A bill proposed by Hudson Valley Democratic state Sen. James Skoufis would mandate that schools provide 30 minutes of recess for school children from kindergarten to grade five. Skoufis told Spectrum News 1 that the unstructured time of recess is “so important” for the cognitive, physical and social health of especially elementary school-aged children.

New York has dense cities that may not have the space for outdoor play and infamously cold and snowy winters that aren’t conducive to outdoor recess.

Skoufis says other rooms in schools can be used for recreational purposes.

“If there’s a will, there’s a way to figure out how to do this and there really needs to be a will," Skoufis said. "All of the research points in one direction which is that students, kids are healthier when they have a meaningful amount of recreation.”

Pam Karlin, director of early childhood education at Brooklyn Heights Synagogue, agrees that time for movement helps kids focus and retain information.

“Taking away movement from the brain is like taking away yeast when you’re making bread," Karlin said. "You’re just going to end up with a mess.”

Karlin also points out that disabled or less ambulatory students need to be included as well to have time to socialize and play.

In terms of their own recess adventures, Skoufis says his favorite pastime was trying to swing as high as possible and Karlin loved foursquare.

The bill is currently in both the Senate and Assembly Education Committees. However, with no plans for lawmakers to return to Albany, the bill will likely not move forward this year and would need to be reintroduced in a new legislative session come January. Skoufis says he plans to re-introduce it.