The Winter That Never Ends

Are you having one of these? I am! We were "off" (teachers had PD) on Monday for President's Day, we cancelled on Tuesday after getting 6-7 inches of snow dumped on us and our backroads overnight on Monday. We came to school on Wednesday, and by the grace of weather system moving AROUND us, for once, we got to have school, and our annual Tea Party, on Thursday. By the time school ended  on Thursday, and through our whole tea party, it poured down rain outside. All the rain and snow melt froze. Cue "treacherous" back roads, and main highways covered in black ice And cue yet another snow day.

As of now, we will be going to school beyond the 16th of June. Our original end date was June 10. The June 16 date was BEFORE our cancellations this week. We have two options for making up time--add minutes (in 30 minute chunks) to our school day, or add full days to the end of the year. We have very few "days off" that are changeable in our calendar...and, at this point, is using those two possible days really worth it? Never mind the backlash we would get for removing those days off (one, in particular, is the Friday before Memorial Day, and our town has a HUGE festival over Memorial weekend...though we may still be knee-deep in snow then). And, never mind the fact that we are still looking at more possible days off...winter doesn't seem to be done with us yet, and then what happens when it warms up, and all this snow starts to melt? Oh, yes, fog. And we cancel for that around here, too.

Here's the kicker. We start school in September. Not August. We are required, by law, to not start our school year until AFTER Labor Day, to help promote Michigan's tourism industry.

Question...how is almost every school in Michigan being in session a week to two weeks later in June HELPING the tourism industry? Wondering if there is any talk in legislature about the fact that, had we been able to start in August (even just ONE week in August), we would still be getting out fairly early in June.

So, yeah. This has just been my ramble as I think about yet another day being spent in my classroom in June. As I sit in my home, listening to the wind whip, and hoping I keep power, and praying that winter will loosen it's grasp soon (note: we have negative and single digit temps in the forecast for next week).

Hope it is warmer wherever you are, and you are getting to spend time with your students!

Becca