Fulton County schools getting ready for Phase 1 of the district’s re-entry plan

FULTON COUNTY, Ga. — Fulton County schools are preparing to welcome back some students for Phase 1 of the district’s gradual return to face-to-face learning.

Under the plan, kids in pre-K through second grades will have the option to return to class for 90 minutes one day a week starting next Tuesday.

Students in all grades of special needs classes will be able to return one day a week for three hours.

Channel 2 Action News got a first-hand look at the changes in place in classrooms at Lake Forest Elementary School in Sandy Springs, where teacher Morgan Ogea is preparing to welcome back first-graders for the first time in about six months.

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“We are excited to have the students to come back,” she said.  “It’ll be great to build that community with them in person.”

Ogea said she will have about four kids in her class at a time.

“We’ve all tried very intentionally to arrange our rooms in a way that students will be able to maintain that safe distance, but we’re still very much in the classroom together,” she said.

Lake Forest Principal Taylor Barton said the goal is to help kids reacclimate to the school environment, or in some cases, get acclimated to it for the first time if they are in pre-K or kindergarten.

“Learning doesn’t happen if relationships aren’t built, and we’re focusing in on that first,” he said.

Barton said schools will take students’ and visitors’ temperature before they can enter the building. Everyone will be required to wear a mask inside, and the district has provided hand sanitizers.

“If you’re a parent, and you’re nervous about your student coming back, know that we’ve put in lots of different measures to ensure student safety, whether it’s social distancing, wearing a mask, frequent hand-washing. We make sure all those guidelines are being adhered to strictly,” said Barton.

Parent Jennifer Normanly told Channel 2′s Mike Petchenik she’s ready to get her son Jack, who has special needs, back to his classroom.

“Jack, his learning style is very hands-on.  A teacher can’t provide that through a computer screen,” she said.  “I feel like certainly, they can implement safety measures to keep all the children safe.”

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Cox Media Group