Recess equates to Academic Success

Every time I recall the memories of elementary school, one of the most vivid images I have were those of recess. This hour after lunch was the time to run around, climb on the play set, swing on the swings, and play sports like football, basketball, and soccer. Personally, this was one of my favorite periods of the day. Recently, research has been found that "shows that physical activity may help children do better in school" (Park). This research was conducted by Amika Singh and her team at VU University in the Netherlands. Her report, which was published in the Archives of Pediatric and Adolescent Medicine, concludes "that physical activity is associated with better academic performance, as measured by higher GPAs and better scores on standardized tests" (Park). The academic success of kids, who received a sufficient amount of exercise of at least one hour a day to remain healthy, excelled particularly in math, reading, and English. According to a study conducted by the Center for Disease Control in 2009, only 18% of high school students met the necessary one hour minimum and 23% had not exercised at all during the specific time frame. Singh concludes “being more active may improve blood flow to the brain, which provides more oxygen to cells involved in learning and attention” (Park). This data gathered by Singh and her team at VU University could affect the way our government cuts spending. Some schools feel that gym class is a subject that could be cut in order to reduce district spending. However, this data concludes otherwise, and shows that exercise is an essential part to academic success. 

http://healthland.time.com/2012/01/03/let-the-kids-play-theyll-do-better-in-school/?iid=hl-main-lede