“This is the best day of school ever!” a 5th grader shouts as she and her classmates enthusiastically clamor over a fresh snowdrift and gleefully slide down the other side. Its the middle of January and this group of students has spent their morning romping through the snow-covered forest on snowshoes.
So far they’ve dug snowpits, followed snowshoe hare tracks and analyzed the water content of the mountain snowpack. Now it's their chance to experience climbing inside a large snow shelter, and for many of these students this is another “first” in a day that is full of unique first time experiences. “Wow! I do think it's a little warmer in here!” exclaims another student as he pops up from the doorway. Their SnowSchool leader tells them a little bit more about how volunteers cut and stacked the enormous snow blocks and used branches to help make the roof. The students spend the next few minutes theorizing about the design and construction methods. As they wrap up the discussion one student comments, “I want to bring my parents and little brother back here!”
A big part of what makes SnowSchool so uniquely impactful is this strong emotional connection kids quickly develop with this wild mountain snowscape. The hands-on nature of the activities and snow itself ensures that kids have ample opportunity to explore the snowpack with their curiosity in the driver's seat.
Thus SnowSchool is a bridge connecting kids to snow science, their local watershed and winter recreation. The STEM-based curriculum combines the field trip in the snow with classroom science extension projects. Students learn about hydrology, winter ecology, wildlife, and snow crystals. They also make a vital connection between the snowpack—source of more than 80% of our water in the West—and the water they drink every day.
Working to ensure that all kids have the opportunity to experience nature in this way is an effort that’s been snowballin for decades. Over the years legions of educators, volunteer leaders and key community partners like Osprey have donated critical resources to help provide instruction for students, develop new outdoor science activities, provide much needed extra winter gear and clothing for underserved kids and help offset rising material costs like transportation. With Osprey’s ongoing support SnowSchool has now engaged over 500,000 students since the program was launched just over two decades ago in 2001. Just this winter alone SnowSchool engaged over 35,000 participants across 72 active SnowSchool sites (locations) spanning 17 states! Approximately 53% of participating students qualify as underserved. This includes students from Title 1 schools and many diverse underrepresented populations. Over 68% of students were first time snowshoers!
Below are some quotes from this years participants, powerful winter memories made:
“For the majority of my students, this was their first experience snowshoeing and for some it was their first experience doing any outdoor activity in the snow besides playing at recess. I am so grateful we got to give them this adventure today!”
- Elementary Teacher, 2024
"I love snowshoeing! When can we do this again?" -5th grade SnowSchool student, 2024
“This is the best field trip ever!” -4th grade student, 2024