A school here in Wisconsin is doing away with Halloween - how do you feel about that?

Question

They say that not all cultures like Halloween and some kids do not want to participate so they are not going to have a Halloween costume parade or class parties.
The MAJORITY want to have it. Just a few do not. IT IS A UNITED STATES TRADITION. What do you think?

I am all for prayer and the Pledge too.
I like CHRISTMAS tress and all the traditions of my childhood. America was a melting pot back then too...why is it different NOW?

Answer 1

NO HALLOWEEN in MY state?!!!

that upsets me.

you can call it a pagan ritual if you want, as some have, but it's not really that anymore. it's a day to let the immagination of kids run wild. it's also a good way to educate them about "too much candy"

you should really get involved if it bothers you enough. I'm out though and have no kids, so school's not a battle i fight. but if they get rid of halloween, what's next? Christmass?!!! And then i'll suppose the'y take valentine's because some aloof parents will say that it bother's them and they're child cried because he didn't get any cards from the pretty girl in class and he cried his eye's out for two weeks and bla bla bla drama drama drama.

Answer 2

You bring up an interesting point:
The Church, throughout it's history, has appropriated pagan holidays. Christmas was the winter solstice, a pagan festival day from which the Christmas tree and yule log come. Easter was the Feast of Eostre, the pagan god of fertility, who was often depicted as a white rabbit.

Samhain was the original festival that the Western Christian calendar moved its “All Saints’ Day” to. Samhain was the beginning of the Dark Half of the Year, the period when nights became longer than days.

The dead are honored and feasted, not as the dead, but as the living spirits of loved ones. With the coming of Christianity, this festival was turned into Hallowe’en (31 October), All Hallows [All Saints Day] (1 November), and All Souls Day (2 November).

The Christian Church was unable to get the people to stop celebrating this holiday, so they simply sprinkled a little holy water on it and gave it new names, as they did with other Paleopagan holidays and customs.

Now that we've gotten the history out of the way, I too believe it to be not only a tradition, but, in a way, a rite of passage for children. It has become a fun day for kids, nothing more, nothing less.

Even if we look at is as what it was originally meant for, honoring the dead and paying tribute to the spirit of loved ones is not such a bad thing, either.

My son's school is celebrating it as "costume day", which, in reality, is how most children will remember it, anyway -costumes and candy. I get, on average, 100 kids at my door every Hallowe’en, and it is fun for some of us "big kids", too.

Answer 3

Good idea, especially due to the fact that school districts all over America are coming under attack for failing to educate the students. Students are in school to learn. Costume parades and parties are a deterrent to this objective. If Halloween is that important, the teacher can discuss the tradition and its origin. Playtime (dressing up in costumes and parties) can take place later at the parents discretion. In fact, look at the Homework Help category on Yahoo Answers. This should convince you that today's student need more education and less distractions like parties and costume parades.
This move is also a step in preparing the students for real life. School is the students place of business just like an adults workplace. I don't imagine WE Energies or Ameritech are going to shut down that day so their employees can parade around in costumes and have parties. Will the Psychology professor at UW Madison or Marquette University invite his students to attend class in costume and then have the class bob for apples and listen to ghost stories????
I applaud this school for respecting the cultural differences of their students and for making their education the main priority.

Answer 4

That those children should stay home, but if it's a public school then there's nothing you can do because technically if you read up on halloween it is a religious holiday in more than one way. So basically everyone has to suck it because one person isn't tolerant enough to realize that they are the minority and that they will have to deal with that fact.

Answer 5

It is not as traditional as you may think. Ask your parents and grandparents about what Halloween was like when they were kids. You may be VERY surprised at the answers. I know I was.

Answer 6

heavily, none of my instructors have pronounced this invoice at school. None of them, they only proceed coaching what needs to benefit. My evaluations approximately this invoice is my own. i'm 18, an grownup. i'm able to my own suggestions. Adults underestimate babies and that i think of it is in basic terms rediculous. they have not have been given any precise to basically assume that we don't recognize what we are conversing approximately in basic terms because of the fact we at the instant are not 18. i'm legally waiting to vote and that i can think of my own suggestions and are available to my own conclusions. people who think of in any different case is age discriminating. That invoice will shrink the internet earnings of maximum of those youngster's instructors. once you may hardship approximately having sufficient funds for survival, how are you meant to think of roughly "looking after your pupils"? If instructors gets a commission much less and much less, their motivation will go through and our training will additionally go through. the academics have helped us pupils in the time of our years at school and now it's time that we pupils help our instructors besides. How dare the governor get rid of the rights of human beings to jointly good purchase? no longer basically are the pupils status up for people who help them yet in addition for undemanding rights that they are going to a minimum of sooner or later have. additionally, if pupils experience that instructors are being pushed around and forced right into a nook, then what form of guy or woman could elect to alter right into a instructor anymore? those are the people who teach the voters of the destiny, why is the government treating them like crap? And there are greater effective than in basic terms instructors protesting, there are all varieties of public officers besides. Scott Walker bypass forward. Destoy our training. harm our destiny. Oh what a astounding international we've then (sarcasm)

Answer 7

I think Halloween is the most fun "holiday" there is. That's wrong to get rid of it at your school. It's just a fun tradition, and the 2nd biggest marketed holiday.

Answer 8

The kids that don't want to participate don't have too. If they are doing away with Halloween then they should do away with all holiday celebrations.

Answer 9

I think it's too bad. At my school, we have one family that doesn't celebrate and the kids just stay home from school that day. Personally, I think people are just way to paranoid. It's just a bit of fun.

Answer 10

That sucks! I guess all schools will be like that one day. Ooh. I think things are just getting so ridiculous and politically "incorrect" and you just can't please everyone. Next we will offend people saying happy holidays because they are depressed.