Winter is approaching fast and students lifestyles will start to change as the environment changes around them as well. Snow, a big part of winter, causes snow days, slowed down driving, and can even affect moods of anyone living in it, including at school. When there are snow days, schools have to postpone lesson plans, preparing for standardized testing, and more. This can put stress on students because their homework will start to stack up on them, and they will receive a larger workload than usual to catch up with the curriculum. 

“When we have snow days, I have to combine topics or readings to make sure that students don’t fall too far behind and often I have to decide what to cut from the curriculum.” English teacher, Kristen Collier said.

Many people have a love hate relationship with snow, 

“Yeah I think snow is pretty fun. I like skiing and playing in the snow,” 9th grader Yash Kshirsagar said. 

“I don’t really get severe seasonal depression, but I still do kind of get down during winter,” 9th grader Mimi Huelster said.

 Students opinions on snow can affect their mindset and their mood throughout the day, affecting how they feel during their classes and possibly even their performance levels for testing. 

24% of weather related crashes are linked to snow. Students and faculty who drive to school every morning in snowy weather are at a high risk of getting in an accident. They become a part of 1,300 people who are killed because of snowy weather. 

“What I need to do, and what you need to do if you live far away, is just plan on leaving an extra 20 minutes sooner than you think your going to have to leave because there could be traffic, there could be weather, or there could be both.” Spanish teacher, Pam Starkey said.

For students that live farther away from school or take the bus to school, getting to school on time can be tricky. 

“It’s always very cold, and I feel like my hands are going to fall off. Sometimes the bus ends up being late because of the weather and then I have to stand in the cold for a long time,” 9th grader Cayenne Ramirez said.

As winter approaches fast, students and teachers will need to start to prepare themselves for this harsh season. “Turn on the heat early in the winter season, buy some hand warmers, and wear fuzzy socks,” 9th grader Lela Tilney-Kaemmer.