Snow days are rare these days, and some Philly parents embraced this one

Snow days are few and far between. First, because it just hasn’t snowed much in recent years. Secondly, remote learning, a result of the covid-19 pandemic, now allows students to stay home when snow or ice fly.

In fact, the city said last year that its practice going forward would be to change to remote learning on days when getting to school would be difficult or dangerous. 

So it was a mild surprise when the Philadelphia School District announced over the weekend that it would offer a good, old-fashioned snow day due to a storm that was projected to start early Monday and continue into the night. (Find more on the storm at WHYY.org.)

“Snow days offer special moments for our students to experience the joy and wonder of winter. We encourage families to embrace this opportunity to build memories together, while exercising appropriate caution during winter weather conditions,” superintendent Tony Watlington said in a release.

Comments under the school district’s social posts on the announcement were mostly pleased with the decision, and how much notice was given.

Dickinson Square Park in Pennsport served as one of the spots where people of all ages came out to enjoy the snow day, though some who brought their sleds expecting enough snow to have some fun were underwhelmed.

“This is a terrible neighborhood for sledding, but they don’t know any different. This is where they grew up, so they think it’s great,” said Jerusha Paige, who grew up in Harleysville in Montco and brought her daughters Leela and Daisy to the park. “I’m from a place with much bigger Hills.” 

Paige said that both daughters were super excited and happy to have their winter break extended a day. 

“I’m fine with it,” she said of her own reaction. “I was kind of just glad it was confirmed earlier, rather than later. As opposed to getting up and getting ready for the day and then being like, ‘Oh, they don’t have school,’ and having to change plans and stuff. So, it’s just better to have it done and know it was happening.”

Tom Cornell was at the park with his 5-year-old daughter, Olivia.

“[The day’s] been great, it’s pretty mild for the most part,” he said. “She’s just learning to make snowballs right now and is enjoying hitting me in the face with them.”

Cornell’s two daughters attend a kindergarten that remained open Monday, but Cornell picked them up early.

“It would have been great to have the whole day. But with my wife and I’s work schedule, there was no way around it,” Cornell said. “So she got them there in the morning. I finished up early, So we just kind of had to do that balancing act and be able to let her — and her 4-year-old sisters on her way to the park to meet us here — get a good couple hours here in the snow.”

The snow totals in Philly reached just 1.8 inches as measured at 1 p.m  Monday at the airport, according to the National Weather Service Philadelphia/Mount Holly. It was enough for Cornell to see an opportunity to share a tradition.

“A snow day living in the Northeast is like a right of passage,” He said. “So I’m happy that they’re able to get this because it certainly brings us back to our childhood, when this was the best day.”

Students hoping for another day off likely are going to be disappointed Tuesday. The School District has already posted a video showing snow-moving equipment at the ready to get schools and offices back up and running.