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Involvement
- Some kids don’t play at recess, and that is okay, if it is truly their choice. The best way to get kids to hate exercise is to force them to do it. For many kids, they don’t think of recess as exercise, but as fun. If they are having fun, they can play and get the break and exercise that they need. Once it becomes a forced activity, all the fun goes out of it.
- If they aren’t playing, but don’t seem happy about it, it is your responsibility to try to find out why and help solve the problem if you can.
- Is the child being bullied or otherwise excluded by the other children?
- Is the child having vision or mobility problems that are preventing them for entering a game?
- Try to encourage adaptations to a game to include students who have disabilities.
- Is a child feeling that the games or certain players aren’t fair?
- Review the rules of the game, or make sure that everyone knows the rules of a game that the kids have made up on their own.
- You may have to help with team choices to make sure that the teams are somewhat equal.
- If the kids have organized their own game, it’s best to not intervene. Let them set the rules and make the teams. However, there are times when you will have to jump in and make a few changes or help facilitate teams, rules and fairness if arguments begin
- Sometimes kids just don’t know what to do at recess. Give some ideas to the group about playing games they know well and can organize and play on their own. If they have a problem playing on their own, be a coach and slowly work away after a few recesses, or assign a different sideline coach each day. This would be a great way for some kids to build leadership skills.
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