Ah, fall. Cooler temps and changing colors. The time when schoolchildren can be heard laughing in the play yard and seen running with abandon.
Or, perhaps not.
Parents around the country are complaining that their kids are given less free time at school each day to run and play, that recess is falling victim to added academic requirements. Cynics say perennial standardized testing squeezes every bit of fun out of the seven-hour day.
This article from the Greater Good Science Center isn’t new – it’s from 2008 – but it’s getting new life on social media as young mommies join the author in asking, “Can we play?”
From 1997 to 2003, kids’ time outdoors dropped by half, according to a study by Sandra Hofferth at the University of Maryland. They doubled their time spent in organized sports, and they increased from 30 minutes to 3 hours their “passive leisure” activities (not including television). Schools are under increasing pressure to “leave no child behind.”
“I do wish the children had at least 30 minutes each day to play outside, along with P.E. time,” says Lisa English, a Merriman Park mom. “And my daughter tells me about children sitting out because they didn’t finish their homework. Children need to develop their social skills.”
“In my opinion, they don’t get enough time,” agrees John Mina, father of two boys. “Our 4th grader only gets 10 minutes of recess, and that’s if he and the class behaved and he doesn’t have to sit any of it out. Ironically, towards the end of the school year when everyone has summer fever, the schools run out of curriculum and they find other ways to spend the day. If they gave them a little extra recess during the year, perhaps they won’t spend time watching movies in late May and early June.”
“Our littles are at St. James Episcopal Schoool, and they get a minimum one hour a day. So I definitely have concerns at the thought of transitioning to MPE when it will be 15 minutes a day, “ says Mindee Haas. “I have overall concerns about how much outdoor, free, unstructured playtime that kids in our country have, especially having grown up in the Midwest on a farm & now raising two girls in the city. In a time when we are all glued to electronic devices, I feel like kids think, because we, consciously & unconsciously, teach them they need to be entertained vs. being creative and engaged in activity. And I don’t have the answers on what the best solution is.”
“The amount of recess or outdoor unstructured physical activity varies for students, and is generally longer the younger a student is,” says Katie Kirkpatrick, principal at Merriman Park. “So, for example, a Kindergarten class may have recess for 20 minutes each day, while in fourth grade it becomes 15 minutes. Recess is in addition to the required physical activity (P.E.) that schools must provide under Texas law. Our teachers also recognize a need for students to be active and moving throughout the day. Lessons and schedules are structured to allow for movement, peer interaction, and engagement…not like the old ‘sit and get’ learning.”
Merriman Park uses their Outdoor Learning Center and its popular addition, the chicken coop, to bring the outdoors into academics, and Moss Haven has a similar environment called “The Farm.” Several LH elementaries have added, plan to add or hope to add comparable facilities, though funds for these centers were raised by parents.
“Texas requires 145 minutes of physical activity per week,” says Adam Meierhofer, RISD trustee. “RISD schools typically do two 45-minute P.E. classes and five 9-minute activities, called ‘Take 9’. Individual campuses have their own programs, from Outdoor Learning Centers to Walk and Talk. In addition to the scheduled 145 minutes, students have planned recess times that are 25 minutes or so for the primary kiddos to 15 minutes for the upper grades.”
“The real challenge then,” Adam continues, “is for classroom teachers to funnel the energy and creativity to productivity and learning in the classroom. All teachers should provide opportunities to move around and engage in creative, hands-on learning through our enrichment model curriculum. Many utilize all types of differentiated learning to keep students interested and creative by using group collaboration, problem-solving projects, and critical thinking. My kids love working at the Moss Haven Farm. We just had some school-grown melon last night.”
“Maybe the perceived lack of unstructured play and creativity is compounded by the day-long structure that has taken over our kids’ lives. When I was little, my mom said, ‘go play outside with your brothers and friends, and if I see you in the house I will put you to work.’ Unfortunately or not, today it seems like our kids dismiss from school and go to piano, French, and gymnastics where they get picked up to eat in the car on the way to soccer practice. At least when they get home they will have an hour of homework before they go to bed. I think maybe us parents suffer the same dilemma as schools to provide enough opportunities for rigor and success as well as time to just be kids. I guess it depends on who you are asking. Yesterday my daughter learned to ride her bike without training wheels, but she also had to read the next Bob Book before bed. If every day were only a weekend!”
“As a child, play time seemed way too short,” laughs LHHS senior cheerleader Peyton Williams, who attended Lake Highlands Elementary. “Once you get in high school, your free time is spent in other activities and sitting at your kitchen table doing homework. Recess was always the time for me and my friends to express our creativity and just be kids. We let out the energy we had been holding up all day in the classroom.”
