Balanced School Day

The Balanced Day

Background

 In the spring of 2002 schools across our Simcoe County District School Board submitted proposals to be considered for the Balanced Day Pilot Project. In total 12 schools were selected to be involved for the school year 2002-2003. All 12 schools have decided to carry on with the Balanced Day for another year so our Board has decided to allow other schools to become involved in piloting the Balanced School Day.

 What is the Balanced Day? 

The Balanced Day is a different way of organizing the school day. Using this model, the day is organized into 3 large blocks of instructional time broken up with 2 nutritional and recess breaks. Although each school will create their own schedule, below is the one that Duntroon Central is working with. It will be finalized prior to September. Although there are large blocks of instructional time, the children will not be sitting doing pencil and paper work for this long. Their activities will be varied according to the age of the children just as they are now.

 With the Balanced Day Schedule, the children continue to get their 90 minutes of nutrition and recess time but it is blocked differently.      

8:45-10:30 first instructional block of time
10:30– 11:15 nutritional break (15 min. eating time - 30 min. outside recess)
11:10-1:05 second instructional block of time
1:05-1:50 nutritional break (20 min. eating time – 25 min. outside recess)

1:50 – 3:15

  		third instructional block of time

                                  

 What are the benefits?

 Benefits noted by parents, students and staff from the schools who have piloted the Balanced Day include:

·                    larger blocks of time for instruction without interruptions

·                    less uneaten food goes home at the end of the day

·                    students are more focused at the end of the day

·                    reduced yard concerns with behaviour

·                    students are not exposed to the sun at 12:00 noon

·                    learning blocks are long enough for lessons, work periods and taking up of work

·                    greater use of the gym

·                    longer recess blocks make intramural sports more meaningful

·                    young children do not spend most of their recess time getting ready to go outside

·                    longer recesses allow the children the time to engage in meaningful activities