The Event of the Season: Safe September! Brought to You By School Council
Please note, this is NOT an official communication from the school, TDSB or TPH. This is a well-intentioned note from the parents on the Safe Return to School Committee, (including some with expertise in public health), with suggestions of what we can do to help keep each other safe and well. We aren't intending to add a bunch of new rules for you, but wanted to share some practical tips on things you can do to help keep the cohort healthy.
Starting now, you too can help keep our Fern Ave. P. S. community safe!
We are facing the biggest single turning point since the pandemic started in March. We understand that many of you are stressed and anxious about what will happen in the coming weeks. You may not be happy with class sizes or other reopening plans, but we can assure you that Rosanna and her team are doing everything they can – as fast as they can – to address concerns and get all necessary information to families.
While we wait, there are things we can do to prepare our children for a safe return to school. Whether you are about to send your child to JK or a teen to grade 8, your family can take steps to help keep Fern families safe and healthy.
There are just under two weeks to go, so here are some things to consider...
-- Tighten your Social Bubble
Starting off with the least popular idea...We know how glorious it was to bubble with friends and family. Let's face it, many of us, (including myself), have been places that feel safer than downtown Toronto, so we may have become a little relaxed. However, now that your child will be potentially exposed to up to 26 kids a day, it may be time to rethink the size of that bubble.
You can still have drinks with your friends, walk with your walking group, visit the grandparents, and your kids can still play with other kids. But think about making that contact less intimate, and with fewer people: Six feet apart, outdoors, avoid sharing food. Yes, for some families this will be really tough. But your family's potential contacts are about to go way, way up, so it's something concrete you can do to help counteract your child being in a school setting.
-- Plan for Outdoor, Physically Distanced Playdates
With new exposure during the school day, we all need to think carefully about how and where our kids play outside of school. Think about ways to keep it outside and distanced. Again - not a super popular idea - FRIENDS! PLAYDATES! WE'VE HAD THE SAME PLAY GROUP SINCE MAY! As above, this is about keeping your children's contacts as limited as possible outside their school cohort. No shame, just something you can do that you have control over.
-- Dial Up Your Hand Washing Game
Yes, we know you know. But again, some of us may have become less careful over the summer, and now the stakes are higher. Just in case you've become more relaxed over the summer, it's time to get you and your kids back into a hand washing routine. Buy individual hand sanitizer for school and practice using it with your kids, reminding them when to use it (before and after meals, after touching their face, blowing their nose, touching doorknobs, bathroom breaks, etc.) It's worth a reminder.
-- Mask Practice!
Some kids may have a lot of practice, but for some this will be pretty new. Just like you make sure your JK/SK knows how to take their pants on and off to use the washroom independently during the school day, make sure they can put on and take off their mask independently. (Not said to be patronizing - by the time number three came along, I'd forgotten to make sure he knew how to do those things...) Train your child to wear a mask for longer periods of time. Practice storing the mask safely if they have a chance to take a break from wearing it.
-- Figure Out How to Self-Screen
If you're like me, with school mornings always a disaster, adding a new step to your daily routine is the last thing you want to do. Also, one of my kids will take any opportunity to skip school. So, in my family I have to think about: a) how do I work self-screening into our morning routine, and b), how do I screen my school-avoiding grade 7. Get to know the symptoms you need to screen for, and get in the habit of either asking specifically or keeping an eye out. It’s going to be a bit tricky for some families, but you’ve got nearly two weeks to work it out.
-- Talk to Your Teens About Lunch and Travel
Another touchy topic...I say this as a mother of two teens, one of whom views independent lunches as the only reason to go back to school. Grade 7 and 8 lunches are going to be very different from last year, and they will need some parental guidance.
If you've never seen the grade 7 & 8's come out of school at lunchtime, it is entertaining. They tumble out the door like puppies, run down Fern Ave in groups, wrestling or hitting each other with backpacks the whole way, gleefully trying to be the first in line at Tim Horton's, Hot Oven, or Shadi Shawarma. Then they jam into each of those places. It's a glorious, joyful display of independence. As lovely as it is, some teens, (not all), are oblivious to their surroundings. Which is completely expected developmentally, because, teens.
This year will be different, and we're all going to have to discuss that at home before the first day of school. The businesses on Roncy are probably looking forward to the lunch trade, but those lineups will be long and slow and take up a lot of space on the sidewalk. So perhaps plan for that lunch on the strip to be an extra special treat instead of a daily thing?
Roncy will be more crowded in the Fall than it has been since March, and the last time they all left school to go to Tim Horton's for lunch, none of us had heard the term "social distancing." It will be tough on the teens to keep up distancing practices when they are with their friends. Consider suggesting your teen come home for lunch, the park, or to a friend's backyard instead of inside someone else's home or to Roncy. Ask them to pick a small group of friends instead of going in a large group. Maybe offer up your backyard as the distanced lunch spot.
Please remind them to do their best to keep as distanced as possible while spending time with friends. They may be used to being mask-less with a small number of kids over the summer, but now they are being introduced to a much larger group, and they need to understand that the risks go up. If they don't think they can stay far enough apart, they should put on a mask. Maybe they can choose masks they like before school starts. My grade 7 plans to match her masks to her outfits;)
Please help set the expectations with your teen that they need to practice distancing from all community members on the sidewalk, and at their usual lunchtime haunts. Traveling as a pack like they did in the "before times" makes it really difficult for them to stay distanced from each other and for other people to navigate around them on the sidewalk.
For those teens who've hardly been out on their own during Covid, this would be a great time to practice distancing on a busy sidewalk. For those who were used to travelling with a posse in the old days, or on empty summer sidewalks, now is the time to get used to things being more crowded.
It is also a good time to practice getting to Fern on foot or by bicycle for the teens who typically take transit and to practice good hand discipline for those who will take transit.
I say all of this as someone in the trenches - the balance between independence and safety for parents of teens has been incredibly challenging ("be careful, be careful, be careful...why are you still in bed??"). I know some teens who are already saavy about all of this, and who've been safely exercising their independence for months. But I also know others (and I include mine in this category) who haven't been out in a crowd for a long time, and who need reminders. If we can collaborate with our older kids to help them figure out how to navigate the next few months, then they can have their donut and eat it too.
--Finally, Take a Deep Breath, You Are Not Alone
We all have children at different ages and stages. Parents of little ones may feel like this is a rotten start for their smalls. Parents of teens worry their kids will miss out on grade 7 camp, the grade 8 Montreal trip, grad, high-school tours, and all the other things that make grade 8 special (and which last year's grade 8 cohort missed). Then there are the families in between.
The reality is that there is no single age or stage that has a monopoly on discomfort, anxiety, or feeling like you're missing out on something. Every family at Fern will face challenges this year. But the more we can do to help each other and smooth the transition back to school, the more we can limit the exposure of every member of our Fern family.
So start your Safe September today.
Best,
Safe Return to School Committee
Starting now, you too can help keep our Fern Ave. P. S. community safe!
We are facing the biggest single turning point since the pandemic started in March. We understand that many of you are stressed and anxious about what will happen in the coming weeks. You may not be happy with class sizes or other reopening plans, but we can assure you that Rosanna and her team are doing everything they can – as fast as they can – to address concerns and get all necessary information to families.
While we wait, there are things we can do to prepare our children for a safe return to school. Whether you are about to send your child to JK or a teen to grade 8, your family can take steps to help keep Fern families safe and healthy.
There are just under two weeks to go, so here are some things to consider...
-- Tighten your Social Bubble
Starting off with the least popular idea...We know how glorious it was to bubble with friends and family. Let's face it, many of us, (including myself), have been places that feel safer than downtown Toronto, so we may have become a little relaxed. However, now that your child will be potentially exposed to up to 26 kids a day, it may be time to rethink the size of that bubble.
You can still have drinks with your friends, walk with your walking group, visit the grandparents, and your kids can still play with other kids. But think about making that contact less intimate, and with fewer people: Six feet apart, outdoors, avoid sharing food. Yes, for some families this will be really tough. But your family's potential contacts are about to go way, way up, so it's something concrete you can do to help counteract your child being in a school setting.
-- Plan for Outdoor, Physically Distanced Playdates
With new exposure during the school day, we all need to think carefully about how and where our kids play outside of school. Think about ways to keep it outside and distanced. Again - not a super popular idea - FRIENDS! PLAYDATES! WE'VE HAD THE SAME PLAY GROUP SINCE MAY! As above, this is about keeping your children's contacts as limited as possible outside their school cohort. No shame, just something you can do that you have control over.
-- Dial Up Your Hand Washing Game
Yes, we know you know. But again, some of us may have become less careful over the summer, and now the stakes are higher. Just in case you've become more relaxed over the summer, it's time to get you and your kids back into a hand washing routine. Buy individual hand sanitizer for school and practice using it with your kids, reminding them when to use it (before and after meals, after touching their face, blowing their nose, touching doorknobs, bathroom breaks, etc.) It's worth a reminder.
-- Mask Practice!
Some kids may have a lot of practice, but for some this will be pretty new. Just like you make sure your JK/SK knows how to take their pants on and off to use the washroom independently during the school day, make sure they can put on and take off their mask independently. (Not said to be patronizing - by the time number three came along, I'd forgotten to make sure he knew how to do those things...) Train your child to wear a mask for longer periods of time. Practice storing the mask safely if they have a chance to take a break from wearing it.
-- Figure Out How to Self-Screen
If you're like me, with school mornings always a disaster, adding a new step to your daily routine is the last thing you want to do. Also, one of my kids will take any opportunity to skip school. So, in my family I have to think about: a) how do I work self-screening into our morning routine, and b), how do I screen my school-avoiding grade 7. Get to know the symptoms you need to screen for, and get in the habit of either asking specifically or keeping an eye out. It’s going to be a bit tricky for some families, but you’ve got nearly two weeks to work it out.
-- Talk to Your Teens About Lunch and Travel
Another touchy topic...I say this as a mother of two teens, one of whom views independent lunches as the only reason to go back to school. Grade 7 and 8 lunches are going to be very different from last year, and they will need some parental guidance.
If you've never seen the grade 7 & 8's come out of school at lunchtime, it is entertaining. They tumble out the door like puppies, run down Fern Ave in groups, wrestling or hitting each other with backpacks the whole way, gleefully trying to be the first in line at Tim Horton's, Hot Oven, or Shadi Shawarma. Then they jam into each of those places. It's a glorious, joyful display of independence. As lovely as it is, some teens, (not all), are oblivious to their surroundings. Which is completely expected developmentally, because, teens.
This year will be different, and we're all going to have to discuss that at home before the first day of school. The businesses on Roncy are probably looking forward to the lunch trade, but those lineups will be long and slow and take up a lot of space on the sidewalk. So perhaps plan for that lunch on the strip to be an extra special treat instead of a daily thing?
Roncy will be more crowded in the Fall than it has been since March, and the last time they all left school to go to Tim Horton's for lunch, none of us had heard the term "social distancing." It will be tough on the teens to keep up distancing practices when they are with their friends. Consider suggesting your teen come home for lunch, the park, or to a friend's backyard instead of inside someone else's home or to Roncy. Ask them to pick a small group of friends instead of going in a large group. Maybe offer up your backyard as the distanced lunch spot.
Please remind them to do their best to keep as distanced as possible while spending time with friends. They may be used to being mask-less with a small number of kids over the summer, but now they are being introduced to a much larger group, and they need to understand that the risks go up. If they don't think they can stay far enough apart, they should put on a mask. Maybe they can choose masks they like before school starts. My grade 7 plans to match her masks to her outfits;)
Please help set the expectations with your teen that they need to practice distancing from all community members on the sidewalk, and at their usual lunchtime haunts. Traveling as a pack like they did in the "before times" makes it really difficult for them to stay distanced from each other and for other people to navigate around them on the sidewalk.
For those teens who've hardly been out on their own during Covid, this would be a great time to practice distancing on a busy sidewalk. For those who were used to travelling with a posse in the old days, or on empty summer sidewalks, now is the time to get used to things being more crowded.
It is also a good time to practice getting to Fern on foot or by bicycle for the teens who typically take transit and to practice good hand discipline for those who will take transit.
I say all of this as someone in the trenches - the balance between independence and safety for parents of teens has been incredibly challenging ("be careful, be careful, be careful...why are you still in bed??"). I know some teens who are already saavy about all of this, and who've been safely exercising their independence for months. But I also know others (and I include mine in this category) who haven't been out in a crowd for a long time, and who need reminders. If we can collaborate with our older kids to help them figure out how to navigate the next few months, then they can have their donut and eat it too.
--Finally, Take a Deep Breath, You Are Not Alone
We all have children at different ages and stages. Parents of little ones may feel like this is a rotten start for their smalls. Parents of teens worry their kids will miss out on grade 7 camp, the grade 8 Montreal trip, grad, high-school tours, and all the other things that make grade 8 special (and which last year's grade 8 cohort missed). Then there are the families in between.
The reality is that there is no single age or stage that has a monopoly on discomfort, anxiety, or feeling like you're missing out on something. Every family at Fern will face challenges this year. But the more we can do to help each other and smooth the transition back to school, the more we can limit the exposure of every member of our Fern family.
So start your Safe September today.
Best,
Safe Return to School Committee
