If your kids attend some schools in Arkansas, they will be more recess time next year..
In some districts, the pilot program means free play time will go from the current 15 minutes after lunch to 60 minutes a day for kindergarten through fourth grades and 45 minutes for fifth-graders.
The one-year pilot program for selected schools is authorized by Act 1062 of 2017. The law specifies the periods each day of "unstructured and undirected play," and the play time must be separate from required physical education each week.
The goal is to "put the brain in the optimal state of readiness to learn," according to Blair Dean, a professor of Health, Physical Education and Sport Science at ASU. So it won't necessarily make the kids smarter, but more ready to learn! Plus, it's definitley a bonus when it comes to physical health.
Booneville and Cedarville will be doing it in K-4, while Magazine will do it in K-6. In Fort Smith, Cook Elementary will be doing it for grades K-6.