Twenty-minute class periods, going home at 10:50—the only thing better than this type of school day is a school day with no school at all.

Every year, the day before Thanksgiving is a half-day for students and teachers.  Although some students attend school, many students find this day pointless and do not bother coming at all.

“I don’t go to school on half days because there normally is no point,” junior Cassidy Caulk said.  “The classes are so short and you get no work done.”

According to senior Dylan Mervis, he has “never been” to school on a half day because it is “a waste of time.”

According to AP Psych teacher Evan Rosenthal, although in one of his classes four out of 25 students said they would be absent, another poll of 25 students resulted in 19 students saying that they would not be attending school the half-day before Thanksgiving.

What are students doing if they are not in school?

“I’m going away for Thanksgiving but if I were here I would sleep in,” junior Marci Weiss said.

Out of 20 students who said that they would not attend school, here is what they said they would be doing: sleeping- 45 percent, going out of town- 35 percent, watching TV- 10 percent hanging out with friends- 10 percent.

For students that do choose to attend school, teachers often plan their schedules around the high distraction on a half-day right before a holiday.

“I always feel that there’s a point to come to school no matter if it’s a half day or not, but I think that it’s sometimes hard to convince students to come for a half day when they’re only in class for 20 minutes,” Rosenthal said.  “I will find something fun and creative to do to get whatever information I can across—something fun and entertaining.”