:00:12. > :00:16.Hi, I'm Ricky and you're with Newsround - the place where there's
:00:16. > :00:19.never a snow day to keep us away. Coming up... Fun in the big freeze,
:00:19. > :00:29.as thousands of you get a day off school. And we meet the icy animals
:00:29. > :00:33.
:00:33. > :00:36.trying to stay warm. So was it a school day or a snow day for you?
:00:36. > :00:39.More than 5000 schools have been closed across the country as the
:00:39. > :00:41.freezing weather continues. That's almost one in six. If you go to
:00:41. > :00:43.school in Yorkshire, the West Midlands, Surrey, south Wales, the
:00:43. > :00:48.Scottish borders or Northern Ireland, you've almost certainly
:00:48. > :00:51.had a day off lessons. They're among the snowiest places in the UK.
:00:51. > :00:53.But it's not just schools that are affected. Flights have been
:00:54. > :00:57.cancelled, trains, too. And 20 primary schoolchildren had a lucky
:00:57. > :01:00.escape when their bus skidded off a steep road covered in slush and
:01:00. > :01:09.snow in South Wales. No-one was hurt. With all those lessons
:01:09. > :01:13.cancelled, we sent Joe to check out snow day! Roadblock, planes
:01:13. > :01:19.grounded and millions of people struggling to get around. Snow days
:01:19. > :01:23.can be a serious business. They can also be quite fun as well! And it
:01:23. > :01:29.doesn't get any more fun than when school is closed and you hear those
:01:29. > :01:33.two magic words. Snow day. Are you enjoying your day? Do for that the.
:01:33. > :01:37.We'd been sledging, snowball fights, rolling down the hill. How do you
:01:37. > :01:40.feel about the kids who do have to go to school today and a day like
:01:40. > :01:43.this? I feel really sorry for them because they are just doing maths
:01:43. > :01:47.and horrible subject. There have been plenty of opportunities to
:01:47. > :01:54.make the most of the snow around the UK. With thousands of schools
:01:54. > :01:58.shut, kids have been set free to enjoy the snow. What makes a snowy
:01:58. > :02:03.day A Snow Day? The teacher at the school has decided the playground
:02:03. > :02:08.is far too dangerous for the kids to play around. You've also got to
:02:09. > :02:12.find out whether the school is going to be hot enough. It is
:02:12. > :02:15.expected to stay cold throughout the week, with the north-east of
:02:15. > :02:18.England and eastern Scotland getting the most snow overnight. It
:02:18. > :02:21.could fall heavily across the south-west of England and Wales and
:02:21. > :02:27.the morning as well. With more snow forecast for tomorrow, it looks
:02:27. > :02:37.like there's plenty of time to practise your sledging. This is
:02:37. > :02:52.
:02:52. > :02:55.fast! And you guys have been It's not just us trying to stay
:02:55. > :03:01.warm in the snowy weather. Zookeepers have been making sure
:03:01. > :03:07.the animals don't get too cold. And it's not as simple as giving them a
:03:07. > :03:11.pair of gloves and a hot chocolate! Nel's been to Chester Zoo. You will
:03:12. > :03:16.be wrapping up warm if you are out and about in the cold today. I have
:03:16. > :03:19.Tom, a scarf, may be some clubs. The animals at Chester Zoo don't
:03:19. > :03:23.have that option. Right over there is where the rhinos should be
:03:23. > :03:27.running around and playing, but they can't because of the snow.
:03:27. > :03:33.What do the animals do when it's snowing this bad? How are these
:03:33. > :03:37.animals are -- are going to cope with the snow? Many of them really
:03:37. > :03:41.enjoyed the snow. They come out and explore it. But they've also got
:03:41. > :03:47.access to a snug house. You've got a lot of baby animals at Chester
:03:47. > :03:52.Zoo, are they affected by the snow very much? They are. We have to
:03:52. > :03:58.take great care. The mother, the elephant, will go outside and
:03:58. > :04:04.enjoyed the snow, so we have to make sure that their cards are kept
:04:04. > :04:07.nice and snug in house. Thank you for all of this no pictures you've
:04:07. > :04:10.been sending in. Check out Ollie in Dorset and his Snow-bot. Mo-bot -
:04:10. > :04:13.geddit? Thanks, Luke, from West Sussex, for your cool igloo pic.
:04:13. > :04:17.Vicky, Josh and Dan sent us this brilliant headstand snowman. Loving
:04:17. > :04:27.this snow Dalek from Liam in Dudley. And this is Snuggles, enjoying the
:04:27. > :04:28.
:04:28. > :04:31.snow in Leicester. OK, let's have a look at some of today's other big
:04:31. > :04:34.stories. Barrack Obama's about to make a big speech to officially
:04:34. > :04:36.kick-start his second term as US President. Thousands will watch the
:04:36. > :04:39.inauguration ceremony, where Beyonce will sing the American
:04:39. > :04:42.National Anthem. In Newsround at 6.50pm, we'll look at some of the
:04:42. > :04:45.big issues he's got to face over the coming months. And is this the
:04:45. > :04:48.bravest man on the planet? This British granddad on holiday in
:04:48. > :04:55.Australia grabbed a shark by its tail and dragged it away from