Advice from an educator (source unknown).
As you prepare to send your children back to school, there are a few new preparations that you need to talk to your students about now before they enter the classroom.
1. Things will not be normal. What your child experienced last spring before schools were shut down is not what they will be experiencing this fall. Don't tell your kids that things are going back to normal. They aren't.
2. Let your children know in advance what to expect, to the best of your ability. Explain that there won't be field trips this year, that they can't sit with their friends on the school bus or may not be able to ride the school bus at all. There will be temperature checks. They will have to wear masks, face shields, or both, and they will have to wear them all the time unless the teacher says it is okay to take it off temporarily.
3. Remind them that wearing PPE is not a game--they will be reprimanded for taking it off without permission. As parents, please have a plan in place if your child is suspended from school for improper use of PPE, and let your child know in advance what rewards you will give them for obeying the rules and what consequences at home there will be if they don't.
4. Be aware that schools have to limit socialization at this time, and ask your school what this means so you can relay that to your children. They may not be able to eat lunch in the cafeteria, talk with their friends face to face, or have recess involving playground equipment.
5. Tell your kids that they didn't do anything wrong to cause the changes this year and that their teachers still love them even though we can't give them the high-5s and hugs that they're used to. We aren't angry at them--we just want to keep them safe.
6. Have an age-appropriate conversation about death. It is likely that during the school year, some of their teachers, support staff, or fellow students may have to be quarantined at home with COVID. That person may end up in the hospital, and he or she may die. It is better to have the conversation about death in advance instead of when your child is told in school that their beloved teacher won't be coming back. But also explain that just because a teacher or staff or parent or classmate ends up with COVID doesn't mean that person will die--or that they will die.
7. Please buy your children "boring" school supplies this year--kids love to share and show off their backpacks, lunch boxes, pencils, you name it. We cannot allow children to do this for this school year, because we cannot have children touching other children's belongings. Please buy plain items that will not attract attention.
8. Donate extra supplies. On your back-to-school list every year, you'll see items like tissues, hand sanitizer, soap, and cleaning wipes. Please donate extra, because we will not have enough to do the enhanced cleaning required to keep students as safe as possible.
9. Be supportive financially for your school's PTA/PTO. Many of the fundraisers that schools do for basic necessities will not be able to happen due to new guidelines. Please donate generously.
10. Model patience. This is a new experience for us all, and frustration, tension, stress, anger, and anxiety will run high for teachers and students alike. Be sympathetic when your child comes home from their enclosed desk space where they've spent hours sitting still behind plastic sheeting, wearing a face mask that itches, and not able to go and play with their friends. Expect meltdowns when children get home--they don't have the skills to cope with what we're asking them to do, and so they will need to release that anger and anxiety at home. Be patient with them and give them all the love and hugs and high-5s that we can't do any longer.
We will get through this, but preparing the students will make everyone's job easier.
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