Play is Serious Learning  By: Suzanne Brunelle Vera   

In March of 2018 New York educator and mother Suzanne Brunelle Vera wrote this letter to her Board of Education advocating for more recess time for children in grades K-2.  Please use this as a template to advocate for more play in the younger years for the children in your district.  As educators we all know that play is serious learning!    

I would like to talk about my wish that here in North Bellmore we seriously consider following the progressive example that some schools have undertaken by increasing recess time, especially with our youngest students in the K-2 grades.  Even though I’m calling the increase of recess time “progressive”, it’s really going back to our most basic forms of learning.  To quote one of the biggest advocates of play, Mr. Rogers, “Play is often talked about as if it were a relief from serious learning.  But for children, play is serious learning.  Play is really the work of childhood”.  According to the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation research done in 2010, “Principals overwhelmingly believe recess has a positive impact not only on the development of students’ social skills, but also on achievement and learning in the classroom.”  In my short time as a North Bellmore parent, I have seen some great examples of supporting the ideas of play and physical activity here: the National Walk to School Day, Global Play Day and other great activities. 

So what does the research say about the specific benefits of recess?  According to the U.S. Play Coalition in an article titled “A Research Based Case for Recess”, students require breaks to promote mental alertness.  Brain research on attention suggests that 1) The brain cannot maintain attention for long periods of time and requires contrast to regain focus, 2) for information to be processed, down time is needed to recycle chemicals crucial for long-term memory formation and 3) attention is cyclical, involving 90-110 minute rhythmical patterns throughout the day.  In research with fourth graders, children were less fidgety and more on-task when they had recess.  Also, children with hyperactivity were among those who benefited the most.  These results are consistent with the findings of a meta-analysis of nearly 200 studies on the effect of exercise on cognitive functioning that suggest physical activity supports learning. 

My children are perhaps lucky that they come from a physically active family, and we are outside more often than we're not.  We have a big backyard for them to run and explore in.  However, I’m not ignorant to the fact that this is not the case for all students.  Some are inside from the minute they get home from school, and with the way society is going with Ipads and technology, there is a significant risk of sedentary activities winning over play. (And as active of a family as we are, we are not exempt from this problem).  This same article mentions that “Of great concern is the finding that children who do not have the opportunity to be active during the school day do not tend to compensate after school.  In essence inactivity breeds inactivity.” 

As a school psychologist, I especially value the benefits that are gained in the area of social competency.  My 5 year old often plays at home with his 3 year old brother, where he can make the rules, be the older big brother boss, and basically is the dictator.  That doesn’t work with his peers, and I’m glad it doesn’t, because he needs to learn to get along with those that are at his same level.  Recess is the time for him to learn these skills. 

So here is the non-exhaustive list of social benefits of non-structured play:

    Learning respect for rules

    Self-discipline

    Control of aggression

    Learning problem solving and planning    strategies

    Practicing leadership

    Resolving conflicts

    Developing an understanding of playing by the rules

Recess may be the only opportunity for some children to practice their social skills with other children.

There are some schools that are sending students out for recess up to four times a day (and totaling 1 hour), such as schools in the LiiNK project in Texas and Oklahoma.  They have already seen students focusing better and reports of bullying decreasing.  Patchogue-Medford School district has doubled recess in K-2 grades.  A teacher that was subbing in one of the kindergarten classes for Patchogue-Medford commented that “I was there for 3 hours and they had 3, 20 minute recesses and only 2 academic activities.  You could tell there were kids who needed to get their energy out, and with ample opportunities, they were barely even noticeable in the classroom.  In my district, those kids would have been spoken to all day long”.

One principal in one of the Texas schools that has increased recess time commented “one result of allowing kids more time for recess, he said, has been increased instructional time because kids come back in and settle down and get to work because they know they will receive another recess before long”.

With all of this said, I want to point out that the American Academy of Pediatrics Council on School Health in 2013 stated that “Recess is unique from, and a complement to, physical education- not a substitute for it.”  As everyone knows in this room, North Bellmore schools have Physical Education every 2 out of 6 days.  We are among the bottom 10% of school districts on LI when it comes to total physical education time and I think we need to see a change in this number. 

I have to also comment on the fact that my son often tells me that when they are outside for their 22 minute recess, he has to wait in line to get on a play structure. I have done some research on possible grants, as well as how other districts are finding ways to fund newer and more modern play structures. I know at Dinkelmeyer, there is definitely a need for better playground equipment, and the cement to grass ratio is also something that should be considered. 

There is also variation among the schools in our district about when they are allowed outside during recess.  I have heard that there is a cutoff of 32 degrees, but I'm not even sure that this is consistent.  In upstate districts (whom I guess have heartier children??) there is a cutoff temperature of 20 degrees.  In one particular school district they had a winter play day, where they built a hill in the school yard and had sleds for them to use.  Here we are told that “snow mounds, while enticing, can be slippery and invite snow ball exchanges (which can be dangerous)”.  I would feel better to see a more balanced approach to keeping kids safe, while acknowledging what childhood is about.

I work in a school.  I know there is red tape and roadblocks all over the place.  However, I also know that this is too important to ignore.  This is too important not to make a priority.  A small sample of parents that are interested in whole child learning in North Bellmore voted 54-5 in favor of more recess time.  If this is indicative of a larger parent sample, I would be surprised to see these numbers change very much. 

I asked my 5 year old a few questions before coming here tonight. I asked him what he does at recess, and he said he likes to play basketball (we don’t have a hoop at home) and superheroes. I asked him what he would think of having more time at recess and said that at some schools, they even have it 4 times a day. He looked at me with a huge smile and asked if that’s going to happen. He said.... “I would say it’s more fun for the kids”. When I asked him what else he would say, he said “that’s it, that’s why mom!” And isn’t it interesting that he felt that this is all that needs to be said to advocate for more recess time.

Please don’t misunderstand me and think that my son doesn’t love school, and doesn’t even more so adore his wonderful teacher who is here tonight.

We all know in our gut that it’s the right direction to move in.  How can we argue against a change that has already been proven to benefit students academically and behaviorally, that has been proven to increase emotional resiliency, imagination, creativity and promotes self-confidence?  Isn’t that the bottom line of learning and educating?  Thank you for hearing me out.  I hope that we can move forward with a plan to make this happen.  I am open to hearing in the near future any good reasons why it can’t be done.