Anyone from Alaska? Snow/school question

[perla75]

I was just wondering if Alaska schools gets many snowdays or if it has to be a life/death situation for school to get canceled due to weather? My guess is you guys have the equipment over there to deal with clearing the snow safely for school children?

Or do you get longer winter vacations & shorter summer ones to accomodate for the weather?

Just curious...

 

[adkkev]

My son lives in Fairbanks, Alaska ... school starts in mid August, and ends before Memorial Day in May. There really aren't any snowdays as snowstorms are rare there, at least on the scale of what he experienced when he lived in upstate NY. Winter vacation isn't any longer than it was in NY, and there's only one week off in the spring (this year that week is in early March). Outdoors recess is cancelled when the temperature dips below minus 20.

You may have a misconception about the amount of snow that Alaska receives ... many areas don't really get that much snow, or not a lot of snow all at once. But once it gets cold, the snow stays!

 

[MI mom of 3]

My son lives in Fairbanks, Alaska ... school starts in mid August, and ends before Memorial Day in May. There really aren't any snowdays as snowstorms are rare there, at least on the scale of what he experienced when he lived in upstate NY. Winter vacation isn't any longer than it was in NY, and there's only one week off in the spring (this year that week is in early March). Outdoors recess is cancelled when the temperature dips below minus 20.
You may have a misconception about the amount of snow that Alaska receives ... many areas don't really get that much snow, or not a lot of snow all at once. But once it gets cold, the snow stays!

 

[perla75]

Wow, I guess I do have a misconception of Alaska!! I did not figure that snowstorms were rare there. I assumed that happened all winter! Thank you for the info

Below MINUS 20 degrees gets recess cancelled??? Woah! I work at a school now in MA and they get their recess canceled when it's below 30!

 

[4 Little Bears]

Chiming in from Interior Alaska!

If I'm remembering correctly, our local schools haven't had to use a snow day in more than 3 years. School usually isn't cancelled or delayed because of snow; usually it is ice that causes school to be cancelled. When the weather gets to -50, parents have the choice to send their kids to school or keep them home. They do go outside for recess until -20.

Something I thought was interesting about schools and winters in Alaska--if your child is not in class, the office will call the parent to make sure your child is home. I think they do this so they don't "lose" a child when it's cold and dark outside! Alaska certainly is an unique place to live.

 

[Cindy B]

Chiming in from Interior Alaska!

If I'm remembering correctly, our local schools haven't had to use a snow day in more than 3 years. School usually isn't cancelled or delayed because of snow; usually it is ice that causes school to be cancelled. When the weather gets to -50, parents have the choice to send their kids to school or keep them home. They do go outside for recess until -20.

Something I thought was interesting about schools and winters in Alaska--if your child is not in class, the office will call the parent to make sure your child is home. I think they do this so they don't "lose" a child when it's cold and dark outside! Alaska certainly is an unique place to live.

The local schools in NJ call home if there is an absence as well. I thought it was the norm all over.

Thanks for giving me some info for my kids whenever they complain about waiting in the 30-40 degree bus stop... The kids in Alaska have recess outside at -20. So stop complaining!

 

[LadyZolt]

Alaska is a huge state. We were stationed in Kodiak (an island off mainland Alaska, which the Alaskans refer to as "tropical Kodiak" because it doesn't get as cold there as it does other parts). I remember watching the weather report on TV and it would take a half hour to give it because Kodiak, for example, is going to get totally different weather than Nome, or even Homer. Valdez gets tons of snow -- they have to shovel it off of the roof or their houses will collapse from the weight of it. Anyway, in Kodiak, the winter temps hovered at freezing. We got snow but then it would melt and freeze again, so ice was by far the bigger problem, as a previous poster said. We'd have to plug our cars in at night to keep the battery from dying, and chip the ice off the steps so we didn't slip. We left there when my eldest was five, so we didn't have any in school there, but I think that if school did get delayed or canceled, it was more due to ice than to snow.

-Dorothy (LadyZolt)

 

[MM27]

Outdoors recess is cancelled when the temperature dips below minus 20.

I didn't know Fairbanks was that low for recess. I've heard that in Anchorage it is -10. I was trying to convince my principal that the kids in my class (who really wanted to go outside for recess) wouldn't get hypothermia from 10 minutes outside on a 30 degree day. Apparently our cutoff is 35 It was the first I ever heard of a cutoff in my 9 years here (I'm in NJ).

My brother lives in New Hampshire and has had lower temperatures, for most of the winter, than Anchorage has.

 

[sk8ingmom]

Gosh, if they didn't let the kids go out for recess below 35 degrees, all of those ice rinks on the playground would go to waste! Seriously, many schools in my area, just north of Anchorage, have skating rinks on the playground - like on purpose - with boards and everything.

As a PP mentioned, Alaskan schools are much more likely to have "ice days". We get dumped on a few times a year and people just suck it up and deal with it. Most people have at least one if not two 4-wheel drive vehicles. The school busses are 4WD, with chains. Things rarely get canceled due to weather.

It's not just snow either! Kodiak & southeast get A LOT of rain. I've been to Kodiak cookouts in the driving rain. You just put on a poncho and grab a beer.

Now, on the flip side...it is not unusual for a manager to send people home on an exceptionally nice day. I've had business meetings at an outdoor picnic table. And during salmon run you see a lot of guys in shirt, tie and hip waders out for lunch hour fishing in the creek that runs through downtown.

 

[K and K's Mommy]

I didn't know Fairbanks was that low for recess. I've heard that in Anchorage it is -10. I was trying to convince my principal that the kids in my class (who really wanted to go outside for recess) wouldn't get hypothermia from 10 minutes outside on a 30 degree day. Apparently our cutoff is 35 It was the first I ever heard of a cutoff in my 9 years here (I'm in NJ).

That is a high cutoff. At our school in Indianapolis it is 20. (although positive not negative! I am not as tough as an Alaskan!)

 

[traviesojmt]

We lived in Anchorage for three years. In those 3 years, my son did not miss one day of school. At his school, they would go outside until 10 below, I think. While we would get quite a bit of snow, it really never stopped anything. You really just learn to adjust. By the way, it was hard to get my kids inside regardless of how cold it got. Kids wear full snow gear so they are pretty protected.

 

[almburr]

The local schools in NJ call home if there is an absence as well. I thought it was the norm all over.



So they don't get eaten by a bear or lost in the dark.

 

[perla75]

This is all so interesting, I'm glad I posted this thread! I guess I don't know much about Alaska at all!

 

[Hannah Mason]

I was just wondering if Alaska schools gets many snowdays or if it has to be a life/death situation for school to get canceled due to weather? My guess is you guys have the equipment over there to deal with clearing the snow safely for school children?

Or do you get longer winter vacations & shorter summer ones to accomodate for the weather?

Just curious...

I've lived in Fairbanks, Alaska all my life. We don't cancel school for snow or for temperature (it's been -60 degrees fahrenheit and we still go). At -20 degrees fahrenheit, no classes go outside for recess or field trips. We don't get a lot of snow. The only time I've ever seen them cancel school is when there's freezing rain, which is when it's really cold and rain freezes as soon as it hits the ground. This makes the roads really icy, so it's too dangerous to run buses and drive to school. School starts on August 21 (usually) and ends on May 20 or 21 (or later, if we've had freezing rain). We have a 2 week break from late December (usually a few days before Chrismas) to early January. We also have a 1 week break in March. The winters can be really cold, but sometimes they're warmer. Last week it was 40 degrees fahrenheit and this week it's down to -20! Last year it was 52 degrees above 0 at my house in February! The temp in the winter usually ranges from -50 degrees fahrenheit to 40 degrees fahrenheit. In the summer it ranges from 50 degrees fahrenheit to 90 degrees fahrenheit, so it's not ALWAYS cold here. I hope this was helpful! (Also, this is my first post)

 

[Hannah Mason]

I didn't know Fairbanks was that low for recess. I've heard that in Anchorage it is -10. I was trying to convince my principal that the kids in my class (who really wanted to go outside for recess) wouldn't get hypothermia from 10 minutes outside on a 30 degree day. Apparently our cutoff is 35 It was the first I ever heard of a cutoff in my 9 years here (I'm in NJ).

Wow, you guys stop school at 35 degrees ABOVE? If it were Alaska, we'd barely have school at all!

 

[Mommyof2Boos]

Once it is -20 Fahrenheit it is too cold to snow, which is part of why we don't get snow all year. The first snowfall this winter was the beginning of October.

One thing I found interesting is how they clear the roads up here. It is basically cleared on the highways, with rock used for traction, not salt and other streets have a few inches of packed down snow covering the roads. The roads aren't too terribly slippery unless it is hovering around or above freezing. Alaska cancels school for rain in the winter, not snow. A couple weeks ago school was cancelled because of freezing rain that cause an ambulance among a slough of other vehicles to end up in the ditch.

Man I can't wait for break-up!

 

[bcla]

I don't know if the cold would bother me, but the mosquitoes in summer would be another matter. A friend of mine was stationed at a military base in Alaska, and his joke was that the mosquito was the state bird.

 

[tasha99]

I lived in Palmer Alaska for a couple of years and worked as a speech therapist in the school system. Our cutoff was -10 for recess. We did have a few days called off for weather, but it was unusual and usually due to ice or sudden warm weather. If it rains after the ground is frozen hard, everything turns into an ice rink. It gets really windy in Palmer too. It can get to 80-100 mph gusts, and they don't cancel school, they just change the bus loading procedure. When it's that windy and snow is blowing, it really felt like the ice planet Hoth.

I don't know if the cold would bother me, but the mosquitoes in summer would be another matter. A friend of mine was stationed at a military base in Alaska, and his joke was that the mosquito was the state bird.

They are scary large and aggressive. I remember going for a walk once and realizing there was a squadron of mosquitos staying on my side. I'm sure I looked like a crazy meth addict or something because I lost it and had to hit and slap at them. Took me a while to calm down. I miss Alaska so much, but the state bird I can do without!

 

[barkley]

we're not in Alaska but w/this year being the exception tend to get a decent amount of snow. one thing I find fascinating is how school districts, depending on where they are situated budget in and call snow days. our district geographically is fairly large but it's one (and only) k-12 campus is out in the middle of nowhere and all the bus routes are very rural-our district only budgets one snow day per year (and it's rare that it's ever used). on the other hand-the biggest district near us which has a large number of schools on individual campuses all across the large city near us, despite getting less snow (lower elevation) budgets at minimum 5 snow days per year and generally uses at least half.

the only thing we can figure is the bus drivers are afraid to drive on the narrower snow covered city streets vs. the country roads and highways (even though those city streets take priority over our remote highways and roads for snow removal services). my kid hasn't had a snow day this year so he got a day off school last week-and will get out of school on the day the district calendar named last spring. the other district has started giving off every other Friday for the past few weeks to use them up, but if snow comes in between now and the end of the school year their calendar is set up to recapture those snow days by extending the school year for a full week.

 

[Tiffylv]

.