What can schools do to take advantage of recess? Here are six pieces of guidance: Schedule recess before lunch. A fifteen-minute break suffices, and it’s the most helpful time for kids’ concentration. It also makes them hungrier, so they eat better at lunch. Go minimalist. Recess doesn’t have to be tightly structured, nor does it need specialized equipment. Kids derive benefits from negotiating their own rules. Don’t skimp. In Finland, a nation with one of the world’s highest-performing school systems, students get a fifteen-minute break every hour. Some U.S. schools—for instance, Eagle
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