Shaker Lane Building Project Update
Message from the Health Office
The Beacon Santa and Holiday Helpers holiday assistance programs have begun. Applications have been mailed to qualifying families. If you do not receive them by Tues 10/20, or you have any questions, please call the school nurse.
BEACON SANTA: The application must be completed and a letter explaining the reasons for the family’s need must also be sent with the application. The completed application and letter MUST BE MAILED or emailed TO BEACON SANTA BY OCT.30. They will not accept late applications!!! Start writing your letter now!!
Littleton Park & Rec Holiday Helpers: The application must be completed and returned to Park & Rec by Nov. 10
Just a Reminder-
Required of all students:
A daily health check at home, before school to make sure your student is not showing any signs of a possible Covid-19 infection.
Symptoms:
Temperature 100.0 degrees fahrenheit or higher
New onset of cough, shortness of breath (if chronic allergic/asthmatic cough - a change from baseline)
Sore throat
Headache (with other symptoms)
Fatigue (with other symptoms)
Body or muscle aches
Nausea, vomiting, diarrhea
Nasal congestion or runny nose (with other symptoms)
New onset of loss of taste or smell
Travel
Travel outside of the lower https://www.mass.gov/info-details/covid-19-travel-order#lower-risk-states- (click this link to view states)
Household Members sick- see below for DESE guidance info
Close Contact- student/staff or household member has been identified as a close contact of a positive case
Definition of a close contact:
If a student or staff member tests positive for COVID-19, their close contacts will be defined as only those who have been within 6 feet of distance of the individual for at least fifteen minutes, while the person was infectious. This is for all grades
*The infectious period begins 2 days prior to symptom onset. If the positive case was asymptomatic (having no symptoms), the infectious period is considered to begin 2 days prior to the collection of their positive test.
Testing for all close contacts is recommended 4-5 days after the last exposure to the positive case. Close contacts must isolate at home prior to their test and while waiting for the test results. Wearing a mask, washing or sanitizing your hands, and physical distancing are critical during this time. The alternative to testing is to quarantine at home for 14 days.
Please seek medical advice from your student’s physician for additional guidance. Also make sure to answer phone calls from contact tracers from the local board of health or the MA Community Tracing Collaborative.
Close contacts must remain in quarantine for 14 days before returning to school (incubation is 2-14 days). The local board of health or the Community Tracing Collaborative will release them from quarantine.
If your student has ANY of the above symptoms, been in contact with a positive case or has travelled, they must STAY HOME – please call the attendance line and leave details of the absence and the nurse will call you back.
Dept. of Elementary and Secondary Education has issued some additional guidance concerning household members who may be sick. Please see an excerpt from DESE’s FAQ sheet on Covid-19 and other important guidance.
Does a student or staff member whose household member is symptomatic need to quarantine?
Only individuals who are symptomatic themselves or close contacts of those who are confirmed to have COVID need to self-isolate (quarantine). As outlined in DPH guidance, all individuals who are symptomatic should be tested and self-isolate until they receive their test results. This means that if an individual in the student/staff member’s household is self-isolating because they are symptomatic, but not confirmed to have COVID, the student/staff member should have limited to no contact with the symptomatic individual to the extent feasible. As a result, the student/staff member should continue to attend school if they are not symptomatic.
If self-isolation is not possible, we encourage you to keep your child(ren) home and utilize remote learning until you receive the COVID-19 test result.
Should a student or staff member need to remain home if a household member had a known exposure/been identified as a close contact to a COVID positive individual and is waiting for their test result?
Yes, the student or staff member should remain at home and not attend school (may attend remotely if possible) until the test result is known. It is best practice for the household member who is getting tested to have limited to no contact with other members of the family until they receive their test results.
Please click on this link to view a great quick reference guide for guidance on what to do if you think you or a family member has Covid-19 symptoms, when to quarantine/isolate and when your student can return to school. COVID 19 Return To School Flow Chart: (see below)
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1OZHc2Tv45NLwo-KzkytJeahZfxZWbDOWwKamFzds0jA/edit