School recess is essential when children develop their social skills and develop. It is a time of respite before the obligations that the teachers have to respect. The time of the school recess is currently being affected by the inclusion of new technologies and all the cons that they entail. But this time of online disconnection also has a series of social, emotional and cognitive advantages. You may not know and, therefore, we will explain the importance of school recess time in this article.

Importance of school recess time

Who has not jumped out of the chair at school when the bell started ringing? Playtime is one of the most cherished moments for children. From the outside, it can be seen simply as game time, but it is much more than that. You know why?

1. Development of social skills and conflict resolution

For a child not to know another is not an impediment to play together, and that is the key. They develop friendships and engage in conversations with other partners united only by the interest of playing and having fun.

All these relationships make them grow as people and, also, they learn to solve small but very good conflicts for their personal development.

2. Promotion of intellectual and physical abilities

School break time could also be called ‘ imagination time’ since it is one of the times when children most use their minds. Who has not invented a game out of anything or a story with characters and dialogues to represent and play?

Therefore, the mind is in continuous movement, which produces great cognitive benefits for them. Also, at this time children are moving continuously, so they also develop physical activities essential for growth.

3. Greater production and attention in the classrooms

This aspect is basic for all people; whether children or adults, since when we grow up we also need to clear our mind of the activity we are doing so that we can continue afterward more concentrated. With children, it works in the same way. During recess, they relax, clear up and return to class with the fastest mind.

How long should recess last?

Another aspect to take into account is the duration of this time of rest. Between ten minutes and up to an hour is the time interval that the schools use. Currently, the variety of subjects and the weight given to them make some institutions have decided to eliminate recreational time to include more study time. This is a serious mistake, since the students are taking away the necessary disconnection time and, as we have pointed out, they are not paying much attention.

The importance of teachers

The figure of the teacher has an essential but at the same time invisible role. First of all, you need to supervise this time of rest to avoid conflicts or to be available to children if they need it.

Also, they can play an important role in the creation of games and the inclusion of children in them, which again generates social development.

We also speak of an invisible role because it is at the time of recreation, as we have said before, where social relations are revealed. It’s a time for them, and you have to let them enjoy themselves. Of course, teachers should always be alert to problems that may arise, especially regarding bullying.

Do not use recess as a punishment mode

It is very common to see in schools how students are punished without recess, but … is this beneficial for the child? Punishing him without recess is synonymous with forbidding him to relate, clear up and, therefore, concentrate.