Some initial information on reopening on-site education at Swan School:
(Updated July 8, 2020)
On a recent call, Jefferson County’s Public Health Officer Dr. Tom Locke reminded Jefferson County school leaders that it’s actually a good thing that things are changing constantly. Every time something changes, it means that we have new information, and something that we now know we can do better. This was helpful reframing, since constant updates certainly present challenges for schools in planning and communication. This is a continuing process. Please be assured that we are doing absolutely everything we can to make sure that we are using the very best practices and guidelines for our re-opening plan.
Some things we know for sure:
- Classes will be on campus with a regular schedule (9:00-3:30, five days a week), beginning August 24th.
- Physical distancing of 6’ between students is recommended, so our environments will be changing to allow for either this distance or barriers between children while they are at tables. We will do everything possible to retain our child-centered and friendly environments.
- Transmission risk goes way down outside. We will be moving more instructional academic time outside by increasing our covered outdoor spaces for use during lessons and some lunch times and dramatically expanding our hands-on Outdoor Education program for all ages.
- Masks will be required for all students (preschool-6th). Face shields are NOT recommended by health officials, unless they are worn in addition to a mask, or there is a documented health condition that requires one (including hearing/lipreading issues).
- All adults and visitors who are on campus for more than 15 minutes will need to be masked as per Washington State regulations.
- The recess schedule will continue normally, with masking and as much physical distancing as possible in place.
- We will be reducing contact between groups for as long as we need to in order to maintain everyone’s safety. For at least the beginning of the year, the Discoverers will be considered a separate group from the elementary-aged students and we will not be mixing groups. We will have separate meetings and recess times/spaces. We are sorry for this because we love our constant multi-age contact, but right now there is not a way to do it safely.
- All classrooms and teachers will have plans and materials in place so that we can pivot to off-site learning within 24 hours in the event of a county or statewide school closure. These plans will be communicated with families at the beginning of the year so that families and students will know what to expect in the event of a quick change.
- Enhanced cleaning and disinfecting procedures will be in place for all shared spaces.
