DRP_FINAL_Oct16

COVID-19 COHORTING & PHYSICAL DISTANCING

Cohorting and physical distancing are two measures the District will prioritize in order to maximize conditions for safe learning environments for students and staff. Cohorting refers to strategic grouping of students and staff members in order to reduce daily contact with more individuals than necessary. Students who ride the bus will have a transportation cohort in addition to the cohorts they are assigned during the school day. District Cohorting Efforts Elementary: At the elementary level each school-based grade level is considered a cohort. Within the cohort there are individual classes. At times, some students in different classes within the same grade level will come together in order to provide students with appropriate academic support and enrichment. Middle School: Students at Middlesex are traditionally assigned to a grade-level team with multiple teams at each grade level. This year students within each team will be grouped to experience core academic classes with the same subset of their peers (with few exceptions) from their cohort. Some students from different cohorts will come together in order to provide appropriate academic support and enrichment. Transitions will be minimized for students with teachers moving between classes in lieu of students where possible. High School: In order to minimize the number of individuals each student and teacher comes into contact with each day, Darien High School will operate on a block schedule with four classes meeting each school day. Additional efforts to maximize social distancing through class schedule development will be implement- ed. The Open Ends policy is being expanded to include grades 9-11 and an Open Campus policy for seniors is being developed to reduce the number of students with free periods in the building. Because cohorting is extremely difficult at the high school level, efforts to minimize contact is the result of the block scheduling model. To support physical distancing within classrooms, student desks will be situated at a minimum of three feet apart, all facing the same direction. In classrooms with tables, plexiglass partitions will be placed on tables to provide students an individualized workspace. Throughout all schools, space has been creatively and strategically utilized in order to maximize physical distancing. Using three feet as the measure for distancing is aligned to recommendations by the American Academy of Pediatrics, which cites that three feet with face coverings has similar advantages to six feet of physical distancing without face coverings.

25 Darien Reopening Plan