Costumes, candy, cauldrons, cobwebs and crows are part of the infamous appeal of October. The chill, the thrill, the sugar high that only lasts ten minutes are all part of Halloween; the main reason people look forward to October in the first place. Going door to door and meeting people that you do not know so you can take free sugary treats from them is the pinnacle of fun for me, and evidently, several million other children across the country feel the same way.

Arguably one of the most fun holidays of the year, Halloween is the time to dress up and eat candy, hang out with friends, and watch horror movies. It is the only day of the year that if you go to school in an inflatable dinosaur costume where you cannot see a thing, it is completely normal. It is one of the only days that nerds, pop culture fanatics (myself included), jocks, loners, and prom queens alike look forward to. 

Though some may argue that I am now too old, I will always view trick-or-treating as the best part of Halloween. I have endless childhood memories of going out until 10:30 p.m. and getting extra candy since I was the last one knocking on doors. I will always treasure the annual tradition my siblings and I have of candy sorting and trading at the night’s end. It is one of the things that I look forward to the most about the holiday, but it also means that I end up going to bed late. Unfortunately, there are only two days of the week where this late night doesn’t affect my sleep schedule: Fridays and Saturdays.

Every other day of the week means that I, as well as the millions of other kids that enjoy Halloween, have to cut the night short because we have school the next day, which naturally takes away from the overall experience. Most students decide to revel in the celebrations, but face the consequences when the next day they have to wake up incredibly early and go to school, as if the night before had never ensued. 

A possible solution to this that would benefit not only the students but the teachers is having a two-hour delay after Halloween. Even though November 1st is Senior Skip Day, the rest of the students and teachers have to come in at normal times and attend their regular classes the day after Halloween. By the middle of the day, the student body is hit with a wave of fatigue, affecting their performance and critical thinking skills. Having this two-hour delay gives students an opportunity to get some much-needed rest after a long night out, and the additional sleep also benefits the insomniacs among us. A two-hour delay allows students to still enjoy the holiday, and be able to get some shut-eye.

Senior Skip Day, the unofficial official day where the school is void of seniors, is strategically placed on November 1st of every year to follow Halloween and the lack of sleep it induces. The placement of Senior Skip Day is especially fitting this year because November 1st is the due date for early decision college applications. Having this day off is certainly a mental benefit and a way to relax after such a stressful start to the year, as senior year is often very challenging. I am not saying that I do not want a day off after Halloween, but the chances that such a suggestion would be approved by the administration is very slim. The next best thing is having those extra hours of sleep, even if only just a few.

Teachers would largely benefit from this decision as well. There are a significant number of teachers at Harriton who have children who are of trick-or-treating age or who just want to enjoy the night out with friends. Halloween is not solely for kids; adults can enjoy the holiday too, so there is no reason why we should deprive them and all of the students in our district of enjoying such an enjoyable and high energy holiday.

This year, Halloween falls on a Sunday, which is arguably the least convenient day of the week for it to fall upon. If it were to be on a school night, teachers would adjust their schedules to fit the inconveniences posed by the half-day, but a weekend Halloween does not offer this same adjustability. Since our half-day this year is on a Friday, teachers can create a structured plan to accomplish everything that they want for the week leading up to Friday, but there is no special need for them to change anything in their agenda now that the holiday falls on a Sunday. There is no doubt that a two-hour delay is the right way to go. After all, who wants to deal with a bunch of sleep-deprived high-school zombies at 7:30 in the morning?