Most Lawrence school board members have never managed an elementary school classroom.

For that reason, they should be cautious when trying to micromanage the way teachers handle the daily challenges their students pose.

One such case arose during a recent goal-setting session, when several board members decried the practice of taking away recess time as a disciplinary measure. They cited some specific anecdotes involving children being required to walk the perimeter of the playground while others played and the possibility of teachers rewarding students with candy, getting them “amped up on sugar” and then taking away recess time when they misbehaved.

On the surface, board members are right; physical activity is a good way for youngsters to run off excess energy and give their brains a break from the studies. However, their criticism of teachers’ actions didn’t include any discussion — or perhaps awareness — of what student behaviors preceded the disciplinary actions.

A local elementary school principal addressed the board’s concerns in a common sense way. At her school, she said, students never lose their entire 15-minute recess; it usually is delayed by three or five minutes. Limiting recess, she said, is used as a last resort, perhaps when other measures have failed to get the student’s attention. Teachers don’t make these decisions lightly. For one thing, reducing a student’s recess time probably means that teacher gets to spend a few more minutes of “quality time” with a student who already has been making his or her life miserable all day.

Board members are responsible for broad district policy but they need to trust their teachers and building administrators to handle the day-to-day details of such things as when it might be appropriate to send a disciplinary message by limiting a student’s recess time.