Frequently Asked Questions

Newly added FAQ's are at the top of the list and marked with an *.

Reopening Questions

*How do I order lunches for my child?
Please visit https://st-annes.org/lunch-menu to set up and log into the new lunch ordering software. Questions contact [email protected]. Return to Top
*What does my child's lunch come with?
With every meal, students will have a bagged snack and a piece of fruit, and a vegetable/yogurt. 2 days a week they will get yogurt and 3 days they will get some sort of vegetable.
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*What does the school calendar look like for Thanksgiving and the holidays?
  • At this time, we do foresee any interruptions to the school calendar. This could change, however, and we are prepared to move into SADL should the need arise. 
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*Will the lunch staff be serving lunch between rooms or will it be a sack lunches?
  • Pre-packaged lunches will be delivered outside the classroom each day and will be handed out to students by cohort leaders. Lunch will be eaten outside whenever possible.
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*Will students be able to use playgrounds?
  • At this time, we are still evaluating the safety of opening our playgrounds.
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*What about common colds and runny noses?
  • We ask that as parents you practice extreme caution sending your child to school when you think it might just be a cold. Depending on your child's symptoms, The Magnus Health Daily Screening may tell you your child cannot come to school. Common colds will be evaluated by your PCP and we may require a note for your child to return. The COVID Task Force will work through all these individual scenarios to support families and keep our entire community safe.
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*How will math work in the Middle School
  • MS math will have 1 advanced math class and 2 standard-paced math classes for each grade level. 
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*What will happen to siblings of students in cohort that is being quarantined? Do they continue to go to school?
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*What will P.E. look like?
  • PE will be held outside only. If the weather is inclement, lessons will be streamed into the classroom. P.E. will involve individual sports where equipment is not shared. 
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*Will there be a nurse on campus this year?
  • As of July 1, we have a nurse on-call from Children's Hospital. She will be consulting us on all health-related items that come up on campus, including COVID-19.  
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*Will the person in the COVID-19 Isolation room have access to N95 Masks?
  • Yes, we will have N95 masks available for faculty and staff and anyone who enters the COVID-19 isolation room. 
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* In the spring, during SADL, it felt like there was a lot of screen time. What are you doing to improve that?
  • We recognize that we need to find a balance between educating students virtually and allowing them to explore and learn without a screen. We are developing new ways to manage this challenge, especially in younger grades.  This involves more hands-on work, outdoor exploration, and independent work that can be done on- or off-screen.
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*Are there enough substitute teachers if teachers get sick?
  • Yes, we have contacted our regular subs and have many that are willing to support us. We also have staff and administration who are willing to substitute if needed and many of our co-curricular teachers are able to jump if needed. 
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*What's the difference between remote learning and SADL
  • Remote learners are students who are working from home when their grade level cohorts are on-campus. They will join their class through Swivl & Zoom technology and students will have high engagement within the live classroom setting. Recorded options will be available to provide additional flexibility for families. 
  • SADL programming occurs when there is a school-wide or grade level closure. A SADL schedule may change from a typical school day schedule to accommodate the entire grade level, to allow for flexibility and to help build schedules that are sustainable for both teachers and students who are all working from home. SADL will include live meeting time, outdoor time, and independent work. 
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*How will remote learning students be able to feel a part of the community?
  • Cohorts will build community with both in-person students and remote students through our responsive classroom approach. Whether remote or in-person teachers and students will spend time each morning with:
  1. Greeting: Students and teachers greet one other by name.
  2. Sharing: Students share information about important events in their lives. Listeners often offer empathetic comments or ask clarifying questions.
  3. Group Activity: Everyone participates in a brief, lively activity that fosters group cohesion and helps students practice social and academic skills (for example, reciting a poem, dancing, or playing a game).
  4. Morning Message: Students read and interact with a short message written by their teacher. The message is crafted to help students focus on the work they’ll do in school that day.
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*How will lunch work if masks can't be worn while eating?
  • We will have the children eat outside as often as possible, and children will sit 6’ apart and remove their masks to eat lunch. With distance, utilizing airflow and ionizers, and spending lunch outside our hope is to minimize the risk of having masks off during lunch. 
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*Is remote learning going to be exact same as in person but just through live video of the classroom?
  • Yes, our Swivl technology will allow students to participate in live classes remotely. Mini-lessons and live classes will also be recorded to give added flexibility for remote learners. We will continue to use Google Classroom and Seesaw for both on-campus students and remote students for consistency and practice with these platforms. During a school-wide or grade level closure, we will move to SADL and the programming will adjust to fit the needs of all learners and teachers that will be working, learning, and engaging remotely. 
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*Is this year "Pass/Fail" like last year?
  • No, we will be going back to our normal grading system with the exception of "effort" grades. Changes to effort grading can be in our regular 2020-2021 Family Handbook. 
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*My family is choosing to be remote for the fall. Will my student still be able to participate in classroom discussion?
  • Yes, our newly adopted Swivl technology will allow for remote learners to participate with the class from home. They will hear classroom discussions, will be able to ask questions and engage with their class.
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*How will you utilize outdoor spaces?
  • We are lucky to have a very large campus with a lot of open space. There will be designated spaces for lessons and for free time. We have tents that's can be utilized and teachers will be able to move classes outside at their discretion. 
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*Are you requiring quarantine or tests for people who travel?
  • Right now, we are not requiring testing prior to the start of school, or when people travel (domestically or internationally). We are, however, asking families to practice extreme caution if they have traveled out-of-state, internationally, or to "hot-spots" around the country. Our remote program allows families to choose to self-isolate if they have traveled. We highly encourage our families to think about the health and safety of our entire community when deciding if they should self isolate after traveling. 
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*Do masks need to washed everyday? What should my child do with their dirty masks?
  • Yes, students will need to bring 2-3 clean masks every day.  Dirty masks will go home with the student at the end of each school day. You are welcome to bring a separate paper or mesh bag for dirty masks if you wish. Also be sure to label your child(ren)'s masks. 
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*How will kids be kept 3-6 ft apart? With an incoming kindergarten I worry about this.
  • We understand that with younger students this might be more challenging. We also know that kids learn quickly and that no one is perfect. Our mask policy allows for an added safeguard in times where students might be less than 6' apart. Our teachers and staff will be trained on how to have these discussions and how to best address this with all of our students (even our 3 year olds). The first few days of school teachers will work with students to help set the foundation on why keeping a distance from peers is important. While we know this might not always be 100% perfect our goal is to minimize risk as much as possible.  
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*When a child has symptoms and is sent home, why aren’t we requiring 14 days of isolation before returning? Or negative Covid test?
  • Please see Section 3 of the Family Supplement: Response to Confirmed or Suspected Cases of COVID-19. Our COVID-19 Task Force Team, and in consult with our Children's Hospital nurse,  will evaluate all student illnesses on a case-by-case basis. Community health and safety will be our number one priority. You will see that in some scenarios we will require either a note from a PCP or a negative test before a student can return to campus.
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*Will cohorts be in Comfort Hall?
  • No cohorts will be meeting in Comfort Hall. 
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*How many masks should my child have each day?
  • We are asking students to have 2-3 clean masks per day. This is for comfort so that masks can be changed throughout the day. This also allows for a backup if/when they become too hot, sweaty, or if one gets dirty/wet. As explained in our Mask Policy, "masks should fit properly, completely covering the mouth and nose. There should not be gaps, holes, or valves/vents."
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*Can you expand on the new dress code?

  • All students should wear attire that is appropriate for the classroom setting, physical education, and for times when they may be sitting in the grass during an outdoor lesson. This includes active clothing, such as athletic T-shirts, gym shorts, warm-up pants, yoga pants, and socks.

  • All students should wear shoes that can be worn during P.E. activities as well as during the day. 

  • T-shirts and masks should not have large logos, messages or distasteful and inappropriate graphics (i.e., references to alcohol, drugs, tobacco, political messages or sexual content) and should be free of phrases or slogans. 

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*What about school supplies? When will we receive our Edukits?
  • School Supplies will be provided for every student this year. Edukits have been ordered for all students and will be available in their cohort classrooms the first day of school. 
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*Do I need to buy a case or covers for devices that are provided by the school?
  • SAES will provide covers for certain devices that need them. We do not expect parents to buy cases or covers for any device. In grades 3-5 we will be using Chromebooks. These devices are quite a bit more sturdy and don't need cases/covers. All other grades will have some sort of case or cover, mainly because those devices are more fragile/expensive. 
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Should I buy my child a laptop or computer?
  • No, the tech department will be providing students with devices. Each student will have their own laptop, chromebook or iPad, and they will be able to bring them to and from school. 
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How did you decide on 6' spacing for distancing?
  • Our consultants at Children's Hospital and the CDPHE recommend a minimum distance of 3' (with masks) - 6', but our classrooms/cohort spaces are currently designed for 6' from chair to chair.  We will use 6' feet distancing as an additional precaution.
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Can I bring my own lunch?

  • Yes, however, we are not able to offer refunds for the lunch program. We count on the full participation of the community in order to keep the program staffed and affordable. Although this year's program won't look the same as in past years, it will still offer a variety of options for students. If families choose to bring their own lunch, we are unable to store lunches in refrigerators or provide microwaves for student use.

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Will teachers also submit a wellness check before coming to work?
  • Yes, we will ask fac/staff to report their temperatures and respond to a symptom checklist each day before they report to work.
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Why is the cohort size for middle school larger than the cohort size in lower school?
  • The cohort size for older children is typically higher because experts feel that older children are more likely to maintain the distancing, hand washing, and mask requirements. It is simply harder to keep younger children apart.
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Where do I submit the daily health check?
  • We are in the process of implementing the daily health screening software. It will be a Magnus app that will be easy to access from your smartphone.  Once we have it up and running we will provide instructions on how to download, access, and submit the health check for your child(ren) each morning.

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My student doesn't start class until 8:15 AM, can I drop them off at 7:45 AM?
  • Unfortunately, no, we are not able to offer morning extended day for students. Only students with a sibling are allowed to arrive before their staggered start time. Sibling numbers have been accounted for in order to make this possible. The staggered start times are designed to help us manage the flow of students and cars on to campus so that we can adhere to social distancing.  Students who arrive prior to their drop off time will be asked to wait in their cars until their set drop off time begins. Grades preschool - 2 can begin arriving at 7:45 AM for an 8:00 AM start time. Grades 3 - 8 can begin arriving at 8:00 AM for am 8:15 AM start time. 
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Will each cohort have their own designated restroom?
  • We do not have enough restrooms on campus to allow each cohort to have its "own" restroom, but we will designate restrooms.  For example, in the middle school, each grade level will be assigned a set of restrooms.  Only one student at a time will be allowed in the restroom, masks will be required in restrooms, and hand washing will be required after restroom use. Additionally, we will have a day cleaning crew that will clean restrooms on a regular basis. 
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Can I decide to be home one day and on campus the next day?
  • We know that at any given time, a family might need to be at home, and we want to be accommodating during those times. Students can choose to be on campus or in distance learning at any time. While this looks different from SADL programming during a school-wide closure, our hope is that streaming will allow for a higher level of interaction for students. This will also include a recorded option so that families can continue to have flexibility in their distance learning experience.
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Can siblings assigned to separate gates choose one gate for drop off or must they adhere to separate gates?
  • If arriving with a carpool or as a family with siblings, please arrive at the start time and gate of your youngest child, with the exception of afternoon preschool students. Siblings of afternoon preschool students should arrive at their scheduled start time.
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What about physical books from the Library?

  • As lovers and supporters of physical books, we will be implementing a check-in and check-out system using our library’s vast collection to supplement classroom libraries and respond to student requests. For both classroom and library books, we will be using a 72-hour quarantine system for returned books before placing them back into circulation.

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How are you improving ventilation?

  • Windows, doors, and HVAC systems have all been tested to provide additional airflow. We have also purchased air ionizers for every building on campus. 

     
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Why is the school’s policy on masks so strict?
  • We believe we have a duty to protect our students, their families, our faculty and staff and our neighbors. After much consideration and research we believe requiring masks for students provides a layer of protection for the greater whole of our community.  We are committed to spending a lot of time outside and offering many mask breaks throughout the day for students.
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What is the school’s policy on masks and shields?

  • Specific details are outlined in the COVID Family Handbook. Masks will be required for all students and adults while on campus. We will provide outdoor breaks where students can distance and take off their masks. Masks will not be required while eating, drinking, or napping (PS). 

  • Adults or students who desire additional protection may wear a face shield; however, the shield must be accompanied by a mask. 

  • Face shields alone are not permitted at this time.


This policy could change based on state guidelines, but for now we are acting conservatively to protect our entire community.
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Will parents or visitors be allowed on campus?

  • At this time, no parents/guardians or visitors will be allowed on campus. 

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Will St. Anne’s provide masks?

  • Masks will be provided for faculty and staff every day. Teachers are welcome to use their own reusable masks. There will be a limited supply of masks for students who forget a mask on any given day, but students are encouraged to bring 2 or 3 clean masks with them to school each day.  Student or faculty/staff masks must cover the nose and mouth and not have holes, gaps or valves/vents.

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What if I -- or someone in my family -- test positive for COVID-19?

  • In the COVID-19 Family Handbook, Section 3: Response to Suspected or Confirmed Cases of COVID-19 outlines four scenarios and the actions that should be taken with each. 

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What about lockers and cubbies?

  • Lockers will not be used. Students are asked to bring their personal belongings home with them at the end of each day.  The only students with access to cubbies will be preschool students, and their cubbies will be spaced 3-6 feet apart. 

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How will lunch work?

  • Parents will submit lunch orders for a month at a time. Lunches will be delivered to the classrooms, and students will eat either at their desks or outside as per the teachers’ discretion. 

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Will classes ever be held outside?

  • Yes! With designated outdoor spaces per grade, teachers will be able to take learning outside!

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What will recess look like?

  • Designated outdoor spaces have been assigned and will be reserved by cohort leaders. 

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How will co-curriculars, such as art, drama, music, innovations and PE, work this fall?

  • Most co-curricular classes will take place in the classroom either through swivl streaming or with a co-curricular teacher.  PE will be held outside unless weather conditions prevent outside activities, in which case it will be virtual.  Drama as in years past isn’t compatible with the safety guidelines for COVID-19. This year Mr. Lemire will be working with middle school teachers and students in a variety of classes to use drama tools for various subjects. 

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Will there be after-school activities, clubs, music or enrichment options?

  • All after-school activities have been suspended through November. We are monitoring the safety of resuming after-school activities in the second trimester. 

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Will we have MS sports in the fall?

  • MS sports have been suspended through November. We will consult with CHSAA and our peer schools before considering winter sports. 

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Will there be more adjustments to the St. Anne’s calendar?

  • At this point, we have suspended all in-person events and are beginning to consider which events might be virtual in the fall. Other adjustments to the St. Anne’s calendar might be made in order to accommodate safety on campus. 

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How will students become familiar with social distancing, mask wearing, and daily hygiene practices on campus?

  • During the first week of school, each cohort will go through an orientation process that will include discussions about hygiene, social distancing, and how to move about campus.  We understand that it won't be perfect 100% of the time, but there will be constant reminders throughout campus to help build these practices into the daily habits of our community.

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We’re traveling in August. Should we quarantine before returning to school?

  • We ask that you use your best judgement as a family before returning to campus. Please put the community and cohort members (including faculty) first.

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What is SWIVL technology?

  • Swivl technology with Zoom integration allows classes to be streamed into partner cohorts and into homes. It provides audio and visuals of the classroom and teacher, and it enhances the remote learning experience.

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