A
balanced school day represents an adjustment to how recess and
nutrition breaks are distributed throughout the school day. The actual
length of the school day remains the same but the time within the day is
"balanced" between two nutrition/activity breaks.
The reasons for following a balanced school day are two-fold.
First,
the balanced schedule increases instructional time by reducing time
lost during transitions. In previous years, the school day followed a
structure of a morning recess, lunch break and recess, and then an
afternoon recess. With this schedule, instructional time was lost in
order to provide students time to have snacks during the morning and
afternoon as well as when students get dressed and undressed before and
after recess. With the move to a balanced schedule, instructional time
is less interrupted and the balanced eating times eliminate peaks and
valleys in students' nutritional needs.
The
second benefit of a balanced schedule is that it allows for longer
periods of time for students to eat. Rather than trying to fit in a
quick snack before or after recess, students are given two scheduled
nutrition breaks during the day. With a scheduled nutrition break,
families can plan for snacks that are nutritious, rather than focusing
on snacks that are quick and convenient.
Students
require a healthy snack during the first nutrition break in the
morning. Students will also need their regular lunch at 12:50 p.m.
Parents are encouraged to pack the food separately so that students know
which food they should eat at each of the breaks and to ensure they
have sufficient food for the day. If you are picking your child up for
lunch, lunch-hour is 12:50 to 1:45 p.m.
So
what does the day look like? Essentially, the day is divided into three
equal teaching blocks with a nutrition/activity (recess) break after
the first and second blocks. During the first nutrition/activity break
(10:40 - 11:10) students are given ample time for a light snack,
washroom break and recess time. The second break is from 12:50-1:45.
Students will have a longer time for lunch and recess time outside. The
length of the school day remains the same; school will start at 9:00
a.m. and students will be dismissed at 3:30 p.m.
Schools
that have a balanced schedule report positive benefits such as the
final part of the day being "energized" and students being less hungry
at the end of the day.
Some of the benefits of a Balanced School Day are:
- Maximized instructional time throughout the day due to fewer interruptions, especially during the winter months
- Making time for good nutrition promotes good learning
- Children are not as hungry at the end of the day
- Reduction
of litter on the playground (as students have time to eat during
scheduled breaks rather than trying to grab a quick snack at recess
time)