Strict schedule at recess? One school says it cuts down on bullies

BELLEVUE -- Twenty minutes of every day, where you just get to run around like crazy.

Recess is a lot of kid’s favorite time of the school day.

It can be fun, but it can also be dangerous.

“Any school would tell you more incidents of conflict between children a rises in unstructured settings than at any time of the day,” says Heather Sanchez, principal at Ardmore Elementary.

Things like fighting or bullying. Traditionally, recess has had very little structure but that’s changing for the Title-One Schools in the Bellevue School District.

“It’s a good way to engage all of them that’s interactive; it brings structure to recess in a fun way,” says Sanchez.

It’s called Playworks. Specific games are offered every day and kids get to pick which game they want to play.

“We want kids to know what their interests are and try new things,” says Sanchez. The older students act as coaches, keeping the younger kids engaged and happy.

“It creates community on the playground,” says teacher Sarah Ortiz. Playworks is at schools all across the country and those schools reported a 79 percent decrease in bullying when they implemented the program on their playground.

Ardmore Elementary, the principal says she has seen cases of fighting, bullying or just trouble on the playground, cut in half.

To learn more about Playworks, click here.