Hey Teacher, leave recess alone! In her Huffington Post blog article titled Here’s One Way to Wreck

First of all, recess can allow students to relax and release energy. According to “Do You Need Recess?” by Mackenzie Carros, “...’Recess is the one break in the day to relax and have fun!’...” (pg. 31) When a student is relaxing or having fun, it helps them take a little break to run or even walk around. That can help teachers with students that have a lot of energy and disrupt class because they will lose some of that energy outside having fun. That is one reason why middle schools should have recess.

On Tuesday we started a debate over if we are for recess and if we aren’t. I was on the pro side of the debate. With doing this debate we found out a lot of reasons why maybe recess isn’t such a good idea and why it is a good idea. For the pro side we found that recess provides an unstructured break that gives children discretionary time to engage in physical activity. We also learned that recess can be held anywhere. Recess plays an important role in a comprehensive school physical activity program and can provide a portion of the activity that a child needs every day to maintain health. We also told the con group that children learn through play. Free play allows children the opportunity to be themselves and use their imaginations. The con

Did you know that 15 minutes of recess each day could make your child smarter. In studies made across the world, researchers have found that recess has many benefits for our brains. Recess could help us from our behavior to our health and concentration. That’s why I think schools should have recess in middle schools.

“ I'm so tired of sitting in those same boring classes with teachers talking the whole class period, I would like a break in between academic classes.” Schools should have a break in the day where students can have time to get away from all the teacher talking. With that said, students should have recess in schools, because minor movement at recess can alter the child's physical health, when at recess with their peers they can learn cooperation skills and negotiation skills, and children learn many things by playing at recess. Recess can also help students with their communication skills, brain development, and physical health.

The general argument made by Steve Rushin in his work “Give the Kids a Break,” is that shortening or taking away recess all together for young children is hurting their well overall well being deeply. More specifically, he argues that recess which he refers to as “a universal human need” is being taken away in order to prevent bullying and lawsuits. He writes that taking away recess to prevent bullying is “like scalping in an effort to end dandruff.” He also writes of his own time in elementary school saying that all of his recesses would end “like round 8 of a prize fight.” He goes on to tell his own tales of the many injuries and torture from older kids that he endured reminding us that despite the harshness of the playground he turned out

Have you ever heard a child complain to someone about something happening at school or about them being too tired to do something because of at school or from not getting enough sleep? Kids now hardly get sleep because of after school activities ending too late, from staying up late to do homework, etc. I believe that if we cut back recess just a little that kids will have more time to get their homework, or classwork finished so they don’t have to worry about it later on.

Ultimately, middle school student should have recess. Although some may say that recess takes away learning time for play time, which they can do during gym class they are wrong. Recess helps student be able to concentrate better in their afternoon classes, so that they can learn things quicker. Which overall they will learn more in the school year if they have recess. It may take away learning time but without recess by the end of the day teens are daydreaming. And will take way longer to learn things that should take them 5 minutes. Recess also gives students a time to make their own decisions and learn how to communicate with others when they get jobs. It also keeps students active and healthy so that they are able to come to school healthy

One major reason why people support structured recess is because, “Recently, policy makers and funding organizations have called for more opportunities for daily activity as a means to address childhood obesity.” (Text 1, Lines 4-6). Structured recess lets students be able to play the same activity. This means that there will be less conflict because students often don’t agree with playing the same activity. For example, one group of students would want to play basketball while another group would want to play football. This doesn’t work out too well, and structured recess would fix that issue. “More children can actively participate in regular activity, irrespective of skill level.” (Text 1, Line 22). Structured recess can also be “a time for the child to make a personal choice between sedentary, physical, creative, or social options.” (Text 1, Lines 14-15). By allowing a structured recess, “Older elementary children may benefit from game instruction and encouragement for total class inclusion.” (Text 1, Lines

Recess is very beneficial to a students learning. Jessica Lahey, author of “Students Who Lose Recess Are the Ones Who Need It Most”, says that research shows that recess is an important part of students’ academic, cognitive, physical, and mental wellness. Recess is

Recess is important to let your energy out. And to go outside to run and play to get your exercise. People say that recess is good for you because you run and play and when you back to work in the classroom you pay attention more. Recess is good for your body to keep your blood pumping thought your body. Recess is all so healthy for your body. It all so helps your muscles when you run around outside.

Elementary school recess is an opportunity for students to release energy through physical exercise, learn life skills through social interactions, and continue to build relationships with peers independently. Recess is an unstructured social environment where some students shine with solid social skills while others flounder due to a lack of ability to initiate play, engage well with others, or assert themselves. One strategy to support and empower students to proactively solve problems without adult guidance is the Buddy Bench Program.

The first reason why I think middle school students should have recess is some kids need a break from learning. First of all, kids get to mad and frustrated on one thing and need a break. Secondly, kids learn too much stuff and then they forget most of the stuff they learned.

With the amount of time needed to be spent in the classroom many schools are cutting into recess time. Recess is a necessity for children to develop their social skills. It is a time when children learn how to work together, handle disappointment, share and many other social skills that will help them throughout life (Hurley). The absence of like skills and creativity in the Core is affecting children more than anything.

As a result to this the author states ¨For this reason, some of the that countries outshine the U.S in test scores, including Finland and Japan, have multiple recesses a day¨. In fact this can work for adults to like Google has a Lego station, Facebook has an arcade at their headquarters. Not only can recess help with learning but it also keeps kids healthy. American Academy of Pediatrics in 2013 statement policy was ¨After recess for children or after a corresponding break time adolescents students are attentive

No Child Left Behind has created a multitude of emotions and high stress situations throughout schools nationwide. Getting students to perform well on standardized tests seems to be the goal at whatever cost it takes to get there. Administrators have turned to slashing teacher prep time and much needed breaks as well as taking away physical activity from those that need it most, our young students. This writing will look at why recess is being taken away and the many benefits children get from recess. Information will be presented about the different benefits children get from recess and connections will be made as to how that may benefit them in future years.