Students in the Milano and Thorndale ISDs are set to return to classes next month—with options to study at-home online—as the two districts have released plans to begin the 2020-21 school term under the giant shadow that is the COVID-19 pandemic.
Both plans stress safety and include face masks, social distancing and frequent cleaning. Each district is taking a different approach.
Milano ISD students have the option to attend classes “face to face” on campus or online learning at home, but there’s also a “hybrid” option. Classes start Aug. 20.
Students in grades 7-12 can learn mostly online and come to their respective school campuses only for courses requiring specialized instruction.
Thorndale is also offering online schooling but is splitting on-campus time by dividing the student population into two groups. “Group A” would attend class
“Group A” would attend classes two days a week, “Group B” two days a week and there would be a cleaning day, with staff in-service, in the middle.
(Rockdale ISD announced its school opening plans last week, which were the subject of extensive coverage in last week’s Reporter.)
MILANO—Supt. Robert Westbrook emphasized the plans announced to begin the first day of classes Thursday, Aug. 20 are “fluid” and could change as events dictate.
“Much like a strong classroom teacher, who must continually monitor and adjust teaching, we too, must make changes as we go along,” he said.
He emphasized that, regardless of the educational platform daily attendance will be taken and all attendance rules will be enforced. “A student will be considered
“A student will be considered absent if the student does not participate in instruction at any time in the day,” Westbrook said. Among the many safety rules to
Among the many safety rules to be followed for on-campus learning:
• Desks and tables will be arranged to maximize space between students.
• Washing and/or sanitizing hands will be built into the daily classroom schedule.
• Limiting the amount of student movement from class to class will be a priority.
• Face coverings will be required for students in grades 4-12 and staff as required. • Elementary classrooms
• Elementary classrooms will be assigned specific restrooms, breakfast, lunch and gym access times to reduce the number of students in any given area.
• Entry doors (to school buildings) will be designated based on arrival method, parent drop-off/walk to school, student drivers, students with unique needs.
• Sanitizer stations will be placed at each entrance and students will sanitize hands upon entry.
• Designated doors will be propped open for no-touch entry.
• Classroom doors will be propped open to reduce high-touch areas when possible. • When transitioning
• When transitioning between classes, students shall travel corridors as far to the right as possible.
• Where possible, oneway traffic throughout campus corridors will be established. • Face mask coverings
• Face mask coverings will be required in all areas for staff and for students (developmentally appropriate).
• School bus drivers will load buses from the back to front and unload from front to back. • Buses will be thorough
• Buses will be thoroughly sanitized after each trip. • In lunchrooms, self-ser
• In lunchrooms, self-service will be eliminated and silverware will be packaged and placed on the student’s tray.
• Grab-and-go curbside pickup locations will be established to provide distance/virtual enrolled/ hybrid students with meals for offsite consumption.
The policy lists five stages of response to possible COVID-19 infections. In Stages 4 and 5, a facility or the entire district would be closed for a specified period of days.
THORNDALE—“ We understand there is no single plan that will satisfy everyone’s needs or make everyone happy,” Thorndale ISD Supt. Adam Ivy said in unveiling that district’s school-opening plans.
“There are no strategies that will completely eliminate the possibility of (COVID-19) transmission in schools or any other part of society,” Ivy said. “It is not our intention to close our district every time there is a single case of COVID-19.”
“To that end, we have used all of the information available to us at the moment to formulate this plan,” he said.
Central to the TISD’s face-to-face school-opening is a plan to spend at least the first four weeks by splitting students “likely alphabetically to maintain family groups” into A-groups and B-groups, resulting in smaller numbers on campus at any one time.
Schedule would be as follows for the first week of classes:
• Aug. 17—Group A.
• Aug. 18—Group B.
• Aug. 19—Cleaning and staff in-service.
• Aug. 20—Group A.
• Aug 21—Group B.
That schedule would be repeated in ensuing weeks.
Ivy noted the strategy was developed after receiving results of a community survey. In that survey, 69.8 of
In that survey, 69.8 of respondents chose an A-day, B-day modified schedule over a fully-virtual learning experience in all areas.
Also, 60.9 percent of those responding answered “no” to the question “Do you feel that four weeks of fully virtual instruction for all students would ensure that a return to in-person instruction after that point is safe?”
Ivy said if parents desire at-home online distance learning they must contact their campus office by Aug. 3 and sign a document that details the responsibilities of parents and students.
“If parents do not have reliable Internet access we do not recommend this method of instruction,” he said.
Ivy said parents choosing distance learning will be asked to make a commitment for three weeks at a time.
Other points from the TISD plan:
• Breakfast and lunch will continue to be served for students choosing to eat on campus. Details on how to feed those off-campus are still being worked out.
• Water fountains will not be used except for touch-free filter bottles which may be brought from home.
• Staff will be required to self-screen for COVID-19 symptoms prior to reporting for work each day.
• Parents must not send their child to school if the child has COVID-19 symptoms or is lab confirmed with COVID-19.
• Students that present with symptoms will be sent home.
• Fourth-grade students and older, or as developmentally appropriate, staff and visitors must wear a mask/ face covering when entering a TISD facility, in common areas, and when social distancing is not possible. “While not required, we recommend that students of all ages wear a face covering when possible.”
• Each classroom and restroom will be disinfected daily.
• All high-touch areas will be disinfected daily. • The cafeteria will be
• The cafeteria will be disinfected between lunch periods.
• When possible, the district encourages families to drop off student, carpool or walk with their student to school.
- Log in or Subscribe to post comments.