April 8th, 2021

As we near the beginning of the well-deserved April Break for our students and staff, we wanted to provide some updates and reminders for families in the Waterloo Region District School Board (WRDSB).

Preparing for the April Break

As a precautionary measure only, we want to ensure that our students, staff and families are prepared for all possible scenarios as we head into the April Break.

As we communicated to families last week, we are asking that they take their personal belongings with them, (including winter clothing, personal learning materials, or other seasonal items). This will help to declutter classrooms, and ensure that all necessary surfaces are able to be cleaned as part of our ongoing enhanced health and safety measures.

We continue to monitor announcements from the Ministry of Education and want to assure families that we are ready to support our students who require devices at home. Schools will be deploying devices on Friday, April 9, for those elementary students who require them.

Please remember that Mental Health Resources for students are available on our website.

Message from the Ministry of Education

Dear parent/guardian,

Thank you for continuing to follow the public health and safety measures that have kept schools open and safe for students and staff. It is our collective effort that continues to ensure your children can learn in the classroom.

As per recent announcements, the province has implemented a provincewide shutdown for four weeks in response to worsening trends in key health indicators across the province.

The mental health and well-being of children continues to be a key government priority and schools will remain open for in-person learning through the Provincial Emergency and Stay at Home Order. The spring break will continue as planned, from April 12th to 16th, and schools will reopen for in-person learning on April 19th.

In light of the recently announced measures, it is more important than ever that we continue to follow health advice over the Spring Break to do our part to keep schools open, for in-person student learning.

At this critical point in the pandemic, the following public health measures are crucial to help prevent and limit the spread of COVID-19:

  • Socialize with your own household.
  • Stay home and get tested if you feel ill.
  • Participate in the targeted testing offered by your school board.
  • Screen every day, including during spring break, for COVID-19 symptoms before attending child care (the COVID-19 School and Child Care Screening Tool is available to assist families with symptom screening).
  • Practice good hand hygiene habits, masking, and physical distancing.
  • Refer to Ontario.ca/covidresponse to learn what public health measures are in place in our community.
  • Refrain from travelling.

During the spring break, students in Grades 1-8 can continue to engage in their own learning through supplemental, curriculum-linked activities available at TVO Learn and TFO IDÉLLO, apprendre à la maison. These rich, engaging opportunities allow students to keep up with their learning and interests. Secondary students can continue to access TVO’s Independent Learning Centre (ILC) Open House and Portes ouvertes pour les cours TVO ILC in French-language. Mathify (English) and Eureka! (French) are also available to provide one-on-one online tutoring services for elementary and secondary students. Mathify covers online math tutoring in English for Grades 6 to 10 and Eureka! supports all subjects for French-language students in Grades 1 to 12.

For the week of April 12-18, pharmacies that currently offer testing and assessment centres across the province will accept appointments from students and education staff for asymptomatic testing. The Ministry of Education will be working with school boards to offer school based clinics. Parents are encouraged to take advantage of this testing capacity to have their children tested to support a safe return to school on April 19. Children attending child care, and child care staff, will also be eligible to access this testing.

As a reminder, before coming back to school on April 19th, you must screen for COVID-19 symptoms. If your child or anyone in your household is ill, stay home and follow the guidance in the school screener.

By following public health advice, we can all enjoy a safe spring break and continue to support in-person learning in our school.

Have a safe, fun and restful break.