School children should not have long holidays.

Do
you agree?

When asked if school children should have long holidays, the

answers of different individuals will certainly differ. Some people
have the opinion that school children should be entitled to long
holidays while the others disagree. From my point of view, school
children should be given long holidays. I have my own reasons
for thinking so.

The freedom of school children is normally restricted by their

parents during the school days as they want their children to
focus on their studies in order to pass their examinations with
flying colours. Apart from schooling, they have to spend a lot of
time doing their homework and attending tuition classes as well.
As a result, they hardly have any time left for leisure pursuits.
During school holidays, more freedom is usually given and
children are able to spend their time on activities that they are
fond of. For example, if children have green fingers, they can
spend more time on gardening. They can also spend more time
on their favourite sports in order to keep fit both physically and
mentally.

The arrival of long school holidays is also a good time for children
to strengthen their family ties, since families need to spend time
together in order to bond. Examples of activities that assist to
develop close family ties are having a picnic at the seaside and
playing sports and games. When children involve in family
activities such as cleaning the house and preparing a meal, they
learn about the spirit of cooperation and burden-sharing, thus
promoting strong family ties. Besides, they learn to be more
independent and responsible when they do household chores
such as washing the clothes and dishes, sweeping the floor,
laying the table before a meal, making their own beds, and so
forth.

Another reason why long holidays are necessary is that children

need to meet other relatives and to socialise with friends in the
community so as to improve their interpersonal skills, since 'no
man is an island'. This can be extremely beneficial to them and
helps them be better equipped especially when they grow up and
starts working in the society.

It is true that many parents face problems during long school

holidays as their children waste their time by spending it on
undesirable activities such as playing too much computer games
and getting into bad company. However, I believe that such
problems can be solved through proper planning, guidance and
time management.

Though there are disadvantages for school children to have long

school holidays, the benefits far outweigh the disadvantages. As
the saying goes, 'all work and no play make Jack a dull boy'.
Therefore, I disagree that school children should not have long
holidays.