Students in Seward area power through outages to keep learning despite blizzard

LINCOLN, Neb. (KLKN) — Wednesday might have been the last full day of winter, but Mother Nature sure didn’t give the Midwest a break.

While snow means a day off for some, for others, it means a day of online school.

And for lots of children across Nebraska, trying to stay up with schoolwork was quite a challenge as power outages interrupted internet access.

SEE ALSO: Power outages reported across Nebraska amid blizzard conditions

While districts like Lincoln Public Schools don’t have online learning on snow days, other places like Seward do.

Online learning helps avoid extending the school year to make up days.

But many families struggled to complete schoolwork because of power outages and interruptions.

SEE ALSO: PHOTOS: Blizzard pounds Nebraska

A handful of people in the Seward area said their children were doing just about everything they could to get their work done.

Demitria Kay shared a photo of her son enjoying his schoolwork inside a blanket fort!

Others said their children got work done the night before so they could enjoy a good old-fashioned snow day.

Several people said they were using battery packs, generators or portable car chargers to keep their devices powered so work could get done.

Others said because the power had been off for so long, they were prioritizing keeping phones charged only for emergencies.

SEE ALSO: Snow emergency declared in Lincoln

But keeping devices powered was only one part of the challenge — keeping the internet going was another.

Parents also said they were turning hot spots on and off as needed.

One teacher at North Bend Central said her students were working from their phones with little to no Wi-Fi and limited electricity.

She wasn’t getting enough signal to make edits on their Google Docs, so she had to send screenshots back.

She added that storms like this highlight the struggle students in rural areas face when it comes to remote learning.

Parents praised teachers — especially in the Seward District — for being flexible and willing to help students as much as they could.

While the storm moved out of eastern Nebraska on Wednesday evening, remote learning for many isn’t over.

The Seward School District announced that it will have another online learning day Thursday due to road conditions.