Omaha public Schools released their plan tonight. 3/2 family plan-kids A-K will come M/T/W and L-Z Th/F. The following week they will switch who has Weds class in person. While on off days, they will have online learning of some sort. So the teachers will definitely be doing a lot of extra work with no extra time or breaks for cleaning.
Omaha public Schools released their plan tonight. 3/2 family plan-kids A-K will come M/T/W and L-Z Th/F. The following week they will switch who has Weds class in person. While on off days, they will have online learning of some sort. So the teachers will definitely be doing a lot of extra work with no extra time or breaks for cleaning.
My nanny works for Westside and has been told they’re doing A Red, Yellow and Green system where red=all distance, yellow=3/2 like OPS and green=all in school.
Our district (in Texas) hasn't announced its plans yet but they keep saying that it will likely be a hybrid model with an option for 100% online instruction for families who prefer that. 100% online will work for my 7th grader, though she'd definitely prefer time in school. Online instruction will not work at all for my 5th grader, with his 2E challenges. The district has committed to at least 1 day per week in the classroom for each student (I'm assuming they'll be in groups of 6-8 children) which seems like so much work and exposure for the teachers and other school staff. I know plenty of families will need childcare for the days their children aren't in school which is just going to further expose kids/families/teachers.
I'm thisclose to asking the parent's of 4-5 of my son's friends who are of the same mindset to see if they want to hire a teacher to do in person instruction, like an underground one room schoolhouse situation. 😂 While I appreciate the district taking their time to come up with a thoughtful plan, I have so much anxiety about how this is all going to work out safely.
Today, I received an email on letterhead from the district superintendent that says they are forming a task force with what seems like every department in the district (admin, special ed, food service, transportation, etc). It was thoughtfully worded.
I just cannot believe that we are on our own and starting from scratch. Clearly.
How do we not have proper national guidance? Frustrating. Pathetic.
Has your state given any guidelines (Governor, Department of Ed, Health Department)?
Omaha public Schools released their plan tonight. 3/2 family plan-kids A-K will come M/T/W and L-Z Th/F. The following week they will switch who has Weds class in person. While on off days, they will have online learning of some sort. So the teachers will definitely be doing a lot of extra work with no extra time or breaks for cleaning.
While I like the idea of more time in the classroom, an every other Wednesday becomes challenging when finding childcare! (Sorry for being a broken record on childcare. My stress over this situation has me fixating on childcare issues because it is less stressful to worry about that than about thinking about my kid or other students getting COVID-19.)
Omaha public Schools released their plan tonight. 3/2 family plan-kids A-K will come M/T/W and L-Z Th/F. The following week they will switch who has Weds class in person. While on off days, they will have online learning of some sort. So the teachers will definitely be doing a lot of extra work with no extra time or breaks for cleaning.
Yikes, this is the worst part time schedule I've heard of. How in the hell do you plan childcare around that? I think my work will tolerate 1-2 days of working from home a week, but there is not a chance in hell that they would allow me to change what days that is from week to week.
EDIT: Ok, I actually misread in my flash of anxiety, lol, it's not quite as bad as I initially thought... but Wednesday would still be really difficult.
Just a reminder that if you wear a mask in a school setting to get ones where students can see your lips.
Many hard of hearing students don’t realize it until they can’t see lips and/or facial expressions.
Also students many not have access to proper hearing exams and struggle to hear on a normal day.
I just bought a face shield and am hoping I'll get to use it when I'm not teaching right next to a student. I usually have students with hearing aids or auditory processing disorders (if there are any that year- I've had to use the FM system for 3 of the last 5 years). I got a 3M with ratchet straps and the visor lifts up and can be replaced if needed. DH has to wear one sometimes and he says that's the kind you want.
I’m curious how cameras in the classroom would work. I imagine there are some serious issues with confidentiality (students who have aides, special services, etc) as those would be broadcast to parents? It would be interesting to see how parents react to seeing a real time video of me having to clear my room bc a child is destroying the classroom... I don’t know how I feel about all this. It’s definitely complicated.
I am certain this wouldn't be allowed where my kids go because of privacy.
I went to a demo meeting of webex yesterday as it’s being considered for our district. I think the idea is that the days students aren’t in the classroom they can watch online. We were shown a 75 inch screen in the back of the classroom with a production quality camera mounted on the back of the classroom as well. The video could be recorded and uploaded to the LMS For later viewing as well (for instance if you have a sub).
My main concern was privacy and when asked the company rep didn’t have a good answer. My other big concern was cost. This can’t be cheap to put into every classroom, and the goal is eventually to be back in the classroom full time so when that happens what happens to all of this expensive equipment? It gets moved to a conference room where it’s used a handful of times? I have to buy my own copy paper because the district doesn’t have money but we can come up with money for this during a time when they are worried about funding?
Welcome! Which school district specifically? I know there has been wide spread skepticism that ours will actually follow the county 5 day, full time guidance. I predict major push back if that is the final word. We will hear more next month.
So far ours has said that it will be in-person or online, and there would be precautions for in-person. They also send a school buys waiver to help with transportation. We had a new parent meeting with our principal and he said that a hybrid option is not likely; it’s all in-person or all virtual. However, he also said the classrooms will likely be at 50% capacity per the health department. Someone asked what would happen if 50% of families didn’t opt in to elearning and he didn’t know. Sounds like the plan is to just hope for e-learning opt in. If they had a hybrid option and would cap the class at 50% I would definitely do it, but I don’t know what I will do about the other 2 options. I talked with a neighbor and we are exploring hiring a former preschool teacher to monitor elearning for our kids. It would be 4 families; 2 PreK, 1 K, 2 1st grade, and 1 2nd grade. The kids would go to her house all day and she’s manage learning and they would just play other times. Then we could all work! Our families would only be exposed to each other and not the entire school.
Our district (in Texas) hasn't announced its plans yet but they keep saying that it will likely be a hybrid model with an option for 100% online instruction for families who prefer that. 100% online will work for my 7th grader, though she'd definitely prefer time in school. Online instruction will not work at all for my 5th grader, with his 2E challenges. The district has committed to at least 1 day per week in the classroom for each student (I'm assuming they'll be in groups of 6-8 children) which seems like so much work and exposure for the teachers and other school staff. I know plenty of families will need childcare for the days their children aren't in school which is just going to further expose kids/families/teachers.
I'm thisclose to asking the parent's of 4-5 of my son's friends who are of the same mindset to see if they want to hire a teacher to do in person instruction, like an underground one room schoolhouse situation. 😂 While I appreciate the district taking their time to come up with a thoughtful plan, I have so much anxiety about how this is all going to work out safely.
Many families around here are doing to this - hiring tutors/teachers ...
Me too. I’m very torn between needing my kids in school for a lot of reasons and wanting no part in them having the risk of exposure that comes with school.
Same. We're Fairfax County, VA, so we've currently got the choice to either opt into full time online learning for the whole school year, OR have two days a week in person/three days asynchronous (it's not clear if you can change from in person to all online at any point). DH and I both have the flexibility to work from home so we could make all-online work (though it would be a challenge) and that's of course going to minimize exposure risk, but educationally/developmentally my kids would absolutely benefit from two days a week in a classroom. It's hard to figure out what the right balance is.
That said, I find it really unlikely that there's going to be in person school at all in the fall. It assumes that there's not a second wave of COVID cases as restrictions are lifted AND that there will be enough teachers willing and able to be in school buildings to accommodate that many kids two days a week. I think the school should really be focusing on quality online learning for the fall, and planning for a reassessment of the situation over winter break with the possibility of starting in-person instruction for the second semester.
Most Districts don’t have the money to provide the type of training and work time this would allow over the summer. They can’t require teachers to work without pay (although many of us are or do anyway) and the significant shift in best practices would require many to completely overhaul curriculum.
That would be effective for droplets but useless for aerosol. Anyone have recent data on the likelihood of one vs the other resulting in transmission?
I’m not sure what you mean it’d be useless for aerosol. None of the masks that most people wear are going to 100% block all drops or aerosol. They all have gaps around them in general and obviously microscopic particles can likely pass through some fibers. I think at one point there was an article going around saying that surgical masks and cloth was useless against Covid, but I find that really hard to believe. Although yes healthcare workers have been getting sick, I think we’d see MUCH MUCH higher numbers if we and our patients weren’t wearing surgical masks or cloth coverings. I could be proven wrong in the future but I do think that face coverings provide some level of protection when people speak, cough, sneeze, etc.
That would be effective for droplets but useless for aerosol. Anyone have recent data on the likelihood of one vs the other resulting in transmission?
I’m not sure what you mean it’d be useless for aerosol. None of the masks that most people wear are going to 100% block all drops or aerosol. They all have gaps around them in general and obviously microscopic particles can likely pass through some fibers. I think at one point there was an article going around saying that surgical masks and cloth was useless against Covid, but I find that really hard to believe. Although yes healthcare workers have been getting sick, I think we’d see MUCH MUCH higher numbers if we and our patients weren’t wearing surgical masks or cloth coverings. I could be proven wrong in the future but I do think that face coverings provide some level of protection when people speak, cough, sneeze, etc.
That particular one is open on the sides so it functions like a face shield moreso than a mask. If spread is by aerosols you'd get more protection for sure from a surgical mask, not as sure about a cloth mask.
That would be effective for droplets but useless for aerosol. Anyone have recent data on the likelihood of one vs the other resulting in transmission?
I’m not sure what you mean it’d be useless for aerosol. None of the masks that most people wear are going to 100% block all drops or aerosol. They all have gaps around them in general and obviously microscopic particles can likely pass through some fibers. I think at one point there was an article going around saying that surgical masks and cloth was useless against Covid, but I find that really hard to believe. Although yes healthcare workers have been getting sick, I think we’d see MUCH MUCH higher numbers if we and our patients weren’t wearing surgical masks or cloth coverings. I could be proven wrong in the future but I do think that face coverings provide some level of protection when people speak, cough, sneeze, etc.
I agree. In NY, the healthcare workers (and first responders) had a lower infection rate than the general population of NYC. The Governor said this on his daily briefing many times when mask wearing became mandatory in NY. I know in April when our rate was the highest, PPE was hard to find and I'm not sure what kinds of masks they were wearing. I think due to shortages it was regular paper masks and not N95 and they were probably wearing the same one all day (I don't know this for a fact, but I watched the press conference nearly every day).
I’m not sure what you mean it’d be useless for aerosol. None of the masks that most people wear are going to 100% block all drops or aerosol. They all have gaps around them in general and obviously microscopic particles can likely pass through some fibers. I think at one point there was an article going around saying that surgical masks and cloth was useless against Covid, but I find that really hard to believe. Although yes healthcare workers have been getting sick, I think we’d see MUCH MUCH higher numbers if we and our patients weren’t wearing surgical masks or cloth coverings. I could be proven wrong in the future but I do think that face coverings provide some level of protection when people speak, cough, sneeze, etc.
That particular one is open on the sides so it functions like a face shield moreso than a mask. If spread is by aerosols you'd get more protection for sure from a surgical mask, not as sure about a cloth mask.
Surgical masks can definitely be open on the sides. We’ve had all sorts of masks at work (I assume because they’re just scrambling to buy whatever they can find) and some are more open than others. They definitely aren’t sealed like a N95. I mean it might not be quite as much this clear mask, but there are definitely openings and definitely don’t stop all aerosols. I think this clear mask is a great idea for better communication.
I’m not sure what you mean it’d be useless for aerosol. None of the masks that most people wear are going to 100% block all drops or aerosol. They all have gaps around them in general and obviously microscopic particles can likely pass through some fibers. I think at one point there was an article going around saying that surgical masks and cloth was useless against Covid, but I find that really hard to believe. Although yes healthcare workers have been getting sick, I think we’d see MUCH MUCH higher numbers if we and our patients weren’t wearing surgical masks or cloth coverings. I could be proven wrong in the future but I do think that face coverings provide some level of protection when people speak, cough, sneeze, etc.
I agree. In NY, the healthcare workers (and first responders) had a lower infection rate than the general population of NYC. The Governor said this on his daily briefing many times when mask wearing became mandatory in NY. I know in April when our rate was the highest, PPE was hard to find and I'm not sure what kinds of masks they were wearing. I think due to shortages it was regular paper masks and not N95 and they were probably wearing the same one all day (I don't know this for a fact, but I watched the press conference nearly every day).
Yes we mostly wear surgical masks at work. I work in our respiratory urgent care. I do wear a n95 and face shield when I covid test since people often cough. When I do procedures and the patients get propofol and sometimes cough I still just use the surgical mask as I’m not near their head.Yes wear the same one all day.
CT’s guidance is basically go back to school full time but districts should offer a distance learning alternative. Keep kids in cohorts as much as possible. Masks for all except when teacher is instructing (guess it will be up to districts to determine if face shields should be worn or if kids can go mask-less while in the classroom?). School buses at full capacity (with masks) unless there’s a rise in cases in which case they will adjust #s. Plans in place in case of shutdown.
The district is supposed to present their draft plans by mid-July so we’ll see what ours looks like. As of now, I plan on sending my kids back.
Today, I had a Zoom conversation with 3 cousins who are teachers - one special ed (elementary school), one kindergarten, and one public school preschool. It’s gonna be a shit show for them. The kindergarten teacher was working 8 am - 8 pm during the shut down every day. Every day. Her union president was saying “do not work outside of contract hours”. Any hybrid model of teaching in-school and then giving feed-back to at-home learners during contract hours is patently IMPOSSIBLE.
Sharing of supplies and learning aids is BASIC to teaching these children. Sure, they can have individual crayons, but everything is shared among young learners. No circle time (children sit too close for it), no group reading (too close). So, how do your each reading? Teachers have not been granted access to buildings to prepare for lessons - how can they make individual learning packets? How do you teach reading with a mask on? How do you teach to a hearing impaired child? No one is discussing lowering expectations for learning under these conditions. These teachers MEET and EXCEED expectations for their classes. If they are being charged with executing and policing new health/safety standards, how are we not giving them the support and guidance they need to relax learning expectations, too? So, they work 12-14 hour days or fail?? It’s so, so, so unfair to march ahead with the most vague guidance and the most unrealistic standards.
But of course the rest of us NEED children in school to go to work. And school is just not prepared. At all. How can they be?
I wish each district would just admit that we are in a VERY different situation during this health crisis and really plan from that place. Rather than keep-up this illusion that pre-C19 bench-marks are achievable. They are not. Not even a little.
Today, I had a Zoom conversation with 3 cousins who are teachers - one special ed (elementary school), one kindergarten, and one public school preschool. It’s gonna be a shit show for them. The kindergarten teacher was working 8 am - 8 pm during the shut down every day. Every day. Her union president was saying “do not work outside of contract hours”. Any hybrid model of teaching in-school and then giving feed-back to at-home learners during contract hours is patently IMPOSSIBLE.
Sharing of supplies and learning aids is BASIC to teaching these children. Sure, they can have individual crayons, but everything is shared among young learners. No circle time (children sit too close for it), no group reading (too close). So, how do your each reading? Teachers have not been granted access to buildings to prepare for lessons - how can they make individual learning packets? How do you teach reading with a mask on? How do you teach to a hearing impaired child? No one is discussing lowering expectations for learning under these conditions. These teachers MEET and EXCEED expectations for their classes. If they are being charged with executing and policing new health/safety standards, how are we not giving them the support and guidance they need to relax learning expectations, too? So, they work 12-14 hour days or fail?? It’s so, so, so unfair to march ahead with the most vague guidance and the most unrealistic standards.
But of course the rest of us NEED children in school to go to work. And school is just not prepared. At all. How can they be?
I wish each district would just admit that we are in a VERY different situation during this health crisis and really plan from that place. Rather than keep-up this illusion that pre-C19 bench-marks are achievable. They are not. Not even a little.
Welcome! Which school district specifically? I know there has been wide spread skepticism that ours will actually follow the county 5 day, full time guidance. I predict major push back if that is the final word. We will hear more next month.
Thanks! MV (I don't think any other towns have those initials lol). I'm so curious to see how everything shakes out. Luckily distance learning worked pretty well for us in the Spring, so we are happy to roll with whatever the school district comes up with as long as it feels relatively safe (and it does seem like they are having a lot of committees and meetings to make sure that is the case). Good to know though that it might not be 5 days per week so I know to not count on that.
Welcome! Which school district specifically? I know there has been wide spread skepticism that ours will actually follow the county 5 day, full time guidance. I predict major push back if that is the final word. We will hear more next month.
Thanks! MV (I don't think any other towns have those initials lol). I'm so curious to see how everything shakes out. Luckily distance learning worked pretty well for us in the Spring, so we are happy to roll with whatever the school district comes up with as long as it feels relatively safe (and it does seem like they are having a lot of committees and meetings to make sure that is the case). Good to know though that it might not be 5 days per week so I know to not count on that.
"the AAP strongly advocates that all policy considerations for the coming school year should start with a goal of having students physically present in school."
Like many I have very mixed feelings about this, and it doesn't really address my main concerns about in-person learning, given how little we know about long term effects on asymptomatic cases, but I am also a big proponent of listening to the experts.
"the AAP strongly advocates that all policy considerations for the coming school year should start with a goal of having students physically present in school."
Like many I have very mixed feelings about this, and it doesn't really address my main concerns about in-person learning, given how little we know about long term effects on asymptomatic cases, but I am also a big proponent of listening to the experts.
This is the hard part here. Pediatric experts have a different guidance than public health experts. So whose guidance do the schools go by?
Reading the recommendations on here, I question how many of the authors have been in a classroom. They talk about 6 foot distancing between early elementary kids and teachers and not allowing other adults on campus. So when a Kindergartener falls and bonks their knee and ends up in tears (a daily thing at most schools), is the teacher really going to stand 6 feet away to try to comfort them? When a 6 year old has separation anxiety getting dropped off at campus (totally age appropriate), is the staff member helping them out of the car going to stand 6 feet away from the crying 6 year old who is trying to run after the car as their parent drives away? omgzombies these aren't directed at you. Just in general medical guidelines don't seem to address actual practical considerations regarding things that happen in classrooms.
"the AAP strongly advocates that all policy considerations for the coming school year should start with a goal of having students physically present in school."
Like many I have very mixed feelings about this, and it doesn't really address my main concerns about in-person learning, given how little we know about long term effects on asymptomatic cases, but I am also a big proponent of listening to the experts.
This is the hard part here. Pediatric experts have a different guidance than public health experts. So whose guidance do the schools go by?
Reading the recommendations on here, I question how many of the authors have been in a classroom. They talk about 6 foot distancing between early elementary kids and teachers and not allowing other adults on campus. So when a Kindergartener falls and bonks their knee and ends up in tears (a daily thing at most schools), is the teacher really going to stand 6 feet away to try to comfort them? When a 6 year old has separation anxiety getting dropped off at campus (totally age appropriate), is the staff member helping them out of the car going to stand 6 feet away from the crying 6 year old who is trying to run after the car as their parent drives away? omgzombies these aren't directed at you. Just in general medical guidelines don't seem to address actual practical considerations regarding things that happen in classrooms.
I agree with the scientific experts not having classroom experience.
It seems like the guidance is pie in the sky and doesn't look at real world issues- space, money and the ultimate variable- kids!
"the AAP strongly advocates that all policy considerations for the coming school year should start with a goal of having students physically present in school."
Like many I have very mixed feelings about this, and it doesn't really address my main concerns about in-person learning, given how little we know about long term effects on asymptomatic cases, but I am also a big proponent of listening to the experts.
This is the hard part here. Pediatric experts have a different guidance than public health experts. So whose guidance do the schools go by?
Reading the recommendations on here, I question how many of the authors have been in a classroom. They talk about 6 foot distancing between early elementary kids and teachers and not allowing other adults on campus. So when a Kindergartener falls and bonks their knee and ends up in tears (a daily thing at most schools), is the teacher really going to stand 6 feet away to try to comfort them? When a 6 year old has separation anxiety getting dropped off at campus (totally age appropriate), is the staff member helping them out of the car going to stand 6 feet away from the crying 6 year old who is trying to run after the car as their parent drives away? omgzombies these aren't directed at you. Just in general medical guidelines don't seem to address actual practical considerations regarding things that happen in classrooms.
I skimmed through the whole thing (I'll read it closer when after my meeting), but the tone I got seems pretty realistic and addressing that all this is difficult. It doesn't say to never be near a child.
"Therefore, Pre-K should focus on more effective risk mitigation strategies for this population. These include hand hygiene, infection prevention education for staff and families, adult physical distancing from one another, adults wearing face coverings, cohorting, and spending time outdoors."
"Desks should be placed 3 to 6 feet apart when feasible (if this reduces the amount of time children are present in school, harm may outweigh potential benefits)."