Starting Safe: Back to School with Covid-19

 
Safety for schools is priority one. Students, especially the younger ones, should wear masks not just for their safety but also for their friends and family. 

According to the Texas Education Agency:

"Masks Please note, mask provisions of GA-38 are not being enforced as the result of ongoing litigation. Further guidance will be made available after the court issues are resolved. 

Students Who Have COVID-19 As provided in this Department of State Health Services (DSHS) Rule, school systems must exclude students from attending school in person who are actively sick with COVID-19, who are 2 suspected of being actively sick with COVID-19, or who have received a positive test result for COVID-19, and must immediately notify parents if this is determined while on campus. 

Parents must ensure they do not send a child to school on campus if the child has COVID-19 symptoms or is test-confirmed with COVID-19, until the conditions for re-entry are met. See the DSHS rule for more details, including the conditions for ending the exclusion period and returning to school.
 

During the exclusion period, the school system may deliver remote instruction consistent with the practice of remote conferencing outlined in the proposed Student Attendance Accounting Handbook (SAAH) rules, as described here. To help mitigate the risk of asymptomatic individuals being on campuses, school systems may provide and/or conduct recurring COVID-19 testing using rapid tests provided by the state or other sources. Testing can be conducted with staff. With prior written permission of parents, testing can be conducted with students."

School districts are deep cleaning and providing teachers with sanitizer for desks, masks, and gloves. Our goal as educators is to feed young minds fruitful knowledge and now our job is also to keep our young charges safe.

As parents, we can contribute by making sure our students are safe and healthy, wearing masks, being mindful of social distance, and using that "hanitizer" 😊 (hand sanitizer.

We are absolutely all in this together and if we want a brighter and safer tomorrow, we will all work together for the common good.

Take care of yourself and each other~~Lester

Creating a home learning environment

(My Office/Classroom/Craftroom)

A method that I have used during the transition from the classroom to an online teacher is utilizing specific spaces in my home.
My sanctuary craft room became my makeshift classroom/office. I began and ended my workday there. Once my day was over, I transition or "commuted" to the living room or bedroom with my co-worker Olive (the chihuahua). It was important for me to separate work life and home life, even though in reality they were one and the same.
Perhaps, creating a space in your home (it doesn't have to be an entire room) of learning for your students at home might be beneficial for their success as well.

(Pinterest)

Get together and create ideas to imagine a learning space that they can go to for learning as well as walk away from when they need a break or feel like they are in a rut. 
Consider dollar stores to find items such as pen and pencil holders, storage containers, etc to help your kids create their own personalized learning space. Even cheaper, hold on to poptart, cereal, and round chip containers and upcycle. Redecorate the boxes and personalize them to hold school supplies. 
Check out Upcycled Wonders for ideas.


Allowing kids to take ownership of creating their learning environment will hopefully leave them feeling empowered and ready to learn!
More Helpful Links: 
HomeSchoolSuperFreak has great ideas for large and small spaces
Pinterest - Cool Homeschool rooms
IKEA -  Inexpensive and organized