Most students kindergarten through twelfth grade, go to school for an average of six hours. The time that kids are actually eating or have a break is 20 minute. Most school lunches are 30 minutes but that includes walking to the cafeteria and standing in line waiting for food. A 20 minute gap does not cut it with a school full of kids who need a break. Some schools have a 50 minute lunch, that’s what all schools need to have.

In class, kids are bored out of their minds, staring at their phones, and not paying attention to anything going on in the classroom. These kids need a break! About 55% of high school students are athletes. That means more than half a school, gets up, goes to school for hours, go to their sporting events and practice, then late at night do homework. Some students do this all year, and with very little down time, these students are getting stretched way too thin and have a tremendous amount of stress. This can lead to mental health issues and young students behaving differently. A study shows that 49% of high school students are stressed. That’s about half a high school feeling mental of emiontal strain.

All students need a more extensive lunch break to give them time to destress and relax during the school day. Schools boards need to address this and make a change to positively change mental illnesses in teens and prevent young students from being so stressed out about school.