It's that time of year again when the snow starts to fall, temperatures begin to drop and school starts to get canceled. For most, waking up in the morning to check the news for cancellations can bring a euphoric feeling for even the most seasoned northerners. Students ranging in age from kindergarten to college students feel the similar nervousness that appears when the first snowflake drops to the ground. Could it be 1-3 inches or even more? How prepared are the road crews for the onslaught?
For teachers, snow days and delays can be the death of lesson plans and fun activities. When it comes to planning for snow and missing students, it can take everything out of a teacher. To be a successful teacher in engaging students and helping them learn new topics, continuity is key. Building upon what students already understand and scaffolding the information that is unknown to them is what makes teaching the most rewarding career. During the beginning of the school year all the way up until Christmas break, students have few opportunities for designated school days off. The drudge of school and being surrounded by hundreds of kids each day can affect even the strongest of immune systems. A day here and there typically does not hurt the school performance of students, but when winter comes, all hell breaks loose.
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Most schools operate on needing 180-days of instruction before the school year ends. This means that, for most schools, if there are snow days, they need to be made up. Going to school two days a week due to snow days can cause disruptions in classes, students refusing to do work, or just missing school in general in favor of staying in bed all day. When students miss work, assignments do not end up getting completed or they don't have the acquired knowledge to get the questions correct. This can cause further frustration between the students and the teacher, straining the already delicate classroom community.
Delays are just as bad as actual cancellations. A 2-hour delay can force schools to change the schedule so that teachers only see half their classes. If there are multiple delays in a week, this can mean that teachers see half their students over the course of a week instead of all of them, forcing classes to lag behind for weeks on end.
The season of winter can be stressful for most professions, but teachers have a lot hanging in the balance that snow can ruin. Test scores and the pressures of lesson plans and sticking with the standards can cause any teacher to lose hours upon hours of sleep. March cannot come soon enough.
