Are any preschools or daycares having lunch outside?

[Anonymous]

I am uncomfortable with my child being indoors and unmasked during lunch. I think her school is already doing snack outside. Are any of the preschools/daycares doing outdoor lunch?

[Anonymous]

How would that work on a rainy day or when it starts getting cold?

[Anonymous]

That sounds like a disaster. At least, it would be for my kids.

[Anonymous]

My DD's preschool/kindergarten does almost the entire day outside. They just go inside for using the bathroom. My friend sends her kids to another school that's outdoors too. You should probably say what geographic area you're looking in.

[Anonymous]

Yes ours did MOST of the time. It was weather dependent. Obviously. They are insanely covid cautious but for obvious reasons it ain’t going to work everyday here in Maryland. Try California.

[Anonymous]

Ours does all snacks and meals outside, weather dependent, and spends most of the day outside too. The teachers leave the door to the outside and windows open pretty much at all times when the kids are inside.

[Anonymous]

So when it’s 95 out they are outdoors all day?

[Anonymous]

OP, are you looking for specific schools? In what area? Are you looking for just private PKs or public as well? Or just want to know how many places in general are doing outdoor meals?

DD has been to three PKs since the pandemic started.

- One was half day, meals outside unless it was absolutely pouring rain or snowing or freezing. Even on hot days. But they did not do lunch at school so this was just for snack.
- Second did morning snack outside during outdoor time, unless it was pouring rain or there was a heat advisory, in which case they stayed inside. Lunch was always inside -- the kids sat at individual desks, social distanced, across three rooms (so in smaller cohorts to prevent greater spread).
- Third does breakfast outside during drop off, and then does snack and lunch outside "when possible" based on the weather. They've actually managed to do it outside most days this month despite the heat and rain, because they do it at 11:30am and can miss the high heat of the day. But they have had to take it inside on rainy days or when it's been over 90 degrees.

No Covid outbreaks in any of the schools. They all had a mask requirement.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:So when it’s 95 out they are outdoors all day?

That's what I don't understand about the preschools and camps that are outdoors all day. I wouldn't be able to deal with that as an adult!

But that's different for going outside for meals when everyone has to be unmasked.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:How would that work on a rainy day or when it starts getting cold?

In our preschool last year, there were large covered areas w/ tables to eat during rainy weather and kids wore jackets when it was cold. It’s really not that complicated to find solutions.

[Anonymous]

It doesn't matter, OP, they are napping without masks on.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:It doesn't matter, OP, they are napping without masks on.

This is OP. At our school, only the kids who actually nap take their masks off. No one in my daughter’s 4 year old classroom still naps (other than an occasional day here and there), so the masks stay on.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:How would that work on a rainy day or when it starts getting cold?

Nature school is all outside, including lunch

[Anonymous]

Our preschool is all outside all day. There are tents up for rainy days.

[Anonymous]

My kids have been eating inside at daycare all along. You can tell that most of the parents advocating for outdoor lunch for MCPS haven't had kids back in childcare during the pandemic. Up until last week, DC ate lunch in their classroom at daycare, this week in their classroom at school. Both classes had/have 20 kids. It’s fine.