Thornton - Middle School Recess

This is a picture of 7th grade students at Rocky Top Middle School in Thornton, Colorado.  The students have recess each day.  Their recess averages about ten minutes each day.  It is part of the lunch period.  Once students have eaten their lunch and cleaned up their area, they are allowed to go outside and play.  Basketballs, footballs and 4-square balls are available for students to borrow.  When looking at the picture, we can see many of the students being active.  The students on this day were only allowed to be on the blacktop area.  Most students do spend the ten minutes they have playing and moving around.  There are groups of students that play the same game each day whether it is basketball, football, 4-square, or even hand ball.  The boys are much more active than the girls are.  The girls tend to just walk around the perimeter of the blacktop area while the boys are sprinting around.  As an adult on duty, it is important to keep your eyes open so you don't get hit by a ball or run into by a boy running after a ball.  It is important that these students have the chance each do to get some exercise and some sunlight.  This is the only time during the day between 8:00 am and 4:00 pm, unless they are in PE, that they get to be outside and moving.  These students need that time to unwind from sitting in a chair all day.  With so much talk about vitamin D, it is important that the students have a chance to get some exposure to sun. 

The problem with the recess the students have is that it is only ten minutes long.  Also, it is the first thing that is taken away if the teachers decide to punish the students.  At the beginning of the year, the students were allowed on the field seen in the background of the picture.  However, because the students do not line up correctly when the whistle is blown, they are not allowed on the grass anymore.  They will be allowed on the grass when they can line up correctly but it is hard to get 12 year-olds to stand quietly.  The students ran around much more when they were allowed on the field.  Some days they are not allowed outside at all.  If the students leave the cafeteria a mess, the next day they have to stay in the cafeteria in their seats.

We need to realize that recess is important for these students and try to come up with a different form of punishment.  Exercise is so important for these students, especially when lunch is usually fried chicken in some form, ice cream, and a roll.  Students that have exercised seem to be able to focus better in the afternoon. Teachers need to make sure students are not just sitting in their seats all day, students need both mental and physical stimulation.