Every student looks forward to breaks, even those who love school more than anything want a period of relaxation. More than wanting it, students need it. Performing well in school takes a huge effort, and having time to rest our brains is essential to mental health. So why is our fall break only four days (counting the weekend)?

On the Lafayette calendar, Fall break is marked as October 4th and 5th, a Thursday and Friday. We only have those two days off to rest. If you’re optimistic, you could say we have four total days off, counting Saturday and Sunday. Either way, it isn’t enough time.

Some people would argue that Lafayette students have already had enough time off of school, if you consider labor day and the one or two days the district gave us off. However, those days weren’t consecutive. One day off here and there is great, but it doesn’t give us the time we need to recuperate. If one day isn’t enough, or two days for the weekend, then four definitely isn’t.

Another argument may be that in “the real world” adults don’t get the kinds of breaks that students do. This argument is incredibly invalid. First of all, students are growing human beings that need a considerable amount more sleep than adults (2 or 3 more hours, at least.) Not to mention that students continue to do school work even when they are home, aka homework, along with studying. Second of all, teens in today’s world are more stressed than adults. A 2013 study by the American Psychological Association shows that teens are the most stressed age group in the U.S. Do you know what built up stress can do? It can cause headaches, weight loss, hair loss, high blood pressure, aggressive behavior, and many other symptoms.

Students today are more competitive than ever, due to the emergence of social media. Competition creates a sense of dire need in students to succeed. It’s us against the world.

With all these things in mind, I would confidently say that our fall break should be longer than two (or four) days. Six consecutive days off should be the minimum. Being a student is a stressful commitment, and having time to ourselves to relax is necessary for us to keep giving school our full effort. If adults of the district could stand in our shoes, they would agree without hesitation. Some districts offer the whole week off so its not completely outrageous. That being said, enjoy your fall break!