BILL TO LAW SIMULATION - BILL FINAL DRAFT

Committee: ​Longer Lunch Authors: ​Love, Alyssa, Kyana

Passed Declined Level of Gov. Signature

House

Senate

President

Title of Bill: Extended Lunch Act

BE IT ENACTED BY THE THIRD PERIOD AP GOVERNMENT CLASS OF 2018 HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES:

1 Purpose and Goal:​ Our purpose is to have longer lunch for grades 7-12th.
2 The only break of the school day that the students receive is 20 minutes, and
3 two-thirds of that time students are waiting in long lines to eat.
4 Not to mention, students have a list a specific things that they need to accomplish
5 during lunch, which takes precious time away from their lunch.
6 ​Students deserve time to sit down and actually eat, to take their mind off of the
7 stressful school day.
8 If implemented, this bill will create happier, and healthier students.
9 Section 1 (Reasoning for Bill): ​To give students the break they deserve.
10 It is unfair to students that teachers get longer breaks than the students, even
11 though both are working extremely hard every day.
12 For the students who do not receive meals at home, due to home issues, rely on
13 lunch to get the nutrients they need to function.
14 Students either eat too fast or don’t eat at all.
15 Students worry too much about the time of lunch, so they rush to finish instead of
16 enjoying the food fully.
17 In class, teachers eat in front of students while they are patiently waiting for their
18 very short lunch break.
19 A full school day is roughly 7 hours straight of new, challenging material. Longer
20 lunches will ensure a good break for the brain.
21 Section 2 (How will it benefit the school?):​ Academics will significantly grow.
22 Eating lunch will strengthen the academic participation in classes every day.
23 The students will be more concentrated on the new ideas presented in class.
24 There will be less sleeping in class, because students would be energized to stay
25 up.
26 Students’ grades will progressively grow due to reasons listed in 15 and 16.
27 Section 3 (How will it be implemented in school?): ​Classes and advisory will
28 only be cut 4-5 minutes.
29 Schedules will be changed for Semester 2, when new classes are given to students.
30 This bill will ONLY be for grades 7-12th .
31 4 minutes will be taken from morning advisory.
32 4 minutes will be taken from classes.
33 By taking that time from the classes and advisory, 45 minutes will be used for
34 lunch.
35 Section 4 (What supporting research exists?):
36 When learning we use the limbic system in the brain, which when overstimulated
37 can trigger negative emotions like anxiety and aggression. According to the Center
38 for Disease Control (CDC) hunger is associated with lower grades, more absences,
39 and an inability to focus.
40 According to the​ “​Public School Review” website, Longer lunches has helped
41 students with significant success after increasing their lunch period. This extension
42 not only gives them more time to eat and digest but also gives students time to
43 catch up on school work and get help from teachers,
44 Schools like “Bodine High School for International Affairs” have roughly an hour
45 or more to eat their lunch, and perform extremely well in their academics.
46 Section 5 (Conclusion): ​Longer lunches will be extremely beneficial to students.
47
48 Changing the schedule for semester 2 in the 2018-2019 school year will give
49 students from grades 7-12 a 45 minute lunch period. This lunch period will not
50 only give academic benefits to the school, but will help the students mentally
51 throughout their day. The teachers and students will receive good breaks that they
52 deserve. Research from all over the world proves that students need a longer lunch
53 period to benefit them in their school year. Classes, including advisory, will be cut
54 by 4 minutes and give students double time for the lunch than they had in the years
55 prior. Mariana Bracetti Academy Charter School will give students a boost in their
56 academics and participation throughout their classes. The Extended Lunch Act
57 gives students a chance to receive the nutrition that they cannot obtain in their
58 homes. It is chance to change the way student eat their lunch and perform in
59 school. There will be a significant growth in all factors if bill is passed thoroughly.