So DH's school has its first casualty since the vaccine mandate for school staff came down. She was just hired from outside the city, cited some conspiracy theories about the vaccine as her reasons for quitting, and now instead of shortening her commute to work at DH's school to about 20 minutes each way, she will continue to drive 2+ hours each way to her suburban school district that doesn't have the same mandate. Except...I wouldn't be surprised if the new governor will also eventually announce a vaccine requirement for school staff for the entire state.
I don't understand people. But, if she's into conspiracy theories I guess this other school district can have her lol.
DH expects that the only people who will quit over this are brand new hires (too new to be vested in the pension system and other benefits) and people who can retire but just haven't. He's betting the ones who would otherwise throw away their pensions and medical benefits will talk a good game now but eventually get it.
The irony is probably lost on her that that driving 2+ hours a day likely significantly increases health risks way more than the potential negative effects of the vaccine - either from being sedentary for that long, risk of car accident, and decreased sleep.
Yup. And anyone who is familiar with driving from Brooklyn to Eastern Long Island knows the anger from daily road rage alone would increase blood pressure.
Our district just sent out mask guidelines and they focus completely on cloth masks and KN-95; the only mention of disposables was that they can be layered with cloth masks. Am I missing something here? Is there a reason why they would't have disposable masks on the list?
Because whoever put together those guidelines completely doesn’t understand how masks work.
My husband and I discussed and think that maybe they are not explicitly addressing disposables since they oftentimes fit worse on kids (from my own observations). I add after market aadjusters to the masks my kids wear to get them to fit correctly. Otherwise there are gaps due to the ear strings being too long.
Because whoever put together those guidelines completely doesn’t understand how masks work.
My husband and I discussed and think that maybe they are not explicitly addressing disposables since they oftentimes fit worse on kids (from my own observations). I add after market aadjusters to the masks my kids wear to get them to fit correctly. Otherwise there are gaps due to the ear strings being too long.
I have seen level 3 masks being sold for kids in my dental catalogs and was going to order a few boxes to try on my kids. Right now we do disposables from Amazon. Based on the photos they send from daycare, 3 year olds don’t wear cloth or disposables correctly so who knows what your district is thinking.
My husband and I discussed and think that maybe they are not explicitly addressing disposables since they oftentimes fit worse on kids (from my own observations). I add after market aadjusters to the masks my kids wear to get them to fit correctly. Otherwise there are gaps due to the ear strings being too long.
I have seen level 3 masks being sold for kids in my dental catalogs and was going to order a few boxes to try on my kids. Right now we do disposables from Amazon. Based on the photos they send from daycare, 3 year olds don’t wear cloth or disposables correctly so who knows what your district is thinking.
My 8yo came home from her first full day of school yesterday and cried saying she simply cannot do the KN95 all day and she took it off and knows she's in trouble now (she is, of course NOT in trouble). I sent her in a cloth mask today because everything I've read says the best mask is the one the kid will keep on. This morning I ordered disposable ones for her because I thought they were supposed to be more effective than cloth - is that not right?
I have seen level 3 masks being sold for kids in my dental catalogs and was going to order a few boxes to try on my kids. Right now we do disposables from Amazon. Based on the photos they send from daycare, 3 year olds don’t wear cloth or disposables correctly so who knows what your district is thinking.
My 8yo came home from her first full day of school yesterday and cried saying she simply cannot do the KN95 all day and she took it off and knows she's in trouble now (she is, of course NOT in trouble). I sent her in a cloth mask today because everything I've read says the best mask is the one the kid will keep on. This morning I ordered disposable ones for her because I thought they were supposed to be more effective than cloth - is that not right?
It’s about fit. Surgical style masks* can be great but if the gape on the side, you need to tie near mask & tuck in sides. This can work if your kid can replicate the tuck, if they can’t & it gapes it’s definitely better than nothing but may not be the filtration you want.
Have you tried double masking? The cloth top mask helps the bottom surgical fit better.
*Using this terminology bc to me “disposable is anything you throw away, which includes KN95, kf94, etc
My 8yo came home from her first full day of school yesterday and cried saying she simply cannot do the KN95 all day and she took it off and knows she's in trouble now (she is, of course NOT in trouble). I sent her in a cloth mask today because everything I've read says the best mask is the one the kid will keep on. This morning I ordered disposable ones for her because I thought they were supposed to be more effective than cloth - is that not right?
It’s about fit. Surgical style masks* can be great but if the gape on the side, you need to tie near mask & tuck in sides. This can work if your kid can replicate the tuck, if they can’t & it gapes it’s definitely better than nothing but may not be the filtration you want.
Have you tried double masking? The cloth top mask helps the bottom surgical fit better.
*Using this terminology bc to me “disposable is anything you throw away, which includes KN95, kf94, etc
Thanks. I haven't really noticed gaping on surgical style masks in the past on her. I will of course check. She's usually a good masker and i was surprised by yesterday so I feel like I am scrambling now.
It’s about fit. Surgical style masks* can be great but if the gape on the side, you need to tie near mask & tuck in sides. This can work if your kid can replicate the tuck, if they can’t & it gapes it’s definitely better than nothing but may not be the filtration you want.
Have you tried double masking? The cloth top mask helps the bottom surgical fit better.
*Using this terminology bc to me “disposable is anything you throw away, which includes KN95, kf94, etc
Thanks. I haven't really noticed gaping on surgical style masks in the past on her. I will of course check. She's usually a good masker and i was surprised by yesterday so I feel like I am scrambling now.
Yeah, it depends on face shape totally.
You can definitely Google & find studies comparing cloth, surgical, double masking, etc. IIRC, an ill fitting surgical was like 15% at filtering but a tied & tucked/well fitting one was up to 70-80%. While that’s less than 95%, it’s worth it if she’s comfortable & keeps it on
Do we have any data on kids vaccines 5-11 age group or maybe 12 year olds? My kid is 11 is why I ask.
I've only seen about possible heart issues mostly after the 2nd shot for males under age 30.
I want to look through all the data articles on the whole subject in general to be prepared for when he turns 12 or the 5-11 age group is approved because he has health issues.
Sigh. I have avoided posting because we live in GA and our superintendent is a complete moron. It’s so unsettling. We can’t afford private school, my kids hated virtual school and they love their high school. They are at least vaccinated so that’s our one consolation. My kids wear their masks. They’ve both had bad colds, no COVID. Our district started three weeks ago. Covid cases are out of control and we have no good system. The whole district ignores science and I’m terrified we will need virtual school. Sorry to be so negative, we just don’t have options and it’s even worse for parents of elementary school kids. Luckily I love our community and there are lots of like minded people—but the superintendent will not listen to reason and has made us a national embarrassment and he’s getting kids sick
Sounds like you are in the same district as my sister. Superintendent Ragsdale? I am in an adjacent county (Ch.) and it is a complete shitshow.
Exactly! My friend is protesting today at his republican luncheon. He’s so tone deaf about masks. I know Cobb and Cherokee are awful right now
I’ve been keeping an eye on all the area dashboards. School has been in session anywhere from 1 week to 3.
The two school districts requiring masks are doing better but not good. Both have nearly 400 cases, half in elementary schools. One of those districts is huge and just started on Monday. The other has been in session 3 weeks.
All other districts are mask optional and seem to have between 500-1500 cases. Also half are in elementary schools. The school district in the county with the lower vaccination rate is definitely doing the worst.
Delta has really changed the game. Hurry up vaccines for kids!!
I’ve been keeping an eye on all the area dashboards. School has been in session anywhere from 1 week to 3.
The two school districts requiring masks are doing better but not good. Both have nearly 400 cases, half in elementary schools. One of those districts is huge and just started on Monday. The other has been in session 3 weeks.
All other districts are mask optional and seem to have between 500-1500 cases. Also half are in elementary schools. The school district in the county with the lower vaccination rate is definitely doing the worst.
Delta has really changed the game. Hurry up vaccines for kids!!
Yeah I think the true comparisons can't be made until at least 2 weeks after the first day of school. I mean, students and staff could still get infected elsewhere even after that period, but with contact tracing you will be able determine at least the likelihood that transmission occurred in the classroom, or at least compare case jumps if contact tracing otherwise is unavailable due to lack of funding/resources. Then there might be undertesting for a variety of reasons - in higher-vaccinated areas, people may feel like they don't need to test for exposure or minor symptoms. In lower-vaccinated areas, they may not want to test to avoid their cases being reported to the health department. Basically, it's a hot mess and I'm guessing for those districts that began in early or mid-August, post-Labor Day will be when comparisons can start being made.
I’ve been keeping an eye on all the area dashboards. School has been in session anywhere from 1 week to 3.
The two school districts requiring masks are doing better but not good. Both have nearly 400 cases, half in elementary schools. One of those districts is huge and just started on Monday. The other has been in session 3 weeks.
All other districts are mask optional and seem to have between 500-1500 cases. Also half are in elementary schools. The school district in the county with the lower vaccination rate is definitely doing the worst.
Delta has really changed the game. Hurry up vaccines for kids!!
Yeah I think the true comparisons can't be made until at least 2 weeks after the first day of school. I mean, students and staff could still get infected elsewhere even after that period, but with contact tracing you will be able determine at least the likelihood that transmission occurred in the classroom, or at least compare case jumps if contact tracing otherwise is unavailable due to lack of funding/resources. Then there might be undertesting for a variety of reasons - in higher-vaccinated areas, people may feel like they don't need to test for exposure or minor symptoms. In lower-vaccinated areas, they may not want to test to avoid their cases being reported to the health department. Basically, it's a hot mess and I'm guessing for those districts that began in early or mid-August, post-Labor Day will be when comparisons can start being made.
Contact tracing? Lol. Sob. That’s not even happening this year. Hot mess indeed.
Districts are starting to get virtual back up plans up and running. It feels ominous..
I have seen level 3 masks being sold for kids in my dental catalogs and was going to order a few boxes to try on my kids. Right now we do disposables from Amazon. Based on the photos they send from daycare, 3 year olds don’t wear cloth or disposables correctly so who knows what your district is thinking.
My 8yo came home from her first full day of school yesterday and cried saying she simply cannot do the KN95 all day and she took it off and knows she's in trouble now (she is, of course NOT in trouble). I sent her in a cloth mask today because everything I've read says the best mask is the one the kid will keep on. This morning I ordered disposable ones for her because I thought they were supposed to be more effective than cloth - is that not right?
I feel for her. I got some N95s for flying and I thought it was pretty awful. My 8yo son is wearing cloth to school because I just couldn't ask him to do that every day when I knew I would struggle to comply.
Post by BicycleBride on Aug 27, 2021 12:24:39 GMT -5
Our local school district is requiring masks and has been in school for about two weeks. Our county is 70% of TOTAL people vaccinated yet our incidence rate is just under 72/10000. It’s a smaller school district with about 6,500 students. Last night they announced that next week they will use 5 of their 10 allowed yearly NTI days to close school next week allowing for a total of 10 days out of school with weekends and Labor Day. I don’t quite see what the game plan is here. They can’t just shut down every other week so where do they go from here? From my understanding, part of the reason for the shutdown is the high number of students and staff that are quarantined. I don’t see that changing after they’ve been back two more weeks. Won’t they be exactly where they are now?
I have seen level 3 masks being sold for kids in my dental catalogs and was going to order a few boxes to try on my kids. Right now we do disposables from Amazon. Based on the photos they send from daycare, 3 year olds don’t wear cloth or disposables correctly so who knows what your district is thinking.
My 8yo came home from her first full day of school yesterday and cried saying she simply cannot do the KN95 all day and she took it off and knows she's in trouble now (she is, of course NOT in trouble). I sent her in a cloth mask today because everything I've read says the best mask is the one the kid will keep on. This morning I ordered disposable ones for her because I thought they were supposed to be more effective than cloth - is that not right?
Not surprised that she's that uncomfortable. My husband works in a medical office and wears a surgical mask all the time, a surgical mask+face shield when patients can't mask, and a N-95 when patients have covid symptoms. I brought up the idea of doing N-95 for the kids and he said it would be really uncomfortable for them to wear all day and that he would be pretty miserable if he had to. I'm sure other people aren't as bothered though.
I think fit and comfort are really key for kids. If it's not comfortable, they're going to fiddle around a lot more and potentially increase exposure potential
I have seen level 3 masks being sold for kids in my dental catalogs and was going to order a few boxes to try on my kids. Right now we do disposables from Amazon. Based on the photos they send from daycare, 3 year olds don’t wear cloth or disposables correctly so who knows what your district is thinking.
My 8yo came home from her first full day of school yesterday and cried saying she simply cannot do the KN95 all day and she took it off and knows she's in trouble now (she is, of course NOT in trouble). I sent her in a cloth mask today because everything I've read says the best mask is the one the kid will keep on. This morning I ordered disposable ones for her because I thought they were supposed to be more effective than cloth - is that not right?
Have you tried KF94 masks? I wore one the other day and thought it was pretty comfortable. They sit off your face and don't touch the mouth, so it feels easier to breathe. I've ordered from behealthyusa.net/ and kollecteusa.com/. I just ordered some for DS1 to see if he'll wear them. Unfortunately shipping is a little slow right now and a lot of stuff is sold out because of the back-to-school rush.
Post by SusanBAnthony on Aug 27, 2021 14:16:12 GMT -5
I wear N95's sometimes for work related reasons and they are totally fine for like a half hour to pop into a high risk situation, but extremely awful to wear for a full day. So I'm not surprised a kid couldn't handle it.
Well, found out lunch plans for my middle school kid. In normal times, each grade has a separate lunch period. Around 160-170 kids in each grade(grade 6-8). The cafeteria is decently sized.
The tables will be spread out plus they are putting additional tables in the auditorium(next door to cafeteria) so kids won’t be sitting shoulder to shoulder. 3 brown bag grab and go lunch choices will be available. 1 vegetarian plus 2 other options. No hot lunch. You can obviously bring your own lunch.
Also kids will not have lockers. Most work will be completed on Chromebooks to eliminate paper plus limit the amount of books/notebooks the kids will need to carry around in their backpack. He’s used to no lockers. He didn’t have one in 6th due to construction in the building. 7th grade was no lockers once i person started due to covid(to limit time in the halls). So 8th grade is the same. No changing clothes for gym either. That’s the same as 6 and 7 for the same reasons(first construction, then COVID). So he’s on his 3rd year of light/modified gym. Table tennis, kickball, walks around the block.
The news last night said 22% of local hospitalizations are pediatric. Some of them just day old infants. Schools have a mask mandate. My daughter is 3 and all the pictures from her school kids seem good with wearing the masks. I'm due in October and between that and lack of hospital availability/workers I'm getting stressed! I'm also suppose to have family fly in to help and I'm not sure about it now. Everyone is vaccinated, but by then will be around the 6mo mark since vaccination.
The news last night said 22% of local hospitalizations are pediatric. Some of them just day old infants. Schools have a mask mandate. My daughter is 3 and all the pictures from her school kids seem good with wearing the masks. I'm due in October and between that and lack of hospital availability/workers I'm getting stressed! I'm also suppose to have family fly in to help and I'm not sure about it now. Everyone is vaccinated, but by then will be around the 6mo mark since vaccination.
I saw a news article today that we might be doing 5 month boosters by then, so don't give up hope of freshly vaccinated helpers!
Well, found out lunch plans for my middle school kid. In normal times, each grade has a separate lunch period. Around 160-170 kids in each grade(grade 6-8). The cafeteria is decently sized.
The tables will be spread out plus they are putting additional tables in the auditorium(next door to cafeteria) so kids won’t be sitting shoulder to shoulder. 3 brown bag grab and go lunch choices will be available. 1 vegetarian plus 2 other options. No hot lunch. You can obviously bring your own lunch.
Also kids will not have lockers. Most work will be completed on Chromebooks to eliminate paper plus limit the amount of books/notebooks the kids will need to carry around in their backpack. He’s used to no lockers. He didn’t have one in 6th due to construction in the building. 7th grade was no lockers once i person started due to covid(to limit time in the halls). So 8th grade is the same. No changing clothes for gym either. That’s the same as 6 and 7 for the same reasons(first construction, then COVID). So he’s on his 3rd year of light/modified gym. Table tennis, kickball, walks around the block.
Is the “light gym” because of covid or not changing clothes? My kids never change clothes for gym and they do all of the normal stuff.
I’m jealous of your lunch plan. Ours is all kids from same grade eating shoulder to shoulder at normal tables. 600 to a grade.
Well, found out lunch plans for my middle school kid. In normal times, each grade has a separate lunch period. Around 160-170 kids in each grade(grade 6-8). The cafeteria is decently sized.
The tables will be spread out plus they are putting additional tables in the auditorium(next door to cafeteria) so kids won’t be sitting shoulder to shoulder. 3 brown bag grab and go lunch choices will be available. 1 vegetarian plus 2 other options. No hot lunch. You can obviously bring your own lunch.
Also kids will not have lockers. Most work will be completed on Chromebooks to eliminate paper plus limit the amount of books/notebooks the kids will need to carry around in their backpack. He’s used to no lockers. He didn’t have one in 6th due to construction in the building. 7th grade was no lockers once i person started due to covid(to limit time in the halls). So 8th grade is the same. No changing clothes for gym either. That’s the same as 6 and 7 for the same reasons(first construction, then COVID). So he’s on his 3rd year of light/modified gym. Table tennis, kickball, walks around the block.
Is the “light gym” because of covid or not changing clothes? My kids never change clothes for gym and they do all of the normal stuff.
I’m jealous of your lunch plan. Ours is all kids from same grade eating shoulder to shoulder at normal tables. 600 to a grade.
Changing clothes. They don’t want the kids doing normal gym in street clothes. Due to construction delays during renovation, when the 2019-2020 school year started, they had to bus the kids to other schools in the district. Kids did not have access to locker rooms. They just returned to the building in Jan 2020 but the locker rooms weren’t ready yet. Then they obviously shut down in March 2020. Last school year there were no locker rooms again due to covid. Same this year. This class of 8th graders have had a crazy middle school experience from day 1.
Is the “light gym” because of covid or not changing clothes? My kids never change clothes for gym and they do all of the normal stuff.
I’m jealous of your lunch plan. Ours is all kids from same grade eating shoulder to shoulder at normal tables. 600 to a grade.
Changing clothes. They don’t want the kids doing normal gym in street clothes. Due to construction delays during renovation, when the 2019-2020 school year started, they had to bus the kids to other schools in the district. Kids did not have access to locker rooms. They just returned to the building in Jan 2020 but the locker rooms weren’t ready yet. Then they obviously shut down in March 2020. Last school year there were no locker rooms again due to covid. Same this year. This class of 8th graders have had a crazy middle school experience from day 1.
Interesting. I was surprised they do not change clothes for gym at my kids school but they don’t. They just have to wear sneakers.
I can only imagine they are gross and smelly afterwards.
Post by aprilsails on Aug 28, 2021 19:59:43 GMT -5
Health Canada just approved the Moderna vaccine for ages 12-17. Don’t think this will make a difference in terms of vaccination rates, but maybe it will help more people to recognize that MRNA vaccines are safe and effective.
I teach in a zip code that is over 85% vaccinated. Our kids come back to school Monday and masks are required at all times indoors. I’m a little nervous but not freaking out yet…we’ll see how it all goes.
I teach in a zip code that is over 85% vaccinated. Our kids come back to school Monday and masks are required at all times indoors. I’m a little nervous but not freaking out yet…we’ll see how it all goes.
This describes our district. We started two weeks ago. The high school has 3400 kids and 13 cases. Our elementary schools each have 500-800 kids and I think the highest count at one school is 3 cases. None have been traced to in-school transmission
I have seen level 3 masks being sold for kids in my dental catalogs and was going to order a few boxes to try on my kids. Right now we do disposables from Amazon. Based on the photos they send from daycare, 3 year olds don’t wear cloth or disposables correctly so who knows what your district is thinking.
My 8yo came home from her first full day of school yesterday and cried saying she simply cannot do the KN95 all day and she took it off and knows she's in trouble now (she is, of course NOT in trouble). I sent her in a cloth mask today because everything I've read says the best mask is the one the kid will keep on. This morning I ordered disposable ones for her because I thought they were supposed to be more effective than cloth - is that not right?
I think the style of cloth masks can vary greatly. I have been working on getting better cloth masks for our family. My daughter really likes her Oura mask. I got both kids the Air Mask Jr. 2.0 but they do have three youth options. ouragami.org/collections/air-masks
Post by SusanBAnthony on Aug 29, 2021 11:03:16 GMT -5
A family friend who is a pediatric ER doc was working yesterday when his daughter was brought in with RSV. Had the finish his shift because it was so busy. Today he called in and daughter is now on a vent in the PICU. Not directly covid related but it makes everything worse. Would appreciate keeping all the sick children in your thoughts and especially little Ellie.