while it seems like this can be disregarded as moronic behavior on the part of the school district, i have mixed feelings, i really do. on one hand, i remember the traditional "halloween parade" that i had throughout elementary school and the "day off" that it granted us, and how fantastic it could seem to a 3rd grader; but on the same note, i can see where administration is coming from. while i think that its much easier and fundamentally sound to integrate a celebration with the "learning experience" rather than eliminate it altogether, if the school simply can't stand to lose a day in the process, then chopping it out of the whole schedule seems
relatively logical. the school may also be fearing the occasional backlash from the kids parents who can't celebrate halloween, in a society where everything has to be politically correct, they may even be using the "distraction approach" as a way to neutralize (and unfortunately sterilize) their learning environment.
bottom line, i liked halloween as a child, but i can see how some kids (and parents and teachers) can feel that their main purpose is being curtailed so that other kids (and parents and teachers) can binge on candy and punch. hell, its also a damn shame that the kids with mothers who make them damn good costumes (yeah, that was me
) don't get the chance to show off...