It’s been a tough two years for parents. You kept your children at home and stayed away from public events. You used an endless supply of hand sanitizer and child-sized masks. You did everything you could to keep your family virus-free.
If you’re like some cautious parents, your efforts included working remotely and keeping your children out of the classroom long after others returned. Now that virus is in retreat, how will you deal with sending your child back to school?
Infection rates are dropping
When you walk down the street, it’s difficult to imagine that the virus is still out there. Nevertheless, most public activities have resumed. Many people stopped wearing masks even before the CDC loosened its restrictions. The virus hasn’t disappeared, but the infection rates have declined significantly, enough to move forward.
That should be motivation enough to place your young child back into an educational environment. But alas, you recognize that a decline doesn’t mean that the problem has gone away completely. As a parent, you need to have stronger reassurances before sending your child back to school.
Discuss your concerns with your school
It’s your responsibility to decide when your child returns to school and under what conditions. To feel comfortable with the process, you must have confidence that your child’s school takes health and safety seriously. You can only feel confident if you ask your school’s administrator the most important questions to you.
- What are you doing to keep children healthy?
- What is your mask policy?
- What is your COVID-19 vaccination policy?
- How do you arrange classroom seating?
- What do you do when a child has symptoms?
- Do you allow family members inside of your school?
- What are your cleaning and sanitizing policies?
Pay attention to changing CDC guidelines
As of February 25, 2022, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention drastically changed its pandemic policies. The agency has previously relaxed some stringent nationwide mask mandates. They now recommend that you take precautions based on COVID-19 Community Levels. In areas with low to moderate infection rates, they recommend:
- No mask requirements on student buses or other group transportation
- No universal mask requirement in K-12 or early learning schools
- Continue mask-wearing in areas with high COVID-19 community levels
Of course, your child’s school may establish its own masking and distancing protocols.
Make decisions based on your community’s COVID-19 level
The CDC website’s COVID-19 Community Levels tool helps you identify the infection risk in your area. You simply input your state and county, and it shows if the infection levels are Low, Medium, Or High. The page explains what each designation means. It also clarifies the precautions you should take at each level.
It’s your decision
You should only leave your young child in a school setting if you can do it with minimal stress. Once you restart your child’s school career, you’ll see changes in their knowledge, skill, playfulness, and socialization. As you grow more comfortable with their progress, you’ll remember how important it is for your child to be in an early educational environment.
Contact The Learning Center
Contact us to learn more about our early childhood education programs in Windsor, South Windsor, and Manchester, CT. You may reach us at (860) 643-8639 or visit our contact page.