Mark LaBossiere recalls a letter from a high school student to the district’s superintendent that shared how, as a wheelchair user, the student had never had the chance to use a playground swing. It left an impression on LaBossiere and leadership throughout the district.
“That was something we wanted to be able to change,” said LaBossiere, the principal of Taft Early Learning Center in Uxbridge, Mass.
When the district redesigned the playground—with the help of 3rd grade students, who had a hand in selecting equipment and determining its layout—they thought about accessibility and equity, down to the flooring that surrounded the accessible swing. They also made sure age-appropriate equipment was added for preschoolers who originally spent their recess in a courtyard.
“A lot of learning at this age is through play. You learn how to interact through play,” LaBossiere said. “If children are going up and they’re going down slides, or they’re climbing a structure, and then not everybody can do that, not everybody can play together. But this enables them to have that opportunity of developing friendships and developing the skills to be able to interact with one another.”
Recess, and unstructured play, are essential for children’s development—both in building communication and leadership skills, for physical and mental health benefits, researchers agree.
But equity issues persist for school grounds—where children may have less access to playgrounds, green spaces, and tree canopies that make outdoor play feasible in hot climates. Some schools also take recess away as a punishment to address behavior or academic issues. These obstacles might keep kids from getting necessary time to play, be imaginative—or even just rest. Not all states mandate access to recess, nor do they prohibit withholding it as punishment.
“As adults, we would never do what we expect our kids at school to do,” said Cathy Ramstetter, who researches children’s health and wellness and serves on the board of Successful Healthy Children, an organization that works with parents and educators to support healthy social-emotional. “A kid doesn’t go to school, choosing to be at school and doing what they love all day. … Throughout the day, to have that time to do something of one’s own choosing, even if it’s for a limited time period, can be refreshing and rejuvenating.”
Recess requirements vary state-to-state
Recess has a wide range of benefits for kids—including improving eyesight, nutrition, and physical activity, said Sharon Danks, the CEO of Green Schoolyards America, an initiative that seeks to expand access to outdoor play in green environments. It also helps students learn how to engage with each other. Kids who lead inside might not be the same kids who lead outside, Danks said.
It’s different from a physical education class, or after-school sports, because it’s entirely unstructured, Danks said. Ramstetter said the concept of recess remains important through high school—even if it looks different than playground time for younger learners.
Recess requirements vary. Only two states, Arkansas and Illinois, mandate recess of more than 30 minutes a day; five mandate 20-30 minutes, according to a 2024 report on children’s physical activity. Ten states require recess but don’t specify time, while another 28 have no requirements at all.
Minnesota is one of the states that doesn’t mandate a minimum number of recess minutes, an effort parent advocates are trying to change. They have already had some success in changing the culture around recess in the state, after they advocated for a law prohibiting schools from withholding recess as punishment in 2023.
Maren Christenson took up the fight after she found her son, Simon, who was in kindergarten at the time, had his recess time withheld as a form of punishment.
At the time, Christenson was running a support group for parents with children who have autism and saw the issue come up repeatedly. She realized it needed to be addressed on a larger scale than just Simon’s school—especially as students with disabilities and students of color face disproportionate discipline.
Her efforts culminated in successful legislation with Simon, now a teenager, testifying before lawmakers.
“I don’t remember what I did that made them tell me to stay in, but I am autistic so it probably had something to do with my anxiety,” Simon told lawmakers in 2023. “I get anxious a lot in school and sometimes I say something I shouldn’t when I get stressed out. Sometimes I need to move my body when my teachers want me to sit still. Sometimes I had to stay in for recess, and it felt bad and didn’t help me behave the way my teachers wanted me to.”
Though punishment might work for some kids initially, it doesn’t work for “frequent flyers” and undermines teacher-student trust in the classroom, Ramstetter said.
“Taking away recess for behavior and academics does not serve the intended purpose for correcting behavior or for elevating academic performance,” she said. “That break is so very important for students.”
Costs for green spaces and play equipment can be prohibitive
But with a funding system reliant on property taxes, everything about the education system is inequitable—including school grounds, said Danks.
In a study, Danks found that less than 1 percent of public schools in California have adequate shade for outdoor play—meaning as temperatures soar, few students have a safe place to play outside.
“Everyone is extremely ill-prepared for increases in temperature, but those effects are most pronounced at schools that have fewer resources,” Danks said. “They have the most pavement and the least shade, and the least ability perhaps to raise the funds to change that situation themselves due to the economic situation in their communities.”
And updating playgrounds—to make sure equipment is operable and safe—can be expensive. In Texas, Boyd Elementary Principal Jana Clark said replacing the school’s 15-year-old playground cost roughly $25,000 and included a slide, rock wall, and monkey bars, but no swing set. The district and parents’ association split the cost, and the school is looking for a grant to fund a sandbox.
“It’s really important,” Clark said. “We fully believe that kids need to be outside as much as possible for brain breaks, running, and playing and playing and just being kids exploring.”
As principal, Clark extended the school’s existing two recesses to between 15 and 20 minutes each. Kindergarten and pre-K students go out three times a day.
“Do the kids know that it’s important for them? No. But do they love it? Yes,” she said. “Attendance is really big for me, and if kids are at school, they’re more likely to learn. If they go outside for that wiggle and brain break, then they’re more likely to come back to the classroom and learn.”
