With poll: Schools experiment with recess before lunch

The New York Times had an article Monday about how some schools are switching up the traditional lunch, then recess routine, and the benefits brought about by the change. From the article:

Can something as simple as the timing of recess make a difference in a child’s health and behavior?

Some experts think it can, and now some schools are rescheduling recess — sending students out to play before they sit down for lunch. The switch appears to have led to some surprising changes in both cafeteria and classroom.

Schools that have tried it report that when children play before lunch, there is less food waste and higher consumption of milk, fruit and vegetables. And some teachers say there are fewer behavior problems.

“Kids are calmer after they’ve had recess first,” said Janet Sinkewicz, principal of Sharon Elementary School in Robbinsville, N.J., which made the change last fall. “They feel like they have more time to eat and they don’t have to rush.”

Later in the article, a principal is quoted as saying they gained 15 minutes of instructional time after lunch because students returned to class calm and ready to work, instead of pumped up from recess.

At my daughter's elementary school, the fourth and fifth graders have recess first, then lunch, while the first, second and third graders go to lunch first, then recess. (The lunchroom isn't big enough to accommodate all students at once.) In her first grade class, students are allowed to finish their lunches when they come back to class after recess; their teacher recognizes that many kids rush through lunch to get to recess.

What happens at your child's school? If they have lunch before recess, does your child usually bring home a half-full lunchbox?

poll by twiigs.com

Jen Eyer is on the Community Team at AnnArbor.com. She oversees the Parenting and Home & Garden sections, and writes feature stories, blog posts and opinion pieces. She can be reached at 734-623-2577 or jeneyer@annarbor.com.