Greenville County Schools announced that all elementary students, K4-5th grade, can go back to school in-person through a phased in program starting October 12th. There are going to be changes inside classrooms, including the use of plexiglass dividers and masks that have been approved by DHEC.

“That gives us a solution to safely return all of our elementary students and staff enrolled in brick and mortar schools, ” said Dr. Royster.

This does not affect students enrolled in the Virtual Program.

Because middle and high school students have more than 25 students per classroom (the cap allowed with the use of plexiglass dividers), these students cannot go back full-time in person.

Timing

First graders have already been moving to five day in-person instruction and will continue to do so and start their first full week the week of October 12th.

The schedule below is from GCS:

4K & 5K

• Week of October 12 
  • Students will attend Monday or Tuesday, based on color group

• Students will attend Wednesday & Thursday, October 14 & 15
• Week of October 19 is the first full week of attendance (4 Days because October 23 is a professional development day) 
• Week of October 26 will be first full 5-day week

1st Grade – already underway

• Week of September 30

• Students attended Monday or Tuesday, based on color group
• Students attended Wednesday & Thursday, September 30 & October 1 
• Week of October 12 will be first full 5-day week

2nd Grade

• Week of October 19 
  • Students will attend Monday or Tuesday, based on color group

• Students will attend Wednesday & Thursday, October 21 & 22
• Week of October 26 will be first full 5-day week

3rd Grade

• Week of October 26 
  • Students will attend Monday or Tuesday, based on color group

Students will attend Wednesday & Thursday, October 28 & 29
Week of November 2 will be first full week (4 days because Election Day is the Nov. 3) 

4th Grade & 5th Grade

• Week of November 2 
  • Students in Blue and Green color groups will attend Monday
  • Tuesday is a school holiday due to Election Day – no students attend

• Students will attend Wednesday and Thursday, November 4 & 5
• Week of November 9 is first full 5-day week

What Classrooms Will Look Like

The use of plexiglass dividers and masks will be used in grades 2-5 classrooms where six feet of distance is not possible.

Up to four students wearing masks will sit in clusters with three feet of distance between them plus a plexiglass barrier. Each cluster will be separated by six feet.

If a student in a cluster tests positive for COVID, the other three students will not need to quarantine as long as all safety protocols were followed.

The only time students will be able to remove their mask is during lunch and possibly other instances where social distancing at six feet can be observed.

Kindergarten and first grade students will be socially distanced within classrooms and masks are not mandated unless they are transitioning classrooms or other instances where six feet of distance is not possible.

Students who wish to switch to in-person from the Virtual Program can apply but they would be put on a waitlist. All of the considerations GCS took in order to return to school is based on the current number of students enrolled in brick-and-mortar school.

Transportation Issues

“We know, based on the analysis of our current riders, we will be able to bring all of the elementary students to school on time,” said Dr. Royster.

“We will have a number of middle and high school students that will now be late because of elementary students, which will vary but could be up to 30 minutes late. We are looking at what we can offset what they would miss.”

GCS said they are in desperate need of bus drivers. Apply here.

Kids will not be socially distanced on the bus and are still required to wear masks. We reached out to GCS to clarify this and received this answer:

” Because of this change, there will be two elementary students per seat which does not allow for 6-feet of social distancing. (Normally, there are three elementary students per seat.)  Kids will be required to wear masks for the entire bus ride, to and from school. The state Department of Education says buses should filled to 67 percent capacity, which is essentially two students per seat.”

What Are Teachers Thinking?

GCS surveyed their teachers and staff last week about the plexiglass plan.

Among the 3,800 teachers who responded to the survey:

• 83.5% reported protocols such as mask wearing and social distancing have been followed with little to no resistance,
• 12.7% reported employees have done well, but students have been less compliant,
• 82.1% of teachers indicated that have felt very safe (42%) or somewhat safe (40.1%) from COVID while at work this fall. 

GCS teachers are divided over returning to full-time in-person instruction:

• 51% of all teachers reported feeling comfortable with the idea of moving to five-days-a-week face-to-face instruction when in accord with DHEC regulations,
• 60% of elementary teachers indicating they were comfortable.

As the case has been over the summer and fall, GCS will be daily monitoring compliance with these protocols and the number of COVID cases among students and staff.

“A significant change in either could result in a return to a hybrid schedule or 100% eLearning,” said GCS in an email to media.

Have students learning at home? Here are some virtual and local learning opportunities for students learning at home, plus our huge list of educational day trips and travel from Greenville.

Update 10/7/20: Greenville County Schools announces timetable to return all elementary students to 5-day instruction.

Greenville County Schools announced today that they are testing the viability of plexiglass dividers in classrooms to get kids back to in-person school.

“The dividers would allow up to four students wearing masks to sit at one table with only three-feet of social distance between them. Each cluster of students would be separated by six feet.”

DHEC has given initial approval of this solution and the school district is working with principals and facilities personnel to see if this is a solution for students getting back in the classroom.

Six Feet Barrier

Dr. Royster, the Superintendent of Greenville County Schools, said in a press conference last week that the possibility of students past second grade getting back into the classrooms is near impossible because of the six-feet of distance rule and smaller spaces.

“It would be nearly impossible to get students past second grade back to classes right now in the classroom space we have,” said Dr. Royster on September 23rd. “When we get up into the high schools and middle schools, getting any number larger than 17 into a regular class keeping six feet of space is nearly impossible.”

COVID+ Test?

What about the possibility of quarantine if one of the students in those smaller groups tests positive for COVID-19?

GCS states that “because of how these dividers are designed, if one child were to test positive for COVID-19, the other three who shared their table would not have to be quarantined so long as safety protocols were followed.

Next Steps

GCS is currently testing these dividers and is planning to make an announcement on their implementation by next Tuesday. They have also sent a survey to teachers to get their input on the idea.

We’ll update this story when we know more.

Greenville County Schools has always wanted to get all students back to class in-person, based on their road map and extensive plans. They announced today that all students in first grade, as well as self-contained special ed students at all grades and Level 2 classes at Career Centers will begin transitioning to in-person instruction beginning next week.

This has no bearing on students in the Virtual Program, who are always doing 100% virtual. For students who chose in-person learning, read on.

First Grade & Preschool/Elementary Special-Ed Self-Contained Students

First Grade Students and Preschool/Elementary Special Education SELF-CONTAINED Students will begin phasing in five-day a week in-person instruction over next three weeks. The schedule is below:

Week of September 28

Students will attend Monday or Tuesday based on color group.  Beginning Wednesday all first graders and preschool/elementary special education self-contained students will also attend Wednesday and Thursday.  The net result is that all students in these categories will attend in-person school three days next week (Monday or Tuesday PLUS Wednesday and Thursday)

Week of October 5

All students in these categories will attend four days of school – Monday through Thursday

Week of October 12

All students in these categories will return to five day a week, in-person instruction until further notice.

Middle School and High School Special Ed Self-Contained Students

MS and HS Special Education self-contained students and Career Center Level II Students will start phasing in four-day a week in-person instruction over next two weeks.

Week of September 28

Students attend all classes Monday or Tuesday based on color group.  Beginning Wednesday attend all self-contained classes and Career Center Level II courses on both Wednesday and Thursday.  The net result is that all students in these categories will attend school/career center classes in-person three days next week (Monday or Tuesday PLUS Wednesday and Thursday). Please note, career center students will follow the district-wide attendance plan (currently Plan 2) for their regular education classes – this change only impacts attendance at their career center classes. 

Week of October 5 and on

All students in these categories will attend self-contained classes and career center courses four days – Monday through Thursday. Please note, career center students will remain on Plan 2 for their regular education classes – this change only impacts attendance at their career center classes.

Spread of COVID-19 at GCS

The number of COVID-19 are low at GCS schools and Dr. Royster noted that very few of them contracted COVID-19 at schools. They do contact tracing for every case. The number of cases and where they are located is updated at this link.

Masks are still required at school. GCS will continue the sanitation measures that have been in place since the beginning of the school year.

This is what they stated on their site: ” All students, including 1^st graders and special ed students, will be required to wear masks when transitioning (hallways, entering school). Classes at the Fine Arts Center are not included because student numbers do not allows for social distancing in all programs.”

Why just these grades are going back?

Dr. Royster said that these grades and classes have a smaller number of students in the class that allow for social distancing. For K5 for instance, they will likely split up the classes into groups so they can adhere to social distancing. They are working on those plans.

“This plan allows us to keep in place the safety and health parameters that we believe have contributed to the success we’ve had in safely reentering schools,” said Dr. Royster.

“These students require greater interaction and more face-to-face interaction,” he continued.

What about other grades?

GCS has indicated they want to bring back other grades soon: “Greenville County Schools is currently exploring options to return K4 and K5 students to full-time, in-person instruction in a manner that allows classrooms to be set up for social distancing.”

Dr. Royster also indicated that an announcement will be forthcoming about getting K4 and K5 students back in class four or five days a week.

The biggest obstacle to getting students back to in-person classes is the six feet of distance requirements.

“It would be nearly impossible to get students past second grade back to classes right now in the classroom space we have,” said Dr. Royster. “When we get up into the high schools and middle schools, getting any number larger than 17 into a regular class keeping six feet of space is nearly impossible.”

Pre-k and Kindergarten classrooms are bigger. Dr. Royster noted that for students to get back into these classrooms, DHEC would need to recommend a distance of less than six feet.

If you want to sign your child up for the Virtual Program, please contact the school district to be added to the waiting list.

We will update as more information is announced.

Is your child still learning from home? Here’s a list of virtual educational fun things to do to add some variety to the day.

Or, check out our list of educational things to do in Greenville. Get out and enjoy this beautiful fall weather!