Please, No More Indoor Recess

Our school has a tradition of going to the downtown Cenotaph for the Remembrance Day ceremonies every year.

It was lightly raining and a little bit chilly last week, but we didn't let that stand in our way. The entire student body still attended the service.

We got there about ten minutes early and all-in-all we were out in the rain for about an hour. The primary choir even sang a song as part of the service.

I was surprised at how well-behaved all of the students were. They were quiet and reserved, just like you would expect for such a somber occasion. No one complained that it was raining either.

The whole experience made me think about how we handle rainy days at school. Most of the time, we don't allow the students to go outside for recess when it is raining. We keep them in the classroom and those days seem exceptionally long.

I don't think we need to stow ourselves away on those rainy days. We should expect our students to come dressed for the weather and to go outside for the 15 minute recess period. We can allow them about five minutes to get ready on these days so they are really only out in the elements for 10 minutes. This should not be a problem.

Of course, there are days where it might be best to keep our students inside. But we can assess those on a case by case basis. When the rain is hammering down, the winds are extreme, or it is frigidly cold, we can make an exception. For the most part though, the students should assume that they will be going outside. They can take some responsibility for being prepared to do so by dressing appropriately.

I know that I usually offer a tip, trick, or lesson you can use in your classroom, but I wanted to open up some discussion here today.

What happens at your school?

Do you think outdoor recess should be the norm with very few exceptions made throughout the year?

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