A small outdoor school in Salmon Arm, B.C., has reopened after a two-week closure due to the coronavirus pandemic.
South Canoe Elementary transitioned to remote learning from January 15 to February 1 after two test-positive COVID-19 cases were confirmed, according to letters from school officials posted to the school’s website.
North Okanagan-Shuswap superintendent Peter Jory said in a letter to parents and staff that the closure was in consultation with Interior Health and the Ministry of Education.
“I wish to thank all of you for your patience and support in these challenging times. Please know that I am keenly aware of the pressures such temporary closures can cause for families and that these decisions are not made without serious consideration,” Jory wrote on Jan. 15.
Two days later, Interior Health issued a school exposure notice with a person being at school while potentially infectious on Jan. 11, 12 and 14.
On Feb. 1, principal Jared King welcomed students back for in-person instruction.
“We are excited to have our students back with us and learning outdoors! Please make sure your child(ren) are dressed for the weather as teachers will be taking students out even more now,” he wrote to parents.
“The school is a safe place to be and the District has done a great job making sure it is clean and ready for students and staff.”
South Canoe is described as the home of the Outdoor Learning Program, which touts “nature’s classroom.”
“One of the big differences is that we spend a lot of time outside in the woods, rivers, parks, fields and mountains of the Shuswap area – and we mean A LOT,” the school said on its website.
“This is nothing like regular school ‘field trips.’ The students spend days working and studying in a particular location, sometimes using tents and tarps for shelter.”
A recent Board of Education newsletter includes comments Jory made to board trustees about the pandemic’s impact on schools in the Salmon Arm area.
“We essentially had a heck of a January in Salmon Arm,” Jory said. “There was a significant amount of COVID in the community and we were one of the provincial hot spots.”
Jory reported that there were 15 possible exposures at SD 83 schools over six weeks with more than a dozen class exclusions.
The superintendent said the spread of the virus has since slowed in the community, but there were recent possible exposures at Armstrong Elementary and South Broadview Elementary.
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He added that the school district is strengthening its COVID-19 safety protocols in line with new provincial guidelines, and said he is optimistic about vaccines on the horizon.
When reached on Sunday, Jory declined an interview, but said there have been two possible exposures in schools over the past three weeks, which is a “much-appreciated shift in trajectory.”
“I would like to recognize everyone in the district, and the staff at South Canoe in particular, for their hard work and a renewed commitment to the safety protocols,” he said in an email.
“As well, I would again like to encourage everyone in all of our communities to continue to be cautious and utilize the layers of protection (sanitize hands, social distance, mask in shared spaces, and stay home if symptomatic) so we can all continue to be as safe as possible and keep our students in school. ”
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