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A powerful weekend snowstorm buried the D.C.-Maryland-Virginia region beneath roughly 7 to 8 inches of snow and about half an inch of ice, creating dangerous travel conditions and disrupting plans for the final days of the academic quarter.

The storm began around 11 p.m. Saturday and continued through Sunday. More than 10,000 flights were canceled, while widespread power outages left at least 750,000 people without electricity.

An approaching arctic blast could make recovery even harder. Frigid temperatures following the storm are expected to complicate efforts to clear lingering snow and ice from roads and sidewalks.

Fairfax County Public Schools closed schools Monday, with the possibility that Tuesday and Wednesday could also be canceled. For McLean students and teachers, the disruption comes less than a week before the quarter’s scheduled Jan. 28 conclusion.

Teachers are now scrambling to rearrange tests, quizzes and lessons. Students, meanwhile, could face the same deadlines and assessments despite losing valuable classroom time to learn new material, ask questions and complete schoolwork.

FCPS should consider postponing the end of the quarter to account for the closures. The existing schedule gives students little time to review their recent performance or improve their grades before the grading period ends.

If the district cannot extend the quarter, McLean teachers should give students additional time after the storm to complete missed assignments and prepare for assessments. Students should not be forced to replace lost instructional time with work that would ordinarily be completed at school.

Adjusting deadlines would recognize that the storm created circumstances beyond the control of students and teachers while helping preserve a fair academic environment.