Why We Should Have More Time For Lunch:

By: Payton M. Iadarola

The first few days of being in 6th grade of the Hopatcong Middle School I realized that we have a very short lunch. When I mean short I mean, 23 minutes which isn't a lot of time at all. The reason why I want more time for lunch is because we hardly get to talk to our friends. Also, we don't have recess anymore and when we did have recess it was 30 minutes of lunch and 30 minutes of recess but that was when we were in 4th and 5th grade. Mainly, for a lot of the kids who buy lunch, some whose family rely on this meal, just as they sit down you hear the teachers say, "3 minutes left!" and that is not fair at all. Do teachers expect us to scarf down our food? Do the kids not deserve a fair rest break in their highly structured schedule? It feels like it. In this petition you will be hearing a lot about why we should have a longer time for lunch.

First of all, with only 23 minutes of lunch I can hardly relax enough to eat my lunch at a regular speed. We don't have any time to talk to our friends and catch up on our day. As last year proved, Socializing in person with our friends and classmates are just as important to our day-to-day routine as being physically in class with the teachers. According to the American Academy of Pediatrics, (2) they have noted an increase in anxiety and depression in children since Covid-19 began. I am not that person that can eat their food quickly. In a study by Northwestern Medicine(1), "When you eat too fast, you swallow more air, which can cause bloating and gas." So lunch for me is just: Sit down, eat, and clean up. How can kids get back to learning when they are nauseous and have indigestion? I may be able to get a few sentences in with my friends but that is it. Then the rest of the day we have to sit quietly in class, and I am sure that some teachers would like a longer break because they have to deal with more than 100 kids a day that are constantly switching classes.

Another reason I believe we should have a longer lunch time is because the kids at the end of the line buying hot lunch/sandwiches will sit down and then hear, "3 minutes left!" when they haven't even taken a bite out of their food yet and it is gross having to scarf down your food in 3 minutes. If they don't finish it then it is a waste of food for them and they go back to class hungry. If we are allowed to stay to finish eating then we are late to our next class and the teachers get mad at us. I just don't feel that is fair to the students.

The final reason why I want a longer lunch period is because the younger grades 4th and 5th graders have 30 minutes of lunch and 30 minutes of recess, and then the older grades (the highschool) have 44 minutes of lunch so the 6th and 7th graders only have 23 minutes. So I thought if we can find at least 10 or 15 minutes from other classes then we will at least have a 30 minute lunch break and the kids at the end of the line have at least 10 minutes to eat their lunch and we have time to socialize with our friends. Maybe get rid of some time in P.E. Also, as we are waiting for the 5th graders to exit the cafeteria it cuts in on the 6th graders lunch time. Right now we have to wear our masks inside and it can get hard to breathe while you're running around with your mask on. If not, then maybe shorten specific classes, like specials or time between classes, I am open to any ideas that would benefit the quality of life for the 6th and 7th graders.

Thank you for your time, and I look forward to working with the school staff in making school a better place for everyone.

Payton M Iadarola