Abstract
This study sought to identify the games played and preferred by children during school recess in the so-called first cycle, breaking that information down by gender and school year. A questionnaire was applied in two basic education schools in northern Portugal. The sample included 317 students from the four years in that stage - 167 boys and 150 girls. It found that “running” and “chasing” are the most frequent, even though boys prefer football while girls prefer talking. The study confirms low diversification in the games played by children and, according to its findings, children’s playful activities must be enriched by using new playful-pedagogic interventions or new materials during recess.
Keywords
Play and games. Recreation. Children. Education; primary