AURORA, Colo. — Some parents at Arrowhead Elementary School in the Cherry Creek School District are pushing back against a new policy they say restricts where students can play during recess.
The policy divides the playground into zones, caps each zone at 24 students, and prohibits students from mixing between zones, according to a message sent to parents by school administrators earlier this week.
Peyton Michaud, an Arrowhead Elementary parent, said the policy is taking the joy out of playtime.
"Kids are restricted to a zone. There's no shade," Michaud said. "They're restricting kids being kids at recess."
Michaud said administrators told parents the policy was a response to conflicts on the playground.
"What they said was there was a lot of arguments and fights on the playground last year between students, and really, what I think the problem to that is is hiring more staff or having more staff out there instead of restricting play," Michaud said.
Parents have since launched a petition calling on the school to return to free play. The petition has gathered more than 250 signatures.
"I feel like this is a pretty big policy, and it feels kind of unfair that only one school is doing this. It feels like a punishment to Arrowhead students," Michaud said.
"Arrowhead Elementary's recent recess changes were introduced in response to feedback from students, staff, and families seeking greater safety measures and more activity variety," a Cherry Creek School District spokesperson told Denver7. "Since implementation, the school has heard additional feedback and is reviewing it to make adjustments. Cherry Creek School District is committed to working with the community toward a positive outcome and will share updates as changes are finalized."
Parents plan to attend a meeting set up by school administrators on Tuesday, where they will have an opportunity to speak directly with administrators about their concerns.
"My hope is that they allow recess to go back to what recess is, what it used to be last year, what it's been for 50 years, letting kids just play freely for 20, 30 minutes and get outside," Michaud said.
