École laura secord school welcoming back our students
TRANSCRIPT
Welcome Back École Laura Secord School 2021-2022
All of us here are looking forward to seeing our students return to school and welcome anyone new to the Laura
Secord community. We are extremely excited about getting the new year started even though we will not be back
to 100% “normal” but near normal.
The 2021-2022 school year will continue to be faced with some challenges, but we, as a staff, are prepared to keep
all of us safe. The Province of Manitoba and the Winnipeg School Division have set guidelines, recommendations
and mandates to aid individual schools in our journeys to having all students return to class safely. These pieces of
information are available on the provincial website, the WSD website and our own Laura Secord website.
The following pages in this document were designed to clarify information, answer questions, and make you
aware that again, due to the changing COVID-19 conditions, this plan may also change and be updated to meet
those changing conditions.
Please feel free to contact the school with any questions not covered here, in the provincial or divisional
documents readily available on-line. We can be reached at 204-786-4796.
Table of Contents
Slide 4 Critical Roles of Families Slide 15 Learning and Mental Well-being
Slide 5 Cleaning, Readiness and Entry Slide 16 If My Child Demonstrates Illness
Slide 6 Children Arriving at School Slide 17 Dismissal-Student Pick Up
Slide 7 When Arriving at School Slide 18 Staff Email Contact Information
Slide 8 Assigned Doors Slide 19 Staff Email Contact Information
Slide 9 Cohorts and Clusters Slide 20 Staff Email Contact Information
Slide 10 Recess Slide 21 Helpful Links/Resources
Slide 11 Lunch Hour Slide 22 Closing Comments and Suggestions
Slide 12 Will Classrooms Look Different?
Slide 13 Walking in the School & Washrooms
Slide 14 Bussing
Critical Role of FamiliesCaregivers must continue to pre-screen their child/children each day before school to ensure they are not
exhibiting any COVID-19 symptoms. Any child/children who are showing any symptoms (including runny nose,
sneezing, coughing, etc.) must stay home.
Please see the information on the link for the screening tool:
https://www.gov.mb.ca/asset_library/en/coronavirus/covid19_screening_checklist.pdf
Note: All families should adhere to the regulations on this link. Self screening at home will benefit and expedite
school screening and expedite entry. Children will be screened by their classroom teachers each morning when
they meet outside in their designated locations.
Pack a water bottle, or two, especially on hot days or when Physical Education is scheduled. Water fountains
will not be operating until further notice.
Masks are mandatory for all students and staff, as well as any students riding the school bus. If you are
concerned, send your child with a second mask and a proper paper storage bag. Masks should be taken home
regularly for required cleaning. The school has been provided with masks should anyone require one.
As masks are required at all grades, as well as for the younger students that were not required to wear them last
year, please practice proper placement and removal of masks at home. Have your child/children practice wearing
a mask for periods of time at home, as this will help them get used to them for their days at school.
Cleaning, Readiness & Entry
The Province of Manitoba and the Winnipeg School Division have provided custodial staff with rigorous cleaning,
sanitizing and disinfecting regimens. They have targeted cleaning objectives throughout the day. Targeted areas
include, but not limited to high touch surface areas, common areas and washrooms.
The rigorous cleaning protocols apply every day the students are here, Monday to Friday, both during the day and
in the evenings as well.
At this time, the protection of our students is extremely important. We will be following provincial and WSD
guidelines of not over-crowding hallways and common areas and therefore, at this time, parents and caregivers
will remain outside and not permitted to enter the building. This was an effective practice last year in reducing
the virus from entering the school.
The only external access to the school is the Before and After School and Lunch Programs. We are working
together to best protect our students and staff when arriving here. Again, visitors to the school, other than staff
will not enter the building unless invited, and this access will be limited.
Children Arriving at School
Arrival
• Students should arrive no earlier than 8:45 am and will be required to remain outdoors. Please ensure your
child is dressed for all weather conditions. Presently, all students and staff are required to wear masks. Invited
visitors into the school will also be required to wear masks. Parents and caregivers are to remain outside to
avoid over-crowding the hallways and common areas as recommended by the province and the WSD.
Lining Up Outside
• All students will meet their classroom teacher in designated, physically distanced locations outside. Classroom
teachers will assist their students entering the building in a physically distanced manner. Classroom assigned
meeting areas will be spaced four meters away from another classroom and the location of meeting areas will
be made available to families prior to school and posted on the website.
Separate Entrances
• Students will enter one of the three assigned doorways with their teacher. This has been a consistent practice
throughout the previous school year and will continue this school year unless public health orders deem
otherwise.
• The top (third) floor will enter via Lenore Street, the main (second) floor will enter via the Lynx Gym doors
and the Lower (first) floor will enter via Ruby Street.
When Arriving at School
Parents, Guardians, Caregivers
• As much as we wish for an open school community, the Winnipeg School Division and Manitoba Public Health,
continue to recommend limited access restrictions to avoid over-crowding in hallways and common areas.
Unfortunately, this means parents, guardians and caregivers should not enter the school at this time. This may
change as public health orders change.
Late Arrival
• Should your child/children be arriving late, please send them through their assigned door and your
child/children will proceed directly to the school office. Please call the office ahead of time with this
information when possible.
• The doors will be locked at 9:15 am and 1:15 pm, so at those times students should proceed to the Heritage Gym
entrance and ring the doorbell where the office will respond and allow entry.
Early Pick Up
• Please do not come into the school to pick up your child/children. Please call ahead, so we can have your
child/children ready and we can meet you safely at the appropriate entrance. The school office can be reached
by calling 204-786-4796. Please consider emailing your child/children’s teacher in advance. We have provided
all of their email addresses near the end of this guide.
Assigned Doors
Classrooms will be assigned entrances to enter and exit the building until further notice. To assist in keeping us
all safe, the assigned entrances must be used on all occasions. This will also bring some consistency and routine to
the day for students and staff.
• First floor classes will enter and exit through the Ruby Street entrance. This includes French Immersion Kindergarten.103, 104, 105, 110, 115, 116
• Second Floor classes will enter and exit through the Lynx Gymnasium stairwell entrance. 201, 203, 213, 214
• Third Floor classes will enter and exit through the Lenore Street entrance.
English Nursery/Kindergarten will enter and exit through the Lenore Street entrance. 204, 301, 303, 304, 309, 313, 314, 317, 319
Late Arrival
• Should your child/children be arriving late, please send them through their assigned door and your
child/children must proceed directly to the school office. Please call the office ahead of time with this
information when possible.
• The doors will be locked at 9:15 am and 1:15 pm, so at those times students should proceed to the Heritage Gym
entrance and ring the doorbell where the office will respond and allow entry.
Cohorts and Clusters
COHORTS - École Laura Secord School classrooms have all been set up with as much physical distancing to the
extent possible and each classroom will again begin the year as an individual cohort. For the safety of our staff
and students, individual classroom cohorts will not be mixing with other classroom cohorts during the day. All
students will be required to wear masks and this may change at any time during the year, depending on public
health orders.
CLUSTERS - The following pages will provide information on how we are again forming “clusters” of classrooms
for recess and the lunch hour. The clusters will be made of groups of classrooms who will attend recess and
lunch hour together, but will be physically distanced from each other according to Manitoba Public Health
guidelines of separating and distancing cohorts.
The above guidelines are subject to change as Public Health Orders change.
Recess
Recess at École Laura Secord School will be divided into three time slots as was established last year. We have
divided the school into three clusters which will remain consistent for both morning and afternoon recess, as
well as at lunch time.
Cluster A – 103, 213, 115, 116, 201
Cluster B – 104, 110, 214, 203, 313, 314
Cluster C – 301, 303, 304, 309, 317, 319
The entire playground is again been divided into “Play Zones” just like last year with each individual cohort
assigned a “Play Zone” on a rotating basis throughout the six day cycle. Teachers will assist students in getting
back to these distancing play zone routines.
The “Play Zones” will have physical distancing buffer areas, to ensure that the cohorts are not mixing.
Supervision is planned to assist the students in remembering and developing distanced cohort routines through
these “near normal” times.
Lunch Hour
Lunch Hour at École Laura Secord School will also change this year due to COVID-19. Clusters will remain
consistent for the lunch hour and throughout the day (recess). Once again, this has been done for safety reasons
and consistency for the children and the staff.
Cluster A – 103, 213, 115, 116, 201– outside @ 12:00-12:30 / eating @ 12:30-1:00
Cluster B – 104, 110, 214, 203, 313, 314 – eating @ 12:00- 12:30 / outside @ 12:30-1:00
Cluster C – 301, 303, 304, 309, 317, 319 – outside @ 11:30-12:00 / eating @ 12:00-12:30 (classes begin @ 12:30)
The entire playground is again been divided into “Play Zones” just like last year with each individual cohort
assigned a “Play Zone” on a rotating basis throughout the six day cycle. Teachers will assist students in getting
back to these distancing play zone routines.
The “Play Zones” will have physical distancing buffer areas, to ensure that the cohorts are not mixing.
Supervision is planned to assist the students in remembering and developing distanced cohort routines through
these “near normal” times.
Will Classrooms Look Different?
Classrooms, for the most part, will look near normal, but will also apply physical distancing for safety reasons.
Some modifications are necessary to keep everyone safe. This includes sitting physically distanced, wearing
masks, and reducing hallway traffic.
As per Manitoba Public Health recommendations, École Laura Secord School promotes using outdoor spaces as
classrooms, whenever possible. Please ensure your child/children are dressed for outdoor weather, including a
hat and water bottle.
The school will be opening windows when practical and the Winnipeg School Division and our custodial staff
will continue with increased ventilation throughout the school.
Walking in the School
Staff will be reminding students of directional traffic flow in the hallways while signage and floor markings will
be provided to assist navigating through the school, even though we are in near normal conditions.
All hallways on all floors will be single direction, clearly indicated by the floor markings. Staff will be escorting
their classrooms to all locations throughout the day, including entry, recess, lunch hour, Music and Physical
Education.
We will continue with the reduction of traffic in all hallways throughout the day.
Interior doors will remain open to reduce the need for touching door handles.
WashroomsSpecific washrooms will be assigned to specific classrooms. A specific number of students will be allowed in the
washroom depending upon the washroom size. Capacity tag stations outside the washroom will determine
whether or not students may enter the washroom.
All washrooms have enhanced cleaning practices in place throughout the day.
Bussing
Bussing information is the responsibility of the Winnipeg School Division, so please call the transportation office
at 204-789-0452. They will be able to provide you with information on your child’s current or possible bussing
situation.
Students are required to wear masks on the bus at all times.
Students will be expected to follow all safety protocols at all times while on the bus.
Learning
All Winnipeg School Division teachers will utilize WSD assessment tools, observations, and professional
judgement to determine strengths, challenges and next steps in student learning. The WSD and Laura Secord
School have tools to determine where on various continuums students are in reading, writing and mathematics,
including both languages. Many of these existing tools will determine where to start with “Recovery Learning.”
Targeted instruction will be crafted to meet the learning needs of your child/children.
The learning will focus on literacy, numeracy, student well-being and mental health.
Mental Well-beingCOVID 19 has been tough on all of us, including our students.
Student mental well-being is being discussed at all schools, as well as being closely monitored by all staff.
Staff will continue be trained on trauma informed classrooms and programs already in place to assist with mental
well-being will continue throughout this year, spearheaded by Clinical Support Services and the school counselor.
École Laura Secord staff will continue to be supported by Clinical Support Services, including Psychology, Social
Work, Speech and Language and a Reading clinician.
What Happens if My Child Becomes Ill at School?
If a student becomes ill or develops symptoms at school, they must go home immediately for the safety of others.
The student will be removed from their classroom and will be isolated in a separate room while being monitored
by a staff member.
Parents/caregivers will be called to pick up their child immediately.
Once you, or your designate arrives, please phone the school at 204-786-4796 and a staff member will meet you
outside the appropriate door.
In the event of the confirmation of a positive COVID-19 case, Manitoba Public Health authorities will lead the
response and ensure appropriate supports are in place to coordinate the response. Contact tracing involves
identifying the contacts of a positive case and contacting those individuals who may have been exposed and
require further information. Manitoba Public Health or School staff will contact those individuals in cohorts
and clusters and follow-up, if necessary.
Dismissal – Student Pick Up
All students will be organized into daycare, bussing, and pick-up groups before being walked outside.
Teachers will escort their students through their assigned door to their designated outdoor location, to wait
outside for pick up. Caregivers are asked to meet their child/children at the designated location.
If a caregiver is late, children should go to the office, using the designated entrance and stairwell. Office staff will
check into the situation with the caregiver and the student will wait in the office until the caregiver arrives.
Please call when you arrive at school and we will escort your child out to meet you. Please do not come into the
building.
Staff Email Contact
English Program
Nursery/Kindergarten A.M./P.M. Room 204 Crystal Savinkoff [email protected] 1/2/3 Room 201 Lauren Connors [email protected]
Grades 4/5/6 Room 313 Jackie Cleave [email protected] 4/5/6 Room 314 Jilll Joanette [email protected]
French Immersion Program
Kindergarten A.M./P.M. Room 105 Trish Nobre [email protected] 1 Room 104 Camille Daly [email protected] 1/2 Room 115 Mona Élise Sévigny [email protected] 1/2 Room 116 Lindsay Rakowski [email protected] 1/2 Room 110 Lindsey Griffin [email protected] 2 Room 103 Charlotte Blahut [email protected] 3 Room 203 Nelia Marchione [email protected] 3 Room 214 Erin Porter [email protected] 3 Room 213 Chantal Côté [email protected] 4 Room 303 Lesley Ball / [email protected]
Arielle Hildebrand [email protected] 4 Room 301 Eric Wolfe [email protected] 5 Room 317 Ellen Lamont [email protected] 5 Room 319 Mercede Poirier [email protected] 6 Room 304 Delaram Esmailzadeh [email protected] 6 Room 309 Bryce Sneesby/ [email protected]
Anne-Lise Perreault [email protected]
Staff Email Contact
Support/ Specialists
Resource IERT Rose Neufeld [email protected] IERT Lori Pasosky [email protected] Counsellor Megan Dyck [email protected] Education Colin Jones [email protected] Education Guillermo Vodniza [email protected] Krista Janzen [email protected]
Helpful Link/Resources
Please visit the École Laura Secord School website for a variety of links to
assist parents/caregivers with further information from the Province of
Manitoba or the Winnipeg School Division.
École Laura Secord School website:
https:www.winnipegsd.ca/laurasecord
Please proceed to the Community and Family tab on the top of the page
and click on “Return to School 2021-2022”
Closing Remarks
We are extremely excited to be welcoming our students back to school. The term coined for the start of the
2021-2022 school year is a “near normal” return. We have made plans to keep everyone safe, especially our
children. This is the primary reason we have kept some of the restrictions from the end of last school year. As
we are fully aware, we need to be able to adapt to change. This year, our hope is for positive changes throughout
the year and a move towards a “normal year.”
The preceding plan was developed to provide a safe return for our students. We realize some of the restrictions
change what usually happens at school, especially at the beginning of the year. Please remember, expectations
may change at any time, depending on the spread or control of the pandemic.
We wish a very safe and exciting year of learning for our students and their families.
Sincerely,
Wade Gregg, Principal/Directeur
Andrea Hinther-Janus, Directrice-adjointe/Vice-Principal