Instead of zooming down a snowy mountain, Heritage students will be in the classrooms as usual. Mid-winter break, also known as ski week, is a week off in February – right in between winter and spring break. Ski break allows students and faculty to relax, catch up on work and actually book a ski trip. Considering what a relief winter break is, it would be great to get another week off.
Even if this “ski week” isn’t spent skiing, it’s still beneficial for students’ mental health. High school students are constantly working to complete assignments and prepare for tests for the highest GPA possible. I personally feel that the pressure of school never stops; there’s always another homework assignment to finish or quiz to study for. As amazing as a high GPA is, it takes a toll on one’s mental health. According to ACSD, “Relentless pressure to succeed, often measured by grades or a GPA, can contribute to students being sleep-deprived, anxious, and even engaging in self-harm.” Studies have also shown school tends to play a negative role in mental health. According to KVC Kansas, “Research shows that academic stress leads to a lower well-being and an increased likelihood of developing anxiety or depression.”
“I think a ski week would be beneficial because you could go on trips or do something related to a trip, and you can also catch up on schoolwork,” freshman Santiago Agualimpia said.
Another positive of an extra break such as ski week would allow teens to catch up on sleep. The CDC recommends people aged 13-18 get eight-ten hours of sleep, and studies show that barely any teens actually sleep this much a night. “According to a 2006 National Sleep Foundation poll, the organization’s most recent survey of teen sleep, more than 87 percent of high school students in the United States get far less than the recommended eight to ten hours, and the amount of time they sleep is decreasing — a serious threat to their health, safety and academic success” Stanford Medicine reported. An extra break from school would ease the everyday stress of students, let them catch up on sleep and overall improve their state of being.
Many schools participate in the idea of ski week. One of these is Hewitt, a private school in New York City. Hewitt students are given days off in February, along with the usual thanksgiving, winter and spring breaks. Some students, like junior Emma Rosensweig, spend their ski weekend doing a combination of skiing and studying.
“I like having a ski weekend because I get to be in the mountains and see snow, which is something I don’t always get to see,” Hewitt junior Emma Rosensweig said. “I can usually fit time around my ski schedule to get homework done or SAT prep.”
The Heritage calendar for this school year already includes multiple days off in February. Students are given off Feb. 4 as a Parent-Teacher Conference Day, Feb. 18 for Professional Development Day and Feb. 21 for President’s Day. At this point, why not extend one of these breaks a few days and call it a ski week? I think that a ski week would benefit everyone, especially students by giving them a break to recharge mentally and physically.
