Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:A study in 11 North Carolina schools districts, with more than 90,000 students and staff, found within-school virus transmissions to be “very rare”— just 32 infections acquired in school vs. 773 acquired in the community. The study found no cases of student-to-staff transmission.

Because the kids are asymptomatic.

All the more reason school is perfectly safe once the adults are vaccinated.

Anonymous wrote:It's so funny to me that now WaPo is on board with opening schools. Why, I wonder?

I think the switch flipped for many people when it became clear that most of us will be waiting 6 months for a vaccine, and our parents can’t get a vaccine, but they started vaccinating teachers. And, FEA was giving interviews and saying teachers should still be remote until kids were vaccinated too. And also saying that full return to school couldn’t happen next fall. While teachers were getting the entire vaccine supply. Almost no other state is prioritizing teachers as high as VA. Because it’s objectively less risky than many jobs prioritized lower.

That’s the red line for so many of us. 40 year old teachers getting this lifesaving vaccine that our 80 year old parents can’t get, and then hearing more stalling on return to school? Just no. We have done this for a year. We can’t still be doing it a year from now. We must let our kids lead their lives, despite COVID.

Middle and high school have no business opening. Elementary is a different story. Stop treating them as equals.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This also says that if we want to open safely, some indoor sports without masks, like wrestling, should not take place. Chantilly has had indoor sports outbreaks. Please also tell the SB that Brabrand can and should choose not to follow VSHL, like Arlington did, and should immediately stop the indoor sports that are causing outbreaks so that school can reopen safely. It’s ridulous that kids are indoors wrestling without masks in FCPS while the littles try to learn to read on laptops at home.

Northam and VA said schools were good to open this summer/fall. Its been safe for kids to be in school all along. FCPS has an HR problem, not a Covid problem. I don't have an issue with kids doing OTHER activities that Virginia is permitting under Covid restrictions (sports, clubs, etc). If all kid activities had been shut down all year, we still wouldn't have open schools.

I agree and we would have a lot more kids with mental health problems.

First, only athletes get to meet in person. No one else has the privilege.

Second, this the CDC recommendation based on the fact that some indoor athletics (not all, not outdoor) cannot be done safely and *cause outbreaks in school.* They specifically score wrestling. So, maybe some kids have to stop wrestling so everyone else can get in the building. Wrestling indoors without a mask during a COVID spike is ridiculous. Also, most of the Chantilly freshmen basketball team has COVID. So, there’s that.

It's so funny to me that now WaPo is on board with opening schools. Why, I wonder?

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Agree with opening elementary! Always have. Not middle and high unless you cohort them. They are cohorted for student AND teacher safety. To minimize the number of people you come in contact with. Does no one get that?

From what I have read by epidemiologists who believe in opening, cohorting is good, but not strictly required IF you use other mitigation measures (6' distance, masks, sick people staying home).

Cohorting actually allows you to do things like drop the 6' requirement, as does low community spread.

How does cohorting allow you to drop the 6’ spacing requirements? Cohorting allows you to meet the 6’ requirements. Am I missing something?

At least for younger kids, there were several articles on how daycares were handling the pandemic back in summer. Many acknowledged that younger daycare kids couldn't distance very well, so they used very strict cohorting instead. There was still no spread.

Anonymous wrote:A study in 11 North Carolina schools districts, with more than 90,000 students and staff, found within-school virus transmissions to be “very rare”— just 32 infections acquired in school vs. 773 acquired in the community. The study found no cases of student-to-staff transmission.

Because the kids are asymptomatic.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Agree with opening elementary! Always have. Not middle and high unless you cohort them. They are cohorted for student AND teacher safety. To minimize the number of people you come in contact with. Does no one get that?

From what I have read by epidemiologists who believe in opening, cohorting is good, but not strictly required IF you use other mitigation measures (6' distance, masks, sick people staying home).

Cohorting actually allows you to do things like drop the 6' requirement, as does low community spread.

How does cohorting allow you to drop the 6’ spacing requirements? Cohorting allows you to meet the 6’ requirements. Am I missing something?

Anonymous wrote:Agree with opening elementary! Always have. Not middle and high unless you cohort them. They are cohorted for student AND teacher safety. To minimize the number of people you come in contact with. Does no one get that?

From what I have read by epidemiologists who believe in opening, cohorting is good, but not strictly required IF you use other mitigation measures (6' distance, masks, sick people staying home).

Cohorting actually allows you to do things like drop the 6' requirement, as does low community spread.

CDC does. But everyone who want to Open School Now (and the school systems!) are ignoring it.

Agree with opening elementary! Always have. Not middle and high unless you cohort them. They are cohorted for student AND teacher safety. To minimize the number of people you come in contact with. Does no one get that?

Anonymous wrote:You forgot this paragraph. Which sort of kills the APS and FCPS plan for middle and high school. Cohorts are needed: this was obvious in July.

The CDC recommends that schools require masks, allow for a distance of six feet between people and keep students in cohorts to limit the number of people who must quarantine in the case of an exposure.

Even if that's the case, don't hold elementary school hostage. Progress over perfection.

Anonymous wrote:You forgot this paragraph. Which sort of kills the APS and FCPS plan for middle and high school. Cohorts are needed: this was obvious in July.

The CDC recommends that schools require masks, allow for a distance of six feet between people and keep students in cohorts to limit the number of people who must quarantine in the case of an exposure.

These recommendations assume no teachers are vaccinated. Since they found almost NO in school transmission, once teachers are vaccinated....it shouldn't matte.r

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This also says that if we want to open safely, some indoor sports without masks, like wrestling, should not take place. Chantilly has had indoor sports outbreaks. Please also tell the SB that Brabrand can and should choose not to follow VSHL, like Arlington did, and should immediately stop the indoor sports that are causing outbreaks so that school can reopen safely. It’s ridulous that kids are indoors wrestling without masks in FCPS while the littles try to learn to read on laptops at home.

Northam and VA said schools were good to open this summer/fall. Its been safe for kids to be in school all along. FCPS has an HR problem, not a Covid problem. I don't have an issue with kids doing OTHER activities that Virginia is permitting under Covid restrictions (sports, clubs, etc). If all kid activities had been shut down all year, we still wouldn't have open schools.

I agree and we would have a lot more kids with mental health problems.

A study in 11 North Carolina schools districts, with more than 90,000 students and staff, found within-school virus transmissions to be “very rare”— just 32 infections acquired in school vs. 773 acquired in the community. The study found no cases of student-to-staff transmission.