Losing Recess

My son is six year old Kindergartener at Fairview Elementary school. He stuggles with conforming to behavior standards set by his teacher. In an effort to minimize his behavior he has continually lost his recess and walking laps instead of playing. According to an article written by Tara Pope and published by the New York Times -February 23, 2009 - “The best way to improve children’s performance in the classroom may be to take them out of it. New research suggests that play and down time may be as important to a child’s academic experience as reading, science and math, and that regular recess, fitness or nature time can influence behavior, concentration and even grades. ”The twenty nine year veteran teacher defends her decision by suggesting she has no other options for punishment, but according to the article she may be perpetuating the problem with the punishment. The article goes on to say that “ In the Pediatrics study, 30 percent were found to have little or no daily recess. Another report, from a children’s advocacy group, found that 40 percent of schools surveyed had cut back at least one daily recess period. Also, teachers often punish children by taking away recess privileges. That strikes Dr. Barros as illogical. “Recess should be part of the curriculum,” she said. “You don’t punish a kid by having them miss math class, so kids shouldn’t be punished by not getting recess.”
Teacher’s concerns may be that recess isn’t part of the standardized tests given which can directly affect the perception of their performance and skills a child is required to have at the end of the school year.
Although I understand the concern and the necessary balance, Buncombe County has a policy written stating that each child will have thirty minutes of activity per day per day per child using the words “moderate to vigorous activity”. In addition the North Carolina legislator adopted the Healthy Active Children’s Policy which mandates this as well. The policy continues by stating that “To ensure that students have ongoing opportunities for physical activity and maintain a positive attitude toward physical activity structured/unstructured recess and other physical activity shall not be taken away as a form of punishment.” Oftentimes kids at this age need activity to be able to conform better. My son is no exception and although walking, which is the punishment, may be viewed as “other physical activity” it is still a punishment in not allowing him to participate in recess along with the other children. Children like my son are identified as hyper or overactive, and this article goes on to state “A small study of children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder last year found that walks outdoors appeared to improve scores on tests of attention and concentration. Notably, children who took walks in natural settings did better than those who walked in urban areas, according to the report, published online in August in The Journal of Attention Disorders. The researchers found that a dose of nature worked as well as a dose of medication to improve concentration, or even better.”
It may be time to suggest alternative ways and SHAC, the Student Health Advisory Committee, offers some alternative ways to punish without taking away activity.