creekland Posted January 22, 2015 Share Posted January 22, 2015 Just a vent as a person transplanted from a snowy winter area to our area of southern PA. We had all of a couple of inches of snow yesterday "requiring" us (causing us) to let ps school out early (noon vs 2:30). One class was totally scrapped and another was shortened a bit (reading/remediation time was practically axed too). Today everything looks clear enough outside. There is some snow on the ground, but the traffic report JUST on TV said everything is moving fine - no problems. Then I see that our school has a 2 hour delay. WHY? The snow STOPPED yesterday by 3pm. Could folks not clear the wee bit of snow then? The roads are FINE if one believes the traffic report. Two of my three classes will be shortened again (three of four overall) and the remediation time we have will be cut. But be sure the kids get ALL the content in the classes that they are supposed to have by the end of the semester even though you are already stretched tight and this is just Jan with more winter left... It's not like snow here is unusual. Can't folks learn to actually deal with it effectively? Maybe one could make a case for letting out early yesterday - just in case it had gotten worse - but today? I never fail to be amazed. Homeschooling definitely has its perks. Don't let anyone bother y'all about not getting enough HOURS in for credits. Where I grew up, if we had closed or delayed for this little bit of white stuff, I'd still be in high school trying to make days up! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bettyandbob Posted January 22, 2015 Share Posted January 22, 2015 Your area may not have the infrastructure to deal with snow quickly and effectively. Additionally there be area of your district where a little ice makes things really dangerous for buses--narrow roads with poor paving, more rural areas than you. Add that to drivers who don't get practice in snow or ice as often as the previous place you lived and the decision becomes it's just better to face it when the sun is out and temps are slightly higher. Such decisions are a pain in the rear when you have a lesson plan want to make progress though. I just started to feel like we might get back on schedule here after closings and delays over the last two weeks. Yesterday the district where I work (not my home district) closed. The kids in the school where I work have a lot of issues and really need more consistency. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
creekland Posted January 22, 2015 Author Share Posted January 22, 2015 Yes, school will start two hours later than normal - at 9:30 instead of 7:30. Many of the districts around us are doing the same. The roads? I live on one of the roads our school buses won't even come down. It's fine. I just checked to be sure. It got cleared yesterday by our township. The traffic report listed all the roads in our county as fine. It's mainly because they are used to doing it this way and see nothing wrong with it. I've been here for 17 - 18 years now and it's been this way. One would think they would get used to it and adjust accordingly to make things work - or that I would and it wouldn't bug me anymore. But the main issue is that they want the kids to actually learn the content of Algebra (or whatever), yet think nothing of taking away the actual time to cover it. I suppose in an ideal world the young darlings would go home and learn the things we have to cut on their own, but in the real world, it really doesn't happen that way. Then many of these youngsters will move on to Pre-Calc or Calc (or whatever) and not have as solid of a foundation. Since they'll also have time from those classes cut (this happens every year), they'll head off to college with less material covered, etc. Last year we ended up with extra days cut from our schedule and not made up - but students still get full credit for their courses, of course. Yet many who are public school cheerleaders wonder how homeschoolers can measure up. Did WE get enough hours in??? For one, at least with my guys, we covered ALL the material in a class to mastery. It might be part of why mine have done well in college without feeling the classes are difficult - yet many from our ps either return (outright) or return talking about how tough classes have been. It's the whole issue that bugs me - taking away instructional time unnecessarily whether for pretend weather issues or testing days or "fun" days (we have those too), then just assuming all is well because junior has that Algebra credit on his transcript. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
creekland Posted January 22, 2015 Author Share Posted January 22, 2015 They don't have to make up the hours cut?? When I lived on the coast the schools sometimes closed for hurricanes (that sentence sounds funny. If there was a hurricane it was closed. But we didn't always have hurricanes in the area haha). Those days had to be made up later like added to the end of the school year. If your school closes for a few hours here and there it should be added up to form make up days, no? Maybe that would get them to stop doing it. They don't want make up days eating up all their summer. We have to make up closed days - usually. Last year we didn't have to make up all of those (due to having too many) and a couple that we did make up were certainly not academic days in any way, shape, or form (movies, parties, "fun" days) - unless one can argue that a student learns merely from being inside the school building. We do not have to make up 2 hour delays or early dismissal hours. So far this week we did not have school Monday (holiday), Tuesday was a planned 2 hour delay (we're starting a new semester - this was to allow extra time to get ready I think), Wednesday we got out 2 1/2 hours early cutting one class for all students entirely - not to be made up, today we have a 2 hour delay, tomorrow we might get our first full day of school. Two hour delays shorten classes. They don't cut them except for remediation and music options. The only consolation is that we're at the beginning of courses so most of what I'm doing (math) is review - dusting off brain neurons from previous classes. Cutting these things technically isn't as bad as cutting out new material, but honestly? Many of the kids NEED the review as their skills aren't as solid as one would like to think. And other classes (Bio/History/etc) aren't reviewing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bettyandbob Posted January 22, 2015 Share Posted January 22, 2015 My district just switched from counting days to counting minutes. The result is adding fifteen minutes to a school day can mean several days do not need to be made up. I think my district now has 10 days they cancell without make ups. Make ups don't matter IME. when I was a classroom teacher no learning seem to occur after the beginning of June. Additionally, state and national testing all occurs at the beginning of May. If you take the AP government exam the first week of May, what does the teacher do for the next 6-7 weeks? Sounds like a great time to do a project or work on a real research paper, but the really for my oldest child is that the teacher brought in The West Wing and viewed several seasons. My state has a law that prevents starting school before Labor Day so the opportunity to start a week earlier is prevented. I know the district I live in and the one where I teach both hve the problem described where students who miss a lot of instruction still get credit for a course. Some teachers use online accounts to give assignments for snow days, but that only seems to work in the advanced classes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DawnM Posted January 22, 2015 Share Posted January 22, 2015 Sometimes it isn't about the snow but about the ice under the snow. Here we don't have the snow plows or salt trucks to deal with it as it happens so rarely. It is easier to have a delay and let it melt than to have busses with children slipping on the roads. And sometimes many of the roads are very clear, but the district has some outlying areas where the busses would endanger the kids if they were to travel there, so the entire district is on a delay or closure. They really can't win either way. People are mad if there is a delay or closure if THEIR street is clear, but they are very angry if a bus slips on ice because the district "should have called it" and not opened. Dawn Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
happypamama Posted January 22, 2015 Share Posted January 22, 2015 I think if they serve lunch, it counts as a full day, and they don't have to make up the hours missed, or at least, that is what a friend who used to do some substituting in the local schools said. (She was kind of horrified at that and glad she homeschooled her own kids.) Our district closed early yesterday too, and I was glad they did. DH came home early and said the roads were terrible; I'm glad the buses weren't out any longer than they needed to be. They're saying two hour delay now, but the plow haven't been through here yet since last night's snow; my road is still very white. It would not surprise me if they close school today. I'm kind of using that as a barometer as to whether I should try to get to the store today or not. And I'm waiting to hear from DH, who has gone in to the office, to see what he thinks of the roads. Last winter, my kids wanted to know if they could have a snow day every time either school closed or DH came home early/WAH via telecommuting. I think I let them have the first snow day off, but then I made them do work and told them they'd thank me in the summer. When we were sitting on the beach the day after Memorial Day, before it got too hot, and the public school didn't get out until late June, they all told me, "You were right." Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
creekland Posted January 22, 2015 Author Share Posted January 22, 2015 Ah I see. Do you think the policy could be changed with enough interest? Like a petition? Or would that just get you in hot water? I'm just venting. There's no way I'm going to try to make waves over it all. The local people are generally quite local and this is the way things are done (and always have been done). They have no experience of how it could be done otherwise. They're just getting used to the idea (since they have to) that classes can actually cover more info than they are used to. We've come a long way. When my oldest was in 6th grade we discussed the lack of content with the (then) middle school principal. He informed us point blank that public school was not there to educate academically talented students. They would do just fine in life no matter what material they were given. Public school was there to educate average students and in our area, average students work at ___, join the military, or go to community college or local 4 year schools. (Seriously, he said this. Hubby and I left that meeting in disbelief.) Our school does that quite well. But I started homeschooling when my oldest hit 9th grade and wish I had started when he entered 7th. Meanwhile, federal and state requirements (testing) has changed and all of a sudden we are having to increase content. I'm secretly pleased while almost everyone else is having a hissy fit. So it bugs me more when the time to cover this content is also cut when it's not needed. When it is needed, that's one thing. When it isn't, that's doubly annoying. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
happypamama Posted January 22, 2015 Share Posted January 22, 2015 We've come a long way. When my oldest was in 6th grade we discussed the lack of content with the (then) middle school principal. He informed us point blank that public school was not there to educate academically talented students. They would do just fine in life no matter what material they were given. Public school was there to educate average students and in our area, average students work at ___, join the military, or go to community college or local 4 year schools. (Seriously, he said this. Hubby and I left that meeting in disbelief.) That's horrible. At least he was honest? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
creekland Posted January 22, 2015 Author Share Posted January 22, 2015 I think if they serve lunch, it counts as a full day, and they don't have to make up the hours missed, or at least, that is what a friend who used to do some substituting in the local schools said. (She was kind of horrified at that and glad she homeschooled her own kids.) Our district closed early yesterday too, and I was glad they did. DH came home early and said the roads were terrible; I'm glad the buses weren't out any longer than they needed to be. They're saying two hour delay now, but the plow haven't been through here yet since last night's snow; my road is still very white. It would not surprise me if they close school today. I'm kind of using that as a barometer as to whether I should try to get to the store today or not. And I'm waiting to hear from DH, who has gone in to the office, to see what he thinks of the roads. Last winter, my kids wanted to know if they could have a snow day every time either school closed or DH came home early/WAH via telecommuting. I think I let them have the first snow day off, but then I made them do work and told them they'd thank me in the summer. When we were sitting on the beach the day after Memorial Day, before it got too hot, and the public school didn't get out until late June, they all told me, "You were right." If I recall correctly, you're a bit north of us. Both north and east got more of this than we did. Even this morning north and east have fog, etc. Yesterday I was out running errands at 2:30pm. Our roads weren't slick at all - not even the one I live on (that the buses won't use). My car has a light dusting on it, so a wee bit of snow fell afterward. Our truck (that wasn't used at all yesterday) shows we got about an inch and a half total. Closing school early yesterday was a guess (for this area - where I grew up people would be rolling over in laughter at the thought). One didn't know how much snow we would get. Delaying it today seems to be a case of the powers that be merely offering a sleep in morning (for which everyone else at school will be thankful). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
creekland Posted January 22, 2015 Author Share Posted January 22, 2015 That's horrible. At least he was honest? It did lead us to looking for our other options - which later led to homeschooling - so it wasn't all bad! I do, however, really feel for the academically talented kids who have been short-changed throughout the years. We do have them. They could be doing so much more. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zinnia Posted January 22, 2015 Share Posted January 22, 2015 Our schools cancel/close for *threat* of snow. Last year, they got out one day because it was too cold (it was cold; I think it was 6 degrees or near). But still. :D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
creekland Posted January 22, 2015 Author Share Posted January 22, 2015 Last winter, my kids wanted to know if they could have a snow day every time either school closed or DH came home early/WAH via telecommuting. I think I let them have the first snow day off, but then I made them do work and told them they'd thank me in the summer. When we were sitting on the beach the day after Memorial Day, before it got too hot, and the public school didn't get out until late June, they all told me, "You were right." Late June? In our district seniors still graduated on time last year (first week in June) as they "made up" one of their days by attending a graduation practice one Saturday morning in May. The rest of the students made up one day after graduation with a party/movie day. Three or four days were made up during the school year by axing vacation days - but on these days attendance is always off due to pre-planned vacations by many families. The other days we were supposed to have made up got forgiven. Did your district do it differently? (Then, of course, multiple 2 hour delay hours weren't made up too.) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nemom Posted January 22, 2015 Share Posted January 22, 2015 Our district has so many days built into the schedule to cover snow days. Once those are used then they add extra days as necessary. I've only seen that happen once during the last 10 years. I personally would rather see the public schools err on the side of caution with winter weather. I see to many kids walking or riding their bikes in the morning regardless of the temperature or conditions. For some kids, it is the only way they can get to school. They don't options. What about the kids that are waiting for those buses? How many inches of snow are they standing in while they wait? How many sidewalks in your area have not been shoveled yet? How many teenagers are driving to school on possibly yucky sidestreets that have not been plowed yet? ETA: Ok, now I see that it is just a couple of inches of snow. Maybe your district is over cautious... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
happypamama Posted January 22, 2015 Share Posted January 22, 2015 Late June? In our district seniors still graduated on time last year (first week in June) as they "made up" one of their days by attending a graduation practice one Saturday morning in May. The rest of the students made up one day after graduation with a party/movie day. Three or four days were made up during the school year by axing vacation days - but on these days attendance is always off due to pre-planned vacations by many families. The other days we were supposed to have made up got forgiven. Did your district do it differently? (Then, of course, multiple 2 hour delay hours weren't made up too.) I seem to recall that they did do it a little differently up here. I don't remember the exact date, but it was well into June. I know the seniors had to go a couple of Saturdays, and I think it wasn't just for graduation practice. I don't pay a lot of close attention to their calendar, but I remember checking out of curiosity and being surprised at how late it was. Then, they start back like the 23rd of August. I know they closed a lot last year, partly because of the extreme cold too. It seems that our district closes pretty quickly. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
creekland Posted January 22, 2015 Author Share Posted January 22, 2015 Well... I did almost get clobbering in an accident on the way to school today - on a perfectly fine road - but with an oncoming young lady in a blue car who was drifting over the line into my lane while she was looking down (cell phone?). :glare: Fortunately I was able to really slow down (almost stop) and she looked up a couple of car lengths away and swerved back into her own lane. It was enough to be the morning stress test for me though. But now I need to change focus. My first class starts in 15 minutes. What has happened (time-wise) has happened. At this point my vent needs to be over for the time being and we'll see what we can fit in. (I have already figured out my plans to shorten things - again - it's good that we're reviewing from a prior class.) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
unsinkable Posted January 22, 2015 Share Posted January 22, 2015 Well... I did almost get clobbering in an accident on the way to school today - on a perfectly fine road - but with an oncoming young lady in a blue car who was drifting over the line into my lane while she was looking down (cell phone?). :glare: Fortunately I was able to really slow down (almost stop) and she looked up a couple of car lengths away and swerved back into her own lane. It was enough to be the morning stress test for me though. But now I need to change focus. My first class starts in 15 minutes. What has happened (time-wise) has happened. At this point my vent needs to be over for the time being and we'll see what we can fit in. (I have already figured out my plans to shorten things - again - it's good that we're reviewing from a prior class.) ((((Creekland))) I'm really sorry. It must be the morning for it. A little while ago, a woman went through a stop sign in my neighborhood and nearly broad sided me in the intersection. I didn't have a stop but she did. She had to slam her breaks so hard her van was fishtailing. I'm at the "adrenaline crash" stage now. Blech. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Harriet Vane Posted January 22, 2015 Share Posted January 22, 2015 I feel your pain. I moved from Chicago, where we have serious lake-effect snow, to a state that has much milder winters. We're not that far south at all, but our current city is nowhere near the Great Lakes. The snow here is totally different. A really heavy snowfall here is just a couple of inches, and it blows away or melts really quickly. Most of the time, the snow is just a dusting. We have been astounded by how badly everything shuts down for these itty-bitty snowfalls. (We also miss being able to sled in good, deep snow.) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
happypamama Posted January 22, 2015 Share Posted January 22, 2015 Oh, Creekland, I'm sorry. Im glad you're okay! DH finally got back to me to let me know he was okay and that the roads weren't too bad. He left his phone in his car by mistake, so he hadn't gotten my texts. I was starting to worry a little. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hornblower Posted January 22, 2015 Share Posted January 22, 2015 Glad you're ok creekland! I'm stil googly shock eyed at the 730am school start time. Wow. That's early..... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JustEm Posted January 22, 2015 Share Posted January 22, 2015 I'm in DE and all the schools had early dismissal yesterday. It was ridiculous. The snow didn't even stick to the roads and the roads were not icy. They were just being overly cautious. We didn't have 2 hour delays today though. We did 2 weeks ago when the temperatures were really low in the morning, which I thought was a bit silly too. Sorry it's an issue with your school schedule. Do you teach at public school? If so, what district? merely curious because my fil is a principal in one district and is transitioning to superintendent of another southern pa district. he'll start there in feb. You can pm me if you don't want to disclose that info publicly. I'm curious because I love seeing how small this area really is when there always seems to be random links between people. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
creekland Posted January 22, 2015 Author Share Posted January 22, 2015 ((((Creekland))) I'm really sorry. It must be the morning for it. A little while ago, a woman went through a stop sign in my neighborhood and nearly broad sided me in the intersection. I didn't have a stop but she did. She had to slam her breaks so hard her van was fishtailing. I'm at the "adrenaline crash" stage now. Blech. I'm on prep now - though have already prepped for the day. Glad you're ok! I wonder what it is with this morning. The other scary part for me? This morning before I woke up I dreamed hubby and I were in a car crash - but in his truck and the steering failed, so we hit a mobile home. He was hurt a bit - then I woke up and realized it was just a dream, but quite a scary one. What a strange morning. I'm hopeful my close call in our car was close enough to have fulfilled anything dreams are supposed to foreshadow. The kids are a bit squirrely with their extra time (sigh). That's normal though. Math? Who wants to think about math!!! Tomorrow I will definitely need to question them regarding today's concepts to make sure they truly understood the point(s). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
creekland Posted January 22, 2015 Author Share Posted January 22, 2015 I'm stil googly shock eyed at the 730am school start time. Wow. That's early..... Another perk to homeschooling, no? I'm an early riser by nature and always have been, so I prefer early to late to be honest. First classes are always a bit sleepier student-wise though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gardenmom5 Posted January 22, 2015 Share Posted January 22, 2015 as someone who lives in an area where any accumulation doesn't happen very often (I have listened to transplants slam and then be forced to eat their words*) - I have to say, before you start blasting them, you need to learn how snow affects this new area you live in. I live in an area with lots of hills - big hills, and when it snows, it is wet. then it freezes and people are driving on ICE. (on hills) Ice is NOT the same as snow - even if it looks like snow. things can go from moving fine to a complete and utter standstill in seconds. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
creekland Posted January 22, 2015 Author Share Posted January 22, 2015 Do you teach at public school? If so, what district? merely curious because my fil is a principal in one district and is transitioning to superintendent of another southern pa district. he'll start there in feb. You can pm me if you don't want to disclose that info publicly. I'm curious because I love seeing how small this area really is when there always seems to be random links between people. I actually prefer part time, so I sub in our high school with this being my 16th year. Since I can do all the math classes and all but the Anatomy science classes, I get to actually teach rather than babysit plus they want me to do the lengthier times teachers are out if I can. Being part time, that last bit is totally up to me, of course - a perk of my job. The teacher I'm in for now is a super good friend of mine. She's with her daughter at a gymnastics competition. Her daughter is REALLY good at gymnastics (perhaps an Olympic contender if all continues well). She definitely wanted to be there, but since math content needs to be covered to even attempt to get to it all, it would have been tough with a sub who didn't understand Alg 2 and Pre-Calc (the two types of classes I have right now). I'll pm you the district. Like you, I love seeing how interconnected we Hive members can be! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Liz CA Posted January 22, 2015 Share Posted January 22, 2015 Here in CA (when we lived in the foothills), the school would call me at work at the sight of the first snow flake. Everything was closed down and kids had to go home. I suppose PA should be a little better prepared since snow is not that rare but you would laugh if you see all the "precautions" that are taken here and the fear of lawsuits if a kid skitters across a patch of snow and falls... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gardenmom5 Posted January 22, 2015 Share Posted January 22, 2015 hornblower, on 22 Jan 2015 - 07:33 AM, said: I'm stil googly shock eyed at the 730am school start time. Wow. That's early..... high school? that's when we started. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
creekland Posted January 22, 2015 Author Share Posted January 22, 2015 as someone who lives in an area where any accumulation doesn't happen very often (I have listened to transplants slam and then be forced to eat their words*) - I have to say, before you start blasting them, you need to learn how snow affects this new area you live in. I live in an area with lots of hills - big hills, and when it snows, it is wet. then it freezes and people are driving on ICE. (on hills) Ice is NOT the same as snow - even if it looks like snow. things can go from moving fine to a complete and utter standstill in seconds. Definitely not the issue here. We've lived here since 1996, so I'm not new to the area, just astounded at how quickly they close things (still). IF it were ice it would make sense. Even our northern schools closed for ice. That or 12+ inches of snow rather than the 1 1/2 inches we had YESTERDAY causing this morning's delay. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hornblower Posted January 22, 2015 Share Posted January 22, 2015 high school? that's when we started. yeah, my high school was (& still is) 8:25-3:10 & many people tried to arrange their schedules to start at 2nd period (9:45) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tap Posted January 22, 2015 Share Posted January 22, 2015 We get more weather delays in our school district than the other four districts in the same city because part of our district is on the shady side of a mountain. They make the decision at 5am on whether or not to close/delay, so parents can make arrangements for daycare etc. They often close the entire district because they aren't certain how the shady road will be at 7am , even though it only affects a small group of kids. Our district (and I think every district I have ever lived in) has 2-3 snow days built in to the spring schedule. If they had to cancel school in the winter, the kids go to school on those days. If they didn't have to cancel, then the kids get the days off. There have only been a couple of times in the 16 years I have had kids in schools that they had to add days to the end of the school year to make up for snowy days, and quite honestly the days were worthless anyways. Too many people already have vacations planned so enrollment is so low that they can't really make them part of of the expected curriculum. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
xixstar Posted January 22, 2015 Share Posted January 22, 2015 We're just south of you and I often have the same thought. But now that it's been 10 years or so since moving from Wisconsin, I'm starting to lose some of my winter travel comfort too -- usually more because of other drivers and that lack of proper road treatment. I was out yesterday as the snow started and was started getting worried about having to wait for the teen to get off work before heading back home in the snow -- and then remembered how normal it used to be to continue life as usual when it snowed. But then again, this was with people that frequently drove in poor weather too.... I have little faith in those around me driving safely in foul weather. The drive home in the thick of the snowfall was just fine, slick roads but all manageable. There were some concerns about possible ice conditions this morning though... after driving to school on Sunday as an unexpected bit of freezing rain and roadways freezing started to develop, I get the caution too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gardenmom5 Posted January 22, 2015 Share Posted January 22, 2015 creekland, on 22 Jan 2015 - 08:00 AM, said: Definitely not the issue here. We've lived here since 1996, so I'm not new to the area, just astounded at how quickly they close things (still). IF it were ice it would make sense. Even our northern schools closed for ice. That or 12+ inches of snow rather than the 1 1/2 inches we had YESTERDAY causing this morning's delay. I misunderstood something you wrote - I thought you were new to that area. sometimes schedules are based upon forecasts that don't materialize. (here they make those calls by 5am at the latest to get the word out. sometimes earlier.) there are any number of reasons they might have delayed. a critical mass of teachers coming from outlying areas where there is more snow/ice happens here on occasion. we've had delays when the only area affected is a higher hill (technically a mt. - but compared to the mts around here - it's just a hill.). it takes in the southern part of the district. it can also keep inexperienced student drivers home while adults get to where they are going, with the hopes of reducing potential accidents. while I was stopped at a stop-light, I was a witness to one yesterday - that ended up smashing into my car. fortunately, the damage was minor. (just spoke with the at-fault driver's agent. they'll be paying big time. the other two cars were totaled.) it could also be the person making the call is new to the area . . . . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
QueenCat Posted January 22, 2015 Share Posted January 22, 2015 They don't have to make up the hours cut?? When I lived on the coast the schools sometimes closed for hurricanes (that sentence sounds funny. If there was a hurricane it was closed. But we didn't always have hurricanes in the area haha). Those days had to be made up later like added to the end of the school year. If your school closes for a few hours here and there it should be added up to form make up days, no? Maybe that would get them to stop doing it. They don't want make up days eating up all their summer. I know that in KY, TN and AL, if they are there for at least 4-4 1/2 hours, it counts as a full school day. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
J-rap Posted January 22, 2015 Share Posted January 22, 2015 I know what that's like! But we live in a rural area, and sometimes when it looks fine in town, the country roads are bad or icy, and when half of the students live out in the country, on farms, etc., they always take that into consideration. In our district, as long as students get half/day in (through lunch), it can count as a whole day. Otherwise, we make it up over vacation time or by adding days at the end of the year. This happens every year, so I don't understand why schools here don't automatically add/allow a couple of snow days to their calendar... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
creekland Posted January 23, 2015 Author Share Posted January 23, 2015 We all survived. There weren't even tons of kids absent today like there generally are on 2 hour delay days, so that was helpful. The class that missed the complete class will just skip it - except the homework is still due (aren't I a meanie???). Seeing if they can do the homework will let me know if there are areas of brain neurons I need to help dust off for them. Today they were a little more behind the other class, but they work well at the moment, so I think they will end up ok. And... right now... it looks like we'll get a FULL DAY in tomorrow! (Right before we're slated for the center of the next storm on Saturday with a follow up on Monday. :glare: ) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KungFuPanda Posted January 23, 2015 Share Posted January 23, 2015 I had the same question/rant when I first moved to central Maryland. However, I do have sympathy for them. The sheer number of people they move complicates things. I attended school in a rural district at a high school of 500. There were only 3 high schools in the entire county. Busses had chains, and they often cancelled specific routes rather than the whole county. Where I live now, there can be very different climate zones close together, so my house would look fine and someone 15 miles away would have ice. Also, there are a LOT more overpasses to consider. Add in the fact that MOST people here are transplants, so they haven't had a lifetime of experience for these particular conditions, (and likely don't own 4-wheel drive vehicles) and it creates a situation that might not be the safest for school kids on the buses or sidewalks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Arctic Bunny Posted January 23, 2015 Share Posted January 23, 2015 It's like a different planet! Our school doesn't close. -50 with the wind? Open. Busses aren't running because of cold (below -22C)? Open. Kids stay home or parents drive them to town. Snow UP TO MY HIPS? Open. It took us half an hour to walk three blocks, but we got there! Reaction to weather is so different, area to area! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted January 23, 2015 Share Posted January 23, 2015 Just a vent as a person transplanted from a snowy winter area to our area of southern PA. We had all of a couple of inches of snow yesterday "requiring" us (causing us) to let ps school out early (noon vs 2:30). One class was totally scrapped and another was shortened a bit (reading/remediation time was practically axed too). Today everything looks clear enough outside. There is some snow on the ground, but the traffic report JUST on TV said everything is moving fine - no problems. Then I see that our school has a 2 hour delay. WHY? The snow STOPPED yesterday by 3pm. Could folks not clear the wee bit of snow then? The roads are FINE if one believes the traffic report. Two of my three classes will be shortened again (three of four overall) and the remediation time we have will be cut. But be sure the kids get ALL the content in the classes that they are supposed to have by the end of the semester even though you are already stretched tight and this is just Jan with more winter left... It's not like snow here is unusual. Can't folks learn to actually deal with it effectively? Maybe one could make a case for letting out early yesterday - just in case it had gotten worse - but today? I never fail to be amazed. Homeschooling definitely has its perks. Don't let anyone bother y'all about not getting enough HOURS in for credits. Where I grew up, if we had closed or delayed for this little bit of white stuff, I'd still be in high school trying to make days up! Yeah, Carroll County was two hour delay today, after closing early yesterday. Yesterday was the much hairier deal. Getting the kids from school in that wet, slippery snow was not the safest thing ever. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
school17777 Posted January 23, 2015 Share Posted January 23, 2015 Ah! Our district was closed yesterday in anticipation of the snow. Parents were mad that it wasted a snow day, but as soon as it started to snow, there were a lot of accidents and one of the main ways in/out of my town was closed. Didn't hear complaints after that. Today was a 2 hour delay, which my kids love. Teachers are already anticipating a messy week next week. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.