While implementing a long list of changes – from timetables to traffic arrows – there’s still an effort underway to make back-to-school a little familiar.
“We’re doing our best to normalize, as much as we can, the experience for students coming back to school,” said Charlene Scime, principal of Collingwood Collegiate Institute (CCI). “Teachers will continue to provide rich programming for students … those pillars upon which school is always built do not change.”
Scime said she and the teachers of CCI along with education assistants, secretarial staff, social workers, custodial staff, and administration are working to prepare for students’ return next week.
“We’re very excited to welcome students back to the building,” she said.
Part of the teachers’ preparations have included reworking their regular class schedules for a quadmester format that will have them teaching the same course all day for a full week and then alternating to another class the next week.
“It does require that teachers revisit the activities they have scheduled for their classes and reimagine some of them,” said Scime. “I’ve had a few teachers who have said this will allow them to be more in-depth … there are some silver linings in terms of being able to plan.”
The new schedule includes two hours of class, lunch, two more hours of class, and then study hall for the rest of the day. Students attending CCI will start at 8:45 a.m. and will be dismissed at 2:40 p.m. There will be staggered five-minute breaks, and students will have to each lunch in their classrooms with their cohort. They will not be allowed to leave the school to buy lunch.
“At this point, students are to bring their lunch,” said Scime. “We have always offered a nutritional program at CCI, and there will be grab-and-go snacks for students.”
The hallways will be marked – like most grocery stores – with directional arrows. They will be for moving between points, and students will not be allowed to congregate in them.
CCI’s vocal music class is cancelled, and there will be no playing of wind instruments at the school.
“We envision students being able to play instruments, just not on day one,” said Scime. “There are plenty of things they can engage with and work on before we tackle the instruments they can play.”
Gym class continues, but with activities that don’t involve contact, and can be done outdoors.
School sports are still up in the air as are social clubs. There are no provincial championships this fall or winter.
“There will be an opportunity to consider some clubs, maybe sports where there is no contact,” said Scime. “That is a wait and see. We are not rushing into it … We’re a very vibrant and busy school. We will do what we can, given the restrictions, because we want to be very mindful that we have a role to play in preventing the spread.”
CCI will have teachers for online courses and separate teachers for in-class learning. In-class teachers will also maintain a digital portal for the class where they post notes, handouts, and assignments. This is something many did prior to the COVID-19 pandemic.
For students in Grade 11 and 12 who are opting for online learning this year, they will use existing e-learning courses or courses offered by the independent learning centre. Both options were also available to students pre-COVID, and those courses would follow the traditional semester format. Grade 9 and 10 online courses will follow the new quadmester, alternating week format.
“We’re looking forward to seeing the kids again,” said Scime. “This is a very special place … we’re working very hard to have a very positive experience.”
According to information released by Simcoe County District School Board, there will be many of the same restrictions in place in local elementary schools. Students in Grade 4 and up will have to wear a mask, and all students are asked to bring their own lunch and refillable water bottle.
Water fountains will not be available, but bottle refill stations will be. Parents and visitors cannot enter the school.
The school board is also asking parents to complete the province’s COVID-19 self-assessment online for their child before sending them to school. The Simcoe Muskoka District Health Unit advises getting medical assessment if a child experiences any of the COVID-19 symptoms for more than a few hours.
For a video with information on returning to school from the Simcoe County District School Board, click here.
For information from the Simcoe Muskoka District Health Unit about back-to-school safety and self-assessment, click here.
