Kids back to On Campus School - Would you ?

confusedinvestor · Post by **confusedinvestor** » Thu Sep 17, 2020 8:09 pm

DW and I are conflicted with the decision if we should send our twins (4 th grader, 9.5 yrs old) back to On-Campus School, re-opening Oct 12 ?

We originally chose On-Campus learning vs Virtual/Online when given an option from our district with hopes that school will "never" re-open on-campus until January 2021 and thus we will be guaranteed on-campus school return in 2021. However, now, our city (SoCal/SanDiego) is out of CA monitoring list and thus our district has decided to re-open on-campus for those who chose on-campus model. Our school principal will not let us switch from on-campus to Virtual at this point (as Virtual option class is at full capacity).

Good news, the school will have two level of screenings (temp check), masks mandatory, social distancing protocol when they re-open on Oct 12 and didnot have any outbreaks during summer at ESS but the risk is always there ... We (Thankfully) still have jobs and continue to work remotely and feel like we are exposing our kids to unnecessary risks ...

What would you do if you were us, given the circumstances ? How would you decide, given the data and risks ?

CDC says infection rate in kids is very low and our county is not in the State (CA) monitoring list anymore.. Any thoughts / decision model would be much appreciated!

tainted-meat · Post by **tainted-meat** » Thu Sep 17, 2020 8:15 pm

Yes I would send them to in-person classes.. wish I had the option here for mine but remote learning is our only option.

Normchad · Post by **Normchad** » Thu Sep 17, 2020 8:21 pm

Personally, I wouldn’t.

But I know it’s a really tough decision. No clear cut right or wrong answer.

Best of luck to you and your family.

Dottie57 · Post by **Dottie57** » Thu Sep 17, 2020 8:21 pm

If I had children, they would not be physically in school.

sailaway · Post by **sailaway** » Thu Sep 17, 2020 8:22 pm

San Diego county is likely to move back to purple next week, so this may become moot. And the Labor Day fall out of being the only county open hasn't even started yet.

However, if you are in the district I think you are in, so far community spread has not been much of an issue and I don't think I would fight on campus too hard. If you were in south county, it would be very different.

It also helps that they have a split schedule. Personally, I would like to see even more separation, but I can't begin to imagine how districts splitting by days are handling the staffing!

What are the plans if things do get worse again? Is there a classroom spread plan and a school spread plan and a community spread plan or just "if they force us to shut down again..."?

Good luck, these decisions must be so nerve wracking.

stilllurking · Post by **stilllurking** » Thu Sep 17, 2020 8:26 pm

Private schools in PA have opened full time in person. Three weeks in already and so far so good.

Good luck in your choice. It's tough either way.

Monsterflockster · Post by **Monsterflockster** » Thu Sep 17, 2020 8:27 pm

confusedinvestor wrote: ↑Thu Sep 17, 2020 8:09 pm DW and I are conflicted with the decision if we should send our twins (4 th grader, 9.5 yrs old) back to On-Campus School, re-opening Oct 12 ?

We originally chose On-Campus learning vs Virtual/Online when given an option from our district with hopes that school will "never" re-open on-campus until January 2021 and thus we will be guaranteed on-campus school return in 2021. However, now, our city (SoCal/SanDiego) is out of CA monitoring list and thus our district has decided to re-open on-campus for those who chose on-campus model. Our school principal will not let us switch from on-campus to Virtual at this point (as Virtual option class is at full capacity).

Good news, the school will have two level of screenings (temp check), masks mandatory, social distancing protocol when they re-open on Oct 12 and didnot have any outbreaks during summer at ESS but the risk is always there ... We (Thankfully) still have jobs and continue to work remotely and feel like we are exposing our kids to unnecessary risks ...

What would you do if you were us, given the circumstances ? How would you decide, given the data and risks ?

CDC says infection rate in kids is very low and our county is not in the State (CA) monitoring list anymore.. Any thoughts / decision model would be much appreciated!

Well I assume you are talking a hybrid where you are in class 2 days a week?

Still, the idea of the mandatory mask & no recess I guess is acceptable. The small class of 12 is nice but they are stuck in a two square foot cube of plexiglass. Just my opinion but that does more harm to mental health than staying home. Not to mention if teachers and students catch it the cohort or school will be shut down for cleaning, and they’re back home anyways.

Personally both of the grandparents are older and in the at risk population so we wouldn’t personally take the risk. But even if that wasn’t a factor I don’t think in person learning like that has any benefit.

I am surprised they are opening at this point before the onset of flu season. In our district mutiple teachers have been in the ICU and have nearly died. I guess it is an experiment, but we are luckily able to work from home.

Post by **mighty72** » Thu Sep 17, 2020 8:28 pm

We are in SF Bay Area and our kids are not going to on-campus school till after Spring break. With the upcoming flu season, I suspect that many schools will have to close down and personally it would be harder for us to deal with the uncertainty. Kids have gotten used to being at home and playing with some neighborhood kids (with masks).

bottlecap · Post by **bottlecap** » Thu Sep 17, 2020 8:32 pm

I don’t think anyone can answer this for you. You are the parent. You are the adult. You must decide.

We put two children back in preschool and decided to home school our grade schooler. Not because of Covid concerns, but because it was a better learning environment for our child's personality, given all of the Covid precautions.

We made the decision as parents, but tried to gauge the child’s preference and consider that as well. But our choice isn’t much help. I can’t tell you how much to be concerned, in part because I am not you and in part because nobody knows.

I will say that I still don’t personally know anyone who contracted Covid. None of my friends kids who have been back to school/preschool for almost 2 months have come down with it. I did have someone I didn’t know get in my personal space and, shocker, learned a few days later they had Covid. But I did not get it from that brief, but close and unwelcomed, encounter.

Good luck,

JT

123 · Post by **123** » Thu Sep 17, 2020 8:33 pm

I would keep my kids at home.

If there was a vaccine available it undoubtedly would be required before students would be allowed to return to in-person classes.

The absence of a vaccine is not a "pass" on reasonable alternatives, such as distance learning.

confusedinvestor · Post by **confusedinvestor** » Thu Sep 17, 2020 8:39 pm

sailaway wrote: ↑Thu Sep 17, 2020 8:22 pm San Diego county is likely to move back to purple next week, so this may become moot. And the Labor Day fall out of being the only county open hasn't even started yet.

However, if you are in the district I think you are in, so far community spread has not been much of an issue and I don't think I would fight on campus too hard. If you were in south county, it would be very different.

It also helps that they have a split schedule. Personally, I would like to see even more separation, but I can't begin to imagine how districts splitting by days are handling the staffing!

What are the plans if things do get worse again? Is there a classroom spread plan and a school spread plan and a community spread plan or just "if they force us to shut down again..."?

Good luck, these decisions must be so nerve wracking.

Sailaway, Thank you, so you know which school district we are in

....lol, we are in north county....well, DW and I are blaming each other for this poor decision making of choosing On-Campus and now forced into taking that risk....there is a district board meeting scheduled next week to review San Diego updated infection rate. Oh well...

health teacher · Post by **health teacher** » Thu Sep 17, 2020 8:41 pm

Wife and I are both teachers, but in different states.

She (elementary) is hybrid 2 days in person and 3 online. From experience, the risk of widespread exposure in this situation is super low compared to 5 days a week in person.

I (HS) am in person 5 days per week with masks mandatory. 70% of my student body in person and 30% chose full online option for 1st nine weeks. Students have been suprisingly good with the mask mandate. We have a hard stance as a school. You don't wear mask and you are moved to online option. I can see outbreaks, but I really think they will be isolated. Our school is really on it and I trust they aren't going to try and "hide" anything.

To add to all of this, our states and counties have systems in place to cut back on in person schooling when a county becomes "hot". With firsthand experience, I support my kids going back to full time, but wish class sizes could stay the same (12 max). They get more teacher interaction and it's definitely safer from a social distancing standpoint.

The online option is nothing compared to in person. For one, Parents/online don't provide the feedback necessary for optimal growth and, frankly, teachers don't have time to dedicate to the online students. Your getting inferior quality and inferior attention.

runner3081 · Post by **runner3081** » Thu Sep 17, 2020 8:42 pm

My wife and I are on opposite sides. I think our 3rd grader should go back in Mid-October - with proper precautions (hybrid, smaller class sizes, etc), wife does not.

We had asked our daughter before the year, she absolutely wanted to be in the classroom - cried when they announced online. Now, after my wife's influence she has no interest in ever returning to a classroom.

I am stuck at a standstill and am insensitive to teachers for even mentioning going back in-person (so it is no longer discussed). Sigh. Will hope that this doesn't negatively impact our daughter's social maturation.

shiftleft · Post by **shiftleft** » Thu Sep 17, 2020 8:45 pm

I personally would not send them. I know one person that died and heard of six more deaths of people that were friends of friends. And another buddy of mine has a friend that was in the ICU for weeks on a ventilator. Survived but has a long way on to go with physical therapy. And then there was another friend of friend whose 6 year old came down with Kawasaki type disease complications. Thanks, but I'll keep my kids at home.

Pete12 · Post by **Pete12** » Thu Sep 17, 2020 8:48 pm

Yes. My 6th grader is back at school 5 days per week. My high school freshman is doing 3 days in school, 2 days at home (the high school is hoping to go back to full time soon.). They are both so happy to be back in school. We feel at this point the benefits outweigh the risk. YMMV.

Best of luck,
Pete

Monsterflockster · Post by **Monsterflockster** » Thu Sep 17, 2020 8:51 pm

health teacher wrote: ↑Thu Sep 17, 2020 8:41 pm Wife and I are both teachers, but in different states.

She (elementary) is hybrid 2 days in person and 3 online. From experience, the risk of widespread exposure in this situation is super low compared to 5 days a week in person.

I (HS) am in person 5 days per week with masks mandatory. 70% of my student body in person and 30% chose full online option for 1st nine weeks. Students have been suprisingly good with the mask mandate. We have a hard stance as a school. You don't wear mask and you are moved to online option. I can see outbreaks, but I really think they will be isolated. Our school is really on it and I trust they aren't going to try and "hide" anything.

To add to all of this, our states and counties have systems in place to cut back on in person schooling when a county becomes "hot". With firsthand experience, I support my kids going back to full time, but wish class sizes could stay the same (12 max). They get more teacher interaction and it's definitely safer from a social distancing standpoint.

The online option is nothing compared to in person. For one, Parents/online don't provide the feedback necessary for optimal growth and, frankly, teachers don't have time to dedicate to the online students. Your getting inferior quality and inferior attention.

Many students prefer online and when done right, with the right teacher, can be just as effective if not more. Teachers should have a weekly calendar, hyperdoc with all assignments & instructions, video instructions for assignments and recorded video lessons. Online can provide live instruction and asynchronous work allowing breakout groups and individual learning goals.

Personally I wish education would use this as an opportunity to evolve and modernize but instead it seems they want to just get back to the same old broken system. At the least students and families should get a choice. For some the school environment is full of bullying, drugs, distractions & oppression. Online learning done right, as an option, could help.

MillennialFinance19 · Post by **MillennialFinance19** » Thu Sep 17, 2020 8:53 pm

Our kids have been back in daycare since right after Memorial Day weekend, and my wife has been teaching for nearly two months now. So far, all of our Covid metrics are dropping across the board. Hopefully that’s a glimmer of hope for the future.

Tingting1013 · Post by **Tingting1013** » Thu Sep 17, 2020 8:54 pm

My 2 year old went back to daycare at the first opportunity two weeks ago. This was mostly for our mental health.

If she was older I don’t know if we would have made the same decision, then again she wouldn’t be such a handful.

windaar · Post by **windaar** » Thu Sep 17, 2020 9:02 pm

Our kids have gone back to school. It is by far the best thing for them. If the news media wrote sensational stories of every car accident every day, we'd all stop driving. Our family feels the same about this issue.

Tingting1013 · Post by **Tingting1013** » Thu Sep 17, 2020 9:04 pm

windaar wrote: ↑Thu Sep 17, 2020 9:02 pm Our kids have gone back to school. It is by far the best thing for them. If the news media wrote sensational stories of every car accident every day, we'd all stop driving. Our family feels the same about this issue.

Deaths from COVID outnumber deaths from car accidents by far this year

Random Musings · Post by **Random Musings** » Thu Sep 17, 2020 9:05 pm

At our school, almost 80% of the students are back in school, albiet every other day. Our kids are so happy to see their friends and have some sense of normalcy. No cases yet in our school district, but there will be cases at some time as some students have had it in the spring and summer. Our school nurse is just as concerned about all the other stuff that hits this time of year, including the regular flu strains that come each year.

From what I have heard in the media, a good number of college cases already but haven't seen any followup data on percent hospitalized, though.

RM

jyoung · Post by **jyoung** » Thu Sep 17, 2020 9:07 pm

We have two kids who went back to full time, in-person elementary on Aug 24th in Houston, TX area. So far it has been fine for us and everyone we know at school. However, it really is such a personal decision. We also have many friends that have chosen to stay 100% virtual for now. Everyone is doing their best and things seem to be going well across the spectrum right now.

oldfort · Post by **oldfort** » Thu Sep 17, 2020 9:13 pm

Fundamentally, this is a question about medical advice: what's the risk of your kid getting COVID-19 or transmitting it to others.

GT99 · Post by **GT99** » Thu Sep 17, 2020 9:16 pm

My 1st grader is going back when they start face to face the first week of October, and would go back tomorrow if available.

I'm a data guy (by nature and career) and I've spent a stupid amount of time tracking and studying data on this. There have been a number of studies around the world, and younger kids just aren't significant vectors for this disease (which is counter-intuitive because they are primary vectors for so many other things). Statistically, if you are under 50 and don't have significant pre-existing conditions (like cancer or having recovered from cancer in the last few years) you're significantly more likely to die in a car accident than from Covid. Many people are getting scared by stories but aren't really looking at the data. And note that much of the data being presented is based on date reported, which significantly lags what's actually happening. Some state DPH sites have options to sort by Date of Death or Date of Onset, which presents a very different and more meaningful picture than date of report.

Don't get me wrong, I'm not downplaying the dangers. If you're over 70 or otherwise have significant pre-existing conditions, this is extremely dangerous. I assume school districts are being careful with at risk teachers/employees, e.g. having them handle online teaching rather than in person.

If you have someone high risk in your household, then I would definitely think twice about it.

travelnut11 · Post by **travelnut11** » Thu Sep 17, 2020 9:21 pm

We sent our 3 and 5 year-olds back to day care around Memorial day with no issues. My kindergartner is in school 5 full days per week with precautions (plexiglass, masks, etc.) but still with 23 kids in her class. We complete 3 weeks of school tomorrow and to my utter shock there are only 5 known positive cases in our district in 0-18 year-olds and all 5 are high school age (city is approx. 25000 people). County positivity rate is about 10% so I really thought we'd be shut down by now but so far so good. I don't think we'll make it all year but any in-person time we can get I will take it. If for no other reason it's easier for the teacher to get to know her so when we go virtual it might be more meaningful instruction? Maybe not but it just feels better to have her in school.

TxAg · Post by **TxAg** » Thu Sep 17, 2020 9:21 pm

Our 4 yr old and 6 yr old are back at school 5 days a week.

At some point we have to start living life again.

TxAg · Post by **TxAg** » Thu Sep 17, 2020 9:25 pm

runner3081 wrote: ↑Thu Sep 17, 2020 8:42 pm My wife and I are on opposite sides. I think our 3rd grader should go back in Mid-October - with proper precautions (hybrid, smaller class sizes, etc), wife does not.

We had asked our daughter before the year, she absolutely wanted to be in the classroom - cried when they announced online. Now, after my wife's influence she has no interest in ever returning to a classroom.

I am stuck at a standstill and am insensitive to teachers for even mentioning going back in-person (so it is no longer discussed). Sigh. Will hope that this doesn't negatively impact our daughter's social maturation.

That's gota be tough. My condolences.

health teacher · Post by **health teacher** » Thu Sep 17, 2020 9:37 pm

Monsterflockster wrote: ↑Thu Sep 17, 2020 8:51 pm
Many students prefer online and when done right, with the right teacher, can be just as effective if not more. Teachers should have a weekly calendar, hyperdoc with all assignments & instructions, video instructions for assignments and recorded video lessons. Online can provide live instruction and asynchronous work allowing breakout groups and individual learning goals.

Personally I wish education would use this as an opportunity to evolve and modernize but instead it seems they want to just get back to the same old broken system. At the least students and families should get a choice. For some the school environment is full of bullying, drugs, distractions & oppression. Online learning done right, as an option, could help.

For some the home environment is full of bullying, drugs, distractions and oppression. Your suggestions in the 1st paragraph are many of the best practices for online learning BUT even with implementing those best practices, you are only really effectively reaching about 10-20% of learners with the online format. Not to mention, implementing those best practices and providing appropriate feedback is a full time job. Learning begins with engagement and the online learning environment isn't very engaging. Hence why the majority of kids are dying to get back in the classroom and we are even having this discussion. If the experience was close, we wouldn't be having this discussion.

flaccidsteele · Post by **flaccidsteele** » Thu Sep 17, 2020 9:39 pm

confusedinvestor wrote: ↑Thu Sep 17, 2020 8:09 pm What would you do if you were us, given the circumstances ? How would you decide, given the data and risks ?

We have an 8 year old. We had no issues sending them back to school for in-class learning.

We’ve seen the data and risks - inconsequential to us

confusedinvestor · Post by **confusedinvestor** » Thu Sep 17, 2020 9:48 pm

oldfort wrote: ↑Thu Sep 17, 2020 9:13 pm Fundamentally, this is a question about medical advice: what's the risk of your kid getting COVID-19 or transmitting it to others.

Yes, and, we have set up followup appointment with their primary care doctor and get doctor's input as well.

we have reviewed this as well but unsure what to do.

https://services.aap.org/en/pages/2019- ... n-schools/

Tingting1013 · Post by **Tingting1013** » Thu Sep 17, 2020 9:50 pm

health teacher wrote: ↑Thu Sep 17, 2020 9:37 pm
Monsterflockster wrote: ↑Thu Sep 17, 2020 8:51 pm
Many students prefer online and when done right, with the right teacher, can be just as effective if not more. Teachers should have a weekly calendar, hyperdoc with all assignments & instructions, video instructions for assignments and recorded video lessons. Online can provide live instruction and asynchronous work allowing breakout groups and individual learning goals.

Personally I wish education would use this as an opportunity to evolve and modernize but instead it seems they want to just get back to the same old broken system. At the least students and families should get a choice. For some the school environment is full of bullying, drugs, distractions & oppression. Online learning done right, as an option, could help.
For some the home environment is full of bullying, drugs, distractions and oppression.

Funny, that describes my [in person] high school experience to a T

Isabelle77 · Post by **Isabelle77** » Thu Sep 17, 2020 10:19 pm

My high schooler went back today to a hybrid model, it was a great day. I'm thrilled to have her back. It's an individual decision but we have low to low-moderate cases here and no one elderly or immune-compromised in our orbit.

My middle schooler is in kind of a pod situation with 4 other kids. They go to someone's house every day and do online school together. It's been an excellent source of socializing and may actually be more fun than real school. Not sure there's much learning going on and would like him to be back in regular school as well. Our governor disagrees with me.

Monsterflockster · Post by **Monsterflockster** » Thu Sep 17, 2020 10:32 pm

health teacher wrote: ↑Thu Sep 17, 2020 9:37 pm
Monsterflockster wrote: ↑Thu Sep 17, 2020 8:51 pm
Many students prefer online and when done right, with the right teacher, can be just as effective if not more. Teachers should have a weekly calendar, hyperdoc with all assignments & instructions, video instructions for assignments and recorded video lessons. Online can provide live instruction and asynchronous work allowing breakout groups and individual learning goals.

Personally I wish education would use this as an opportunity to evolve and modernize but instead it seems they want to just get back to the same old broken system. At the least students and families should get a choice. For some the school environment is full of bullying, drugs, distractions & oppression. Online learning done right, as an option, could help.
For some the home environment is full of bullying, drugs, distractions and oppression. Your suggestions in the 1st paragraph are many of the best practices for online learning BUT even with implementing those best practices, you are only really effectively reaching about 10-20% of learners with the online format. Not to mention, implementing those best practices and providing appropriate feedback is a full time job. Learning begins with engagement and the online learning environment isn't very engaging. Hence why the majority of kids are dying to get back in the classroom and we are even having this discussion. If the experience was close, we wouldn't be having this discussion.

Which is why I suggested choice and moderizing education. Public school has been burdened with mental & physical health, transportation, therapy, speech and nutrition services. Sadly child care is more important than education. Giving parents a choice could allow the best for both scenarios.

I would gladly have my child attend school 2-3 days a week with half the class size and learn with a virtual teacher the days she is home. Now is the time to rethink education.

getthatmarshmallow · Post by **getthatmarshmallow** » Thu Sep 17, 2020 10:33 pm

This is such a hard call. I'm not sure there is a right one. My older kid's school is not distancing, 5 days a week, masks, and we have a high positivity rate and a lack of testing and transparency. So we opted for online, which is a complete joke. We may send him back at the quarter because he's miserable.

My younger kid's preschool, however, reduced class sizes, and was transparent about their plans and temperature check, so she's back at school.

Good luck. I'm not sure there's a right answer right now.

squirm · Post by **squirm** » Thu Sep 17, 2020 10:34 pm

We have options for in class or distant. We're doing distant. I see no reason to bring them to school, they seem very good doing the computer thing and are ready every morning. Plus I get to listen in on the teacher. One teacher seems to be bailing on the kids after ten minutes...I'm keeping an eye on that.

finite_difference · Post by **finite_difference** » Thu Sep 17, 2020 10:38 pm

If you’re all young (under 30-35), healthy, with zero complications, then I’d say that you have a reasonable chance of all catching it but that you are probably not going to get severely sick.

Temperature checks are more about keeping up appearances than anything else in my opinion. What you really need is accurate, available and fast testing and contact tracing. Schools could do pooled testing. But seems like there’s barely enough infrastructure to have temperature checks let alone nurses in schools let alone pooled testing.

Just make sure you wear masks, don’t come into contact with elderly folks or those with complications, etc.

Iridium · Post by **Iridium** » Thu Sep 17, 2020 10:40 pm

confusedinvestor wrote: ↑Thu Sep 17, 2020 8:09 pm CDC says infection rate in kids is very low

Don't think the reporting is that the infection rate is that low (it is lower, but not astoundingly lower). Rather, the rate of bad outcomes is extraordinarily low. To put a reference on it, consider the following: thus far, California has had 3 pediatric deaths due to COVID, whereas there were 15 pediatric deaths due to flu in 2018-19 season (the most recent season an annual report was available).

I wouldn't get too hung up thinking about risk to your kids in your decision making, as the risk is too small to be worth mentioning (in the sense that the risk is similar to or less than risks such as from flu or car accidents, which we accept as an everyday risk of attending school). You need to focus your decision making and research on who your kids might infect, such as you. There was a time when it was thought that kids were not as contagious as adults, but I'm not sure if that is the current thinking.

iamlucky13 · Post by **iamlucky13** » Thu Sep 17, 2020 10:55 pm

Our state and county are allowing it with recommendations that it be initially limited to circumstances where distance learning has a low effectiveness, including for the youngest students. This applies to counties with "Moderate" or "Low" Covid-19 activity levels.

The state has a decision tree to help districts and schools determine whether to open, for what grades, and how to respond if the circumstances change after school begins. Eg - if cases begin increasing, and especially if they reach the threshold for "High" activity level, in-person learning will be reduced or ceased. If cases continue decreasing, then in-person learning may gradually be increased, based on 2-week intervals to assess changes in infection rates from new activities.

Of course, they're following the other recommended precautions - wearing masks, washing regularly, checking temperatures on arrival, and implementing methods to try to maintain distance into the class activities.

Based on this and no known risk factors in our household, our school age child is attending in-person.

Not to mention, combining current work stress with the stress of keeping an increasing curious child occupied with no social structure outside the household, I honestly think the health concerns associated with stress have a significant weight in our case. Perhaps its an incrimination of our parenting skills (it certainly feels like it), but the time to have a break is a huge relief to my wife in particular, and I'm hoping the increased variety of activities and social exposure and structure will help with behavior.

squirm · Post by **squirm** » Thu Sep 17, 2020 10:56 pm

finite_difference wrote: ↑Thu Sep 17, 2020 10:38 pm

Temperature checks are more about keeping up appearances than anything else in my opinion.

Our school is doing the temperature check and "touchless" soap dispenser. Personally I think it's all a joke just to make it look like they're doing something. But like I said above, doesn't matter, I'm keeping our kids home. We check on them during the day, help them with homework and make sure their paying attention. I just spent 2 hours last night with one of them doing algebra, he's going to be a math major (at least I'm trying to push him in that direction). In the evening we go on walks on our country roads, joke and laugh, it's the best thing as I get to see our kids more too.

I expect all the precautions the schools do will die down once the novelty of it all wears off and it becomes tiring and everyone starts to get sloppy, then the infection rate will go up.

abracadabra11 · Post by **abracadabra11** » Thu Sep 17, 2020 11:03 pm

I didn't see it in the OP, but what alternatives are you considering (i.e. private enrollment, home schooling, switching to another school with available online enrollment, elevating request to district superintendent, etc.)?

lgs88 · Post by **lgs88** » Thu Sep 17, 2020 11:05 pm

I am a high school teacher , teaching in person in a very rural setting (~100 students per grade).

We are fully open, in-person, with mandatory masks for all and temperature checks at the door. Very few students (<5%) have opted for the online option. Local caseload is low. We have not had any cases in the schools these past few weeks.

In this context, I'd feel comfortable sending my kids. So much depends on the local circumstances.

Be aware that while the school may mandate masks, classroom cleaning procedures, etc., the degree to which those are carried out depends on the students and the teachers. We have teachers who are convinced the whole thing is a hoax and thus do not compel masks in their classrooms, district policy notwithstanding. Students have generally been good about wearing them when asked, although they do require some minding. After all, they're uncomfortable.

However -- the thermometers are garbage, and I regularly see six kids crammed maskless into a car on their way to lunch. It's a miracle we haven't had an outbreak, touch wood.

HappyGuy · Post by **HappyGuy** » Thu Sep 17, 2020 11:13 pm

Any idea why the private schools are so eager to reopen?

shiftleft · Post by **shiftleft** » Fri Sep 18, 2020 1:59 am

HappyGuy wrote: ↑Thu Sep 17, 2020 11:13 pm Any idea why the private schools are so eager to reopen?

To justify the tuition?

HappyGuy · Post by **HappyGuy** » Fri Sep 18, 2020 2:12 am

shiftleft wrote: ↑Fri Sep 18, 2020 1:59 am
HappyGuy wrote: ↑Thu Sep 17, 2020 11:13 pm Any idea why the private schools are so eager to reopen?
To justify the tuition?

We have paid the full tuition. If they force us, we may have to consider withdrawal.

minimalistmarc · Post by **minimalistmarc** » Fri Sep 18, 2020 3:56 am

Why wouldn’t you send your kids back to school?
Kids don’t get very ill with Covid. They seem to be at low risk of spreading it to adults. Also, it is good for kids to be at school physically. My 3 and 6 year old are back.

People have got to stop being so fearful of Covid. The chance of anybody under 70 getting a significant illness is very low. Yes, take some sensible precautions but don’t be too neurotic.

snowox · Post by **snowox** » Fri Sep 18, 2020 4:12 am

Like others have said only you can make that decision but we have two that went back and our decision was based on odds for kids. Both are playing sports as well and so far its been fine 3 weeks in. Out of 2300 kids 64 are in quarantine because of being on contact with someone that had it outside of school but no cases so far in school of students or staff. I would rather see them get a few months in and if it gets cancelled it gets cancelled but for the mental part of things. Our school is one of the best in our state and would argue that no matter how good online is it just doesnt replace person to person learning. Just do what you feel is best for you! 11% of our student body went virtual and we get daily updates of whats going on.

Post by **oldcomputerguy** » Fri Sep 18, 2020 5:25 am

This topic is locked. The discussion is centering on whether to send kids back to school in light of COVID-19. This is a medical decision rather than a consumer issue, and medical topics are outside the scope of the forum. See Medical Issues:

Questions on medical issues are beyond the scope of the forum. If you are looking for medical information online, I suggest you start with the Medical Library Association's User's Guide to Finding and Evaluating Health Information on the Web which, in addition to providing guidance on evaluating health information, includes a list of their top recommended sites.

See also Please read before posting on coronavirus/COVID-19