Transcript FCOLT - San Antonio Alliance Of Teachers And Support Personnel

Free Choice
Outside Learning
Time
(FCOLT)
“Recess is the right of every child.
Article 31 of the United Nations
Convention on Children’s Rights states
that every child has the right to
leisure time. Taking away recess,
whether as a disciplinary measure or
abolishing it in the name of work,
infringes on that right.”
While adults can better inhibit their
needs to move and socialize during
work hours, it is difficult for children
to do so. The child is a natural mover,
doer and shaker. It is natural that a
child who must tolerate repeated
periods of “seat work” will feel mental
fatigue and restlessness. Yet we all
too often force children through
stretches of time and tedium that
would tax many adults . (Pellegrini and
Davis)
Prolonged confinement of children in
elementary classrooms has been
found to result in a high probability
of fidgeting, restlessness, and
subsequent reduction in
concentration. (Pellegrini and Davis)
The available research suggests that
recess can play an important role in
the learning, social development, and
health of elementary school children.
(Jarrett)
Experimental research on memory and
attention found that recall is improved
when learning is spaced rather than
presented all at once. Their findings are
compatible with what is known about brain
function: that attention requires periodic
novelty, that the brain needs downtime to
recycle chemicals crucial for long term
memory formation, and that attention
involves 90 to 110-minute cyclical patterns
throughout the day. (Jenson)
Teaching more
doesn’t mean
children learn more.
The Education Digest
According to NASPE ( The National
Association for Sport and Physical
Education) extended periods of
inactivity are not developmentally
appropriate for children.
At recess the playground becomes one
of the few places where children can
actually define and enforce
meaningful social interaction during
the day. Without recess, the children
lose an important educational
experience. (Pellegrini and Glickman)
Game playing can occur in the
classroom as well as on the
playground; however, …game playing in
the classroom is typically in a “closed
setting” where the children cannot
withdraw from the game. Outside
recess provides a more “open setting”
where children are free to leave the
play situation. In open settings,
children must learn to resolve
conflicts to keep the game going,
resulting in low levels of aggression on
the playground. (Hartup and Laursen)
There are some activities that simply
cannot take place in a classroom. The
nature of these games requires an
open setting which can only be found
outside.
An example is the common playground game,
“chase.” It has been linked to academic
success. According to Pellegrini and
Glickman, “Children learn to cooperate to
the extent that the play requires
cooperation and they learn to solve
problems in such forms of play. They
realize that in order to sustain their chase
play with peers, they must take turns being
the chaser or the chased. If they refuse
to change roles, the game ends. This
reciprocating role is a powerful predictor
of the ability to cooperate and view events
from different perspectives.
According to NAECS (National
Association of Early Childhood
Specialists in State Departments of
Education), the following are a few
reasons why school administrators
should carefully consider the
benefits of outdoor play before
eliminating recess from their
curriculum:
1. Play is an active form of learning
that unites the mind, body, and spirit.
Until at least the age of nine,
children’s learning occurs best when
the whole self is involved.
2. Play reduces the tension that often
occurs with having to achieve or
needing to learn. In play, adults do
not interfere and children relax.
3. Children express and work out
emotional aspects of everyday
experiences through unstructured
play.
4. Children permitted to play freely
with peers develop skills for seeing
things through another person’s point
of view—cooperating, helping, sharing,
and solving problems.
5. The development of children’s
perceptual abilities may suffer when
so much of their experience is
through television, computers, books,
worksheets, and media that require
only two senses. The senses of smell,
touch, and taste, and the sense of
motion through space are powerful
modes of learning.
6. Children who are less restricted in
their access to the outdoors gain
competence in moving through the
larger world. Developmentally, they
should gain the ability to navigate
their immediate environs (in safety)
and lay the foundation for the
courage that will enable them to
eventually lead their own lives.
Classroom Benefits of FCOLT

A study conducted by Olga Jarrett, a professor of
child development found that not having recess
affects academic performance. The study found
children who do not have recess are much more
fidgety in the classroom.
 The study also found that the time spent fidgeting
and being mentally distracted adds up to the
amount of time it takes to have recess in the first
place.
 Studies show children are more attentive after
recess with hyperactive children benefiting the
most.
What you can learn by
watching children play

Identify which child is being isolated by
their peers
 Identify bullies
 Identify strengths not visible in the
classroom
 Identify deficiencies in gross motor skills
 Identify leaders and followers
The National Association of Early
Childhood Specialists in State
Departments of Education takes the
position that recess is an essential
component of education and that
preschool and elementary school
children must have the opportunity to
participate in regular periods of
active, free play.
The results of spending one-third of
the school day in formal and less
formal physical education, in art, and
in music were increased fitness,
improved attitudes, and slight
improvements in test scores. These
results are consistent with the
findings of a meta-analysis of nearly
200 studies on the effect on
cognitive functioning that suggest
that physical activity supports
learning.
Amended Proposal
We are proposing an administrative
procedure that will provide teachers
with the option of participating in 15
consecutive minutes of Free Choice
Outside Learning Time (not to include
restroom breaks).
We also suggest that each campus
create a recess committee to identify
safe, appropriate areas for children
to play and to help coordinate recess
schedules.
If playgrounds are not available at a
campus, recess committees can
evaluate other options for FCOLT:
*Cafeteria
*Sidewalks
*Gym (when not in use)
*Stage areas
*A safe, outside area where children
can move freely.