D93 wants to keep classrooms open as long as they can
IDAHO FALLS, Idaho (KIFI/KIDK) - Bonneville School District 93 discussed their reopening plan at Hillcrest High School on Wednesday night. Part of going to school will include wearing a mask whenever physical distancing cannot be maintained.
“Mike Tyson has a great quote that says, 'Everybody has a plan until you get punched in the face," and that's reality when kids show up and we put live bodies into the plan," District 93 Superintendent, Scott Woolstenhulme said. "Things are going to likely change fourth might be very responsive to that and meet change to meet those needs.”
District 93 is hoping not to get punched too hard in their four-phase reopening plan. Ideally, Woolstenhulme says the district wants to stay in Phase 1 and 2. In those phases, students will go to school every day.
“Nothing quite replaces that that personal and human interaction between the teacher and student," Woolstenhulme said. "The way that those teachers can intervene when they see that students are struggling. The way they can build relationships with those kids and really motivate them to do well.”
The District is confident in their reopening plan and hopes they can bring a sense of security for families.
“Some of the really challenging situations we saw were the fourth or fifth grade and sometimes even third-grade students being the ones that are staying home taking care of the little brothers and sisters," Woolstenhulme said.
"That makes it really difficult for them in engagement learning. So, those are the situations that make us really want to ensure that we can keep our classrooms open as long as we can because we know they need that caring adult that can be there. They can help and support them with their learning and really take that burden off of them at home.”
District 93 says online learning is an option for families. They also encourage the community to sign up to be a substitute teacher as they may be facing a shortage in their district.
