To the extent possible, all adults and students should wear a mask while at school. When under six feet of physical distance, masks MUST be worn.
Masks shall be worn:
ENTERING AND EXITING THE SCHOOL CAMPUS
ON SCHOOL BUSES
DURING CAMPUS TRANSITIONS (e.g., moving from class to class, to an office, the library, cafeteria or locker room
IN THE CAFETERIA
IN THE CLASSROOM
When facial features need to be seen by teachers or students to support learning or an activity, face shields in place of masks may be worn.
Students may need temporary breaks from wearing masks. If a 6-foot distance is maintained, masks may be removed for temporary periods of times.
If students are seated less than 6-feet apart, seats must face the same direction, students should remain in their seats and wearing a mask is required.
Students should maintain at least 6-feet of distance during group activities such as choir, band and physical education where students may not be wearing a mask.
Masks should not be worn during recess. Classes should remain in their Ohana Bubble when at recess and maintain 6-feet of distancing as much as possible.
Wearing a face shield is not necessary for an adult unless working in a special setting such as the health room or interacting with students who have special needs where there is a higher risk of coming into contact with body fluids or respiratory droplets. A face shield should be worn with a face mask for maximum protection.
Exceptions for face coverings/masks apply to those for whom it is not safe to do so due to age, medical condition or other considerations.
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Do students have to wear a mask the entire time at school? If so, will the children be given breathing breaks so that they can take off their mask?
See above for the school's mask wearing requirements.
More information on Cloth Face Coverings for Children During COVID-19 can be found at the American Academy of Pediatrics website.
What health and safety measures the school has in place when children are able to return to learn in person?
The school has taken many precautionary measures. All the walkways are marked with directional arrows and markers on the ground to indicate 6-feet spacing. There are hand sanitizers and soap dispensers in front of every common area. Only one student will be allowed to use the restroom at a time. Recess will be split between classrooms so that only 30 or so students should be out playing in the same area at the same time. Lunch times have also been staggered to minimize the amount of students in the cafeteria at one time. The school has purchased desk shields for each desk on campus and extra disposable face masks in case students loose their mask. All students and faculty staff members are required to wear a face mask while on campus and the school will be providing each student a lanyard that they can attach their face mask to reduce the likelihood of losing the mask. School staff will clean high touch areas frequently and classrooms will be cleaned daily.
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What is the procedure if a child/family/teacher/staff member at Nu‘uanu Elementary school is positively diagnosed with COVID-19? Or is suspected of having COVID-19?
If the child has any symptoms, the school will call the parents to pick up the child immediately. There is an isolated area in the health aide where the student will be placed until they are picked up. If the child or family member has been diagnosed with COVID-19, the school will contact the Complex Areas Superintendent (CAS) who will notify the state COVID response team which includes the state department of health (DOH). Together they will follow all procedures and protocols as directed by the DOH including contact tracing, cordoning off rooms or areas of school, etc.
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Will students’ temperature be taken daily?
We will try our best to take the temperatures of all students, however it may not be possible daily. We ask that parents do their part to ensure that students are not sent to school if they have a temperature of 100.4% or higher, have a sore throat or other signs of illness such as a cough, diarrhea, severe headache, vomiting or body aches, or have been in contact to a COVID-19 case.
Schools are not allowed to take the temperature of teachers per HSTA contract on privacy.
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How will families be notified of any emergency situation, such as a case of COVID-19 on campus?
See above. The final words will come from the DOH and DOE regarding any emergency situation or need to close parts or all of the school.
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What are the expectations of the child during school regarding safety?
Students are expected to listen to their teacher and other adults on campus. The key will be distancing and not touching others. Adults will be there to remind them.
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Are teachers going to go over these expectations with the child on the first few days of school?
Yes.
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Will students be allowed to play on the playgrounds?
Yes, but no contact sports or sharing of equipment.
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What will the students do for recess and breaks to allow social interaction but physical distancing?
This will be up to the students. We can only remind them of distancing themselves from others. We anticipate most students will walk around or sit with their friends talking. In the past I’ve seen this more often than students playing in large numbers.
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Will parents be allowed on campus? (i.e. out of cars at pick up/drop off, lunch with students, volunteer on campus for things like ‘Aina in the School, drop off students to classroom door, etc.)
We will be limiting the number of parents on campus. Parents are always allowed to drop off materials and lunches for their child but will need to leave it in the office and we will take it to the classroom. Until further notice there will be no ‘Aina in Schools or parent volunteers for kindergarten students.
What are the sanitation and safety procedures for the school as a whole, classrooms and common areas?
Custodians have had training so will be cleaning all high touch areas frequently. The school purchased a spraying system to use in the classrooms and other areas. Per DOH/DOE directives all high touch areas, doorknobs, rails, drinking fountains (sides and not spouts), and sinks will be wiped down several times per day by the custodial staff. Cafeteria tables will be wiped down after each classroom use by custodial staff.
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How frequently will the classrooms be cleaned?
Daily. In addition, all classrooms will be completely sprayed every two to three days. We need to be cautious in the frequency of doing this as some students might have an allergic reaction to the chemicals being used. The spraying system is similar to what you see the airlines are doing to the interior of their planes.
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Will the school be providing sanitation supplies to the classrooms?
Yes.
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Will the school be hiring more staff to take on these roles or will the burden be placed on existing staff?
We cannot hire more staff as our budget has been reduced. However, currently we do have adequate staffing but some will do multiple roles and duties. Of course when the school year starts issues may come up so we will address them at that time. No one will be assigned duties they are not qualified to do.
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How will paperwork be sanitized prior to being distributed?
As much as possible there will be extremely limited paperwork distributed. School will email most information and forms to the families. If we need the forms back then, hopefully, families are able to print out the forms and submitting back to the school later.
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For classes with A/C, will they keep the windows open to ventilate classes? Will A/Cs be allowed to be used?
This will be up to the classroom teacher. There is conflicting information on this topic as I’ve read articles saying to use the A/C with doors closed and others saying not to use it unless really necessary and to leave the door slightly open for fresh air circulation.
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Will water fountains be disabled?
No. We recommend students bring a flask or bottle that they can refill with water from the fountains. We do not recommend drinking directly from the spout.
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What if the child loses his/her water bottle?
This happens all too often. Simply write in indelible ink the child’s name and room number so we can return the flask when we find it.
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Will the students be allowed to keep their water bottle at their desk?
Yes.