No More Snow Days?
BY ERIN TOBIN '23
Ahhh, snow days. We all know the nostalgia of waking up, seeing the backyard transformed into a winter wonderland, and gliding down the stairs to ask, “Did the school call, is it really a snow day?!” We remember the instant glee hearing a “yes!” in response and knowing that a day of friends, snowball fights, and hot cocoa awaited. From superstitious beliefs like putting a spoon under your pillow to using a snow day calculator the night before, snow days have been an essential part of the student experience.
However, school districts have been looking for an alternative to snow days for a while now, and online learning has become a strong contender, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic. In a written interview, Acton-Boxborough Superintendent Peter Light explained that overall, students will still have school on a snow day. Asynchronous students, for both hybrid and remote, will continue on a normal schedule, and the synchronous cohort will meet with their teachers online through Zoom.
Still, Light explained that the district will be monitoring families’ power outages throughout the day to determine whether a day of online school is a viable option. He wrote, “Should we determine a substantial portion of the community is without power (ex. 10-15% or more), we will call for a traditional snow day, and this day will be made up at the end of the school year as in previous years.”
For anyone who misses the snow day tradition, there is still hope that one’s childhood nostalgia will return, though only with the help of some severely unruly weather. Replacing snow days with Zoom classes has become a convenient swap, and although eliminating them may seem disappointing at first, online school can create a better experience for students and teachers. Cancelling snow days can improve the quality of education and decrease uncertainty around lesson planning. Knowing in advance how these online days work allows teachers to maintain a steady schedule of tests and assignments, creating a fluid learning experience for students. Plus, there is always the advantage of having a longer summer.
To get a real world example of how this new plan might affect both parents and teachers, I spoke to Mrs. Gurrie, a mother and math teacher at Acton-Boxborough. She noted that an earlier start to summer vacation was a major plus, but the plan might prove difficult for her family, as she would be “trying to help [her] kindergartener on Zoom… while trying to teach all [of her] classes.”
Mrs. Gurrie isn’t the only person from the district feeling slightly discouraged by this plan. Recently, some AB students have been reposting a Change.org petition to try and keep snow days. The petition, created by two ABRHS seniors, has more than 5000 signatures as of January 1st. In their comments, signees emphasized the importance of having a break to improve student well-being. Staying focused and maintaining grades this year is no easy task, and many who signed the petition also cited concerns about constant screen usage and potential exhaustion.
Further, students hold a special relationship with snow days. Olivia Beilman, a junior at ABRHS, shared one of her favorite snow day memories as a child. “I remember going to play outside right away,” she wrote. “Our neighbors invited us over to sled down the hill that was near their house… and we spent hours and hours sledding down it until it was time to go inside.” It’s memories like these that some students would love to keep having. Portia Tompson, a sophomore, added, “I think snow days are important because it allows you to feel like a kid again, and just have a day to relax and play in the snow.”
Now, it is up to the administration to decide whether student grievances are strong enough reasons to revise their plan. In fact, in a recent December survey for students and parents, the district asked whether one would want to keep snow days. The COVID-19 pandemic and the technological tools it has fostered are continuously evolving school culture and experiences. For many, with all the changes that the pandemic has brought, snow days seem like an easy yet vital tradition to hold onto. This one little day, although at times a fluke, is the perfect moment to relax and enjoy a day off—a day that students all need right now. However, we will have to wait and see if the district decides to preserve childhood nostalgia or maintain a more functional system.
However, school districts have been looking for an alternative to snow days for a while now, and online learning has become a strong contender, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic. In a written interview, Acton-Boxborough Superintendent Peter Light explained that overall, students will still have school on a snow day. Asynchronous students, for both hybrid and remote, will continue on a normal schedule, and the synchronous cohort will meet with their teachers online through Zoom.
Still, Light explained that the district will be monitoring families’ power outages throughout the day to determine whether a day of online school is a viable option. He wrote, “Should we determine a substantial portion of the community is without power (ex. 10-15% or more), we will call for a traditional snow day, and this day will be made up at the end of the school year as in previous years.”
For anyone who misses the snow day tradition, there is still hope that one’s childhood nostalgia will return, though only with the help of some severely unruly weather. Replacing snow days with Zoom classes has become a convenient swap, and although eliminating them may seem disappointing at first, online school can create a better experience for students and teachers. Cancelling snow days can improve the quality of education and decrease uncertainty around lesson planning. Knowing in advance how these online days work allows teachers to maintain a steady schedule of tests and assignments, creating a fluid learning experience for students. Plus, there is always the advantage of having a longer summer.
To get a real world example of how this new plan might affect both parents and teachers, I spoke to Mrs. Gurrie, a mother and math teacher at Acton-Boxborough. She noted that an earlier start to summer vacation was a major plus, but the plan might prove difficult for her family, as she would be “trying to help [her] kindergartener on Zoom… while trying to teach all [of her] classes.”
Mrs. Gurrie isn’t the only person from the district feeling slightly discouraged by this plan. Recently, some AB students have been reposting a Change.org petition to try and keep snow days. The petition, created by two ABRHS seniors, has more than 5000 signatures as of January 1st. In their comments, signees emphasized the importance of having a break to improve student well-being. Staying focused and maintaining grades this year is no easy task, and many who signed the petition also cited concerns about constant screen usage and potential exhaustion.
Further, students hold a special relationship with snow days. Olivia Beilman, a junior at ABRHS, shared one of her favorite snow day memories as a child. “I remember going to play outside right away,” she wrote. “Our neighbors invited us over to sled down the hill that was near their house… and we spent hours and hours sledding down it until it was time to go inside.” It’s memories like these that some students would love to keep having. Portia Tompson, a sophomore, added, “I think snow days are important because it allows you to feel like a kid again, and just have a day to relax and play in the snow.”
Now, it is up to the administration to decide whether student grievances are strong enough reasons to revise their plan. In fact, in a recent December survey for students and parents, the district asked whether one would want to keep snow days. The COVID-19 pandemic and the technological tools it has fostered are continuously evolving school culture and experiences. For many, with all the changes that the pandemic has brought, snow days seem like an easy yet vital tradition to hold onto. This one little day, although at times a fluke, is the perfect moment to relax and enjoy a day off—a day that students all need right now. However, we will have to wait and see if the district decides to preserve childhood nostalgia or maintain a more functional system.
