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Dear Sugar Plums Families,

 

We look forward to beginning 2022 with you. We will continue to provide Purposeful Play Learning to our children in a safe, loving environment, while providing a respite for our children (and parents) from everyday stressors.

 

I have had ongoing discussions about the impact of Omicron with local child care centers, other school directors, the Maryland State Department of Health, and the Maryland State Department of Education Office of Child Care. Sugar Plums will continue to enforce the same strict protocols that have been in place since September 2020 and allowed us to successfully mitigate the spread of illness. As a reminder, these are our COVID protocols:

 

• Masks: All children over 2 years old, and all staff must wear masks inside, except when eating.

• Pick up and Drop Off: Parents and visitors are not allowed in the building. When you arrive to the drop off or pick up door, please have your mask on. If you are with any family members over 2 years old, they need to be in masks at drop off and pick up. 

•  Hand-washing: Teachers will continue to include numerous times for hand-washing throughout the day, and guide children in thorough and effective hand-washing procedures.

• Cohorting: Each class will continue to operate as an independent group, not sharing any space or materials with any other class. Educational Supplies: Materials are used only by one class at a time and cleaned between uses.

• We offer weekly PCR testing for our staff that are supplied by the CARES Act.

 

Perhaps the most important strategy for maintaining a safe environment is partnering with our parents to exclude sick children from entering our classrooms. We are grateful for the vigilance our families have shown all year, and we ask you to be even more cautious at this critical time.

 

If your child shows any symptoms of any illness, keep your child home and contact me immediately so we can review protocols, and I can effectively monitor the status of our community. Similarly, if your child has any exposure to a person infected with COVID, keep your child home and contact me immediately for further instructions.

 

As a licensed childcare facility, Sugar Plums must follow the regulations from our governing agencies which are different, and much more restrictive, than those of the CDC for the general population and those of public and private K-12 schools. The regulations are subject to change, but here is the current summary:

 

• A child who tests positive for COVID must isolate for 10 days from the test date and then may return to school if all symptoms have been resolved for at least 24 hours without medication.  The CDC is continuing to change the quarantine period. Pediatricians are recommending a 10 quarantine period from the onset of symptoms.

 

• A child who shows symptoms associated with COVID, but has not had a known exposure, and receives a negative PCR test may return to school if all symptoms have been resolved for at least 24 hours without medication.

 

• A child who has been exposed to COVID must quarantine for 14 days from the date of their last exposure and then may return to school unless they have tested positive or developed symptoms.

 

• Symptoms currently listed as associated with COVID include: fever of 100.4 or greater, chills, sore throat, shortness of breath or difficulty breathing, diarrhea or vomiting, loss of taste or smell, headache, and muscle aches. Note that the Maryland Dept. of Health does not identify congestion as an excludable symptom, though the CDC includes it as a concerning symptom. Sugar Plums understands that runny noses in young children can linger without serious illness, but a child must stay home when you suspect they are sick, if they are too uncomfortable to wear a mask, or if they need their mask changed more than twice in a morning. Sugar Plums reserves the right to send a child home if they display any signs of sickness, in the opinion of our experienced educators.

 

It will be critical that everyone follows procedures diligently if we hope to keep everyone as safe as possible and keep our school open.

 

Thank you for your partnership at this challenging time.

ear Sugar Plums Families,

 

We look forward to beginning 2022 with you. We will continue to provide Purposeful Play Learning to our children in a safe, loving environment, while providing a respite for our children (and parents) from everyday stressors.

 

I have had ongoing discussions about the impact of Omicron with local child care centers, other school directors, the Maryland State Department of Health, and the Maryland State Department of Education Office of Child Care. Sugar Plums will continue to enforce the same strict protocols that have been in place since September 2020 and allowed us to successfully mitigate the spread of illness. As a reminder, these are our COVID protocols:

 

• Masks: All children over 2 years old, and all staff must wear masks inside, except when eating.

• Pick up and Drop Off: Parents and visitors are not allowed in the building. When you arrive to the drop off or pick up door, please have your mask on. If you are with any family members over 2 years old, they need to be in masks at drop off and pick up. 

•  Hand-washing: Teachers will continue to include numerous times for hand-washing throughout the day, and guide children in thorough and effective hand-washing procedures.

• Cohorting: Each class will continue to operate as an independent group, not sharing any space or materials with any other class. Educational Supplies: Materials are used only by one class at a time and cleaned between uses.

• We offer weekly PCR testing for our staff that are supplied by the CARES Act.

 

Perhaps the most important strategy for maintaining a safe environment is partnering with our parents to exclude sick children from entering our classrooms. We are grateful for the vigilance our families have shown all year, and we ask you to be even more cautious at this critical time.

 

If your child shows any symptoms of any illness, keep your child home and contact me immediately so we can review protocols, and I can effectively monitor the status of our community. Similarly, if your child has any exposure to a person infected with COVID, keep your child home and contact me immediately for further instructions.

 

As a licensed childcare facility, Sugar Plums must follow the regulations from our governing agencies which are different, and much more restrictive, than those of the CDC for the general population and those of public and private K-12 schools. The regulations are subject to change, but here is the current summary:

 

• A child who tests positive for COVID must isolate for 10 days from the test date and then may return to school if all symptoms have been resolved for at least 24 hours without medication.  The CDC is continuing to change the quarantine period. Pediatricians are recommending a 10 quarantine period from the onset of symptoms.

 

• A child who shows symptoms associated with COVID, but has not had a known exposure, and receives a negative PCR test may return to school if all symptoms have been resolved for at least 24 hours without medication.

 

• A child who has been exposed to COVID must quarantine for 14 days from the date of their last exposure and then may return to school unless they have tested positive or developed symptoms.

 

• Symptoms currently listed as associated with COVID include: fever of 100.4 or greater, chills, sore throat, shortness of breath or difficulty breathing, diarrhea or vomiting, loss of taste or smell, headache, and muscle aches. Note that the Maryland Dept. of Health does not identify congestion as an excludable symptom, though the CDC includes it as a concerning symptom. Sugar Plums understands that runny noses in young children can linger without serious illness, but a child must stay home when you suspect they are sick, if they are too uncomfortable to wear a mask, or if they need their mask changed more than twice in a morning. Sugar Plums reserves the right to send a child home if they display any signs of sickness, in the opinion of our experienced educators.

 

It will be critical that everyone follows procedures diligently if we hope to keep everyone as safe as possible and keep our school open.

 

Thank you for your partnership at this challenging time.