It's not 'half term'

[SuePreemly]

When did all school holidays become half terms?
The school year is three terms: autumn (September until Christmas), Spring (January to Easter) and summer (Post Easter until July).

Each other these terms has a long holiday after is, of 2 weeks or more. Christmas, Easter and summer holidays.

Each term has a one week holiday half way through it (October, February, May). These, and only these are 'half terms' as they are halfway through the term.

Someone in the park yesterday was going on to their child about how good the long half term holiday was and it took all my willpower not to say something i may have perimenopausal rage issues.

Calling Easter and Christmas holidays "half-term" is bad enough but applying it to the summer holidays is unforgivable.

I blame all the schools/LAs who've starting talking about a 6 term year. If "half term" is no longer half way through a term then all bets are off and you might as well use the phrase for whatever you feel like.

Yes it's very recent and I've only ever seen it on Mumsnet. I retired from teaching 9 years ago and have grandchildren at school but I've never heard it in real life. I've heard May half term referred to as 'Whitsun holidays' (London) or 'Spring Bank' (Derbyshire) in the past but not so much now.

I didn't know the thread and it doesn't exactly matter, but just so you know, I thought it fairly obvious your post was tongue-in-cheek.

You're more perceptive than me then. Well done @AtomHeartMotherOfGod.

I have found my people. Drives me mad, noticed it mostly for Christmas and Easter holidays. Can I also add people incorrectly announcing 'one term down' when breaking up for October half term. Mostly thinking of influencers who are English

For us it was always:
February half term
Easter holidays
End of May half term (sometimes crossed into early June)
Summer holidays
October half term
Christmas holidays

Simple and easy.

Can I also add people incorrectly announcing 'one term down' when breaking up for October half term.

Some LAs do divide the year into six terms, so that is technically correct. I don't know what they call the October, Feb and May holidays if they come at the end of a term rather than halfway through.

Christmas and Easter are still not half term, though.

I don't think people understand what they're saying. If only they would take 5 seconds to think about what half term means. I can't imagine having parents that stupid. 😑

Thank you! Drives me absolutely mental. Half term = the break "Half"way through the "term". The clue's in the name!!
Otherwise it's Christmas holidays, Easter holidays and Summer holidays!

The only acceptable holiday names in england are:

October half term
Christmas holidays
February half term
Easter holidays
May half term/spring bank week
Summer holidays

Half term only comes half way through a term

Its only acceptable to call terms michaelmas/lent if you are at oxbridge or a very expensive school

I have a friend who does this n social media. But then she also uses the wrong version of ‘through’, gets her ‘there and theirs’ mixed up and doesn’t use punctuation in any capacity.
She went to a good school aswell, but seems she didn’t pay much attention!

I very much agree with you OP, though I do think 'Whitsun week' is also acceptable for the May half term, if a bit old fashioned!

Its only acceptable to call terms michaelmas/lent if you are at oxbridge or a very expensive school

My school did this. It wasn't fee paying but was a Church VA Grammar School. It was also in the 60s so might have changed since. We also had the Whitsun holiday but I think that was standard in the area.

Lots of schools have 6 terms now, so no half terms at all. Except they’re still called half terms by many 😅

I agree with all of this but the ‘spring bank week’, I have never heard May half term called that, though it’s sometimes still referred to as Whitsun.

We now have six terms, starting from September:

Term one
Autumn break (now two weeks used to be October half term)
Term two
Winter break
Term three
February break
Term four
Spring break
Term five
May break
Term six
End of school year

Most of the schools round here are doing the same - London

@AllProperTeaIsTheft exactly. People being incorrectly pedantic is even more annoying.

i have a friend who calls them all 'half term' and when i say it's not, its 'summer holidays' or whatever, he gets all shitty and 'whatever, they're all just half term'. No they're fucking not!, it's not half way through a term - twat!🤦🏻‍♀️

I'm going to start calling him 'man' after all he doesn't need his correct name, they're all just men right 😂😂

I agree I see teachers posting this. Bothers me too irrationally.

I do prefer the names from childhood though for actual half terms.

Potato picking week
Feb half term ( pancake day included)
Whit week.

@WickieRoy

Ah I missed that thread!

@Arrivapercy just finished IB's, & they still don't come naturally to me!

I moved from London where it was called Whitsun to Derbyshire where it was called Springbank. It's obviously regional.

Potato picking week

I quite like the idea of potato picking week. Where do I sign the DC up please?

As it's pedants corner I shall point out that you failed to clarify that you are speaking about English terms and holidays.

Terms in Scotland are

August to December
January to Easter
Easter to end June

With 2 week half term in October
3 day break in February
2 week half term at Easter

My only interest in this topic is to make sure I know when schools are shut for their multiple "breaks", so that I can avoid booking a trip away at those times.

I no longer have to commit to the term timetable you see.