Education

It’s time to take child’s play seriously.

Making Recess Count with Playworks

The Challenge: For many principals and teachers, recess has become the toughest part of the day, the flashpoint for playground fights and referrals. Some schools have eliminated recess altogether. But a growing body of research shows play is essential for kids’ development. Playworks is pioneering a program where trained coaches lead structured playtime across America. But it wanted more education leaders to catch onto the idea that playground activities could have a positive spill-over effect in the classroom.

Our Approach: Fenton developed a communications strategy for Playworks to help define and legitimize the emerging field of play — and position them as a leader within it. We promoted research that showed schools that partner with Playworks reclaim up to 36+ hours of class time each year, as well as a Gallup poll of principals attesting to the value of recess for learning. A documentary-style video that captures Playworks in action and story placements about the program in target media markets rounded out our efforts.

Progress, Accelerated: A front-page story in The New York Times, PBS News Hour, The Washington Post, NPR’s “All Things Considered” and dozens of stories in local press is helping to spark a national dialogue about the importance of play and recess. Playworks’ ideas were featured at the 2009 Clinton Global Initiative and at the TedX Conference in San Francisco. Playworks Founder Jill Vialet was invited to meet with U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan, who, in a recent speech, alluded to Playworks’ call for new approaches to learning—beginning with bridging cognitive skills and readiness with young children’s social and emotional development.

The Power of Play from Playworks on Vimeo.