Schools Employ ‘Recess Consultants’ to Make Playtime ‘Inclusive’ and Structured

ashley.rae | October 6, 2015
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Two elementary schools in Minnesota joined the growing list of schools hiring “recess consultants” in order to make playtime is more structured and “inclusive.”

The Minneapolis Star Tribune reports Concord Elementary and Normandale Elementary, two schools in Edina, Minnesota, have hired Playworks, an organization dedicated to making recess “fun and energetic and safe and inclusive for everyone.”

Playworks claims to be a group of “coaches, kids, teachers, parents and supporters who believe in the power of play to make kids, schools and communities stronger.”

Playworks says it imposes "developmentally appropriate" competition on kids by "self-handicapping" games and "adapting the rules":

"We incorporate competitive activities into our programming, but we strive to do it in a developmentally appropriate way. One amazing thing about play is this: kids’ desire to keep the activity going will motivate them to take actions that are actually in the best interest of the larger group. Most often this manifests as self-handicapping: switching players, adapting the rules, etc. to keep some balance and ensure that everyone is having enough fun to continue playing."

“On our playgrounds, everyone plays, everyone belongs, everyone contributes to the game. Coaches encourage kids to bring out the best in themselves and each other, and kids learn the value of fair play, compassion and respect,” Playworks writes.

Playworks lists three different services it offers on its website: Playworks Coach, Playworks TeamUp, and Playworks Pro. Playworks Coach involves hiring a full-time recess couch, Playworks TeamUp provides an on-site coordinator to “teach, model, and empower a sustainable recess program,” and Playworks Pro involves hands-on professional development that equips staff with “techniques to create more inclusive and healthy play opportunities for the youth in their programs.”

According to the Star Tribune, one of the ways Playworks attempts to make recess more inclusive is by telling students, “Nice try” or “Good job” instead of “Hey, you’re out.”

Normandale Elementary’s principal, Chris Holden, told the Star Tribune that after the implementation of Playworks, his school has seen fewer disciplinary referrals and fewer trips to the nurse after recess.

The city as spent $30,000 on the “recess initiatives.”

Edina is currently discussing whether the Playworks program will be implemented throughout the city.

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