Just Curious

[Sneaky2006]

I was just wondering if the kids in Canada get a lot of snow days, or delays? The roads must be awful with snow a lot of the winter right? Is there a certain number of off days they can have, or would they have to go longer if there were too many off?
Here they only allow 3 full days to be off and they just used the last one yesterday and the winter has only just begun. Now the kids will have their Easter vacation cut short and their last day of school will be later than expected.
So you people with kids, what's the deal there?

[Katherine1]

Not sure how many snow days they allow but our kids don't stay home often because of the snow. The plow trucks usually keep things pretty well controlled in our area.

[jackieb]

not sure how many days they get off but the bused children didnt go in the other day. At our school if you feel its unsafe to take your children to school then you can phone in. They dont have long off for easter anyway cant belive there taking days off them!

[BMDLuver]

Growing up in Montreal we used to get snow days quite often. Now it seems that there are very few as roads get cleared more easily. Tends to be outlying areas that still do get more days.. They used to be the best days off!

[mona_b]

I've noticed that when you live more in the city,there really isn't to many snow days.For as long as I can remember,my daughter hasn't had a snow day.Now for my sister who is on a farm,my nephews and neice have had many snow days.They are bused to school.And they get hit harder then we do.Their roads get closed.And they can't even get out of the driveway which is a good 50-60'.My sister and BIL can't even get their cars in or out.My sister has actually been stranded at work for up to 3 days.Their 3 Huskies love it and so does their Border Collie....

[Sneaky2006]

Well you'd think in the city it would be better than country but I live in a city and we got about 10" of snow on Saturday and school was closed Monday and Tuesday... the main roads were plowed by Sunday but people drive like nuts and there were accidents everywhere, I'm guessing that's why they closed schools. I hear we're in for a bad February... can't wait to see what they do.

[chico2]

Sneaky,the school-bus picks up kids every morning not too far from my house,so far this winter it's never been cancelled and we've had a lot of snow.I live on a main road and it's already been plowed after last nights blizzard.
I am glad we have an SUV and a snowblower,the plow made a nice wall at the end of the driveway No problems for the Jeep

[raingirl]

I grew up in Scarborough, which is now Toronto, and the entire time from when I was in kindergarden to OAC (grade 13) we only had 1 snow day ever! I am not joking!! And that was when I was in grade 10.

In the GTA (greater toronto area), schools are rarely EVER cancelled. When I was in Universtiy, they only cancelled school one time in 4 years for a snow storm. I asked my sister about brampton schools last year, and she said that they have never closed my neices school for snow ever, and she is in grade 5.

I always laugh when I watch TV in the morning, and watch the US channels (in Buffalo) and there are so many school closings! I sometimes can't beleive it!

[Sneaky2006]

That's really weird... if we had a blizzard last night, kids wouldn't be going anywhere, especially by bus... I know they also take into consideration the kids that have to walk... at least the day after snow they're closed because of that reason. We live right off of a main road, so our particular streets aren't done very quickly... but that doesn't matter anyway, they close by the district, not by the school.
I hear ya about the Jeep! We just had to get a new car and we chose a Jeep Liberty.... now hubby pouts cause normally when the kids have off, he did too! But now there's no excuse!!!!!

[schnauzerlove]

We live in a small town in Ontario. My son's school is in town, but many of the kids come from rural areas by bus. So far, I think the buses have been cancelled 6 days....all because of freezing rain. We have very few "snow" cancellations....none this year.

But, the schools are ALWAYS open. As I tell my son, the "Mom" Bus is NEVER cancelled. He's not too impressed !!

[Katherine1]

Originally Posted by MomtoJimShelby

But, the schools are ALWAYS open. As I tell my son, the "Mom" Bus is NEVER cancelled. He's not too impressed !!

LOL I can relate. I tell my son that too, he is 9 and he wasn't impressed either.

[raingirl]

Even after huge snow storms, we went to school. I remember walking to school in waist high snow all the time.

Then again, all the kids who went to our school walked there, and we had no buses because everyone was local.

[shihtzulover]

The kids here have been very lucky lately, in One week they had 3 days off. We have had 2 days off work because everything was closed here. Its a very crazy winter, the only time I ever could not make it into work before was last Feb when we had white juan, but this year we get a white juan every week. The snow on either side of my walkway is piled over my head, its like walking through a cave. Most of our roads are only one lane now because there is no where else to put all the snow. Its defintly the worst winter I have seen in a while, I have some pictures on my digital camera, I will try to download them tonight.

[happycats]

I lived in a very rural area for 5 years during my childhood, and took a school
bus, and I only had 1 snow day off, in April (my birthday).in all 5 years!!
the snow banks would be as high as our house.
We would build under ground tunnels all through the snow in our front yard!
But our school bus drivers were like the mailman, through rain, snow sleet..........

[Schwinn]

It really depends where in Ontario you live. When I lived in the snow belt, we had very few snow days, they seemed to know how to handle snow. Then when I moved down near Windsor, we had quite a few (even though we got a quarter of the snow, if that). I swear, they only had one plow, and it was usually snowed in. The would close the roads off at night, and clear them with a back-hoe and a dump truck.

[Bearsmom]

I grew up in Northern Ontario, and laugh at the snow days down here. I remember growing up that if the bus didn't come, mom used to say, "your own bus runs from the hips down, get going".

I chuckle here because they pull the buses for snow, freezing rain, potential snow, threat of freezing rain, and my all time favourite-school's closed because it's too cold!!! THAT one cracks me up as we did have to go to school growing up when it was -30. You just had to wear a scarf that day. LOL.

[Schwinn]

Originally Posted by Bearsmom

I grew up in Northern Ontario, and laugh at the snow days down here. I remember growing up that if the bus didn't come, mom used to say, "your own bus runs from the hips down, get going".

I chuckle here because they pull the buses for snow, freezing rain, potential snow, threat of freezing rain, and my all time favourite-school's closed because it's too cold!!! THAT one cracks me up as we did have to go to school growing up when it was -30. You just had to wear a scarf that day. LOL.

My wife is from Thunder Bay, I call her a Northern Snob, because she's always laughing at everyone down here. Then when my mom comes up from Windsor, she REALLY laughs (she still talks about the day my mom was wearing a sweater and we were wearing shorts.)

[Cinnabear]

I live in Northern Alberta, we have never had snow days in the 10 years that my dd's have attended school. Just bundle up and drive carefully.

[raingirl]

Well, it appears that snow days are inversly related to how far south you live. The farther south you live, the more snow days you have, but the less snow you have.

[glasslass]

Snow days???

[Sneaky2006]

Snow days are days that the kids have off from school because of snow or ice making it hard to drive, etc.

Here on the radio it is called opperation snowflake and they read off the schools closed or delayed.... I don't know Glass, maybe in California it's opperation raindrop? Or opperation heatstroke?

[Karin]

Two weeks ago we had a hard freeze warning for 2 nights in a row, (could have snowed if the moisture was there), the radio stations all North Central Florida were bogged down with people calling about classes being canceled! Give me a break! The daytime temps were in the 60's!...Winter weather has been much worse for this area....I think everyone is still nervous & jerky after all that has happened across the globe lately.