A few years ago, I got annoyed when my son lost his recess time at school. The town's school district got rid of recess for those in the 5th and 6th grades, because it was a middle school, which they shared with the 7th and 8th grade.
This bothered me, because kids have enormous energy at that time in their lives still, and I personally believe that it helps them to foster their imagination, as well as to expend all of that energy in a positive kind of way, which would likely allow them to focus better once back in the classroom.
In Finland, the country that has the highest-rated education system in the world, they actually increased the time that their kids spent on the playground. Yet here in the United States, too often, we see people feel that recess time, and free time more generally, is a waste of time. My own suspicion is that nothing could be farther from the truth.
Frankly, some studies have shown that playtime, or free time, is when young children's minds and creativity are at their optimum. We should be encouraging them during this time.
Instead, here in the United States, we too often succumb to the frankly prejudiced belief that only "serious" work is what matters, and this kind of thinking leaves little to no flexibility for what seems to people who subscribe to this mentality as wasteful time spent playing. Many of these same people who proclaim an ultra-serious approach to life and politics themselves hold the most ridiculous, almost laughable political positions and belief, such as a denial of science, or an elitist approach to politics and economics.
When you see the evidence that Americans are falling behind in seemingly almost every category in education, it becomes a bit easier to understand when you see the supposedly ultra-serious mindset once again at work, and the results that, frankly, are hardly surprising, as the United States continues to slip down the ratings of education systems among developed nations.
Here is a video demonstrating how a playful pause from the academic demands of the classroom helps to develop crucial motor skills that benefit young kindergarten students in Prince Edward Island.
We Americans could do worse than learn from this example. But will we?
Frankly, some studies have shown that playtime, or free time, is when young children's minds and creativity are at their optimum. We should be encouraging them during this time.
Instead, here in the United States, we too often succumb to the frankly prejudiced belief that only "serious" work is what matters, and this kind of thinking leaves little to no flexibility for what seems to people who subscribe to this mentality as wasteful time spent playing. Many of these same people who proclaim an ultra-serious approach to life and politics themselves hold the most ridiculous, almost laughable political positions and belief, such as a denial of science, or an elitist approach to politics and economics.
When you see the evidence that Americans are falling behind in seemingly almost every category in education, it becomes a bit easier to understand when you see the supposedly ultra-serious mindset once again at work, and the results that, frankly, are hardly surprising, as the United States continues to slip down the ratings of education systems among developed nations.
Here is a video demonstrating how a playful pause from the academic demands of the classroom helps to develop crucial motor skills that benefit young kindergarten students in Prince Edward Island.
We Americans could do worse than learn from this example. But will we?
Kindergarten students play to develop motor skills in P.E.I. school Social Sharing Facebook Twitter Reddit LinkedIn 'It feels like my brain and my body is getting strong' Sarah MacMillan · CBC News · Posted: Jan 29, 2019:
https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/prince-edward-island/pei-students-fine-gross-motor-skills-1.4997287?fbclid=IwAR2jdbfVUfL_pkDOHj2GA2O2R-_EJfMm4IMNUdEzF6hiQcC-pXmWYldHPrM
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