Our kids only get 20min/day plus gym once/week. I would like for them to get more time just for the mental break and physical activity. They are in school for 6 1/2 hours.

Boy oh boy......this is one of my biggest pet peeves about school. In our school district there are 2 elementary schools, in 2 different towns. I volunteered my kids to go to the smaller town school because there is only 1 K, 1 1st grade, 1 2nd grade.....etc, which means fewer kids. Anyways, in the smaller town the kids got 15 mins in the morning, 20 mins at lunch, and 15 mins in the afternoon. I asked the question to the principal at open house at the middle school this year, since my son will now be going htere. They only get 20 mins for lunch, and 20 mins recess after lunch. I HATE IT! Kids need to run off that energy, and it has been proven in the elementary school in the small town, but the elementary school in the bigger town and the middle school just "can't coordinate that many children on the playground", therefore, they do not get recess other than at lunch. This is what the principal told me a few years back. GEESE! Then what does that tell ya?????? There are to many kids in each class! UGH!

My Dd gets 20 minutes for recess each day and gym one week a month. They have a rotating specialist schedule so they rotate every week...music, science, art, and gym.

It drives me NUTS!

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My children got about 20 mins recess and one (or was it two??) days of gym when they were in elementary, but once they got to middle school they got NONE. So I'm surprised at your children getting ANY recess in middle school.

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My kids get the same, only we are there for 7 hours a day...AND, we don't even have a PLAYGROUND!!! I have a kindergartner and a 5th grader..and all they have is outside toys that parents send in to the teachers for the classroom!!!

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My DD gets about 20 min. for recess, gym 2 times a week.

And she loves it when they get an extra long recess. They had a lot of indoor recess last spring due to weather, so that was all in their classroom, games and free play basically.

My kids get 20 min recess after lunch and gym three days a week.

Wow, I didn't realize how advanced my dd's school was in this area -- my dd has P.E. EVERY DAY! I think it's 30 minutes long (not 100% sure on that). The first half of P.E. is exercises (running, jumping jacks, etc.). The second half is usually free play on the playground or, if it's raining or too cold, either free play or something organized in the gym, like battle ball or doing something with the parachute. Then, my dd has a 20 minute snack time and they can run around and play outside (weather permitting) with the time they have left over after they eat their snacks.

When I was a kid, we had P.E. every day for 1 hour PLUS a 30 minute recess! I'm shocked to read that some kids have P.E. only a few times a week. No wonder kids have weight problems nowadays.

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Every time we start thinking we're the center of the universe, the universe turns around and says with a slightly distracted air, "I'm sorry. What'd you say your name was again?" ~ Margaret Maron

my ds son has 10 min free play(outside weather permitting) first thing in the morning then after lunch they get 20 min then about 2 in the afternoon they get another 20 min plus they have pe/gym every other day. our community is trying to boost kids fitness our town just put in a huge new park cost 60,000 dollars it has rock wall all kinds of stuff and the lunch program is a new fit kids lunch program...

Well I'm on the wellness committee in our school and I fought hard for this. Here's what we ended up with.

20 recess after lunch

grades pre K- 6 20 minutes in am

Gym- 3 days a week for 25 minutes each

I found out in the older grades teachers were taking away recess as a punishment. I don't like that at all. Long story but our compromise is teachers cannot take away recess if there is no Gym class that day and gym class must consist of at least 50% physical activity.

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