Let the kids play
Louisiana leads other states; the law here requires public schools have recess.
Some things should be beyond debate. A BLT lives or dies by its tomato. A vacation is always too short. And a child who has spent all morning wrestling with the alphabet has earned a few minutes outside to run and play chase.
Yet recess has been receding from too many schools. Testing crowded out play, and administrators fretted about lawsuits every time a kid skinned a knee. Things grew so dire that a movement, Say Yes to Recess, sprang up for the express purpose of winning children a break in their day.
Louisiana, for once, is ahead of the pack. A law passed last year guarantees that public school kids in kindergarten to fifth grade have 15 minutes of unstructured play. According to Johns Hopkins, only 11 other states require recess at all.
The science sides with the kids. Recess improves behavior, attendance, even test scores. It is not time stolen from learning; it helps to make the lessons stick.
Students head back to school tomorrow. It's hot outside, but you won't hear them complain. For 15 glorious minutes, they'll shriek and run, and secretly pray the bell is broken.