The topic of children and exercise is often covered in the health and wellness field, but there is another topic that is often ignored, which is recess in elementary school children. Defined by the American Academy of Pediatrics, recess is "an essential, planned respite from rigorous cognitive tasks and affords time to rest, play, imagine, think, move and socialize". Recess is an important aspect of a child's day as they need to reset their brains for the rest of the school day in the classroom. Recess also helps children develop their social and communication skills by just beings able to get outside and play freely with other children.
Just like adults, kids need a mental break during the day as well. Recess helps children learn better in school as well as the development of cognitive, social and emotional skills. In today's school system, the focus is on standardized test prep rather than letting kids get 20 minutes of recess time each day. Some states of tried to make this a standard, but bills have not been passed, so there is not a recess law in place. By spreading the importance of recess in elementary schools, hopefully in the near future, we can get a bill passed to give children the free play that they deserve!
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