1. Call it chanuka vacation or mid winter vacation, it’s a matter of semantics.
2. Kids have an entire summer to “recharge”, not sure what an extra day of isru chag will accomplish. I do agree that with the crazy schedule kids keep over yom tov, isru chag is certainly a day to recover (especially for those who are machmir and are mikayem ad dlo yada on simchas torah).
3. Put yourself in the schools shoes. You get vacation from work, who says it has to be on your time to take the kids to hershey labor day weekend, take your vacation isru chag and chol hamoed.