Listen. I totally get it.
There’s absolutely no reason that kids can’t easily switch from in-person learning to virtual learning when it snows. They’ve been switching at the drop of a hat for a year now.
I get it. It makes total sense.
There’s no risk of getting in an accident because of icy roads or freezing while walking to the bus stop. They are safe at home and still able to continue learning.
All the information coming at me from the schools and school districts are saying the same thing-
There are no more snow days. Because we are able to go virtual, snow days don’t matter.
But here’s the thing. They do.
Now more than ever before.
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Let them have a snow day.
Let them have a day where they wake up on their own.
Let them have a day where they wander out of their rooms with confusion and amazing bedhead.
Let them wonder why there’s no morning school-day chaos.
Let them get that magical look in their eyes when they realize it snowed.
Let them look out the window and see the perfect blanket of snow.
Let their faces wash over with excitement when you tell them there’s no school.
Let them have a day off from classroom and online learning.
Let them learn by experiencing the snow.
Let them open the door in their jammies and touch it.
Let them try to catch a snowflake on their tongue.
Let them laugh when the snowflakes hit their eyes instead.
Let them draw hearts and squiggles on a foggy window.
Let them be kids for a day.
Let them eat breakfast while they talk about what they are going to do.
Let them Bundle up like marshmallows and watch them and waddle to the door.
Let them go play in the snow.
Let them put on the boots and coats that will likely be too small in a couple of months.
Let them build a snowman.
Let them use whatever they want to build the snowman.
Let them engineer a fort.
Let them sled down that big hill.
Let them talk you into playing outside with them.
Let them eat the snow.
Let them have a snowball fight.
Let them make snow angles.
Let them pile up the snow so high it’ll take a month to melt.
Let them take pictures of the same snow-covered tree 35 (hundred) times.
Let them bring in big chunks of snow and put them in the sink to watch them melt.
Let them track in snow while taking larger chunks of snow to the sink.
Let them have hot chocolate.
Let them have extra whipped cream and sprinkles.
Let them make snow ice cream.
Let them stay up late so they can see how the moonlight makes the snow sparkle.
Let them cozy up on the couch and watch whatever movie they want.
Let them eat popcorn on the couch.
Let them turn on the fireplace.
Let them haul all their stuffed animals and blankets from their rooms.
Let them have an unscheduled day of no school pressure.
Let them have a day where the never-ending virtual learning is put on pause.
Let them have a day where they forget we are in the middle of a global pandemic.
Let them have a day where all the things they can’t do are forgotten about.
Let them have a day where the only things they think about are what they CAN do.
Let them enjoy the magic of an old fashioned snow day.
Tomorrow, they can pick up where they left off, finish that project, read that chapter, do that math sheet.
But for today, let them have a snow day.
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Trust me.
It’ll fill their bucket. And yours.
And the extra day or two that has to be made up at the end of the school year that everyone seems so worked up about? If you think that’s going to phase anyone, you haven’t been paying attention to the resiliency of our kids over the last 12 months.
Because today, today is worth every single hour that has to be tacked on to the end of the school year.
Today is a special day.
Today is a snow day.
