“We should understand that kids need that break because the brain needs that break.”

And many children are not getting that break. In the Pediatrics study, 30 percent were found to have little or no daily recess. Another report, from a children’s advocacy group, found that 40 percent of schools surveyed had cut back at least one daily recess period.

Also, teachers often punish children by taking away recess privileges. That strikes Dr. Barros as illogical. “Recess should be part of the curriculum,” she said. “You don’t punish a kid by having them miss math class, so kids shouldn’t be punished by not getting recess.”

Finally, research that shows our children are NOT machines! I hope educators are paying attention to this study.

There's a fascinating book called Spark: The Revolutionary New Science of Exercise and the Brain that covers a lot of the recent research on the subject. I got it from the library but want to buy a copy to have at home. The author's website is here.

Thanks for the book suggestion. I'll see if my library has a copy.