Covid-19:  What Our Parents Need to Know

COVID-19 Response Outline

 

Reference

Los Angeles County Schools:

Rising to the Challenge of COVID-19

A Planning Framework for the 2020-21 School Year

https://www.lacoe.edu/Portals/0/LA CO Schools 2020-21 Planning Framework.pdf?ver=2020-05-26-161915-740

 

Introduction

The goal of Waterhouse Guild, at all times, is to protect and promote the complete health of students, parents, staff and visitors. This includes physical, emotional, intellectual, spiritual, and emotional health.

Communication

Overall guidelines and responsibilities for students, parents, and staff will be communicated by:

  • Hard copies given to parents and staff.
  • Email to parents and staff.
  • Posting on the school’s website, waterhouseguild.com.
  • Group teleconferencing as needed.
  • On-site posters and notices as appropriate at entrances and sinks.

Facility

  1. Consider using separate entrance and exit paths to avoid congestion at gate.
    Enter from parking area.
    Exit through garden area.
  2. Classrooms will be arranged as needed to maximize social distancing while taking into account educational needs.
  3. Hand sanitizing stations will be provided at each classroom entrance.
  4. Use of shared materials will be eliminated wherever possible.
  5. Common areas will be cleaned throughout the day as needed.
  6. In addition to our current daily cleaning procedures, a detailed cleaning list (TBD) will be followed at the end of each day.
  7. A visitor log will be kept at the door to track room use outside of Waterhouse hours.
  8. Cones will be provided at classroom entrances to define social distancing requirements in cases where a line forms.

 

Staff

  1. Staff members will be given an exposure questionnaire each morning before entering classrooms.
  2. Staff members will have temperature taken each morning before entering classrooms. If temperature exceeds health authority guidelines, they will be sent home and be required to get tested for Covid-19 before returning to class. If tested positive, staff member will be required to follow public health guidelines before returning.
  3. When feasible, masks will be worn.
  4. Staff will be required to use hand sanitizer when entering or leaving classrooms.

Parents

  1. Parents will follow all staff guidelines.
  2. Parents will be restricted from entering classrooms unless necessary.
  3. Parents will be restricted from congregating in classrooms or breezeway.

Students

Daily before entering class:

  1. Students will be given an exposure questionnaire (with a parent or guardian present).
  2. Student’s temperature will be taken with a non-contact thermometer.
  3. Reminders will be given throughout the day regarding distancing and hand washing.
  4. Waterhouse instruction currently takes place in small groups, this practice will continue.
  5. Inter-mixing of groups will be minimized.
  6. Outdoor activities will emphasize social distancing.

 

 

Discovery Part 2: The Backbone of Literacy

Bones1

Ske4

Ske3

The ability to read and write is complex and involves the integration of numerous foundational skills. Learning to read and write, children must wade through the landscape of phonology (word sounds), orthography (word patterns), morphology (word classifications) and then tackle the more treacherous path through the land of syntax (word patterning) and semantics (grammar) to gather tools that enable them to practice the art of reading and writing. But that’s not all, not at all! We must not discount the child’s EQ when it comes to literacy. Soft skills such as emotional insight, curiosity, and attitude all contribute to motivation and motivation impacts learning. Exposing children to a vast array of language arts experiences in an environment that is brimming with opportunities to enact language from a young age cultivates natural curiosity  and promotes peaceful acquisition of skill over time. This is the magic of the tortoise versus the hare in action! And, just to complicate matters just a tiny bit more, literacy is much more than being able to read and write. True literacy is not just the ability to decode and encode language, true literacy occurs when the child moves from the foundational to the realm of creation, the realm of original communication.

Providing prepared opportunities for children to independently discover the tools of literacy across all domains of learning promotes the ability to enact language. It is vitally important that children not lose heart or become discouraged when mistakes occur. Self-correcting materials allow children to learn through their own errors to make the correct decision without having the teacher point it out to them. When encouraged to discover, children are simultaneously empowered to practice such complex skills as:

  • scrutinizing to make confident decisions
  • self-critiquing to assert thoughtful opinions
  • hypothesizing to draw informed conclusions

When Nelson chose the “Bones of the Body” work during our Discovery session, not only did he work through identifying the Latin names for a selection the election of the human skeleton, he was intrigued and invested in the work and, consequently, rewarded intrinsically. This child, while hard at work, was calm, confidently focused, and enthusiastic about learning. I have no doubt that this little exercise had less to do with learning the names of bones and more about strengthening the backbone of literacy. Discovery provides opportunities for children to, not only gather tools, but to encounter and practice the processes through which great ideas are conceived and forged.

Guildwork Categories

.