Covid Protocols For Fall 2021
As we enter into the Fall of 2021, we know there is still a lot of unknown and apprehension regarding a 4th wave. At ITD we take the health and safety of our students very seriously and wish to follow best practices above and beyond provincial guidelines. We will be entering into this new school year with many of our covid protocols from last year still in place. This includes:
- One way flow of traffic through the studio (students enter through the main doors and exit through their individual studio doors).
- Waiting in the lobby on socially distanced floor stickers 2m distant.
- 5 minutes between classes for cleaning as well as providing a reduction in traffic through the waiting rooms.
- Enhanced cleaning and sanitation measures both between classes and at the end of the night.
- Waiting rooms continue to be closed to parents and other observers. Only students waiting between classes will be allowed.
- Class sizes are capped to allow for 2m distancing at all times.
- We will be live streaming all our classes, so that any student that feels unwell or needs to isolate can still partake in class at home. By having this option in place, we hope to discourage any student from feeling pressured to come to class simply to keep up, if their health or a family members health is in question. This is also an option for any student that may not feel safe attending in person classes at this time.
- Masking will be required in all common areas.
- Teachers will be masked at all times.
- Students will not be required to mask during dance class itself. This is a difficult topic because there are risks to being unmasked in todays climate, however there are also risks to dancing masked when it comes to overheating, difficulty breathing etc. It is for this reason that we have decided to leave masking in class a family decision at this time.
We will be watching the development of covid cases, hospitalizations and the trends within the youth population closely and will adjust the policies as the situation develops. It is our greatest hope to finishing our school year with little need for the above protocols but will always keep the safety of our students at the forefront of any decisions that we make.
We thank you for your understanding and your efforts to make the studio as safe as possible for all.