said that people were talking about her behind her back, and that she felt awkward around them. I consoled her by letting her know that friends don't talk behind friends backs and that you have other people that you can talk to during recess. It bothered me how Melissa was sad. She felt a little better after we talked and then we played games.
Children can burn off bottled up energy at recess that they have accumulated while sitting through their teacher’s lessons. Lahey mentions that “studies have found that students who enjoy the benefit of recess are more attentive once they return to class”. This is helpful because the child will be focused on what they are learning instead of fidgeting in their chair. Also, providing breaks to students while they are learning can result in longer attention spans. Recess is a break that recharges the brain and allows elementary students to control their desire to adventure. Young children are easily distracted, so recess regulates this by providing them with their own free time. Students become more self-contained after they return from recess due to their tiredness. This is useful in class because children will be less hyperactive. The absence of recess would not permit students to learn self-control
Sindelar, R. (2004). Recess: Is it needed in the 21st Century? Clearinghouse on Early Education and Parenting, Vol. 18, Issue 1, 1-6.
Getting the social time that comes with recess can help a child socially and emotionally. Recess gives time students time to interact with their peers and this is when they practice things like role playing, negotiating, cooperation, sharing, and problem solving; these skills are very important for life long tools.
The article “Recess helps kids learn better in school” from The American Heart Association states, “After recess… students are more attentive and better able to perform cognitively.” This helps so kids can gain more information later in the day without having to feel like they are ramming a bunch of information into their heads at once. Recess allows a little break to let the information settle and for kids to relax a little. To add to this, recess makes kids “...more alert and able to maintain focus on the topic at hand.”, according to Kits: “5 Reasons Why Recess Helps Learning”. This increases kids’ attention span so they can learn more information later in the day. With this, kids are able to digest that information correctly instead of not comprehending the information at all. Thus, recess makes room for more information to be
Recess has been one of the biggest debates of all time. Some wonder if their children are getting enough time on the playground, and others may think they are getting just enough. However, recess is crucial to a child’s development. Allowing for more time at recess in the schools is beneficial for the student’s well being. Students are more likely to have increased social skills, wellness, and focus. Not only is recess cognitively beneficial, but also physically beneficial. Exercise is healthy, and recess is the best time to go out and move around.
Schools all over the country are considering, if not already applying, the removal of recess for elementary school students. Receipts have been scientifically proven to play a substantial part in the social development of a child, their physical health, and the amount of attention they pay in the classroom. For example, the Tennessee Board of Education says, "It is the position of the NASPE that all elementary school children should be provided with at least one daily period of recess of at least 20 minutes in length" (National Association for Sports and Physical Education). Keeping recess in schools could help lower the childhood obesity rate, help children to be more attentive in class, and assist in the development of their much needed social skills. These aspects are essential to academic health and to your child succeeding academically.
only 70 percent of schools (even kindergarten) had at least one recess period. Before 2001
However, despite the unquestionable link to a brighter future for the children who engage in it, less and less time is being allotted for play in the classrooms. As standards for what children are expected to know at younger and younger ages continues to rise along with the demand for standardized testing from the state, time for play is being sacrificed. Adults are choosing to get rid of time for unstructured play and recess to make time for this new testing interfering with the time allotted for children to learn independently through play. Cutting play and recess is a mistake, and here is why: “recess gives students time for social interactions: for students must be able to initiate, negotiate, cooperate, share, and build relationships with one another--skills that are highly valued in the adult world but that often are quite different from work or play under adult supervision and control” (Chang). Those skills learned through play, are often not the sole purpose of a classroom lesson and could potentially be the only place they learn those needed skills. Play is an affective measurement in the classroom as well as outside of the classroom and children can learn so much from it if only given the chance
Jaiden had to miss afternoon recess today for hitting a students with a stick in the face during lunch recess. I just wanted to let you know about the issue. I did not personally see the altercation, but was informed of it by the lunch recess duty teacher. There were also two other students involved in hitting the student. They missed afternoon recess as
...n, B., (2012) Yay for Recess: Pediatricians Say It’s as Important as Math or Reading, Available at: http://healthland.time.com/2012/12/31/yay-for-recess-pediatricians-say-its-as-important-as-math-or-reading/, (accessed: 05/01/14)