Directional signage, less furniture and a lot of disinfectant await students in Saskatoon public and Catholic schools

Even before reporters were given access to St. Nicholas Catholic and Sylvia Fedoruk Public Schools in northeast Saskatoon, everyone was required to scan a code with their smartphone camera, and fill out their personal information for contact tracing purposes.

And everyone was required to wear a mask upon entering.

That will be the case for any guest visiting a Saskatoon public or catholic school this fall.

The two schools are virtual mirrors of one another; linked by a common hallway or passageway. Both had many similarities in their preparations for students when they return to class Sept. 7.

As soon as anyone entered either school, a sign asking guests to sanitize their hands greeted them, along with a table full of cleaning products and disposable masks.

Nearby, there was a wall dispenser chock full of Purell hand sanitizer.

In fact, the sanitizer and soap dispensers were everywhere. They’re inside classrooms, in hallways, bathrooms, common areas, etc.

At St. Nicholas, a cart full of green and black cloth masks awaited students. They’ll each get two. It’s not clear if students at Sylvia Fedoruk will get them as well.

Both schools have ready, sanitized isolation rooms equipped with a table or a desk, and a mat on the floor. Both rooms are also located in close proximity to the main entrances where parents or caregivers can pick up students who are ill or otherwise present with COVID-19 symptoms.

Directional signage and reminders to stay six feet apart in common areas are bright and highly visible, as are charts reminding everyone about proper handwashing techniques.

Bathrooms doors are to be kept open after use so they can be sanitized.

Classrooms themselves are sparse, other than housing desks. Catholic School Superintendent of Education Francois Rivard says a lot of unnecessary furniture has been taken out.

“Traditionally, you would see lots of ‘Stuff’ on top of cupboards in teachers’ classrooms, so that’s been removed. In lots of the collaboration spaces, you would see lots of furniture; especially soft furniture. And now, you can see that they’ve taken it out or…. placed it on the side where they’re not going to be used. So, the reduction of stuff has been large.”

However, with anywhere from 25 to 30 students per classroom, distancing desks two metres apart has not been possible. Instead, they’re about one metre apart, and all face forward.

“I think that’s one of the strategies is social distance and that’s one of our strategies,” said Rivard. “I think some of our students will be online, and that we’ve distanced our furniture apart from each other. And so, all of them together are different layers that support our students and our staff.”

As far as how teachers so far feel about the measures in place? Saskatoon Public School’s Deputy Director of Education Charlene Scrimshaw says many are waiting to see about what the next few weeks will bring.

“Our teachers who have been away from kids for a long time are looking forward to being back with children and families. And so, they’ve been very appreciative of all of the measures that we’ve taken right from the code that you have to use in order to enter the building to ensure that there are health checks on everybody. They’ve appreciated the visuals that are around in our schools.”

That also means in addition to their regular classes, learning new rules and new procedures unlike any they’ve experienced in school before.

As fall progresses into winter Scrimshaw is also confident that ventilation systems are up to code and will regularly bring fresh air in.

“I don’t think we’re as concerned about the cold weather and how that will be in the schools. We have the necessary systems in place and the right people taking care of those systems to ensure everything will be fine for our students, even in winter.”

She adds that in those classrooms where desks aren’t six feet apart, students in Grades 4 to 12 will have to wear masks.

“Pre-K to Grade 3 masks aren’t required,” she added.

Both Rivard and Scrimshaw say teachers and other staff have put weeks of effort into trying to ensure everyone stays as safe as possible.

Online Learning

While school “in-person” enrolment numbers won’t be available for several weeks still, Saskatoon Public Schools so far has about 3,000 students signed up for full-time online learning.

According to information from the division, as families make or change their decisions, they expect the numbers to fluctuate.

That’s why they generally wait until the end of September before submitting numbers to the Ministry of Education.

However, “intention forms” sent to families in August, showed at that point, about 80 per cent of families intended on sending their children to school versus keeping them at home.

The school division adds, there’s no ‘deadline’ to enrol in online learning.

Physical Education

As far as physical education, Saskatoon’s major school divisions are getting creative when rolling out the curriculum requirement this school year.

Both Greater Saskatoon Catholic Schools and Saskatoon Public Schools are encouraging physical education to take place outside as much as possible, especially when the weather is nice.

Francois Rivard, the superintendent of Greater Saskatoon Catholic Schools, said that isn’t just limited to fall, either.

“Oftentimes our students go outside during pre-COVID times as well,” he said. “(We’re) always encouraging the kids to go outside well dressed.”

Individual drills or activities will be stressed over team or group activities to ensure distancing is being applied as much as possible. There will also be limited shared use of equipment to go along with strict sanitizing and cleaning procedures. Students will also remain in their cohort for all gym classes.

“There’s been lots of work on the curriculum to make sure that teachers have ideas on different games and activities that are physically distant,” Rivard said. “Every aspect has been looked at.”

Games like “Follow the Leader” were provided as an example to keep gym class fun and active for younger students.

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