Hundreds of Ottawa students head back inside the classroom

Students at École élémentaire catholique Bernard-Grandmaître returned to the classroom Aug. 17, 2021. They are the first group of Ottawa students to go back to in person learning in more than four months. (Leah Larocque / CTV News Ottawa)

OTTAWA -

The first group of students in Ottawa heading back to school were in their classrooms Tuesday for the start of a new school year.

More than 700 students arrived at École élémentaire catholique Bernard-Grandmaître and École élémentaire catholique Jonathan-Pitre for the first day of school. These two schools start earlier in August as part of their balanced calendar.

Mikko Sloan is going into Grade 3 and is excited to see the friends he hasn’t seen since schools shut down across Ontario in April. He says, “I am excited but nervous.” Mikko also knows what to do to help him stay safe. “I wear my mask, and (use my hand) sanitizer and keep six feet apart and only take my mask off if I am eating,” Mikko explains.

His mother Stephanie Sloan says in-person learning is important for students. She hopes this is a step towards a return to normalcy.

“I am nervous, but I am sure he will do good. He is excited to get back and we are excited for him to get back to a routine,” she says.

Safety measures and COVID-19 protocols remain in place. There are decals on the floor to help students maintain physical distance. There are also hand sanitizer stations throughout each school, including at the entrance of every classroom. Students are required to wear masks while inside but they can take them off while they are eating.

Students at Bernard-Grandmaître aren’t old enough to get the COVID-19 vaccine yet. Ottawa Public Health says they are working with schools and school boards to keep kids safe.

Marino Francispillai, the health unit's program manager for school health branch, says they will be encouraging those students 12-17 years-old to get their COIVD-19 vaccine.

He says they will be targeting schools in communities with low vaccination rates. Bringing the vaccine to schools could be a possibility.

“Where we see where there may be a real value and uptick from a school community that is looking to have vaccines brought to them, we will look at bringing pop up vaccine clinics to the school at that point. But right how our focus is community by community,” Francispillai said. “This is definitely a different year because we have added this great additional measure against COVID-19, which is vaccination. But even last year, when we looked at schools, schools are not a setting of high transmission.”

Last spring, schools closed for in-person learning since the start of the delayed spring break in April, as COVID-19 rates increased to record levels. Since the start of the pandemic in March 2020, elementary students in Ottawa have lost 115 days of in-person learning.

“We continue with the idea that our goal with schools is to keep them open, it is such a protective factor for our kids, and it supports the mental health of our community as well as our kids and our families,” says Francispillai.