"It's about Time!" Re:cess-ing: Where the Other Two Play Out

"What we've all been waiting for..." A highly relatable quote for me, the favorite part of my school day which, in my daze, included morning and afternoon...the time when we finally get to "bust out", get out from behind our desks where we have been laboring for what seems to be for an eternity, at least a few hours without a break (for us adults now, on "back to school" nights, only after about ten minutes cramped up behind these contraptions that seem to defy the "ergonomics" of good desk/chair design)...outside of the classroom which, only after a few weeks into the school year for me became "all-too-familiar",  a cramped space...and, at least on "fair weather" days, meant going "Outside!" of the school building itself, onto what's still commonly referred to as "playgrounds" And a quote that I can almost hear in unison from many readers of this "Back to School Daze" series on this blog site ("it's about #@%^ time!").  What almost all of the readers got a chance to experience, throughout our days in school, a time of day that most of us felt we could not do without...

Re:cess themes, memes: Such as "recess...taking recess...taking a recess...taking recess away...what I took away from recess..." All of which refer to "the time of day, a regularly scheduled period in the school day for physical activity and play, that is monitored by trained staff and volunteers...students are encouraged to be physically active and engaged with their peers in activities of their choice, at all grade levels..." Which in turn, offer opportunities not only for "increasing level of physical activity" but "improving social and emotional development (e.g., learning how to share, negotiate)..." In other words, after spending the morning, up until this "time out" focusing on various activities inside the classroom designed to stimulate the "Cognitive" domain (i.e., those designed to make out kids "smarter than a fifth grader") we had some time and opportunity to unleash our inner child, as well as experience activities that may enhance the "Psychomotor" and "Social-Emotional" domains of "Educational Taxonomy"-- those categories that are still incorporated into what's passing these days as "report cards" (if you can understand the codes and current cryptic language). Well, if scheming, whispering to my buddies when the teacher had their back turned, how we were going to take back our turf in "king of the hill" when we finally got "out" fits either of these domains, then we were stellar students indeed...

In's, Out's, Sign of the Times: What we used to be allowed to do and say, whether during "king of the hill" or other games we dreamed up, many of which have become almost artifacts, as "physical contact" (not just during pandemic times) has become a "no no",  and words such as "You're it!" have become a cause for being sanctioned, sent to "the wall"...to the principal's office, a loss of recess. Geez, a kid can't hardly point anymore, including on the "playground", for fear of reprisal. If you read the signs, the 'writing on the walls' regarding the do's and don'ts of recess these days, it's as if the game of "Tag" and other games that involve a degree of contact and hurt feelings have been replaced by verbs of "restraint", "censorship", "cancel"...So, what's happened to the "good old days" when playgrounds actually meant...

Play, Ground (?): An audio skit I still appreciate, even though the comedian himself has been disgraced, fallen out of favor, includes that of "The Playground" (1966) which depicted the simplicity and enjoyments of playgrounds where children, through their boundless imaginations and energy made up...games...that was until the "grown-ups" started bringing in "playground equipment", which resulted in a long list of injuries as well as kids "puking😝!" after going on the "merry-go-round", for example ("we didn't think that up, the grown-ups did!"). Updated and even more high-tech playground equipment, now often referred to as "playscapes" have not stemmed the tide of children getting scraped, bruised, nauseous, if children and their parents coming to my office and conversations with ER and orthopedics I know, are any indication. This, along with the omnipresent signs of what children can't do to unleash their inner child at recess, on the so-called playground, were part of the motivation that led one enterprising and 'play-full' father who was also a playground/recess attendant, to "re-invent" playground equipment: "Making Playgrounds fun again!" If the video demonstrating some samples of this more "inviting", "accessible" and "inclusive" newer iterations are any indication, watching the adults unleashing their inner child without children watching...the turf that was once the sole venue of children may be in jeopardy...an updated version of "king of the hill" may be a work in progress; Us versus Them.