Big Lake is getting ready to go back to school. The Patriot is continuing to report on the back-to-school plan as the information changes. The Big Lake School Board held a special meeting Aug. 20 in order to help answer the questions of parents. Any parents who still have questions are encouraged to contact the schools directly.

Technology

Big Lake will be supplying all students with either an iPad or a Chromebook in order to make sure all students have access to coursework, whether they are attending in-person, hybrid, or at a distance. There will be an option to opt-in to insurance for the technology. The insurance will cost $30 for single-student families, or $60 for families with two or more students. The insurance program is completely optional.

Big Lake is now offering Big Lake Online school. They created this program to offer a solution to parents who are considering putting their students into online school, in light of the pandemic, but who also want their students to be able to engage in sports, clubs, and other programs only offered to Big Lake students. The board encourages any parents considering online school to contact Big Lake schools and learn more about the program and what it has to offer students before choosing a different program.

At the time of the special meeting, 421 students, across all four Big Lake schools, had enrolled in the online program. Seventeen of those students were completely new to the school district. The board said that their goal was to get approximately 60 more students enrolled before the start of the school year.

Families that have unreliable or no internet access should contact the school. They may be eligible to enroll in a program to provide them internet access.

COVID-19 Cases in Sherburne County

The learning model that will be used will be determined by the average number of COVID-19 cases per 10,000 residents over a period of 14 days. This formula creates a point system that will tell the school which learning model to use. The chart pictured shows the breakdown of how the learning model will be determined. For the moment, the schools are planning to use the models outline for the 10-29 cases scenarios, which involves in-person learning for students in grades K-5, and hybrid learning for students in grades 6-12. In the case of a higher number of COVID cases being reported, measures will be put in place for K-6 students that will meet the necessities of a hybrid learning model, such as allowing classes to be spread out.

The model will not be excluding the data from the Sherburne County prison. The Minnesota Department of Health suggested that this statistic be included, since prison employees will be interacting with the community, and the disease does have the potential to spread outside of the prison.

Middle School and High School

The middle school and high school will be following the hybrid model of learning. Students will be split into two groups, each of which will attend school in-person for two days every week and be at home for the rest of the time. Students in group A will attend in-person on Mondays and Tuesdays, and students in group B will attend in-person on Thursdays and Fridays.

Teachers in the middle school and high school will be expected to spend half of class time working with the students who are attending in-person and half the time working with students at home. This might involve giving a lesson to students online, then assigning them a task, and then giving a lesson to the students who are in-person. Or vice versa. This way, no students are neglected.

On Wednesdays, teachers will design lessons that are entirely online.

There will be a new emphasis on teaching students to self-regulate. COVID-19 has revealed just how important it is to learn to be in charge of oneself and for students to make sure they are taking charge of their own studies, and so there will be a reflected emphasis on this in the curriculum. Students will be expected to be on time for their online classes just as if they were attending physically. Tardiness will be reflected on their attendance record. Students will also still be expected to submit assignments whenever they are due.

Parents are encouraged to check in on their students every now and again to make sure their students are attending classes. Parents can check attendance online from wherever they are. The board also suggested asking specific questions about students’ lessons to gauge how much attention the students are paying in class.

The board said it may be possible for students in lab classes to get permission to attend school on days they would normally be learning at home. This would apply to students who have classes involving science labs or art classes that require special equipment. School officials are still working on figuring out a transportation solution for these students.

Elementary School

Elementary school students will be attending in-person unless the COVID situation becomes much worse. They will however be following general COVID practices, including social distancing, wearing a mask, sanitizing their hands, and “quarantining” objects used in the classroom for learning. There will also be some other measures put in place. Students will eat lunch and attend recess with their own classes, rather than intermingle with other classes. Kids will also be taught different ways of greeting their friends that avoid physical contact, such as “air-fives” and “thumbs-up.” Even wacky face expressions could be used.

Many parents are worried about their children’s ability to wear a mask all day long. Students will be given some “mask breaks” during lunch, and when playing outside during recess and gym class. It is possible, weather permitting, that some normal classes will also be held outdoors to allow the students to get some fresh air and a break from their masks. Students who have trouble leaving the mask on will be patiently instructed as to how to leave it alone. Teachers understand that it is difficult and will work with parents and students to find solutions.

Transportation

Busses will pick up students depending on what school they attend- some busses will be dedicated to middle school students, some to elementary school students, etc. This will help to limit the potential spread between schools. Busses will be sanitized on a regular basis. Parents and students who can arrange their own transportation are encouraged to do so.

Community Education

Community education classes, or other groups that use school spaces during evening hours, will still be allowed to rent rooms in the school buildings provided that they submit a plan for dealing with the COVID-19 situation. This would include a method of encouraging social distancing, offering hand sanitizer to attendees, etc.