Dozens of Michigan schools canceled in the first week. Will students have to make up days?

Power outages and extreme heat have already led to dozens of school closings across Michigan over the past five days. And for most districts, it's only the first week of class.

The new school year still has the rest of summer and all of winter to go, which means it's possible public schools will cancel for even more extreme heat days and snow days. Many large districts, such as Ann Arbor Public Schools, publish guidelines around when school will be closed due to inclement weather.

And more recently, it appears the age and quality of school buildings, some of which are more than 100 years old, contribute to school closures. Some of the districts that closed or called a half day , including Detroit Public Schools Community District, cited a lack of modern air-conditioning as a factor creating dangerous conditions in schools. Some schools lost power in inclement weather in the week.

But days missed could create the necessity for makeup days. Here's what Michigan law says about when students have to make up school days:

Required hours, days of instruction

Under Michigan law, public schools are required to offer 1,098 hours of instruction every school year, with 180 minimum days of instruction, according to the Michigan Department of Education.

Forgiven days

But Michigan is a snowy state. So, there's a little wiggle room in the event of a snow day.

Districts can forgive up to six days (as well as the hours in those days) toward the 180-day requirement, if conditions out of the school's control arise, such as a snowstorms, health conditions (like the sudden spread of an illness), power outages and more.

More: More thunderstorms, high winds headed to southeast Michigan by Friday evening

Snow day waivers, online option

If dangerous weather persists beyond the six forgiven days, schools can request additional forgiven days through a snow day waiver from the state. Some districts in recent years have pivoted to online instruction for a day or two after exhausting their six days.

Adding minutes

But students and schools have to make up lost classroom time anytime beyond the six forgiven days (and any additional days waived). According to the Michigan Department of Education, some schools have added minutes onto school days to reach the instructional time minimum required by the state.

Contact Lily Altavena: laltavena@freepress.com.

This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Dozens of Michigan schools canceled in the first week. Will students have to make up days?