The Median Sib

Do you remember recess? That carefree time of jumping rope, Red Rover, and simply playing? On rainy days we’d play jacks or checkers inside. I don’t remember a lot about the classes from my elementary school years. After all, it WAS a long time ago. However, I DO remember recess. It was a time to socialize, to play games and to exercise. Except I didn’t think about the fact that I was exercising. I was playing - chasing friends, being chased, swinging, sliding, playing tag. And we had a morning recess and an afternoon recess. The teachers would often sit in chairs underneath shade trees while the children played.

The Education Wonks writes about how recess is being shortened or sometimes even eliminated because of the drive to increase test scores.

According to the mandates of the federal No Child Left Behind Act, 100% of the nation’s children must pass standardized tests by 2014 or else.

School personnel alone are being held accountable for accomplishing that goal.

I believe that it’s highly likely that more schools will be curtailing recess in the years to come.

And that’s a real shame.

Jane at Cozy Reader reports on what the Atlanta City Schools now call “recess.”