What ever happened to a good old-fashioned snow day? | Getty Images/fStop

Editor’s note, January 26, 2026, 1:37 ET: As more extreme winter storms sweep through the nation and kids stay home from school, parents and teachers alike are rethinking what happens when bad weather strikes. The story below was originally published in 2024.

We had many superstitions when I was a kid. Wear your pajamas inside out. Or wear your underwear on the outside of your PJs. Gargle a bit of saltwater right before bed. When you put your shoes away, make sure they’re backward; left shoe on the right-hand side, right on the left.

Our teachers would remind us of these tricks during the school day before a potential snowfall. That night, we would all do our part, hoping and praying that we’d awaken to a sheet of fresh snow, deep enough to render our schools closed for the day.

On those mornings, we’d wake up earlier than usual to stare at the local news channel, filled with anticipation as the names of all the local school districts drifted across the screen, anxious to see our own listed among the lucky ones.

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If a snow day was announced, it was pure elation as we rushed to get our winter bibs and boots on to go out and play in the fresh snow, joining our friends and neighbors for sledding or snowballing or snowman building. We’d return home after a few hours for hot chocolate and soup before putting on dry clothes and heading back out again.

Growing up on the Jersey Shore, we rarely had to endure very snowy winters. But each year, we could count on at least one or two snow days minimum. Sometimes, like the great blizzard of ’96 — which, at one point, rendered the whole of the New Jersey Turnpike closed — we’d get entire stretches of days off to play in our sudden winter wonderland.

Of course, back then we didn’t have access to the internet like we do now. We couldn’t be in class from the comfort of home.

With the proliferation of virtual learning, do kids even get to enjoy the magic of an unexpected snow day anymore? Are true snow days an endangered species?

Earlier this month, nearly 1 million students in New........

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