Health & Safety Guidelines

This year we are forming a special COVID-19 Response Team and Joint Health and Safety Committee (JHSC) who will be supporting and implementing the new COVID-19 procedures and policies. We have taken guidance from MAC Institution Department, Public Health and the Ministry of Education and developed the following plan to support the health and safety of our staff and students. We will be providing training to each staff member in these procedures prior to the start of the new school year.

Student screening and self-assessment

• Prior to the start of the school year, the parent/guardian of each student will be required to acknowledge the following requirements using this form

• Students will not be allowed to attend school until the acknowledge form is completed

• Students will be completing a daily self-assessment before arriving at school

• A second screening will be done by the teacher as students enter the classrooms by taking their temperature

• Students will be staying home when feeling unwell

• Seeking COVID-19 Testing when exhibiting symptoms

• In the absence of a test, student needs to self-isolate for 14 days and be symptom free for 24 hours before returning to school.

Improved hygiene measures

• Hand sanitizers will be placed at all designated entrances and exits for staff and student use

• Sinks will be installed in each classroom from JK-Grade 2. All classrooms without sinks will be supplied with hand sanitizers

• Regular hand hygiene breaks will be given to the students throughout the day

• Staff will be required to wear medical masks and eye protection which will be provided to them

• All drinking fountain faucets will be disabled. Only water bottle filling fixtures will be functional and will be flushed daily

• Students are encouraged to bring their own water bottles

• Students will be required to take all their belongings home at the end of the day as they will not be assigned lockers

• Tissues will be available for students. Students can bring their own box of tissues for personal use

Face Masks/Coverings

• Students from Gr 1-11 are required to wear non-medical or cloth masks inside the school, including hallways and during classes

• Students in Kindergarten will be encouraged but not required to wear masks while indoors

• Outdoor times like recess will be used as opportunities to provide students with breaks from wearing masks within their cohorts (The mask can be lowered away from the mouth toward the neck area, but should not be removed)

• Face shields are not a replacement for masks

• Points to remember:

1. Each student's mask should be clearly labelled with their name and additional masks should be stored in the backpack or locker as a backup

2. With parents understanding the risk, students may be granted an exemption from wearing a mask, and may be required to wear face shield instead, for reasons related to a medical condition, mental health, sensory, breathing difficulties or other reasons deemed reasonable by the school administration (Principal or V.P)

3. School-aged children and youth who are not able to remove their non-medical mask without assistance should not wear a non-medical mask due to safety concerns

4. A non-medical mask is not a replacement for proven infection control methods such as hand hygiene, respiratory hygiene, physical distancing

5. Parents are asked to encourage their child(ren) to practice wearing masks and learn what type of mask is most comfortable for them

6. Students are responsible for the safe use, cleanliness and disposal of their non-medical mask/cloth mask/face covering. Please reinforce this behaviour at home

Physical Distancing

• Maximized physical distance of chairs and tables/desks in each classroom

• Signage will be posted throughout the facilities to allow traffic flow in single directions

• Staggered student/staff lunch/break times

• Social distancing will be strictly practiced during arrival and dismissal times

• Desk barriers will be used for each student in school from JK-Grade 5 and provided to students at OGMS & OGHS at the request of the parents

• Students will be moving in cohorts

• Shared Chromebooks will be used by only one class per day and will be sanitized at the end of each day

Enhanced cleaning protocols

• Cleaning and disinfecting of all commonly used surfaces, materials, equipment as well as physical spaces will be done regularly

• Restrooms will be monitored and cleaned more frequently throughout the day

• Spray bottles to disinfect, gloves and paper towels will be made available to staff to wipe down all surfaces, devices and equipment in the classrooms

• In the event of any staff/student exhibiting symptoms, the room/space will be closed temporarily to allow a thorough cleaning and disinfecting

• Deep cleaning and disinfection protocol will be implemented on a daily basis at the end of the school day and on the weekends, including Chromebooks

Student Cohorts

• The purpose of cohorting is to limit the mixing of students, so that if a child or employee develops infection, the number of exposures would be reduced

• Elementary students will begin the year in full return and will be assigned to a single class cohort, as per regular class sizes

• Lunch/breaks will be with cohorts

• Parents should not request elementary class changes given the logistics of pre planning for cohort groupings to support student safety

• For OGS, cohorted classes will be made of approximately 22 students, and will stay together (e.g., lunch in classroom, outside together) and with one teacher, where possible. Specialized teachers, like Quran/Arabic and French teachers, will still be able to go into classrooms to provide the full breadth of programming for students

• For OGMS, cohorted classes will be made of approximately 22 students and will stay together (e.g., lunch in the classroom, outside together). Specialized teachers, like Quran, Arabic, Islamic Studies, Rotary and French teachers, will still be able to go into classrooms to provide the full breadth of programming for students

• For OGHS, cohorted onsite classes will be made of approximately 15 students. Grade 9 and 10 will remain in one cohort for the full day (based on their elective chosen). Grade 11 students will be in 3 or 4 periods together (based on electives)

• For OGHS, students will remain in their own classrooms for the duration of the day. However, females may leave OGHS during the lunch break on Mondays and Wednesdays each week and alternate Fridays. Males may leave OGHS property for lunch on Tuesdays 9and Thursdays and alternating Fridays

• To the extent possible within the cohort, students are to avoid prolonged close contact by maintaining physical distancing from other students and the educator(s)

• All students will remain in the same classroom, whenever possible, with their assigned cohort; staff will move to classrooms, with the exception of students who may be provided support services

Environmental Conditions and Air Flow

• Air circulated via mechanical ventilation systems is continuously replenished with fresh air

• Maintenance and regular changing of filters in all Heating, Ventilation and Air Conditioning (HVAC) systems, including replacement of all system filters occurs 6 times a year

Plans of Care

• All students with pre-existing medical conditions are required to have their Plan of Care reviewed annually as some may be impacted more significantly and may require changes to their plan of care.

• Parents are expected to consult their child's Health Care Practitioner to discuss any additional risk that the child may be facing.

• Parents are expected to notify the office of any changes to your child's existing Plan of Care

In case of a student exhibiting possible COVID-19 symptoms

Presenting symptoms before coming to school:

If a child exhibits COVID-19 symptoms and/or does not pass the self-assessment, they must:

• Remain at home

• Parent must report the absence via SchoolMessenger with the reason "Illness/COVID related" or call the main office

• Seek COVID-19 test and follow orders from Public Health

• In the absence of a COVID-19 test, it is required for the student/staff to self-isolate for 14 days and must be symptom free for 24 hours prior to returning to school

• Alternatively, the parent can seek documentation from the primary health care provider confirming that the illness is not COVID-19 related and may return to school once symptom free

Presenting symptoms at school:

The following measures will be taken if a student exhibits symptoms in school:

• A "What to do if you feel unwell at school" poster will be located in each classroom

• Each building at OGC will designate a separate space for student isolation should they present with symptoms while they are at school

• Parents will be notified and the student will be required to be picked up immediately

• Close contacts of the student who are at OGC must also be picked up and monitored for symptoms

• Parents must avoid public transportation while picking up the child in order to prevent any spread

• Follow the COVID-19 testing process as discussed earlier prior to returning to school

Care Space

• A space has been designated as a Care Space where students who are not feeling well during the school day and are exhibiting COVID-19 related symptoms will be isolated until they can be picked up by their parents

• For staff attending to a student with COVID-19 symptoms, the following PPE will be available to enter in the isolation room:

  1. Alcohol-based hand sanitizer

  2. Disposable gloves

  3. Medical grade mask,

  4. Face shield

  5. Gown/apron

  6. Tissues

Travel restrictions and reporting

• Students and staff will be required to quarantine for 14 days when they travel outside the country before they can join classes on-site

• Please perform a daily self-assessment before bringing your child to school

• Please keep your child at home if they are sick

• Please follow preventative measures like physical distancing, hand and respiratory hygiene etc to prevent the spread

• Please label all personal items

• Parents will not be allowed to enter the building and will required to drop off essential items on a designated table outside the main doors for both buildings

• Please remind your children not to share personal items and discourage them from bringing non essential items

• Use of lockers will be limited so students are required to take all their belongings back home at the end of the day