How We Keep You Safe
Keeping your children and the staff at ORNS healthy is our main priority. The following practices will be implemented to ensure everyone’s health and safety.
Your child’s social/emotional development is still our main priority. Our environments will still feel welcoming and “normal” while maintaining the proper health and safety procedures.
The following practices* will be implemented:
*Developed according to CDC guidelines, current licensing and accreditation standards, as well as the recommendations of the American Academy of Pediatrics
Remember, the best defense against any illness is thorough and frequent hand washing, teaching your child to cough into their elbow and staying home when they are sick.
Vaccinations
Staying up to date on all recommended childhood vaccinations, including influenza and Covid-19 is an important way to help prevent the spread of diseases and the severity of illnesses in our school population.
Daily Wellness Assessment
Make sure that you are screening your child daily for an and all symptoms of illness.
Masking
- Masks at ORNS are optional at this time.
- Children will be asked to wear a mask if symptoms present while they are at school of COVID. They will also be removed from class and isolated with a staff member until they can
be picked.
Symptoms of Covid-19
- Fever of 100.4 degrees or higher
- Shortness of breath or difficulty breathing
- Cough
- Sore Throat
- New loss of taste or smell
Or ANY combination of two or more of:
- Excessive congestion or runny nose
- Chills
- Nausea or vomiting
- Diarrhea
- Headache
- Fatigue
- Muscle or body aches
Testing
We will allow either a rapid antigen test or a PCR.
If a child is suspected of Covid-19
- Requires a negative test result and no symptoms for 24 hours before returning to school.
- If you choose not to test, the child must quarantine for 5 days and wear a mask for an additional 5 after the quarantine.
If any person in the household tests positive for Covid-19
- Students may come to the classroom if asymptomatic. They will be required to wear a mask for 10 days
- If you choose not to test, the child must quarantine for 5 days and wear a mask for an additional 5 after the quarantine.
In Case of Positive Tests
- If there is a positive in the classroom and the case, the exposed classroom will be notified.
- Any positive Covid-19 case must isolate for at least 5 days from the positive test. The student may return on the 6th day assuming they no longer have symptoms. They must wear a mask through day 10.
Exposure to Covid-19
If you are considered a close contact of a case outside, the student may attend school as long as they are asymptomatic.
Cleaning & Mitigation Procedures
- Classrooms will be set up to ensure that everything can be easily cleaned. Toys that cannot be easily cleaned will not be available in the classroom. Classrooms will disinfect toys before sharing with another room.
- Heavy traffic areas will be cleaned multiple times throughout the day.
- Children and staff will be required to wash their hands more often including but not limited to: upon arrival, before and after eating, before and after diapering, after using the bathroom, and before and after playing outside. We will be coming up with fun ways to make sure that children are washing their hands for an appropriate amount of time. For example, putting a stamp on their hand and having them scrub it off.
- We will be increasing ventilation throughout the building. We intend to keep windows open whenever possible to increase air flow. During warmer months, we will increase the air conditioning and turn up the heat in the colder months to ensure everyone is still comfortable
Quick Links
Admissions Info
Click here to learn more about enrolling at Orchard Ridge Nursery School.
COVID Safety Plan
Click here to see how ORNS keeps your child safe during this time of COVID.
Calendars
Click here to view the academic, snack, and event calendars.
The Owl-a-Gram
Click here to learn about a variety of things related to ORNS. You’ll find our monthly newsletters, helpful tips to make your preschool experience better, as well as general announcements.
Events
Click here to learn about the annual events at ORNS each year.