Recess, Park, Play: Features in NRPA

This summer, IPEMA and its Voice of Play initiative was featured in the National Recreation and Park Association (NRPA)’s magazine, blog and podcast!

First, in the 2018 Playground Guide (part of the July issue), IPEMA’s president Tom Norquist wrote the article, “From School Yard to Park.” In this byline, we explored how in recent years, more schools have been limiting recess, but research shows how valuable recess truly is to kids, including the growth of physical, emotional, social and cognitive skills. This was a good opportunity for us to shed light on our 2018 recess survey, where every teacher surveyed – 500 U.S. elementary school teachers – said that recess is essential for young students’ mental and physical development.

The article was also an opportunity to discuss how important recess can be to set a daily foundation of outdoor free play at school, so kids can get in the habit of going to different parks in their communities with their families to keep up the fun (and disconnect from devices) on the playground. Click here and go to page 10 to read the rest of the article, including an example of the Springfield-Greene County Park Board and Springfield Public Schools’ highly successful collaboration that connected schools, parks, trails and greenways with programming, staff, and amenities.

Tom was also interviewed on NRPA’s Open Space podcast about IPEMA’s feature on the NBC Nightly News. Tom spoke with podcast host Cort Jones about how risk and adventure play is stepping back into the limelight and can help kids’ independence and creativity. He also spoke about the recess survey, which was timely as we move into back to school. Read the blog post and listen to the podcast by clicking here.

Thank you, NRPA, for featuring IPEMA and the Voice of Play this summer on the importance of play!