The wind is whirling.  The world has turned white.  A blizzard is literally attacking my neighborhood.  I am worrying about my power going out.  If the power goes out, then my heat will go out.  I could potentially freeze to death.

More importantly, if the power goes out, so does the Internet.

If I lose the Internet, then I won’t be able to check my jcpatriot e-mail account or my teachers’ websites.  It would truly be a tragedy.

I know other students must have suffered this same scenario during the snowstorms that have happened in the past few weeks.

This scenario is absolutely ridiculous.

Teachers should not be assigning additional homework during snow days.  First of all, as the daughter of a teacher, I know that they have better things to do than worry about assignments.  Teachers have sidewalks that need to be shoveled, and they have kids of their own with whom they are being given the opportunity to spend a couple of days.

Also, how can students be fairly punished for not completing any additional assignments?

I know my Internet continually went out throughout the snow days.  During normal times, teachers use the excuse that it is the student’s responsibility to get to a location where there is Internet.

However, during a snow storm, it is impossible to get out.  Even the library was closed for several days over the snow break.

Finally, many of my days were spent outside shoveling, an activity that becomes increasingly tiring over a week.  Honestly, the last thing that I want to do when I come in from shoveling is to have to think about a difficult assignment.

Additional assignments should not be given when school is closed due to inclement weather.  Teachers and students alike both need and deserve the unexpected solace that these days offer.

Caitie Beth Shauck can be reached for comment at [email protected]