Do you ever wish you were a kid again? What’s so nostalgic about your childhood learning experience?

For many, the answer to this question would entail the downtime and freedom available to students as kids. Nap time, snack time, and recess are all activities that sound appealing to high school students now.

Many students need more time to eat breakfast in the morning. Students have other responsibilities, like getting ready for school and finishing homework. Although NVD offers breakfast in the mornings, most students don’t arrive early enough to take advantage of this. 

“I usually arrive around 5 minutes before class starts,” Stratos Chandras, a junior said.

This creates a group of high school students who procrastinate until late at night, and who sleep in class. 

“I have practice most days and sometimes I’m up till 11 finishing homework tasks,” Sara Genena, a sophomore said.

There are so many problems with sleeping in class, such as being disrespectful to the teacher, taking away from class time, and interfering with learning. When a student sleeps in class, they miss instruction time which could lead to lower test scores.

Students could benefit from having a fifteen-minute nap during their free periods. 

 “Yes of course. Or even just downtime,” Genena said when asked about nap time during free periods. 

If nap time could be offered without interfering with the school day, it would allow students to refresh themselves for the rest of the school day. Students would have more energy to pay more attention and apply themselves more since they could give their all in classes. Students have an extra boost of energy that would highly benefit the student’s energy.

“Nearly 7 in 10 U.S. teenagers get less than the recommended eight hours of sleep a night” according to a poll held at edweek.org.

Another kindergarten activity that could be crucial for high school students would be having snack time. 

“I feel hungry sometimes before lunch,” Everette Amorosano, a sophomore said. 

A snack time would benefit students like Everette so they could be well-energized. As high schoolers age and mature, they need to have a constant energy source. Some students indulge in gum or sneak snacks into class for a boost. 

Having a snack can boost energy in students. Sugar is widely known for being an energy source, which could give students a boost for them to be more focused and engaged in their classes. Since the lunch line is so long at NVD many students don’t get to finish eating lunch. Especially when one of four cycle days students have a lab for half of the lunch period making it difficult to get lunch.

Although it may seem that high school students outgrew most of these kindergarten activities, there are many benefits that could be included in a student’s everyday schedule. Being well-rested and energized enhances students’ ability to succeed in their classes.