Journey Middle School Return to School – September 2020

Thank you for your patience as we worked on the Return to School Plan for the District and Journey. Our goal is to provide a safe and health learning environment for your child(ren) to return and we have followed the District Health and Safety Protocols in setting up our return. Further consolation with our Journey Healthy and Safety Team will be ongoing throughout the year. We’ve missed our students and look forward to welcoming former students, and new students, to Journey!

Today’s announcement from the Minister of Education, Rob Fleming brought some new ideas about how we might return and we are now working on incorporating these. The announcement today about schools providing remote learning options will be one of the areas we need to work on and we will provide information to you as soon as it is available.

Things will look different than last September as we start up this year. We hope that things won’t remain like this the whole year, but for now this is the outline of our plan:

• Hand washing – students will have their hands sprayed before entering the building and wash their hands once they arrive in classroom. Staff should use sanitation station at the main entrance each morning and wash hands throughout the day
• Cleaning – Custodians have adjusted schedules to help meet all of our needs. We have the same amount of time allotted, but have different tasks than before and we are thankful for their continued support
• Washroom use – capacity for girls’ washroom is 2 at a time, boys’ 1 at a time, and gender neutral 1 at a time. The capacity is based on space in each of those areas. Students will line up outside the washroom 2m apart (decals will indicate distance)
• Entrance/Exits (no exceptions except for emergency) Divisional numbers will be placed on the wall for students to line up
  • Utopia – Stairwell at back of school (chestnut tree side)
  • Mystical Main – entrance near portable parking lot
  • Narnia – Stairwell at back of school (fire pit side)
  • Mt. Olympus – entrance near b-ball court

• • FAST teachers will go to classrooms instead of students coming to them
    • Eliminates movement in the halls for FAST rotation
    • No Band, Foods, or Wood will be offered at this time with a plan to reinstate them if possible
  • Cohort/Learning Groups
    • This group may work together during academic time and must stay together for breaks:
      • Sulzen/Barnes
      • Vine/Walker
      • Nadeau/Sims
      • Croft/Winser
      • Johnson/Robirtis (only one class)
      • Federici/Hobbs
      • Archer/Donegani & Wiens
      • Maragh/Quint
      • Gitzel/Piechnik & Elm
      • Tran/Munroe
      • Dvorak/Van Hooydonk
  • MASKS and other PPE (we will follow instructions from PHO). We have been informed that two, reusable masks will be provided to each staff member and to each student
    • • Used at all times when physical distancing is impossible
      • Used at all times should a staff member/ student wish to wear it
      • Does not have to be worn in the classroom and staff cannot make that a requirement
  • Inclusion Support – Our Team will meet and connect with individual families by the end of the first week of students on Individual Learning Plans (IEP). Educational Assistants will be assigned to specific cohorts.
  • Hockey Academy is on hold until review at end of September (this is the same at all middle schools in our District)

• Breaks
  • Recess – Cohort Teachers decide when it works best for their group
    • Students stay/play in assigned zones
    • No recess bell (classroom teachers will remain with their class during this time)
  • Lunch – Two different lunch breaks using nutrition time, outside break time and literacy time
    • Group One 11:59-12:29 outside in assigned zone/eat with teacher 12:29-12:44
    • Group Two eat with teacher 12:29-12:44/outside in assigned zone 12:44-1:14
    • Bells have been adjusted to reflect these new times

• Lockers – we know how important these are, however, no access to student lockers at this time.
  • • • Students will pack in and pack out supplies (we will see how this works and adjust if needed) Locker use will be reevaluated at end of month
• Transportation – We encourage students to walk or wheel to school when possible.
  • Buses – students must be registered for the bus to ride the bus.
    • Sign up online through District62 website. Need assistance? Contact the Transportation at 250-474-9845 they can step you through
    • Buses will not be running the first week of school Sept. 8-11
    • Students will line up under their bus number outside gym wall (good weather) or in the gym (poor weather) and be called by a staff member to board with their masks on when the bus arrives
  • Parent Drop Off – our parking lot gets very congested before and afterschool
    • We encourage you to drop off/pick up your child(ren) at the Fastball Field to help reduce this frustration. There is a trail and sidewalk for safe walking routes
• Class placements – the staff helped provide information for the best placement for each of our students and classes have been built given this feedback. Parent requests for specific teachers and/or friends cannot always be accommodated because of students being cohorted for hockey, band, and French.

September 2 and September 4 (9.a.m.-3 p.m.) – New Orientation Tours. Grade 6 and new students grade 6-8 only. Teachers will be doing orientation tours with their students; however, if your child is especially concerned about coming to Journey we have set up 20-minute time slots. The tour will have one staff member and no more than 3 students accompanied by one parent each (total 7 people). Participants must wear a mask and social distance. Please contact Gina Thompson at 250-642-5881 for an appointment. This is not mandatory – staff will be doing ongoing orientation the first few days of school.

Week 1 – September 8-11

• Tuesday, September 8 Staff Only

• Wednesday, September 9 Staff Only
  • • Teachers connecting with parents

• Thursday, September 10
  • • Grade 6 students only from 9-11 a.m.
      • All staff will help grade 6 students find their teacher (outside)
        • Teachers will take their students to their assigned entrance
        • Teachers will go over safety protocols/behaviour expectations
        • Entrances/Exits
        • School building orientation
        • “Fire Drill” (no bell, but all students need to know where to line up)
• Grade 7 students only from 1-3 p.m.
  • All staff will help grade 7 students find their teacher (outside)
    • Teachers will take their students to their assigned entrance
    • Go over safety protocols/behaviour expectations
    • Entrances/Exits
    • “Fire Drill” (no bell, but all students need to know where to line up)

• Friday, September 11
• Grade 8 students only from 9-11
  • All staff will help grade 8 students find their teacher (outside)
    • Teachers will take their students to their assigned entrance
    • Go over safety protocols/behaviour expectations
    • Entrances/Exits
    • “Fire Drill” (no bell, but all students need to know where to line up)

Week Two September 14-18

• All students attend all day/week
• Buses running for registered riders

Week Three September 21-25

• All students attend all day/week
• Friday – individual picture day

Week Four September 28-Oct 2

• All staff and students
• Monday – Non-Instructional Day for students
• Wednesday – Orange Shirt Day

Not all heroes wear capes – most of them are parents and the others wear Journey Middle School T-Shirts!