COVID-19 PANDEMIC POLICY

We are still learning about Coronavirus (COVID-19). Far fewer cases have been reported in children, and it seems to usually cause a milder infection in them than in adults and older people. But some kids developed more serious Symptoms. In order to keep Children, Staff and families safe at Kidzville, we have developed a pandemic policy. Please read through this policy to be aware of what steps we are taking to prevent the risk of Covid-19 at Kidzville and our Community at large.

During the Covid-19 Pandemic and until a vaccine is available, our Illness policy will strictly be enforced to keep Children, Staff and families safe. Symptoms of Covid-19 in children include the following;

Fever
Cough
Sore throat
Chills
Shaking with chills
Loss of taste or smell
Shortness of breath
Diarrhea
Vomiting
Covid toes-toes turning purple
Rash
Red, cracked lips
Red eyes
Swelling of the hands and feet
Joint pain
Dizziness
Vision Problems
Headache
Looking pale

**Please do a self-assessment of yourself and your child each morning before attending. We will NOT be taking a temperature at the door as this is not an effective method of evaluating illness.

**If a child or staff member has any of the above symptoms, they will need to be excluded from Kidzville until symptoms have resolved for a period of 14 days or until they have obtained Covid-19 test with a negative result. The MCFD has advised Childcare Centres that testing is going to be available soon at all medical clinics and it will be easy to get a covid-19 testing done easily.

**We will need full cooperation from parents in this regard. We trust that you will be our partners in ensuring that your child and other children in our care are protected as much as possible.
**If a child gets sick while at school, we will contact the parents immediately and will make sure the child is in direct supervision of an adult until the parent arrives.

**Please note that masks are not recommended in a childcare setting especially for Children. It is not advisable for children to wear masks as they may cause more harm than good if not removed properly or when children touch their face to adjust the mask.

**Staff will have an option to wear a mask. It is not mandatory for staff to wear a mask, but they can make the personal decision of whether to wear a mask or not.

We want to keep a safe social and physical distance between adults and limit the number of adults inside the Centre.
We will have parents drop off and pick up their child by the door. A staff member will receive your child from you during drop off and will bring your child to the door during pick up so that parents do not have to enter the building.
During drop off and pick up please ensure;

that you keep a safe distance between you and another adult
that you are patient as the teachers bring your child to the door during pick up
that you keep consistent timings of drop off and pick up so that a teacher can have your child ready ahead of time (whenever possible)
that you do not insist to come inside the Centre unless there is an emergency that requires you to come in e.g. Picking up your child if sick.
If you need to talk to the teacher in regard to your child then please phone the school number and connect to the appropriate classroom.

1. Hand hygiene
2. Sanitization
3. Social Distance

Preventing the spread of viruses and germs have always been the best practice at Kidzville.
In addition to our regular hygiene and cleaning routine, additional steps to prevent the spread of virus will be as follows;

Children will wash hands;

Upon arrival and before they go home
Before and after eating
After using the bathroom
After a diaper change
After playing outside
After sneezing or coughing
Whenever they touch their nose or mouth
Whenever hands are visibly dirty

Staff should wash hands;

When they arrive at the childcare and before they go home
Before and after handling food (raw, cooked or prepackaged), preparing bottles or feeding children
Before or after applying medication or ointment to a child or staff
After changing diapers
After assisting a child to use the toilet
After contact with body fluids (e.g., runny noses, spit, vomit, blood)
After cleaning tasks
After removing gloves
After handling garbage
Whenever hands are visibly dirty

Personal Care;

Hand sanitizers are also available for use at each entrance to the school
Children will be reminded to sneeze/cough into their sleeve
Proper handwashing will be modelled by the teachers
Handwashing posters will be posted in the bathrooms as a reminder

All areas will be cleaned in accordance with the BCCDC’s cleaning and Disinfectants recommended for public setting. The disinfectants use may include bleach and/or other recommended products.

Change table will be thoroughly wiped after each use
All tables and chairs will be cleaned throughout the day
The bathrooms and counters will be cleaned throughout the day
All high touch areas like door handles, light switches and railings will be     cleaned throughout the day as needed
Wash and disinfect all toys that a child puts in their mouth
General cleaning of the Centre will occur once a day
Areas will be cleaned when visibly dirty

It is very difficult to practice Social distance among children under 3 yrs. old, but we will try our best to;

Separate children into small groups at a time
Spread children further apart during eating times and will be staggering mealtimes
Set up some small group environments e.g. 4 children at a time during circle time sitting 2 meters apart
Spend more time outdoors
Staff will minimize the frequency of direct physical contact with children
Staff will maintain social distancing from one another (2 meters)
Avoid close greetings e.g., hugs, handshakes

Please do not send any items from home except for lunch bags. Please note that the school will not provide morning snack in order to  stop “snack sharing” at this time.Parents should pack morning and afternoon snacks in addition to lunch
Please pack cutlery for your child (forks, spoons) which will be sent home for washing
We will not be accepting any cloth diapers at this time. Parents will only be required to send disposable diapers and we will reconsider  once the pandemic is lifted
Beddings should not be bulky and always be neatly placed in your child’s cloth bag (which can be washed when washing the bedding) or a  Ziploc bag
Limited items should be in child’s cubby. Do not send anything extra that does not require to be at school. Appropriate gear for outdoors is  only needed at this time according to weather
Please apply sunscreen on your child before dropping off as the days are getting warmer
Make sure your child is wearing a “clean pair” of uniform each day. If you need to purchase more uniform pieces, we have it available  online at    www.kidzvillelearningcenters.com under the uniform tab. Pick the item and email the order form as you cannot order through the  website
We will not be doing “Show and tell” every Friday. We will replace this activity with another similar activity. Details will be provided in the  coming weeks
There will be no exchange of cash for any purchases or payments. Monthly fees will strictly be collected via PAD on file or etransfers if  there is a problem with direct banking. Payments for any other items like uniform will also be done via etransfers only
Please make sure that you are maintaining social distance with other people out of school. Remember that your contacts may have been  in contact with other people therefore safe distance is recommended
If you travel or meet anyone outside of BC or Canada, then quarantine rules will apply, and your child cannot attend for 14 days after the  visit

We have same protocols for Staff to stay home when they are sick as we have for children. In the event, we are unable to find a substitute teacher, we will have to inform parents of the situation and you may have to keep your child home during that time. We do not anticipate of having an issue acquiring a substitute staff, but situations may arise that are beyond our control. Our goal is to keep the children, staff and families safe and supported during this time.

I have read the Pandemic Policy and will abide by the recommendations made by school in order to protect myself, my child and the school community to help contain the spread of Covid-19 in our Community.