APS website is updated

https://www.apsva.us/school-year-2021-22/health-safety-information/

Updated Mask Guidance as of February 28, 2022

Check the current transmission levels in Arlington County

Low Transmission
Staff Optional
Student Optional
Student Athlete Optional

*Parents/Legal Guardians will be allowed to opt out

APS will continue to review and adjust our policies in accordance with guidance from the CDC, VDH and VDOE.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We are still masking for the foreseeable future.

I tried talking to my kid this morning about treating everyone with the same kindness at school whether they were wearing a mask or not and he was legitimately offended, saying that people who were not wearing masks were failing to take care of the people in the community who had lower immunity levels or at risk people at home, and I said we would have to continue the conversation this evening (because, though I didn't say it, he wasn't really wrong and I don't know a great response to this argument).

Similar. We’re struggling with language that won’t add to any conflict/confusion at school. If you come up with something, would love to hear it. Ours is in 1st.

So you have filled your young child's head with judgmental and sanctimonious thoughts and now you're wondering what to say to them next to undo this.

Excellent parenting.

On the off chance you are serious, I would say to them that the scientists have said it's safe to unmask but some people may choose not to because of situations in their family or with their own health. The end.

And stop putting your agenda on your young child. It's so gross.

That's not really correct, though. People have been masking to protect everyone who is at risk, not just people in their own family or themselves. So you're not correctly addressing the issue. Maybe you can fudge things and say that CDC has said that transmission levels are low enough now that it is safer not to mask now than it was before. But the risk you are averting is spreading the disease generally in the community, and is not limited to one's own family or oneself.

You can explain first that at risk people have always been at risk from viruses around us. And will continue to be going forward. Those at risk people have a lot of tools at their disposal to help mitigate their risk that they didn't have a the beginning of the pandemic. And the grown ups have decided that children in the aggregate should no longer be the sole group shouldering the burden of trying to protect at risk adults.

When vaccine are available for all age groups, and when treatment is available for all age groups, then I'll agree with you.

Everyone in your household is wearing masks at home 24-7, correct? Because it shouldn't be everyone else's responsibility to mitigate your risk if you are unwilling to take those steps....

Anonymous wrote:Not PP, but I am also immunocompromised. I did not generate an antibody response to 3 full vaccine doses, and one of my kids is under 5. We will still be masking for now, including our kids (FCC is yellow on the CDC map). Hopefully all goes well and rates continue to decline, and our family can ramp down soon.

Immunocompromised PP.

I’m really sorry you body didn’t make antibodies; how frustrating!

I don’t mean to imply my experience is the same as every immuncompromised person.

I am, however, tried of feeling like a political prop often.

Not PP, but I am also immunocompromised. I did not generate an antibody response to 3 full vaccine doses, and one of my kids is under 5. We will still be masking for now, including our kids (FCC is yellow on the CDC map). Hopefully all goes well and rates continue to decline, and our family can ramp down soon.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We are still masking for the foreseeable future.

I tried talking to my kid this morning about treating everyone with the same kindness at school whether they were wearing a mask or not and he was legitimately offended, saying that people who were not wearing masks were failing to take care of the people in the community who had lower immunity levels or at risk people at home, and I said we would have to continue the conversation this evening (because, though I didn't say it, he wasn't really wrong and I don't know a great response to this argument).

Similar. We’re struggling with language that won’t add to any conflict/confusion at school. If you come up with something, would love to hear it. Ours is in 1st.

So you have filled your young child's head with judgmental and sanctimonious thoughts and now you're wondering what to say to them next to undo this.

Excellent parenting.

On the off chance you are serious, I would say to them that the scientists have said it's safe to unmask but some people may choose not to because of situations in their family or with their own health. The end.

And stop putting your agenda on your young child. It's so gross.

That's not really correct, though. People have been masking to protect everyone who is at risk, not just people in their own family or themselves. So you're not correctly addressing the issue. Maybe you can fudge things and say that CDC has said that transmission levels are low enough now that it is safer not to mask now than it was before. But the risk you are averting is spreading the disease generally in the community, and is not limited to one's own family or oneself.

You can explain first that at risk people have always been at risk from viruses around us. And will continue to be going forward. Those at risk people have a lot of tools at their disposal to help mitigate their risk that they didn't have a the beginning of the pandemic. And the grown ups have decided that children in the aggregate should no longer be the sole group shouldering the burden of trying to protect at risk adults.

When vaccine are available for all age groups, and when treatment is available for all age groups, then I'll agree with you.

New straw man. K-12 must keep wearing masks until 0-5 has a vaccine is your position? But the concerts, bars, and restaurants filled with unmasked adults are ok. Just our kids need to keep wearing them to keep your under 5 safe.

It's disingenuous for you to claim everyone at risk has access to vaccines and treatment when that isn't the case. My family doesn't go to concerts, bars, restaurants, or other indoor places where people are unmasked. We don't go to church. Surely you see how those are different than public schools. My kids do go to public school. Virtual wasn't a good option for many of the reasons other parents have noted. I do agree kids with legit issues wearing masks shouldn't have to wear masks (as parents with artistic chidden have detailed here).

You forced child maskers are done then. Debate is settled. Mask for the rest of your life, and hopefully your mental illness and inability to assess risk never affects the rest of us again.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We are still masking for the foreseeable future.

I tried talking to my kid this morning about treating everyone with the same kindness at school whether they were wearing a mask or not and he was legitimately offended, saying that people who were not wearing masks were failing to take care of the people in the community who had lower immunity levels or at risk people at home, and I said we would have to continue the conversation this evening (because, though I didn't say it, he wasn't really wrong and I don't know a great response to this argument).

Similar. We’re struggling with language that won’t add to any conflict/confusion at school. If you come up with something, would love to hear it. Ours is in 1st.

So you have filled your young child's head with judgmental and sanctimonious thoughts and now you're wondering what to say to them next to undo this.

Excellent parenting.

On the off chance you are serious, I would say to them that the scientists have said it's safe to unmask but some people may choose not to because of situations in their family or with their own health. The end.

And stop putting your agenda on your young child. It's so gross.

That's not really correct, though. People have been masking to protect everyone who is at risk, not just people in their own family or themselves. So you're not correctly addressing the issue. Maybe you can fudge things and say that CDC has said that transmission levels are low enough now that it is safer not to mask now than it was before. But the risk you are averting is spreading the disease generally in the community, and is not limited to one's own family or oneself.

You can explain first that at risk people have always been at risk from viruses around us. And will continue to be going forward. Those at risk people have a lot of tools at their disposal to help mitigate their risk that they didn't have a the beginning of the pandemic. And the grown ups have decided that children in the aggregate should no longer be the sole group shouldering the burden of trying to protect at risk adults.

When vaccine are available for all age groups, and when treatment is available for all age groups, then I'll agree with you.

New straw man. K-12 must keep wearing masks until 0-5 has a vaccine is your position? But the concerts, bars, and restaurants filled with unmasked adults are ok. Just our kids need to keep wearing them to keep your under 5 safe.

+1. Why is it only kids in school that are the target here?

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We are still masking for the foreseeable future.

I tried talking to my kid this morning about treating everyone with the same kindness at school whether they were wearing a mask or not and he was legitimately offended, saying that people who were not wearing masks were failing to take care of the people in the community who had lower immunity levels or at risk people at home, and I said we would have to continue the conversation this evening (because, though I didn't say it, he wasn't really wrong and I don't know a great response to this argument).

Similar. We’re struggling with language that won’t add to any conflict/confusion at school. If you come up with something, would love to hear it. Ours is in 1st.

So you have filled your young child's head with judgmental and sanctimonious thoughts and now you're wondering what to say to them next to undo this.

Excellent parenting.

On the off chance you are serious, I would say to them that the scientists have said it's safe to unmask but some people may choose not to because of situations in their family or with their own health. The end.

And stop putting your agenda on your young child. It's so gross.

That's not really correct, though. People have been masking to protect everyone who is at risk, not just people in their own family or themselves. So you're not correctly addressing the issue. Maybe you can fudge things and say that CDC has said that transmission levels are low enough now that it is safer not to mask now than it was before. But the risk you are averting is spreading the disease generally in the community, and is not limited to one's own family or oneself.

You can explain first that at risk people have always been at risk from viruses around us. And will continue to be going forward. Those at risk people have a lot of tools at their disposal to help mitigate their risk that they didn't have a the beginning of the pandemic. And the grown ups have decided that children in the aggregate should no longer be the sole group shouldering the burden of trying to protect at risk adults.

When vaccine are available for all age groups, and when treatment is available for all age groups, then I'll agree with you.

New straw man. K-12 must keep wearing masks until 0-5 has a vaccine is your position? But the concerts, bars, and restaurants filled with unmasked adults are ok. Just our kids need to keep wearing them to keep your under 5 safe.

It's disingenuous for you to claim everyone at risk has access to vaccines and treatment when that isn't the case. My family doesn't go to concerts, bars, restaurants, or other indoor places where people are unmasked. We don't go to church. Surely you see how those are different than public schools. My kids do go to public school. Virtual wasn't a good option for many of the reasons other parents have noted. I do agree kids with legit issues wearing masks shouldn't have to wear masks (as parents with artistic chidden have detailed here).

Anonymous wrote:I'm not sure the anti maskers in here are really going to be able to provide reasonable responses to this question that aren't full of propaganda that folks like me who believe in mask safety reject. Which is too bad, because I'm trying to help you here, really, and prevent my kid from seeing your kids as callous and unconcerned about people who are immunocompromised.

I've also thought about saying that you shouldn't necessarily fault a kid this age for following what their parents believe.

Thank you for your effort.

Anonymous wrote:The science has been clear that KN95 and N95 masks can reduce the dosage in a way that allows you to either escape infection or reduce the severity of the disease if you do get infected.

+♾

The CDC is responding to pressure. Covid isn’t finished with us.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I'm not sure the anti maskers in here are really going to be able to provide reasonable responses to this question that aren't full of propaganda that folks like me who believe in mask safety reject. Which is too bad, because I'm trying to help you here, really, and prevent my kid from seeing your kids as callous and unconcerned about people who are immunocompromised.

I've also thought about saying that you shouldn't necessarily fault a kid this age for following what their parents believe.

I’m not anti-mask. And guess what, I’m immunocompromised too. My family has masked during the entire pandemic.

I can’t wait for my kids to remove their masks at school!

My kids are vaccinated. I’ve now had four shots. I appreciate everyone feigning concern for my medical conditions, but it’s ok to let kids unmask.

(I am also VERY skeptical of all the rhetoric about people wanting to protect the immunocompromised. In some ways, I appreciate it. But, it often feels like a political TP anymore.)

Can I ask, are you going to take any different precautions after tomorrow? Just wondering what if any practical effect the dropping of the mask mandate will have on you. Not sure whether you have gotten covid and found it to be a non-event, etc.

Quite frankly, nothing.

Being immunocompromised isn’t just a COVID thing. I’ve had to worry about illnesses for many, many years. For example, I had the flu in 2019 (with the flu shot). I had an 105 fever for eight days and multiple secondary infections.

Being vaccinated and being around vaccinated people is the best path forward for me. I will continue to ask that people feeling sick stay away; I did this long before COVID and have had to ask many coworkers to go home from school when they are sick. (This is why I get VERY skeptical about immunocompromised language. It feels completely disingenuous.)

I’m also an economist, so I think about tradeoffs constantly. My kids need to be at school and learn freely. They need to experience better social cues from seeing someone’s face etc. Yes, there is a risk that I get sick, but after four vaccines, it would be incredibly unlikely that I die, which was my only concern during COVID. If I get sick for a week, so be it.

It’s the same as agreeing to become immunocompromised. It’s scary. But being able to walk, take care of myself, and experience life is well worth some risk. I literally can’t walk when not medicated. Give me a bad virus—that won’t kill me—every year to be able to walk.

So unmask my kids. It’s time.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I'm not sure the anti maskers in here are really going to be able to provide reasonable responses to this question that aren't full of propaganda that folks like me who believe in mask safety reject. Which is too bad, because I'm trying to help you here, really, and prevent my kid from seeing your kids as callous and unconcerned about people who are immunocompromised.

I've also thought about saying that you shouldn't necessarily fault a kid this age for following what their parents believe.

I’m not anti-mask. And guess what, I’m immunocompromised too. My family has masked during the entire pandemic.

I can’t wait for my kids to remove their masks at school!

My kids are vaccinated. I’ve now had four shots. I appreciate everyone feigning concern for my medical conditions, but it’s ok to let kids unmask.

(I am also VERY skeptical of all the rhetoric about people wanting to protect the immunocompromised. In some ways, I appreciate it. But, it often feels like a political TP anymore.)

Can I ask, are you going to take any different precautions after tomorrow? Just wondering what if any practical effect the dropping of the mask mandate will have on you. Not sure whether you have gotten covid and found it to be a non-event, etc.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We are still masking for the foreseeable future.

I tried talking to my kid this morning about treating everyone with the same kindness at school whether they were wearing a mask or not and he was legitimately offended, saying that people who were not wearing masks were failing to take care of the people in the community who had lower immunity levels or at risk people at home, and I said we would have to continue the conversation this evening (because, though I didn't say it, he wasn't really wrong and I don't know a great response to this argument).

Similar. We’re struggling with language that won’t add to any conflict/confusion at school. If you come up with something, would love to hear it. Ours is in 1st.

So you have filled your young child's head with judgmental and sanctimonious thoughts and now you're wondering what to say to them next to undo this.

Excellent parenting.

On the off chance you are serious, I would say to them that the scientists have said it's safe to unmask but some people may choose not to because of situations in their family or with their own health. The end.

And stop putting your agenda on your young child. It's so gross.

That's not really correct, though. People have been masking to protect everyone who is at risk, not just people in their own family or themselves. So you're not correctly addressing the issue. Maybe you can fudge things and say that CDC has said that transmission levels are low enough now that it is safer not to mask now than it was before. But the risk you are averting is spreading the disease generally in the community, and is not limited to one's own family or oneself.

You can explain first that at risk people have always been at risk from viruses around us. And will continue to be going forward. Those at risk people have a lot of tools at their disposal to help mitigate their risk that they didn't have a the beginning of the pandemic. And the grown ups have decided that children in the aggregate should no longer be the sole group shouldering the burden of trying to protect at risk adults.

When vaccine are available for all age groups, and when treatment is available for all age groups, then I'll agree with you.

New straw man. K-12 must keep wearing masks until 0-5 has a vaccine is your position? But the concerts, bars, and restaurants filled with unmasked adults are ok. Just our kids need to keep wearing them to keep your under 5 safe.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We are still masking for the foreseeable future.

I tried talking to my kid this morning about treating everyone with the same kindness at school whether they were wearing a mask or not and he was legitimately offended, saying that people who were not wearing masks were failing to take care of the people in the community who had lower immunity levels or at risk people at home, and I said we would have to continue the conversation this evening (because, though I didn't say it, he wasn't really wrong and I don't know a great response to this argument).

Similar. We’re struggling with language that won’t add to any conflict/confusion at school. If you come up with something, would love to hear it. Ours is in 1st.

So you have filled your young child's head with judgmental and sanctimonious thoughts and now you're wondering what to say to them next to undo this.

Excellent parenting.

On the off chance you are serious, I would say to them that the scientists have said it's safe to unmask but some people may choose not to because of situations in their family or with their own health. The end.

And stop putting your agenda on your young child. It's so gross.

That's not really correct, though. People have been masking to protect everyone who is at risk, not just people in their own family or themselves. So you're not correctly addressing the issue. Maybe you can fudge things and say that CDC has said that transmission levels are low enough now that it is safer not to mask now than it was before. But the risk you are averting is spreading the disease generally in the community, and is not limited to one's own family or oneself.

You can explain first that at risk people have always been at risk from viruses around us. And will continue to be going forward. Those at risk people have a lot of tools at their disposal to help mitigate their risk that they didn't have a the beginning of the pandemic. And the grown ups have decided that children in the aggregate should no longer be the sole group shouldering the burden of trying to protect at risk adults.

When vaccine are available for all age groups, and when treatment is available for all age groups, then I'll agree with you.

Anonymous wrote:I'm not sure the anti maskers in here are really going to be able to provide reasonable responses to this question that aren't full of propaganda that folks like me who believe in mask safety reject. Which is too bad, because I'm trying to help you here, really, and prevent my kid from seeing your kids as callous and unconcerned about people who are immunocompromised.

I've also thought about saying that you shouldn't necessarily fault a kid this age for following what their parents believe.

I’m not anti-mask. And guess what, I’m immunocompromised too. My family has masked during the entire pandemic.

I can’t wait for my kids to remove their masks at school!

My kids are vaccinated. I’ve now had four shots. I appreciate everyone feigning concern for my medical conditions, but it’s ok to let kids unmask.

(I am also VERY skeptical of all the rhetoric about people wanting to protect the immunocompromised. In some ways, I appreciate it. But, it often feels like a political TP anymore.)

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We are still masking for the foreseeable future.

I tried talking to my kid this morning about treating everyone with the same kindness at school whether they were wearing a mask or not and he was legitimately offended, saying that people who were not wearing masks were failing to take care of the people in the community who had lower immunity levels or at risk people at home, and I said we would have to continue the conversation this evening (because, though I didn't say it, he wasn't really wrong and I don't know a great response to this argument).

Similar. We’re struggling with language that won’t add to any conflict/confusion at school. If you come up with something, would love to hear it. Ours is in 1st.

So you have filled your young child's head with judgmental and sanctimonious thoughts and now you're wondering what to say to them next to undo this.

Excellent parenting.

On the off chance you are serious, I would say to them that the scientists have said it's safe to unmask but some people may choose not to because of situations in their family or with their own health. The end.

And stop putting your agenda on your young child. It's so gross.

That's not really correct, though. People have been masking to protect everyone who is at risk, not just people in their own family or themselves. So you're not correctly addressing the issue. Maybe you can fudge things and say that CDC has said that transmission levels are low enough now that it is safer not to mask now than it was before. But the risk you are averting is spreading the disease generally in the community, and is not limited to one's own family or oneself.

You can explain first that at risk people have always been at risk from viruses around us. And will continue to be going forward. Those at risk people have a lot of tools at their disposal to help mitigate their risk that they didn't have a the beginning of the pandemic. And the grown ups have decided that children in the aggregate should no longer be the sole group shouldering the burden of trying to protect at risk adults.