September 2021 – Start Up Time!

Hello Armstrong community! Welcome back to the music page of Armstrong Elementary!

We are starting up in a Covid year yet again. There are certain protocols in place in music class this year to keep your children safe. As you know, children under 12 are ineligible to be vaccinated, and I am very aware of this. We also know that the unvaccinated are the most at risk of becoming extremely ill right now. So, I am taking precautions to keep your child safe.

That being said, the protocols are slightly different from last year.

It is now known that Covid is not transmitted through the touching of surfaces. Therefore, the music room does not need to be cleaned/sanitized between classes. We are allowed to use a carpet area again on which to sit and shared supplies are okay.

The new evidence also tells us that Covid is transmitted through droplets and aerosol particles. Music is a place where we can produce more aerosol particles than other areas of the school through singing and using wind instruments. So, the directive is that we can sing as long as we are wearing masks and spaced apart. I would then ask that every child come with a mask on music days to wear so we are able to do some singing. I will be doing recorder again with grade 4 and 5 students, and using the protocols we did last year – windows and doors open, limited playing inside and mostly playing outside. That seemed to work well to keep us safe last school year.

It was sure great to see all of your children’s faces this week and welcome back returning students. I also had the pleasure of meeting our students new to Armstrong this year. May it be a school year filled with joy and hope. And through music, we can continue to celebrate and “fill our buckets”. 🙂

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