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The Hard Work of Play
The Monthly
School Hopes 'Recess Coach' Will Pay Off in Classroom
ABC News Nightline

Playworks was formerly Sports4Kids. Media coverage prior to July 2009 will list the organization as Sports4Kids.

School Recess and Group Classroom Behavior

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Children in urban, low-income schools are less likely to have recess than students in other schools. Teachers cite improved behavior in the classroom when students have recess.

Assessing Recess

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Growing Concerns about Shrinking Playtime in Schools

Over three-quarters of Americans believe that children aren’t getting enough physical playtime on a daily basis, and 91 percent agree that recess helps children stay focused and learn in the classroom.

Does Your Child’s Recess Make the Grade?

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Recess is the time for kids to get healthy play so they can go back to class focused and ready to learn. But as any parent knows, managing large groups of kids can be challenging. At recess, disciplinary problems can interrupt the school day.

There are ways your school can get the most out of recess while reducing disciplinary problems. Find out how your child’s recess grades, then talk to your school about these ways to make recess count:

Play Matters

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A Study of Best Practices to Inform Local Policy and Process in Support of Children’s Play

In municipalities across America, engaged citizens and civic leaders are actively seeking innovative ways to improve the accessibility, quality, and quantity of play and play spaces for children. To help cities build awareness and develop a policy on play, KaBOOM! identified 12 relevant and innovative best practices in play. Playworks Baltimore is cited as one example.

Read the full Play Matters report.

Less recess? Parents say no

Submitted by cwilson on September 28, 2009 - 10:37am
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Dawn Hadlock started meeting her third-grade son for lunch at Courtland Elementary two or three times a week this school year after learning that daily recess had been cut to 15 minutes.

"We have a picnic outside and kick a soccer ball," she said. "We do our own little parent recess."

09/26/2009

Revamped Recess Puts Focus on the Physical

They would ignore the brightly colored balls left for them on the playground and the hopscotch lines painted on the pavement. Instead, in past years many students at Conservatory Lab Charter School, in Brighton, would spend the half-hour recess sitting idly beneath a leafy tree, chatting away.

Not anymore.

Does Recess Before Lunch Make Sense for Your School?

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Elementary schools across the country have implemented a new lunch schedule where recess comes before lunch. These schools have seen many benefits of the new lunch schedule, including a reduction in lunch waste, increased healthy food consumption and reduced behavioral problems in the classroom directly after recess. 

Playworks is in my city, but it is not in my school? How can I get Playworks in my school?

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Playworks coaches work on-site exclusively in low-income schools. To bring Playworks to your school, at least 50 percent of enrollment must be eligible for free and reduced lunches. To learn more, contact the city director listed on our web site for your city. S/he will be able to provide the information you need to bring Playworks to your school.

What if my school does not meet our low-income requirement?

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If your school does not meet our low-income requirements, we can bring play to your school through  Playworks Training. Our training is designed to teach parents, teachers, staff and other adults how to organize healthy and inclusive play, and to help youth learn lessons about teamwork, communication and conflict resolution that enable them to return to the classroom ready to learn.

The Power of Play

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For many elementary school principals, recess is the toughest part of the day. That's when all the trouble starts — the teasing, fighting, bullying, injuries, referrals and suspensions. This video demonstrates the "before and after" effect when safe, fun playtime is introduced in the schoolyard. A trained Playworks coach teaches and runs games designed to build leadership and foster teamwork.

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