What you need to know about the return to 5-day learning

April 2, 2021

NOTE: This article was updated on April 27 to include the latest information.

On Monday, April 26, our schools returned to full five-day in-person learning. This was made possible through an immense effort by all our dedicated staff, teachers and administrators who worked tirelessly over the last several weeks to prepare for the third learning model we’ve launched this year.

To celebrate the return of our students, we put together this brief video:

To make the transition a smooth one, please review the information below to make sure you’re up to date on the latest details.

Transportation

The latest information on bus route schedules is posted to the district website, and updated regularly if any changes are made. Please note, the district is following Department of Health guidance for COVID safety on the buses, including cleaning between runs and leaving windows open when the weather allows. Guidance for seating on the bus is to have siblings sit together and provide as much distance between unrelated students as possible. Students are asked to sit in the same seat each day for contact tracing purposes.

We are still in need of bus drivers. If you know someone who might be interested in a part-time job, please let them know about the need for bus drivers. More information is online at sticareers.com. 

Students who are driven to school should be dropped off no earlier than 15 minutes before first period. 

Schedules

Wednesdays will be an early release day for staff professional development. Schools will begin at regular time on Wednesday but get out one hour early. The start and end times for in-person learning will be

• High school – 7:55 a.m.–1:55 p.m. (Wednesday 7:55 a.m.–12:55 p.m.)
• Middle school – 8:10 a.m.–2:10 p.m. (Wednesday 8:10 a.m.–1:10 p.m.)
• Primary school – 9:40 a.m.–3:40 p.m. (Wednesday 9:40 a.m.–2:40 p.m.)
• Summit View High School will continue with its current session schedule.
• CAM Academy- 8:00 a.m–2:00 p.m. (Wednesday at-home learning day)

You may notice that the days are 30 minutes shorter than they have been in past years. We have set aside this time so that teachers can respond to and support students and families.

Middle and high school remote learning

• Remote middle and high school students are expected to follow the in-person bell schedule and participate in classes via Zoom. Some classes will be taught simultaneously to remote and in-person students. Attendance will be taken during class and in Zooms. Students should take care to adjust work schedules so that they are able to attend all of their classes on the new schedule:
  • High school – 7:55 a.m.–1:55 p.m. (Wednesday 7:55 a.m.–12:55 p.m.)
  • Middle school – 8:10 a.m.–2:10 p.m. (Wednesday 8:10 a.m.–1:10 p.m.)
• Remote middle school students will have specialist time.
• Remote learning in middle and high schools might require more self-directed and independent work. 
• Students will continue to complete work assigned in Google Classroom and on other platforms. 
• There will be fewer opportunities for teacher interaction while educators are teaching students in the classroom. Teachers will have a brief window at the end of the day to answer questions from remote learners.

Primary remote learning

In the primary grades, remote learning and screen time will be age appropriate. Besides their teachers, specialists also will Zoom with remote primary students.

• Specialist classes will be taught to remote students 9:10–9:50 a.m.

Meals

Students will eat breakfast and lunch in the cafeteria or other common spaces such as gymnasiums or outdoors. If parents choose, students can get a free and nutritious breakfast and lunch provided through the USDA Meals Program.

Curbside pickup times have changed. Visit the Meals page for information on meals.

Health and Safety

The school district will follow all state and local guidance for having in-person school, including physical distancing requirements, wearing masks (except under special circumstances such as a developmental or health diagnosis), and frequent handwashing. While physical distance requirements between students have been reduced to 3 feet in the classroom, the district is still required to maintain 6 feet of distance between students and adults and between students in common areas and during certain activities such as eating, performing arts and physical education. 

The district is following all COVID-19 cleaning guidelines set forth by the state Department of Health, and has allocated resources to place a nurse on special assignment who is dedicated to contact tracing. Even though the physical distancing requirements between students has changed to three feet in classrooms, we are still obligated to contact trace to six feet for close contacts of positive cases.

Attestation

With the number of students attending our schools each day more than doubling, the district has eliminated daily temperature checks as part of the attestation process. To date, the district has had no instances in which a COVID-19 case was identified through the use of temperature checks. Parents will still be asked to provide a daily attestation of their student’s health, and the district remains committed to robust contact tracing efforts that have proven effective in limiting the spread of cases in schools.

Please use the Qualtrics app to attest to your child’s health every day so that schools can get class started on time.

Illness

It is important now more than ever for families to keep sick children at home. Children who develop COVID-19 symptoms at school will be isolated until a parent or guardian can pick them up.

What do I do if my child has COVID-19 symptoms?

1. Contact your healthcare provider.
2. Report the symptom(s) to and follow up with your school nurse or principal.
3. Refer to the COVID-19 Student Screening Flow Chart, also in Spanish: Diagrama de Sintomas de COVID-19 para Estudiantes and Russian: Таблица симптомов COVID-19 у учащихся.

Flexibility

The trade off of being in the classroom is that classes may need to temporarily flip back to remote learning when there is a COVID-19 exposure at school. Students will also be expected to comply with health and safety requirements. Please understand that the implementation of these health and safety protocols will help keep everyone safe and prevent the spread of the coronavirus.

Thank you for your patience this year!
Battle Ground Public Schools