To get irritated by people who call every school holiday Half Term?

[sorrynotathome]

How can you not know that the half term holiday is in the middle of the term? After the first half and before the second half. At the end of term is the Easter, Summer or Christmas holidays. Do some people think Half Term is an English word for schools being closed? Now I’ve typed term so much it’s started to look weird.

Why do you have holidays halfway through a term? What’s the point? Holidays should be between terms.

As a non-UK person I haven’t been able to work out why there are so many holidays during terms but never read on here about the actual school holidays between terms. Four school terms in my country. Generally 10 weeks per term, two weeks holidays between terms, and six weeks holidays during summer between academic years.

But it isn't clear. I've had someone someone ask if I wanted to make plans for half-term and we were completely at cross purposes with her meaning the Easter holiday and me checking my calendar for the end of May which is the actual next half-term.

The 6 terms in a year bollocks annoys me too as it makes half-term entirely meaningless

So fucking annoying!

If I didn’t know or was unsure, I would just ask.

If I’m making plans with someone, we pull out our phones, have a look and if/then realise we had different thought processes, correct and confirm.

Still a relatively minor thing to get annoyed about imo.

I work at a university and often get asked if I am on half term. Quite apart from the fact that there are no half term holidays at universities and we keep on working when the students are away anyway, often this will be during the Christmas, Easter or summer vacations.

Yes, it irritates me.

Singsong tinkly this one isn’t a half term, this one is for the EASTER holidays 💁‍♀️ is serving me well at the moment 🤬

Yes, annoys me too!

Because terms are generally longer in the UK. Both pupils and teachers need a break in the middle.

I’m in Scotland. We don’t call any holidays a half term.

omg I wish I had nothing else going on in my life that I get annoyed about things like this. It’s not rocket science to know when the school holidays for your school are regardless of what people call it.

We have 39 weeks of school in a year and only 3 terms so if each term is roughly 13 weeks I guess it's thought that is along time for the kids and the teachers without a break.

We have;

Autumn term starts at the beginning of September
October half term holiday (1 week)
Christmas (2 weeks) then Spring term starts
February Half Term (1 week)
Easter (2 weeks) then summer terms starts
May half term (1 week)
Summer holiday start half way through July to give about 6 weeks off before the next academic year.

Cool for you.
It’s been 2 decades since I left school and I don’t really care what the academic breakdown is, I’ve no interest in keeping track of something that doesn’t affect me.

This is always such a weird response. Every person I have ever met is perfectly capable of bring a bit annoyed about minor things whilst still dealing with far bigger stuff.

There was a plan some years ago to have 6 equal length terms. It was a good idea in many ways but didn't really work because of the changing date of Easter but I suppose some schools/LEAs have hung on to this. If there are 6 terms there wouldn't be any Half Terms.

People usually refer to the traditional end of term breaks as the Summer/Easter/Christmas holidays. I’ve never heard them called ‘half-term’. All other holidays are fair game to be call half-term. It’s a shorthand everyone understands.

I find it very annoying, and I happily correct people.

Probably why I don't have many friends

I don’t think half term as a phrase is really used in Scotland, the Holidays are Christmas, Easter, Summer and Tattie.

All half terms are school holidays.
Not all school holidays are half terms.
A bit like all Hoovers are vacuum cleaners, but not all vacuum cleaners are Hoovers (but now the brand name Hoover has become the generic word (or generic term, lol)

But it's useful to know for when you are booking your own holidays. Places get busier and more expensive during school holidays so it is useful to know when they are if only so you can avoid them.

I can think of more important things to get wound up about.

And yes to this

It’s not useful information to me. Why is that so hard to accept?

I google it at the time when booking (as if I didnt know from the prices and the fact that I cant book leave because my colleagues are off anyway), but then instantly dismiss the information. I dont have head space to hold onto information that is irrelevant to me at other times.

Exactly school holidays are school holidays regardless of whether anyone calls them half term/ Xmas/ summer.

But when there are specific words for specific things if people used them you wouldn't need to ask!

if someone asks me if I want milk in my tea, I'd answer re that, not expect it to turn up with lemon jn it, just because that's something that also goes in tea, but the didn't get the name right.

our words mean things, that's the point in having them.