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Essays on the impact recess has on children
The importance of recess in elementary school
Awareness of physical activity in students
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Impact of Recess on Classroom Behavior
When comparing the amount of time American children spend at ‘recess’ during the school day, you will see, that it is considerably less than the amount of time given by other countries. Japanese schools typically have a 10-20 min recess period between 45-min lessons or 5-min breaks between lessons, with a long play period after lunch. In Taiwan, schools typically have many recess periods during the day; children are also given 5-6 min of transition after recess in which to settle down. British schools have three 15-min recess periods throughout the day and 80-90 minutes at lunch. Many researcher believe that this recess period is key to classroom instruction.
Research was done to determine the effect of a recess break on classroom behavior; specifically working, fidgeting, and listlessness. A southern urban school district with a ‘no recess policy’, granted permission for two grade 4 classes to have recess once a week so that behavior on recess days could be compared to that of behavior on non-recess days. Because recess was not in the normal daily schedule, the students would not anticipate it, and this anticipation could not effect the results. The days for recess were chosen randomly so that a pattern would not develop and be anticipated.
The study looked at 43 children, 18 boys and 25 girls, from a variety of backgrounds; socially, ethnically, and economically. The school was located in middle class-upper middle class neighborhood and serves neighborhood children as well as children bussed in from transient housing.
This quantitative study explained very clearly the types of children that were to be studied, the specific controls that would be used, and the results that were being anticipated. Researchers conducting this test were looking for the effectiveness that recess has on the student, if any. The children were placed into two research groups; A and B.
Classroom A’s normal morning schedule is as follows.
8:00-9:30 Instruction in their own classroom
9:30-11:15 Mathematics and science in another classroom (where they were observed)
11:15-12:00 Instruction in their own classroom
On the days when the children had recess, they took a break from mathematics and science to go outside from approximately 10:30-10:50.
Classroom B’s normal morning schedule is as foll...
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...gnificant research for educators to know and that if used properly it could, and would, increase the learning in a classroom.
Most public schools have a period set aside each day for recess that coincides with the lunch schedule. This proves that schools are taking advantage of the recess method. I think that the ‘anticipation factor’ is key to giving recess the greatest impact possible. Schools would have to devise a schedule that would shift the recess periods around so students would be unaware of the days scheduled recess time. This would be dependent on teacher and administrator cooperation.
I believe that the research done has ‘real world’ significance to teachers and students alike. The changes that would have to take place are minimal and the effects that would be achieved are obvious from the start.
Teachers everywhere would benefit from using this information in the day to day running of their classrooms by saving countless minutes trying to keep the class on task. We have learned that the most important parts to a lesson are the ‘first’ and ‘last’ facts. When you add recess into the daily schedule you have another ‘start’ and ‘finish’ for kids to remember.
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.
These are just some key points I would touch when trying to promote recess to school administrators or a school board. Recess is very important to our children and I think taking it out of their day to day routine will hurt them in the end.
Sindelar, R. (2004). Recess: Is it needed in the 21st Century? Clearinghouse on Early Education and Parenting, Vol. 18, Issue 1, 1-6.
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
We will still sit in a classroom for four to five hours before lunch. But when the bell rings for lunch, we won't just talk. We'll talk and we'll laugh and we'll play. We'll jump and we'll swing and we'll run. And when we come back into the classroom, we'll be ready to learn.
Recess is a time of the day of equal importance to regular school subjects, and should be treated as such. In speaking with my mother who is a second grade teacher at Valley Forge Elementary School, I learned that inclusive play is something that her school greatly supports. Inclusive play is when students play organized, team-building games together, opposed to merely chasing each other on the playground or roaming around individually. Without proper supplies such as balls, jump ropes, and sidewalk chalk, less students can be included in inclusive play and, because of this, their social, cognitive, and emotional development
Have you ever skipped school because you were stressed about a school assignment? Have you ever stayed up until the middle of the night to complete this assignment? We all know that there is approximately seven hours in a school day; however, this does not include the time spent on after-school activities. Most of us engage in clubs and sports. Most of us have jobs and participate in community service.
The school day is primarily seven hours long. Most students have a wide range of after-school activities. Some
This proves that kids Need exercise and time to themselves. Additionally, if kids had no homework, that would cut down an Hour or Two of
Many schools encourage after school activities, having a longer school day would make students less interested in those after school activities. Many
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
Permitting extensive learning in all subjects. Adding time in school also allows time for more physical education and a recess, which is often being cut for schooling, so that students can focus all their time on improving academically. Gabrieli, 237) Recess and physical education is an extremely important portion of a child’s development and this extended time allows for the student to get the time they need to be active while also having the ability to get more time in the classroom. Cuban makes two main arguments over why extended time will not work, the first being the cost of paying teachers and administrators for the extra time they are putting in.
There are many people that may view recess and a burden to the educators. There are professionals that believe that is not necessary and trying to get rid of their free time. Much of the argument being presented is the absence of a safe environment for the students to freely play. A rise of parent’s believing that it is a danger zone and the place for bullying to take place. Parents and supervisors are under the impression that recess is only a “chunk of unstructured social time in the middle of the day” (Brown, 2013, para. 2). Emma Brown asked Steve Brown, who is a parent of three daughters, his opinion on the matter. He states “Teachers should be teaching. Students should be learning” (para. 2). Although many times recess is considered “unstructured,”
...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)
There are many interesting statistics regarding teen pregnancy in the United States. In 2012 alone, there were 305, 388 babies born to teenage mothers (The National Campaign to Prevent Teen and Unplanned Pregnancy 2013). Even though 305, 388 is a considerably high number of teen births, the number of teen births in 2012 actually decreased six percent from 2011 and fifty-two percent from 1991(The National Campaign to Prevent Teen and Unplanned Pre...