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Play, Policy, and Practice
Interest Forum members
Olga Jarrett and Sandra Waite-
Stupiansky wrote this column.
The column is available online at
X, X, 1, X2, 7
Play, Policy, and Practice Interest Forum
The d e m i s e of recess in many elementary
schools—and of outdoor play in general—
is an issue of great concern to many
members of the Play, Policy, and Practice
Interest Forum. If there is any doubt that
this is a problem, pick up publications as
diverse as Sports Illustrated, Pediatrics, the
New York Times, or your local newspaper
to read about it.
Most of us remember recess as an
important part of the school day. It was a
time to be outdoors; to organize our own
games; to play on the swings, slides, and
other playground equipment; or just to
hang out with friends.
In contrast, children today are likely to
have 10 to 15 minutes of outdoor playtime
during the school day, if they are lucky. No
wonder there is an upswing in childhood
obesity and an increase in childhood heart
disease and type 2 diabetes. No wonder
teachers are concerned about a generation
of children who can’t entertain themselves,
have social difficulties, and are fidgety and
off task in class.
Cutting back on recess
In the late 1980s, some school systems
began cutting back on recess to allow more
instructional time. The trend accelerated
with the passage of No Child Left Behind
in 2001 and was particularly widespread
in urban schools with high numbers of
children from marginalized populations
(Jarrett 2003; Roth et al. 2003; NCES 2006).
How Many Children
How many children are deprived of
recess every day? Although we don’t
know exactly, statistics reveal a troubling
A 2005 National Center for Education
Statistics (NCES 2006) survey found that
• 7 percent of first-graders and 8 percent
of third-graders never had recess; and
• 14 percent of first-graders and 15
percent of third-graders had only 1 to15
minutes of recess a day.
According to official figures provided
by school systems, since the enactment
of No Child Left Behind,
• 20 percent of the school systems have
decreased time for recess, averaging
cuts of 50 minutes per week (Center on
Education Policy 2008).
The arguments against recess involved
both academics and safety issues. Some
administrators believed their school’s test
scores would improve if children spent
more time on school work. Some feared
lawsuits from playground injuries.
A number of school systems have a
recess policy; others allow the principals
or teachers to determine whether the
children go out to play. Officially having
We found no research to support administrators’ assumptions
that test scores required by No Child Left Behind could be
improved by keeping children in the classroom all day.
Reprinted from Young Children • September 2009
ecess and actually having recess are
two different issues. A recent study
in Pediatrics (Barros, Silver, & Stein
2009), using a national data set of
11,000 children, found that 30 percent
of third-graders had fewer than 15
minutes of recess a day. Recess time is
often cut because of academic pressures
or as punishment.
Recess’s many benefits
To make recommendations for
policy changes, we, as members of
the Play, Policy, and Practice Interest
Forum, spent the past decade investigating
what research says about
the need for recess. On the one hand,
we found no research to support
administrators’ assumptions that
test scores required by No Child Left
Behind could be improved by keeping
children in the classroom all day.
On the other hand, there is considerable
research to suggest that recess
has many benefits for children in
the cognitive, social-emotional, and
physical domains. Jarrett (2002) gives
a summary of many of the research
studies that found the following cognitive,
social-emotional, and physical
benefits of recess:
• On the playground, children exercise
leadership, teach games to one
another, take turns, and learn to
• In a free choice situation, children
learn negotiation skills in order to
keep the play going.
• On supervised playgrounds, particularly
where children are taught games
and conflict resolution skills, there
is little fighting (see “Reconstructing
Recess: One Principal’s Story,” p. 68).
• Intervention programs during recess
can successfully improve social skills.
• Recess before rather than after
lunch leads to healthier eating.
• Children who are active during the
day are more active after school,
whereas children who are sedentary
during the day tend to remain sedentary
after school (couch potato
Children’s activity levels are generally
higher during recess than during
physical education (PE). PE is not
A nationwide study on how first
through fifth grade children spend
their time at school found that on
a randomly selected day, 21% of
children did not have any recess
(Roth et al. 2003). The study noted
• 39% of African American students
versus 15% of White students did
not have recess;
• 44% of children living below the
poverty line versus 17% of those
above the poverty line were deprived
of recess; and
• 25% of the children scoring below
the mean on a standardized test versus
15% of those above the mean
did not have recess.
An NCES survey (2006) also found
disparities, with rural schools and
affluent schools more likely to have
recess. A 2003 survey of Georgia
school systems (unpublished data
collected by Jarrett and colleagues)
found the same patterns but with 25%
of kindergartners having no recess.
• Children are less fidgety and more
on-task when they have recess, and
children with ADHD (attention deficit/
hyperactivity syndrome) are among
those who benefit most.
• Research on memory and attention
shows that recall is improved when
learning is spaced out rather than
concentrated. Recess provides breaks
during which the brain can “regroup.”
• Brain research shows a relationship
between physical activity and the
development of brain connections.
• A school system that devoted a
third of the day to nonacademic activities
(art, music, physical activity)
improved attitudes and fitness and
slightly increased test scores, in spite
of spending less time on academics.
Photo courtesy of Susan Welteroth
Game Day at Watsontown Elementary
Reprinted from Young Children • September 2009
seen by the PE teachers or the children
as a substitute for recess. Recess
and PE serve different purposes.
Research also suggests benefits for
teachers, even when the teacher is
required to supervise on the playground.
Recess can help with classroom
• Teachers rated children’s behavior
as better in classes where children
had at least 15 minutes of recess
(Barros, Silver, & Stein 2009).
Reconstructing Recess: One Principal’s Story
At Watsontown Elementary in central Pennsylvania, a small K–4 school
where I am principal, the staff and I noticed conflicts, exclusion, and safety
concerns on the playground during recess. We felt strongly that we needed to
turn recess around.
We talked extensively and agreed that recess should be respectful, have
safe play, include child choice, and encourage all children to participate. We
also discussed the teachers’ role at recess. We committed to simple, consistent
rules—respect for self, others, the play environment, and the play equipment.
Teachers brainstormed games that encourage responsibility, cooperation, and
communication and made a list of the games to facilitate child choice.
We decided that before recess, children would choose from the list of cooperative
games or old standbys (jump rope, hopscotch, four square). Children
could also choose not to participate and instead play on their own. Teachers
would review the rules and acceptable behaviors for the games before going to
the playground (“What does it look like to tag someone?”).
With the start of the new school year, we designated the second day Game
Day for the staff to demonstrate the games, modeling the behaviors we wanted
the children to use and allowing them to practice the skills in a safe environment.
In a reflective writing activity at the end of Game Day, most children and
teachers wrote about prosocial skills—inclusion, fair play, and teamwork.
Throughout the school year, teachers reinforced the concepts learned on
Game Day. They helped children problem solve issues like what to do when
teams had unequal skill levels and what happens if a child wants to jump rope
but all the jump ropes are in use. Game Day didn’t magically eliminate all of
the playground concerns, but we now heard students supporting each other
Interested in reconstructing recess in your school? Here are some thoughts
for teachers and administrators:
• Schedule recess every day for primary and elementary level children. Breaks
from academics are important, and children need opportunities to practice
positive social interactions.
• Agree on basic rules that apply throughout the school building and the day.
• Build a repertoire of games that encourage cooperation and responsibility
and avoid conflicts.
• Teach the games using modeling and practice. Reinforce children’s prosocial
skills throughout the school year.
• Provide enough materials and equipment for several groups of children to
play the same game. Help students make choices about which games to play.
• Provide teacher supervision during recess, and encourage the children
— Susan Welteroth (email@example.com)
• Teachers get to know the children
better when supervising them on the
playground. This knowledge can be
useful in developing curriculum and in
• Time on the playground is a change
of pace for the teacher as well as for
Children’s right to play
We believe that recess is a right,
not a privilege. Article 31 of the U.N.
Convention on the Rights of the Child
The right of the child to rest and
leisure, to engage in play and recreational
activities appropriate to the
age of the child and to participate
freely in cultural life and the arts.
We believe that recess, with its fun,
movement, and opportunities to
socialize through play, is a basic
need and that policies against recess,
whether made at the school system,
school, or teacher level, discriminate
against children. Depriving a child
of recess as punishment is similar
to depriving a child of lunch. It is
not only unfair, it is also unhelpful.
Just as hungry children cannot concentrate
well, children deprived of
breaks cannot concentrate well either.
Sometimes the most disruptive children
need recess the most.
Stand up for recess!
What can you do? Here are some
steps you can take:
• Find out whether the schools in your
community have recess, and if so, for
how many minutes a day. Do all the
children get recess?
• Check school playgrounds for safety.
The National Program for Playground
Safety (NPPS) has helpful online resources
Examine the needs for supervision.
Generally, teachers supervise recess;
but in some cases, other supervisors
68 Reprinted from Young Children • September 2009
Advocacy can take
many forms, including
writing letters to
the school board and
petitions, and organizing
• Knowledge is power. Stay informed
about what research says about
recess. The references at the end
of this article should be helpful.
Also check www.ipausa.org, the
Web site of the American Affiliate of
the International Play Association,
Promoting the Child’s Right to Play.
• Organize. Most changes occur
because people work together.
Teachers and families often make
great recess advocates. So do students.
Children can collect data, write
letters, and make posters. In some
schools, the efforts of children have
gotten recess reinstated.
• Meet with principals, the school
superintendent, and legislators and
elected officials. Share your knowledge,
but also be a good listener. Listening
helps you learn more about the issues
and also builds mutual respect.
• If friendly persuasion fails, advocacy
can take many forms, including writing
letters to the school board, writing letters
to the newspaper, circulating petitions,
and organizing rallies. Advocates
in several states have even introduced
legislation to ensure that children
statewide are guaranteed recess.
Barros, R.M., E.J. Silver, & R.E.K. Stein. 2009.
School recess and group classroom behavior.
Pediatrics 123 (2): 431–36.
Center on Education Policy. 2008. Instructional
time in elementary schools: A closer
look at changes for specific subjects. www.
Jarrett. O.S. 2002. Recess in elementary
school: What does the research say? ERIC
Digest. ED 466331 2002-07-00. www.eric
Jarrett, O.S. 2003. Urban school recess: The
haves and the have nots. Play, Policy & Practice
Connections 8 (1): 1–3, 7–10.
NCES (National Center for Education Statistics).
2006. Calories in, calories out: Food
and exercise in public elementary schools,
2005. Table 12. http://nces.ed.gov/Pubs2006/
nutrition/tables/tab12.asp. Table 13. http://
Roth, J., J. Brooks-Gunn, M. Linver, & S.
Hofferth. 2003. What happens during the
school day? Time diaries from a national
sample of elementary school teachers.
Teachers College Record 105 (3): 317–43.
Clements, R.L., ed. 2000. Elementary school
recess: Selected readings, games, and
activities for teachers and parents. Boston:
Pellegrini, A.D. 2005. Recess: Its role in education
and development. Mahwah, NJ: Erlbaum.
Copyright © 2009 by the National Association for the Education
of Young Children. See Permissions and Reprints online at
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