Should Halloween Be on a Saturday?

Moving Halloween to a Saturday has some benefits. It would make the day extra special. You wouldn’t have to sit in class all day. Instead, you could carve pumpkins. Or you could go on a haunted hayride. And you wouldn’t have to rush home to put on your costume. You could spend the entire day working on those vampire fangs.

Plus, kids could begin trick-or-treating earlier on a Saturday. You wouldn’t have to walk around your neighborhood in the dark. Accidents are more likely to happen at night. So Halloween could be safer.

Best of all? The day after Halloween would be a Sunday. After a full day of Halloween fun, you wouldn’t have to go to school.

Moving Halloween to a Saturday would make the day extra special. Instead of sitting in class all day, you could carve pumpkins or go on a haunted hayride. You wouldn’t have to rush home after school to quickly put on your costume. You could spend the entire day working on those vampire fangs or that mermaid tail.

Best of all? You wouldn’t have to get up early for school the next morning, tired after a long night of trick-or-treating.

Besides, if Halloween were on a Saturday, kids could begin trick-or-treating earlier. They could avoid walking around their neighborhood at night, when accidents are more likely. That would make Halloween safer for everyone.

But not everyone believes that moving Halloween is a good idea. Why? One reason is that Saturday is a special day of rest and prayer for some families. If Halloween were always on Saturday, those families might not be able to celebrate it.

Another reason: Halloween has a long history. It’s been celebrated on October 31 for hundreds of years. Some people think it would be wrong to change Halloween’s date. They say that holidays are about tradition, not about what’s convenient.

Plus, some people might keep celebrating Halloween on October 31 anyway. Part of Halloween’s magic is that it brings friends and neighbors together. If people celebrated on two different days, some of that magic would disappear.

So what do you think: Should Halloween be moved? 

But not everyone believes that moving Halloween to a Saturday is a good idea. Why? One reason is that Saturday is a day of rest and prayer for followers of some religions. If Halloween were to always fall on a Saturday, some people might not be able to celebrate it.

Another reason: Halloween has been celebrated on October 31 for centuries. About 2,000 years ago, the Celts, a group of people in Europe, celebrated the beginning of winter around October 31. They believed that ghosts visited Earth during that time. Some experts think that the Celts wore costumes made from animal skins and heads to hide from the ghosts.

In the 700s, followers of the Roman Catholic religion began celebrating All Hallows’ Day on November 1. (Hallowed means “holy.”) Some Celtic traditions, like wearing costumes, may have continued on All Hallows’ Eve. That day later became known as “Halloween.”

By the 1800s, many people from Europe had moved to the U.S. They brought Halloween traditions, like lighting jack-o’-lanterns, with them. Soon, celebrating Halloween became common in the U.S.

Because of this long history, some people think it would be wrong to change Halloween’s date. After all, holidays are about tradition, not about what’s convenient.

Plus, even if Halloween were to officially change to the last Saturday of October, some people might keep celebrating on October 31. Part of Halloween’s magic is that it brings friends and neighbors together. If people were to celebrate on two different days, this sense of community could disappear.

So what do you think: Should Halloween always be on a Saturday or not?