Snowbound 2011: Metro schools closed Wednesday, too
- I’m not going anywhere in my car after looking at the AJC photo galleries of road conditions.
We are going into Day 3 of Snowbound 2011.
The list of school closings for Wednesday now includes Forsyth, Buford, Atlanta, Cobb, Decatur, DeKalb, Fulton, Marietta, Fayette, Gwinnett, Bartow, Coweta, Spalding, Cherokee, Paulding, Hall, Carroll, Newton and Walton. Among colleges, UGA, Emory, Georgia Perimeter, Georgia Tech and Georgia State are closed.
I also received this e-mail: North Georgia College & State University will be closed on Wednesday due to the remains of the winter storm and hazardous driving conditions throughout the region. Essential services for residential students on campus remain in operation. The university will reschedule classes that have been missed. Because the storm arrived at the beginning of spring semester, deadlines related to spring semester’s drop-add period, fee payments and student activities will be extended as needed.
Three snow days will be a bit much for my household. The sledding here has turned to a mix of slush and mud, and my children have a variety of sledding injuries.
The AJC photo galleries of the stranded cars and trucks have kept me from even thinking about driving. I did just join one of those grocery warehouses this weekend so I have now all the pudding cups and yogurts that anyone could want. And paper towels.
But the homemade soup is about to run out, and nobody is much interested in the apple cider I warmed in the crockpot.
Here’s to warmer temperatures and to all of us getting out of our pajamas.
– From Maureen Downey, for the AJC Get Schooled blog
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58 comments Add your comment
Middle Grades Math Teacher
January 11th, 2011
3:05 pm
I am glad that I brought stuff from school to work on planning at home. My house is clean, laundry done, all bedding washed and changed, played Wii sports resort with my child, sledded, built ice forts. Now I can do some extended planning,work on my quilting, and read. My district hasn’t called off for tomorrow yet, but I can’t imagine it won’t. Ready to go back, but don’t want to do so at risk of injuries.
Happy Teacher
January 11th, 2011
3:10 pm
Maureen- I might be getting ahead of myself here, but is there any contingency for pushing back the CRCT? Being this early in January, it certainly seems plausible that we could have a couple more snow days…
My Two Cents
January 11th, 2011
3:11 pm
@Happy – I think there is a 2 week window of time in which it has to be administered. I think most districts choose to administer during the first week just in case of things like this and to accommodate student make-ups. That’s the understanding I have of it.
Helena
January 11th, 2011
3:12 pm
I’m curious if this will affect the state testing schedule. The Georgia writing test is next week, right? Plus, we’re losing half a week of CRCT prep. I’m apparently one of the few around here who loves Cobb’s new calendar, but I can see Glover Street trying to work out a way to use some of the February break to make up for this week off if this eats into the number of weather days we’re allotted by the State DoE.
Happy Teacher
January 11th, 2011
3:12 pm
Cool, thanks MTC!
Happy at Home
January 11th, 2011
3:15 pm
I would love some cider right now.
This is my second snow week out of the past three weeks. I love the time at home with my children and my house has never been cleaner. My husband even stayed home today for the first time ever. My children are schooled at home so they didn’t get a free day, but they did spend a lot more time outside than on regular school days.
Hoping all those hourly earners and self employeed can get back to work very soon. No work means no money. Snow days aren’t free days for everyone.
Enough!
January 11th, 2011
3:33 pm
Snow days are not free says for teachers either. We have always had to make up the time, even when the students did not. Now we will most likely be furloughed. The idea that we are paid for days we do not work is a major misconception.
My Two Cents
January 11th, 2011
3:48 pm
Whatever happens, happens. I’ve redone my plans for the umpteenth time, I’ve got the homemade mac and cheese in the oven, snickerdoodles cooling on the counter, and I’m making myself a Hot Toddy and settling in with the daytime tv “stories.” It’s time to make the best of this cabin fever!
Tweets that mention Snowbound 2011 could extend another day for schools | Get Schooled -- Topsy.com
January 11th, 2011
4:17 pm
[...] This post was mentioned on Twitter by Lakeita Salley. Lakeita Salley said: RT @AJCGetSchooled: Snowbound 2011 could extend another day for schools http://bit.ly/g553jx [...]
My Two Cents
January 11th, 2011
4:24 pm
Gwinnett has just cancelled for tomorrow.
justin
January 11th, 2011
4:25 pm
@ Helena,
What is “CRCT prep”??? What is school for? Isn’t it enough if you focus on teaching the standards? I see my children getting fed up with all those “reviews” teachers make students go through several days leading up to the state tests. If what they are losing is those useless “review” days, I am very happy.
Elizabeth
January 11th, 2011
4:26 pm
Tired of having kids t home in the house? Well, well.. do you think they are different at school? Think again. When they get bored or antsy they act the same way they do at home. And you wonder why teachers are frustrated!
Maureen Downey
January 11th, 2011
4:30 pm
@Two cents and Happy, I did send your question to DOE and they are checking. Will post once I get a response,
Maureen
wanttohaveinput
January 11th, 2011
4:31 pm
Look on the bright side….the money that is going into clearing the roads will be most likely be paid for by furloughing teachers on the days that we are not in school. Okay….maybe I am making lemon juice out of lemons…but still.
Allen
January 11th, 2011
4:48 pm
If “the money that is going into clearing the roads will be most likely be paid for by furloughing teachers” then here in DeKlab the teachers apparently don’t need to worry about a furlough.
And really, who are these alternate universe people whose homes are MORE clean when their kids stay home?
TopPublicSchool
January 11th, 2011
4:53 pm
I think the title of this should have been…
RAISING IDIOTS…AND DRIVING IN ATLANTA
Stay Home! Most of the idiots on the street are trying to get to WALMART.
The only people that need to be out and about are those trying to get to a hospital or some job that requires 24-7 care.
use your time well
January 11th, 2011
5:08 pm
I am hoping teachers are using the time to create some emergency plans. I am a substitute teacher and love what I do. I am acutely aware how demanding maintaining a classroom is. That being said, I hope teachers are using some of their time to create some generic plans that are always on the to-do list but rarely happen. There are no meetings to get in the way, no calls from administration or parent emails to get in the way. Please!!! You will be thankful later.
Allen
January 11th, 2011
5:41 pm
Just for the record–I was joking about the resources we put to snow removal, not hre the superhuman effort of the guys trying to clear 1000 miles of road with two plows and four sand trucks (that’s actually what WSB just said we have out there in DeKalb).
Maureen Downey
January 11th, 2011
6:01 pm
@Happy Teacher, From DOE:
Pushing back the CRCT would be a local decision (within the state window).
The state window closes on May 6, 2011. At this time it’s probably not
necessary to extend the state window but if we were to have more snow days
and there was a need, it could potentially be considered.
What's best for kids?
January 11th, 2011
6:14 pm
Somebody shoot me now…
irisheyes
January 11th, 2011
6:29 pm
@justin, according to the public, standardized tests are the only way to show if a teacher is effective. Plus, the state will start basing 50% of our evaluations (and eventually merit pay too) on those tests. Of course teachers are going to prepare for them (even if they don’t want to). Welcome to life under NCLB. I’m not saying it’s right, but there it is.
The cabin fever may kill me soon.
irisheyes
January 11th, 2011
6:30 pm
Oh, and Maureen, I’d take some warm apple cider right now!
Took
January 11th, 2011
6:33 pm
Paulding was out last year a week for the floods, and they did NOT push back the CRCT, so I don’t forsee anyone pushing back the test.
Nathan Deal Snowmaggeddon
January 11th, 2011
6:55 pm
@I am hoping teachers are using the time to create some emergency plans. I am a substitute teacher and love what I do.
Sadly their material may be at school as with my neighbor. Some teachers don’t have textbooks or teachers edition to take home.
Also if they are going to have to make up these 3 days later, then this is free time, don’t you think?
Happy Teacher
January 11th, 2011
6:58 pm
Thank you Maureen. I appreciate the effort very much.
Private School Guy
January 11th, 2011
7:00 pm
If the students stay home and read books they like and enjoy they will probably do better on the ELA parts of the CRCT than if they stayed in school and prepared for the test.
MidGATeacher
January 11th, 2011
7:00 pm
I feel for all of you. I am thankful that Bibb returns to school tomorrow. It was fun while it lasted, but staying home in January to then work an extra day in May or have another day without pay is no fun at all. Here’s to hoping the sun can get your roads clear tomorrow (not much help from the temps, I am afraid). Good Luck!
Mary
January 11th, 2011
8:02 pm
What’s the point in making up the days? The districts are saving a ton of money on bus fuel, electricity, and water each day school is closed. That’s the reason some districts reduced their 180 day calendar this year – to save money. They should be happy about that and stop worrying about trying to look good by making up the days. A few extra days tacked on to the end of the school year is BS in terms of helping academic achievement. Nobody’s paying attention at that point. Natural disasters happen…just accept it and move on. Stop trying to get blood from a turnip – the turnip being the teachers in this current educational climate.
What's best for kids?
January 11th, 2011
8:18 pm
New Invention! The Slicker Suit. A snowsuit and a scliker all in one. Any enterprising seamstresses and/or seamers (?), when you make your millions, just send me a check.
What's best for kids?
January 11th, 2011
9:00 pm
http://thehumbleparent.blogspot.com/2011/01/raw-end-of-deal.html
Just wondering...
January 11th, 2011
9:16 pm
Sorry, Best, but I seem to remember something like that when I was a kid up north in the 70s – the seat was made of something like those old Rubbermaid dishdrainers. Good idea tho
Toto: exposing drug test con
January 11th, 2011
9:18 pm
Our home school is open for business. I reminded my charges that Chinese children have it far worse. No one here is forced to play the violin. Today we covered Sherman’s march to the sea and read family letters of their experiences during the burning of Charleston. I reviewed family history and pointed out that an ancestor was one of the signers of the Declaration of Independence. Another was Robert E. Lee. Another child is studying the Middle Ages, and we found that one of the earliest records of a family member shows that he was granted land and titles by King John “Lackland”. We also studied about King Richard and the Crusades. Latin, math, science, and writing rounded out the day. Of course, we took an extra long lunch and snow-break. With a crackling fire in the fireplace, the day was quite cozy.
Toto
January 11th, 2011
9:43 pm
Snow looks good to me. Check out the flash floods in Toowoomba, Australia today.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kYUpkPTcqPY&feature=player_embedded
derrick
January 11th, 2011
11:19 pm
is central gwinnett high school opening for school or not
derrick
January 11th, 2011
11:20 pm
is central gwinnett high school opening for school tomorow or not
Just wondering...
January 11th, 2011
11:29 pm
LOL, Toto, you said of your ancestors that “Another was Robert E. Lee.” Believe it or not, that makes us distantly related
if you can believe that. My ggggggrandmother was first cousins w/ him. Ha ha, small genealogical world!
Toto
January 11th, 2011
11:58 pm
@Just wondering…
Well, you know, Southerners are all related.
I’m glad to find a kindred spirit on this blog!
catlady
January 12th, 2011
9:11 am
This is, I believe, day 9 we have missed. Yippee! I get to create and teach a unit about the 4th of July this year!
If it would just snow in the warm parts of the year instead of when it’s so danged cold, we could stay outside and play so much more comfortably.
mommamonster
January 12th, 2011
9:27 am
Hey all, just an FYI post…If you have any pieces of the cheap shower boards that schools replaced chalk boards with at your house they make an EPIC sled. We drilled holes in a piece that I had brought home (yep, I’m a hoarder of random school supplies) and put a rope on it. SO MUCH FUN!!! I just told my kids that if I wiped out they were FORBIDDEN to put the video on Youtube…My eighth graders would never let me live it down
justin
January 12th, 2011
9:37 am
@irisheyes,
I think you are talking about the perceived world by some teachers/administrators. What evidences are there that “preparing” for CRCT actually improves the outcomes? What evidences are there that just focusing on teaching what you are supposed to teach well will not give better results?
JacobLocke
January 12th, 2011
10:25 am
Maureen, it looks like GPC will not be starting classes until Tuesday, January 18th.
Dr. Craig Spinks /Augusta
January 12th, 2011
10:37 am
CLASSROOM TEACHERS, present and former:
Have you contacted our SSOS, Senate Ed chair and House Ed chair today?
For your convenience, their e-mail addresses are:
johnbarge@doe.k12.ga.us,
state.superintendent@doe.k12.ga.us,
dan.weber@senate.ga.gov, and
brooks.coleman@house.ga.gov.
Another Teacher
January 12th, 2011
10:39 am
@ Justin
You make valid points to all but as a teacher I have to tell you that there are too many kids that don’t actually “learn” information that is taught to them. Most of the time they cram it in for a short period (long enough to remember it for a test) then they forget it. This is evident when I put questions from the previous test on the currant one. They know I am going to do it. There is no surprise about it at all. I remind them that I will continue to ask questions from the first test through our the year up to CRCT and they still refuse( even when they get it wrong) to review on their own. So when our pay is dependent on testing results, we are going to review, even when your student is bored. The surest way to keep us from having to review for CRCT is to get all your friends to review with their own kids and then I can focus on teaching the information the first time.
Just wondering...
January 12th, 2011
11:02 am
@ Justin – the biggest thing I focus on (8th grade science) w/ test prep ISN’T content – it’s how to test well. Multiple choice test taking is a skill, and it’s a skill that can be taught and improved. Learning how to read and interpret questions, to eliminate distractors, and use tables and graphs are all important. I have found that students can know the content, but get tripped up by the wording of a question (particularly those of the “Which of the following is NOT…” category). I don’t spend much time on this, and what time I do spend is normally embedded in the usual going over tests or completing warm-ups. The kids usually appreciate it, though.
Cherokee Teacher
January 12th, 2011
11:10 am
I wish we could make next Monday (which is a scheduled holiday off) a workday so we could make up some of this time now instead of at the end of the year (post-plan).
Or, if the kids have to make it up, make it a regular school day.
Karma
January 12th, 2011
11:53 am
I am supposed to be tutoring our 8th graders for the writing test right now. And you know, I don’t think it would have made one damn bit of difference. Half of the kids who need tutoring for this test can’t read a Dick and Jane book. These are the kids who earned F’s but received C’s because APS and others don’t believe in failing students.
Maybe if the kids’ grade level placement reflected their progress or lack of progress, it would help. But what do I know? I believe it’s wrong to cheat. My bosses and their bosses seem to be A OK with it. I guess they knew what they were doing. They all still have their jobs and have been promoted in some cases.
Another Teacher
January 12th, 2011
1:01 pm
@ Cherokee Teacher
There are a lot of teachers that would like to do that but you know what day it is…Heaven forbid that we attend school on that day and actually learn something. It is totally OK however to attend school on Presidents Day…I hate double standards.
Really? Seriously?
January 12th, 2011
1:11 pm
@use your time well ~ I am a teacher who is using her time well. I have colored pictures with my daughter, worked on Cub Scout belt loops with my son, made homemade bird food to feed the birds in our backyard, built a mean snow fort, backed homemade soft pretzels, slid down the fierce snow track we made on our front hill, and basically just enjoyed some uninterrupted time with my kids when I’m not bone tired from a day at school. I’m guessing you aren’t the sub that I had one day who, when I walked back in my room (I only took a half day), had her needlepoint spread out across the desk and wasn’t paying attention to what the students were reading outloud and were supposed to discuss ~ all outlined in my detailed lesson plans.
Really? Seriously?
January 12th, 2011
1:12 pm
baked not backed
Mary
January 12th, 2011
1:27 pm
@Another Teacher – Get a life…and a brain while you’re at it. If you want to stay home and participate in some community service activities (as I will be on Monday), write to your Congressperson.