#13 Why so many kids can't sit still in school today

In this article, the author talks about the attention disorder, ADHD, and how it is becoming more common for children in school. More children are being diagnosed with ADHD because they can't sit still in school and it is because the schools are expecting students to sit still for longer periods of time. Children aren't getting enough time to run around and play and this is becoming a problem. Parents are calling doctors concerned because their child is getting in trouble every day for not having good behavior and it is effecting the child. This problem is not the child's fault, it is the school systems that we have today. The article says that children are walking around with an underdeveloped vestibular system due to restricted movement. Children need more than 20 minutes a day to play outside and participate in physical activity. Because they aren't getting enough movement to turn their brains on, they are less prepared than ever to learn. Fidgeting is a problem and needs to be fixed with more play time and activities.

Because of the curriculum that teachers are expected to teach today, this will be a problem in my future classroom. I can make this problem go away by managing our schedule in the day to make sure I don't have to cut recess short and even plan an extra recess at the end of the day if time allows. I can allow students to take breaks between lessons where we can play different games that require moving around. These games can pertain to the lesson to get the students moving but also stay on track. Physical activity is a huge part of a child's life, and by taking that away in the school system, we are hurting the child more than helping. It is important to make sure we allow our students as much physical activity as possible because we do not know what they are going home to and what activity they will get at home. Sending children home with too much homework is also a problem that restricts children from playing because parents make their children finish their homework as soon as they get home. In my classroom, I will try to send home the least amount of homework that I can to make sure students get that activity that they need.