School Year Update from Lyonsgate Montessori
Hello Lyonsgate Families,
We know you are all anxiously awaiting information about the upcoming school year. We have received information from the Ministry of Education and Hamilton Public Health and can now tell you about some of the changes and requirements for the coming 2021.2022 school year at Lyonsgate Montessori School.
Unfortunately, COVID-19 continues to impact regular school operations, although there are changes to some requirements. Here are the highlights, but please take the time to review the “COVID-19 Supplemental Parent Handbook.”
Please Note: the information below may change as we receive further information, clarifications, or revisions from the Ministry of Education and/or Hamilton Public Health Services.
Masks: mask requirements for students at both campuses will be the same as last year with the exception of outdoors. Masks no longer need to be worn outdoors. See the “Lyonsgate COVID-19 Mask and PPE Policy and Procedure” in the “COVID-19 Supplemental Parent Handbook” for details.
Screening: parents are still required to complete screening for each child, each morning before bringing students to school. Please use the Provincial COVID-19 School Screening Tool to self-screen children each day. A link to the screening tool is available on the Home page at https://lyonsgate.ca/ . Temperatures are no longer required to be taken prior to entry.
If you bring your child to school at either Lyonsgate campus, it is assumed you have completed and passed self-screening every day prior to arrival.
Pandemic or not, please do not send children to school if they are unwell.
Illness/Exclusion: strict exclusion rules are still in effect for children who are ill or who become ill at school. Be prepared for children to be home from school more frequently than usual. Siblings of sick children must also be excluded. See the “Lyonsgate COVID-19 Exclusion of Sick Children/Staff Policy and Procedures” document in the “COVID-19 Supplemental Parent Handbook” for more detailed information.
Staggered Starts and Dismissals: We will be continuing with separate arrival and pick-up times for each Casa classroom, a separate pick-up period for the Toddler class, and staggered arrival and dismissal groups for Elementary. The daily schedules are as follows:
Toddler Class
8:00 – 8:30: Group 1. Eligible workers and staff students, and Casa North siblings.
8:30 – 9:00: Group 2. Arrival for remainder of cohort.
3:00 – 3:30: Dismissal from the playground.
Casa North
8:00 – 8:15: Group 1. Arrival for eligible workers and staff students.
8:15 – 8:30: Group 2. Arrival for remainder of cohort.
3:30 – 4:00: Dismissal from the playground.
Casa South
8:30 – 8:45: Group 1. Arrival for eligible workers and staff students.
8:45 – 9:00: Group 2. Arrival for remainder of cohort.
4:00 – 4:30: Dismissal from the playground.
Elementary
8:00-9:00: Staggered drop-off groups. Detailed group lists to come.
3:30-4:00: Dismissal from backyard and front porch.
4:00-4:30: Pick-up of after school care students.
Mandatory Staff Vaccinations or Testing
This was announced earlier this week and details are still to come. All Lyonsgate staff will be required to provide disclosure of full vaccination status or undergo regular testing if not vaccinated. Lyonsgate will not share the vaccination status of any employee.
Calendar
Remember to check the Lyonsgate calendar regularly for up to date information. An updated printable calendar will be attached to the email version of this post (we got the February PD day/Family Day holiday dates wrong on the first version).
Vaccinations
Vaccination continues to be the most effective means of getting the virus under control. Please visit the City of Hamilton’s vaccine information website at https://www.hamilton.ca/coronavirus/covid-19-vaccine-resources.
Their vaccine hotline is another resource that is available to everyone at 905-974-9848 ext. 7
More to come
We know you may have questions not answered here. Please be patient. You will receive more information soon about things like orientation visits for new students and their families, and specific classroom information from your children’s Montessori guides.
Enjoy these last few weeks of summer vacation with your wonderful children. We can’t wait to see them and hear all of their summer adventure stories.