Near the end of football season in the US， schools usually hold a celebration called homecoming. Usually， the celebrations last a week and it features all sorts of fun activities such as dress up days， a parade， a homecoming dance， and of course， the big football game.

Homecoming festivities usually kick off with spirit week. These are days when teachers and students can come to school dressed up in a fun costume to fit with the theme of the day. “Backwards Day” is the day students could wear their clothes backwards. Or “Dress as a Famous Person Day” and all around school you saw people dressed as Lady Gaga， Harry Potter， and many more.

The other festivities of homecoming often take place during the school day. Classes are cut short. On Friday afternoon classes are usually dismissed at noon so that the school can attend the homecoming parade. The cheerleaders will cheer， the band will play， and the football players will ride around in a truck. After this， clubs will hold booths around the school so students may take the afternoon to do what they wish.

在美國橄榄球赛季接近尾声时，很多学校会举办一场名为“返校节”的庆祝活动。它往往会持续一周，并以各种有趣的活动为特色，比如盛装日、庆祝游行和返校节舞会等，当然，还有大型的橄榄球比赛。

返校节的各种庆祝活动一般都从“精神周”开始。在这些日子里，师生们会穿上有趣的服装来学校，以配合当日的主题。比如“反穿日”，学生们可以反着穿他们的衣服。还有“扮成名人日”，在整所学校里，你都能看见打扮成嘎嘎小姐、哈利·波特或其他很多名人的师生。

返校节的其他庆祝活动经常会在上课的日子里举行。上课时间因此也被缩短。到了周五下午，各种课程一般在中午时就都被取消，以便全校师生可以参加返校节游行。

返校节的进行中，啦啦队会喝彩欢呼，乐队进行演奏，橄榄球运动员们将乘坐卡车四处巡游。这之后，俱乐部或社团就会在校园各处摆出商棚货摊，这样学生们就可以在下午的时光里做他们想做的事了。