Washington State school cancels classes ‘due to great weather’

This story is for the students (and former students) who believe that good weather should be good enough reason to cancel classes for the day.

In Bellingham, Washington, it is.

Bob Sampson, principal of Bellingham Christian School, declared Friday a "sun day" and gave his 205 students the day off:

"SCHOOL CANCELLED DUE TO GREAT WEATHER! WAHOOO!" the school's website announced.

In an area that rarely sees a full day of sunshine, the unconventional decision to let kids enjoy the great weather is something he did once before, two years ago.

"It's just a day to create some anticipation, some joy," Sampson told the Los Angeles Times.

He added that because the school didn't use any of its snow days this year, the "sun day" was used instead.

"Kids just love the anticipation of sitting around see if school is cancelled when it snows," Sampson told the Associated Press. "You know, we haven't had any snow days, so I thought 'how fun would it be to create that anticipation for kids when it's nice out?'"

He told the Associated Press that parents were surveyed in advance of the "sun day" to ensure that no one would be inconvenienced by the cancellation of classes. The move was also sanctioned by the school board.

Students were then warned that a "sun day" on Friday was a possibility. The requirements: a forecast of at least 63° Fahrenheit (17°C) — and sun.

"My kids look forward to it," said Tracie Lease, a parent of two children attending the kindergarten-to-grade-8 school. "Especially if we don't have a snow day, we have a sun day."

And while the 22 staff members were also given the day off, Sampson and another teacher were at the school on Friday in case any students still showed up.

Sampson asked that students take photos of how they spent their day off. He'll share those photos at an assembly at the school today.

How would you spend a "sun day"?