Everyone Loves Recess, but Should States Mandate It?

Everyone loves recess, but should states mandate it?

From Oklahoma to California, states across the political spectrum are moving to require minimum amounts of daily recess in elementary—and in some cases middle—grades, often coupled with bans on withholding it as punishment. At first glance, these laws seem like a no-brainer. In an era of anxious, screen-saturated childhoods, guaranteeing more unstructured play and time to decompress feels like a policy lever that addresses multiple concerns at o…

Pediatricians Say Recess Is Essential as Kansas Debates School Requirements

Recess isn’t just a fun break for grade schoolers. It’s crucial to good health and good grades for kids of all ages. That’s the message from a leading pediatricians group, which just released the first new guidance in 13 years about this unstructured time at school and how it needs to be protected. The updated policy statement by the American Academy of Pediatrics comes after years of shrinking recesses and worsening children’s health. The group…

Pediatrics group issues new guidance on recess for the first time in 13 years – Devil's Lake Daily Journal

Recess isn’t just a fun break for grade schoolers. It’s crucial to good health and good grades for kids of all ages. That’s the message from a leading pediatricians group, which just released the first new guidance in 13 years about this unstructured time at school and how it needs to be protected. The updated policy statement by the American Academy of Pediatrics comes after years of shrinking recesses and worsening children’s health. The group…