On Teaching: "Nap Time in 8th Grade English?"

Perhaps I should allow my students a little “sleep time” during my classes. As odd as that sounds, it would seem to make perfect sense, when I remember that we humans spend roughly one-third of the twenty-four hours of each day sleeping. Nature has made it clear to us that we need that much rest. In order to function as proficient human beings, our bodies and minds need to turn off, or at least way down, for approximately fifteen minutes for every thirty minutes awake. During that time, we escape from pressures of all kinds in order to rejuvenate ourselves with new vitality. My students work very hard in each class, including mine, from 8:30 to 3:00, and it makes sense that they should take time out now and then to rest and recuperate. Just as they need their long sleep each night, perhaps they should be allowed to rest for a period of time in my class. And just as we often awaken in the morning with a new-found energy, perhaps my students would awaken from their brief rest with a burst of passion for English work. It seems reasonable: We couldn’t go a full twenty-four hours without a good rest, and my students perhaps can’t be expected to go a full forty-eight minutes in English class without a relaxing break. Hmmm...What would my principal think if he walked into my classroom and found my students blissfully napping?