SpicyTricks

By: Ashton Kajcienski

This year, Orange County Schools have had nine school days that have not been in session because of the snow. Although this plan is being revised, the school board previously announced that students and teachers would attend school on every other Saturday.

Different people have different opinions on these days, whether they care if they miss school, whether the make-up days should be on a Saturday, and how the snow affects them personally.

“I like snow, and I don’t mind not being in school for a few days, but not a long time… I don’t want to make it up on a Saturday or an extended day to the end of the school year,” says freshman Hailey Owens.

Maddy Werner, also a freshman, says that “Saturday school kind of takes the fun out of [snow]. No one will ever want to go to school on the weekend.”

Missing school because of the snow affects both students and staff members. Teachers have to work around the snow days. Lee Gordon, a history teacher, says that he may have to change some of his lesson plans. “I may need to condense some concepts and skip other activities that offered more in-depth analysis. Homework may also increase in order to cover what is a must-know material,” he says.  Becky Smith, a biology and chemistry teacher, says, “Snow days make planning very hard and affect the continuity of learning for students. It is hard to keep momentum going when we are out for multiple days. It makes spring makeups seem like forever.”

With all the time off, teachers and students have had lots of time to themselves. During the snow days, Gordon likes to “stay in my coffin during the daylight hours… and check email from my tablet.” Smith enjoys reading, watching television, and doing things she usually can’t during the school days. Owens enjoys relaxing and hanging with her friends or neighbors. Werner likes to hang out with her family or friends.