Maintaining Physical Distance
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Guidance on helping students and staff maintain physical distance to minimize the transmission of COVID-19

Maintaining distance between people reduces the risk of exposure to COVID-19. School spaces will need to be reconfigured and repurposed so students and staff can maintain a safe distance from each other.

We suggest that the aim is to maintain a distance of at least three feet between K-8 students and at least six feet between high school students as much as possible. Teachers and adult staff members should maintain a distance of six feet from other individuals. Distance and risk of transmission is a continuum — more distance is associated with reduced transmission. Six feet of distance is particularly important when eating, given that masks will be temporarily removed.

In the Classroom

  • Aim to space desks and seats at least three feet apart in K-8 classrooms and at least six feet apart in high school classrooms. Desks should face the same way. If tables are necessary, seat students on one side of the table.
  • Assign stable seating arrangements to facilitate contact tracing if necessary.
  • Measure classrooms and determine class size capacity.
  • Determine if there are other school spaces (i.e. breakout rooms, gyms, cafeterias, auditoriums, or portable classrooms) that could be used as temporary classrooms.
    • Aim to limit capacity to 25 people (including both students and teachers) even if a larger space would allow for more people distanced at 3 feet or 6 feet, assuming full floor to ceiling walls cannot be installed.
  • Move classes outdoors if possible (while maintaining physical distancing).
  • Clearly label pathways for classroom movement on the floor with tape or signs.
  • Create an area for the teacher to move and conduct instruction and mark this area as a student-free zone.

During Meals

  • Avoid having large groups in the cafeteria by eating meals in the classroom or outside.
    • If eating outside, create a backup plan for inclement weather.
  • Collaborate with cafeteria staff and/or food vendors about pre-packaging meals/box lunches if possible.
    • Continue to allow students to bring their meals and utensils from home.
  • Use disposable food service items.
  • Designate helpers to retrieve lunches from the cafeteria and bring them to classrooms.
    • For younger grades, helpers can be staff members. For older grades, students could assist.
  • Develop a process for cleaning the classroom before and after meals.
    • Have students clean their desks before and after eating.
    • Provide classrooms with large trash bags. Establish a schedule for trash to be picked up by custodial staff.
  • Establish hand-washing procedures before and after meals.

During Extracurricular Activities

  • Evaluate before- and after-school programs for space and feasibility within CDC and state guidelines.
    • Assess safety of restarting school sports.
    • Determine whether certain clubs can be conducted virtually.
  • Hold physical education classes outdoors if possible, playing in small groups.
    • Change lesson plans to avoid close contact and shared equipment.
    • Limit use of locker rooms.
  • Move band and chorus outside if possible and increase space between the performers.
    • Discourage sharing of music stands.
  • Modify or cancel classes and extracurriculars where large numbers of students will be in close contact (e.g. string orchestra, student government meetings) and/or will be engaged in activities that result in excessive aerosol production (e.g. band with woodwind or brass instruments, chorus).

During Arrival & Dismissal

  • Stagger drop-off and pick-up times and location by student cohorts
    • Staggering could be done by grade, class, or bus number/neighborhood (if all but the latter, will require exemptions of plans for siblings or students in different classes arriving/leaving together).
    • This may require extending the school day.
  • Identify separate entrances and exits for different groups of students.
  • Communicate schedule to families.
  • If students are required to wait outside, designate and clearly mark safe locations for physically distanced waiting. Ensure adequate shade.
  • Consider scheduling before- and after-school extracurriculars to aid in staggering arrival and dismissal.

On Buses

  • Assign seats on the bus with vacant seats marked.
  • Employ bus aides (paid or volunteers) to ensure students are complying with distancing and masking.
  • Determine whether additional buses/trips/routes are necessary to accommodate distancing.
  • Stagger bus arrival and drop-off times and locations.
  • Encourage walking, biking, or personal transportation to reduce the number of bus riders.
    • Consider adding additional crossing guards and bike racks to promote walking and biking.

Before you begin, here are some reflection points to review as a team:

In the Classroom

  • Are there other spaces in the community that could be used as temporary classrooms?
  • What space will be reserved for teachers to use as a break room?

During Meals

  • If students eat in classrooms, can we provide an allergy-free area?
  • Is there a way to instate contactless payments at school, or pay ahead for meals online?

During Extracurricular Activities

  • Which sports can occur in each season? Consider whether they are indoor/outdoor, how much contact is required, how large the group is, and if a mask could be worn during play.
    • Contact sport competitions cannot be resumed, but training and drills can still occur if distancing is maintained (soccer, football, field hockey, etc.)
    • No or limited contact sports (cross-country, track and field, golf, etc.) can resume competitions with proper distancing, masking, and hygiene.
    • Indoor sports such as volleyball could be moved outside.
  • How will students travel to competitions?
  • For chorus and band: is there space to hold practice outside with appropriate distancing? Could we hold virtual practice together and encourage practice at home?

During Arrival & Dismissal

  • How many staff members will we need to oversee pick-up and drop-off?
  • For high schools, can we make extra parking spaces available for students if more students will be using personal vehicles?

On Buses

  • Based on input from parents/guardians, how many more people are opting to drive their students to and from school versus riding the bus? Adjust plans if there is a significant increase in families opting to drive their students.
  • Does the school and the district have the funds and personnel to add additional buses, trips, and routes and to hire bus aides?

Ideas to think about when planning:

  • Explore 5 ideas to modify your classroom from this EdSurge article titled “What Does Good Classroom Design Look Like in the Age of Social Distancing?”
  • Consider allowing specialist teachers to serve as additional core teachers.
  • Have classes pick lunch up by grade.
  • Have students line up at the start of the day using pool noodles as 6-foot guides.
  • Send a survey to families to see who can make alternative transportation arrangements.

Starting-point tools:

The following resources offer starting points for school leaders to think through scheduling, student groupings, and more. These comprise of practitioner toolkits and published guides to provide actionable next steps.

In the Classroom

During Meals

During Arrival & Dismissal

On Buses

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