Northside ISD Parents for More Outdoor Unstructured Recess
Northside ISD Parents for More Outdoor Unstructured Recess
The Issue
Research has shown that nature, outdoors, and unstructured play time has a positive impact on children’s physical and emotional well-being and increases concentration and academic performance. Therefore, it is the objective of this petition to request NISD elementary (and possibly into middle) schools increase recess to at least 1 guaranteed 30-minute recess before lunch (I will get to the reason for this), 1 guaranteed 15-minute recess, and 1 discretionary 15-minute recess and reconsider weather guidelines.
In 2013, the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) published a report stating:“Just as physical education and physical fitness have well-recognized benefits for personal and academic performance, recess offers its own, unique benefits. Recess represents an essential, planned respite from rigorous cognitive tasks. It affords a time to rest, play, imagine, think, move, and socialize. After recess, for children, or after a corresponding break time for adolescents, students are more attentive and better able to perform cognitively. In addition, recess helps young children to develop social skills that are otherwise not acquired in the more structured classroom environment.…Recess is a crucial and necessary component of a child’s development and, as such, should not be withheld for punitive or academic reasons.” [1]
Social Benefits
Today’s kids are under much pressure to perform, they have very little time to just be kids. With nightly homework and extra-curricular activities and sports, children are left with little free time. Moreover, in today’s technology-filled world, as children are spending more time on their screens, most kids’ personal interactions with peers occur only at school. Unfortunately, however, during the 7-hour school day, children are continuously told to sit in place, be quiet, and follow the structured curriculum. Increasing recess time would allow children to practice and learn important social skills such as how to get along, negotiate, make and follow each other’s rules, start a conversation, work out disagreements, stick up for a friend, and fall down and get back up again. They learn conflict resolution, self-discipline, determination, compromise and teamwork. If today’s elementary students get the opportunity to learn these skills, they will be better equipped to handle future problems, disputes, and disagreement in Junior high and high school.
Academic Benefits
There is a misguided assumption that less recess time leads to increased academic performance. Indeed, no research supports the notion that longer class time leads to better test scores. There is, however, ample evidence that recess benefits children in cognitive, social-emotional, and physical ways. Research shows that when children have regular intervals of unstructured free time during the school day, they are less fidgety and more on task; they have improved memory and more focused attention; and they develop more brain connections.
In addition, daily recess of 20-minutes or more in length are associated with improved behavior in the classroom. Yet, all too often recess time is reduced or taken away as punishment for behavior problems. Perhaps the children who get into trouble for being disruptive, need those breaks the most to burn off excess energy.
Physical Benefits
As the occurrence of childhood obesity, diabetes, and depression reach alarming levels, physical activity is of utmost importance to the overall health and well-being of today’s children. A longer recess would provide children with additional physical activities such as running, climbing, and jumping, preferably outdoors. While Physical Education classes do their part in keeping kids active, research has shown that children are more likely to engage in physical activity when it is unstructured and self-directed. On its own, recess cannot reverse the childhood obesity trend, but it can contribute to promoting the habit of an active lifestyle which is a critical component of good health.
Additionally, numerous studies have found that unstructured, imaginative free play increases the size of the prefrontal cortex, making the brain more efficient at making plans, solving problems, and regulating and identifying emotions, all of which contribute to children’s mental health and well-being.
On to recess timing- long recess before lunch has shown positive benefits in comparison with recess after lunch. "Many school wellness councils have adopted the “Recess Before Lunch” concept which stems from studies that examined food waste by students in relation to the timing of their recess. When students have recess before lunch, more time is taken for lunch and less food is wasted. In addition, teachers and researchers noted an improvement in the student behavior at meal time, which carried into the classroom in the afternoon. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the US Department of Agriculture support the concept of scheduling recess before lunch as part of a school’s wellness policy".[1]
In addition, we ask that weather guidelines be reconsidered. According to the National Weather Service, a temperature of 5F and winds at 30mph have the potential to produce frostbite in 30 minutes. With that said, we ask that temperature guidelines for outdoor recess be reconsidered to at least 30F. Although Texas is not a state that gets very cold, it is possible to safely play outdoors for 30 minutes. The Fairbanks, AK school district has it clearly stated on their website for parents to dress their children appropriately for winter as they play outdoors down to -20 (depending on wind chill). NISD should include the same clothing guidelines in their handbook. Asthma is a concern in cold temperatures but it's tricky. Spending more time, in close contact, indoors can also trigger asthma attacks and increase spread of infections. Most cold weather asthma incidents occur at very low temperatures of 10F and below. There are ways to reduce the incidence i.e. wearing a scarf over the face, using an inhaler before exercise and drinking plenty of fluids.
Schools in the Frisco ISD have been piloting a program of increased recess time and decreased outdoor recess temperatures, and other schools around Texas (including Seguin ISD) have implemented the LiiNKS curriculum which includes 4 15 minute recesses. [4]
In summary, we ask the NISD Board of Trustees to view recess as a valuable component of our children’s academic and emotional development, consider a minimum of 1 guaranteed 30-minute recess, 1 guaranteed 15-minute recess, and 1 discretionary 15-minute recess. We also request that recess not be withheld for punitive or academic reasons and that weather guidelines be reconsidered.
[1] American Academy of pediatrics (AAP). The Crucial Role of Recess in Schools. Pediatrics, Vol. 131, No. 1, January 1, 2013, pp. 183-188. Available at: http://pediatrics.aappublications.org/content/131/1/183.full
[2] https://www.healthline.com/health/asthma/cold-induced-asthma#preventing-asthma-attacks-in-the-cold
[3] https://www.weather.gov/media/safety/wind-chill-brochure.pdf
The Issue
Research has shown that nature, outdoors, and unstructured play time has a positive impact on children’s physical and emotional well-being and increases concentration and academic performance. Therefore, it is the objective of this petition to request NISD elementary (and possibly into middle) schools increase recess to at least 1 guaranteed 30-minute recess before lunch (I will get to the reason for this), 1 guaranteed 15-minute recess, and 1 discretionary 15-minute recess and reconsider weather guidelines.
In 2013, the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) published a report stating:“Just as physical education and physical fitness have well-recognized benefits for personal and academic performance, recess offers its own, unique benefits. Recess represents an essential, planned respite from rigorous cognitive tasks. It affords a time to rest, play, imagine, think, move, and socialize. After recess, for children, or after a corresponding break time for adolescents, students are more attentive and better able to perform cognitively. In addition, recess helps young children to develop social skills that are otherwise not acquired in the more structured classroom environment.…Recess is a crucial and necessary component of a child’s development and, as such, should not be withheld for punitive or academic reasons.” [1]
Social Benefits
Today’s kids are under much pressure to perform, they have very little time to just be kids. With nightly homework and extra-curricular activities and sports, children are left with little free time. Moreover, in today’s technology-filled world, as children are spending more time on their screens, most kids’ personal interactions with peers occur only at school. Unfortunately, however, during the 7-hour school day, children are continuously told to sit in place, be quiet, and follow the structured curriculum. Increasing recess time would allow children to practice and learn important social skills such as how to get along, negotiate, make and follow each other’s rules, start a conversation, work out disagreements, stick up for a friend, and fall down and get back up again. They learn conflict resolution, self-discipline, determination, compromise and teamwork. If today’s elementary students get the opportunity to learn these skills, they will be better equipped to handle future problems, disputes, and disagreement in Junior high and high school.
Academic Benefits
There is a misguided assumption that less recess time leads to increased academic performance. Indeed, no research supports the notion that longer class time leads to better test scores. There is, however, ample evidence that recess benefits children in cognitive, social-emotional, and physical ways. Research shows that when children have regular intervals of unstructured free time during the school day, they are less fidgety and more on task; they have improved memory and more focused attention; and they develop more brain connections.
In addition, daily recess of 20-minutes or more in length are associated with improved behavior in the classroom. Yet, all too often recess time is reduced or taken away as punishment for behavior problems. Perhaps the children who get into trouble for being disruptive, need those breaks the most to burn off excess energy.
Physical Benefits
As the occurrence of childhood obesity, diabetes, and depression reach alarming levels, physical activity is of utmost importance to the overall health and well-being of today’s children. A longer recess would provide children with additional physical activities such as running, climbing, and jumping, preferably outdoors. While Physical Education classes do their part in keeping kids active, research has shown that children are more likely to engage in physical activity when it is unstructured and self-directed. On its own, recess cannot reverse the childhood obesity trend, but it can contribute to promoting the habit of an active lifestyle which is a critical component of good health.
Additionally, numerous studies have found that unstructured, imaginative free play increases the size of the prefrontal cortex, making the brain more efficient at making plans, solving problems, and regulating and identifying emotions, all of which contribute to children’s mental health and well-being.
On to recess timing- long recess before lunch has shown positive benefits in comparison with recess after lunch. "Many school wellness councils have adopted the “Recess Before Lunch” concept which stems from studies that examined food waste by students in relation to the timing of their recess. When students have recess before lunch, more time is taken for lunch and less food is wasted. In addition, teachers and researchers noted an improvement in the student behavior at meal time, which carried into the classroom in the afternoon. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the US Department of Agriculture support the concept of scheduling recess before lunch as part of a school’s wellness policy".[1]
In addition, we ask that weather guidelines be reconsidered. According to the National Weather Service, a temperature of 5F and winds at 30mph have the potential to produce frostbite in 30 minutes. With that said, we ask that temperature guidelines for outdoor recess be reconsidered to at least 30F. Although Texas is not a state that gets very cold, it is possible to safely play outdoors for 30 minutes. The Fairbanks, AK school district has it clearly stated on their website for parents to dress their children appropriately for winter as they play outdoors down to -20 (depending on wind chill). NISD should include the same clothing guidelines in their handbook. Asthma is a concern in cold temperatures but it's tricky. Spending more time, in close contact, indoors can also trigger asthma attacks and increase spread of infections. Most cold weather asthma incidents occur at very low temperatures of 10F and below. There are ways to reduce the incidence i.e. wearing a scarf over the face, using an inhaler before exercise and drinking plenty of fluids.
Schools in the Frisco ISD have been piloting a program of increased recess time and decreased outdoor recess temperatures, and other schools around Texas (including Seguin ISD) have implemented the LiiNKS curriculum which includes 4 15 minute recesses. [4]
In summary, we ask the NISD Board of Trustees to view recess as a valuable component of our children’s academic and emotional development, consider a minimum of 1 guaranteed 30-minute recess, 1 guaranteed 15-minute recess, and 1 discretionary 15-minute recess. We also request that recess not be withheld for punitive or academic reasons and that weather guidelines be reconsidered.
[1] American Academy of pediatrics (AAP). The Crucial Role of Recess in Schools. Pediatrics, Vol. 131, No. 1, January 1, 2013, pp. 183-188. Available at: http://pediatrics.aappublications.org/content/131/1/183.full
[2] https://www.healthline.com/health/asthma/cold-induced-asthma#preventing-asthma-attacks-in-the-cold
[3] https://www.weather.gov/media/safety/wind-chill-brochure.pdf
Petition Closed
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The Decision Makers
Petition created on December 29, 2018