When I was in elementary school, I was the kid who would come in from recess with muddy tore up jeans or in the winter months, clothes that were soaking wet from snow exposure. I loved my time outside and would use it to the fullest - even when I had a broken arm, I managed to hide it under my coat for weeks before someone caught on and made me go inside.

That part of me shed a tear or two when I learned that a school in Connecticut has decided to “tone down” recess for their students:

No longer could they let off their youthful energy ” pent up from hours of long division ” by cavorting outside for 22 minutes of unstructured play, or perhaps with a vigorous game of tag or dodgeball. Such games had been virtually banned by the principal, Mark S. Johnson, along with kickball, soccer and other “body-banging” activities, as he put it, where knees ” and feelings ” might get bruised.Instead, children are encouraged to jump rope, play with Hula Hoops or gently fling a Frisbee. Balls are practically controlled substances, parceled out under close supervision by playground monitors.The traditional recess, a rite of grade school, is endangered not only in the Oakdale School here in Montville, a town of 18,500. From Cheyenne, Wyo., to Wyckoff, N.J., recess ” long seen as a way for children to develop social competence, recharge after long lessons, and resist obesity ” is being rethought and pared down. [The New York Times]

Luckily there are folks fighting back and trying to make sure that kids have an outlet for their energy. I know for sure that without my time running around at recess that I would have had a much harder time sitting still all day in school. Check out Cartoon Network’s campaign to “Rescue Recess” (initiated back in the fall) and give a visit here for more information : http://www.cartoonrecessweek.com/ and watch the video below: