Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
Some of our recess times have been before lunch and some after. It has just been wherever it falls on the schedule. Usually they aren't back to back though.
I'm one of those who had three recess periods every day--morning, after lunch, and afternoon. I thought that was standard.
I really think that's one of the reasons why boys in particular have so much trouble settling down at school. When our son was in fifth grade, they only got about 5 minutes after lunch, and that was only if the teacher deemed that they deserved it. Why can't people realize that kids need to be physically active? Everyone spouts off about the length of the Japanese school year, but then they are completely uninformed about the practice of beginning every lesson with physical activity--stretches and calisthenics.
I saw a report on a network news show last year about a school in Illinois that now begins every day with exercise. They have also installed exercise bikes and treadmills in the classrooms. The goal was to improve fitness. They were stunned to find that their achievement went up significantly, around 20%, just from having students get more blood to their brains!
Curtailing recess in order to focus on increased time for academics is counter-productive. More parents should stand up and say no. I tried to do that in our children's schools, but the pro-test-score mentality won out.
We had two recess times. Some other schools in the district had three. It depended on how long the non-lunch ones were. Ours was before lunch and thirty minutes. Those that had three had a ten minute one in the morning and a twenty minute one in the afternoon. Or, it could have been reversed. Our lunch lasted an hour as I recall. That left plenty of time to eat and play.
I was at a birthday party for my niece's friend yesterday. They are in first grade, and according to them they get three.
For K-4th grade the kids have 15 minutes in the morning, 30 minutes around lunch and 15 minutes in the afternoon. Once they hit middle school they no longer had recess, but had PE for an hour each day.
I'm one of those who had three recess periods every day--morning, after lunch, and afternoon. I thought that was standard.
I really think that's one of the reasons why boys in particular have so much trouble settling down at school. When our son was in fifth grade, they only got about 5 minutes after lunch, and that was only if the teacher deemed that they deserved it. Why can't people realize that kids need to be physically active? Everyone spouts off about the length of the Japanese school year, but then they are completely uninformed about the practice of beginning every lesson with physical activity--stretches and calisthenics.
I saw a report on a network news show last year about a school in Illinois that now begins every day with exercise. They have also installed exercise bikes and treadmills in the classrooms. The goal was to improve fitness. They were stunned to find that their achievement went up significantly, around 20%, just from having students get more blood to their brains!
Curtailing recess in order to focus on increased time for academics is counter-productive. More parents should stand up and say no. I tried to do that in our children's schools, but the pro-test-score mentality won out.
I agree. It continues to amaze me to hear people beat the drum of competition with other countries, while seeming to completely forget that some of the greatest innovators of all time grew up not filling in test score bubbles. Not to mention the fact that as you say above, most other countries place great emphasis on physical activity.
Children are energetic beings. They need to move. I remain convinced that many kids currently on prescriptions drugs designed to make them focus could ditch the meds if they were allowed a brief respite out in the fresh air.
Watch the video. Clearly, these sisters understand children.
Last edited by cebdark; 10-11-2010 at 01:27 PM..
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
