COVID-19 Operations Protocol


Effective June 2020

Updated 10/22/2020

  1. Children will be dropped off at the check in/check out table outside the front door
  2. Parents are strongly discouraged from entering facility, to minimize the spread of germs.  Should this be necessary the following must be complied with: a request, wear mask, wash hands, wear shoe coverings and limiting time. 
  3. Hand sanitizer will be available outside the front door and throughout the building (this does not replace proper hand-washing).
  4. Per CDSS PIN 20-11-CCP: Facial covering should NEVER be used on children under the age of 2.  Masks will be required for staff.  Per the County of Los Angeles Public health (B.5), as of 9/7/2020, Children that are 2 through 8 years old should use face coverings with adult supervision to ensure that the child can breathe safely and avoid chocking or suffocation.  Children with breathing problems should not wear cloth face coverings..  We will do our very best to ensure children wear their face coverings but we cannot force a child ever.
  5. Masks and gloves are required for preschool staff during snack and lunch times. 
  6. Visual wellness checks will be conducted on all children and staff upon arrival and health questions will be asked.  
  7. (A visual wellness check is an inspection of the child/staff member for signs of illness which could include flushed cheeks, rapid breathing or difficulty breathing (without recent physical activity), fatigue, or extreme fussiness. Per CDC, Guidance for Child Care Programs that remain open, April 21, 2020
  8. Temperatures will be taken and logged upon arrival, at lunch, and before departure.  A no-touch thermometer will be used.
  9. Children and staff with a temperature of 100.4 or higher MUST be excluded from the facility for 10-14 days.
  10.  [Per CDSS PIN 20-06-CCP]
  11. Licensing requires staff to ask family members the following question:
  12. Has anyone in your family or residing in your home had any of the following symptoms within the last 24 hours: Fever, cough, difficulty breathing or other signs of illness?)  [Per CDSS PIN 20-06-CCP]
  13. Staff and children will be monitored throughout the day for any signs of possible illness.
  14. If staff or a child exhibit signs of illness, we will follow the facility procedures for isolation from the general room population and notify the caregiver immediately to pick up the child.  (Child Must be picked up within 1 hour of notification.)  If parent does not answer staff will notify all other contacts on the child’s emergency form. 
  15. All parents and staff will read and sign a declaration page stating they will follow and abide by all protocols, including the school’s enhanced sick policy.
  16. Children will be delivered to their classroom from the front door each day.
  17. Each class can have no more than a group of 10 children at any time.  Groups cannot mix.
  18. Cribs are designated for a specific child when child attends.  Cribs will be cleaned and disinfected after each use.
  19. Disinfecting will take place every 30 minutes and logged throughout the day.
  20. Staff schedules will be assigned to meet the guidelines given by the State. 
  21. Pick up: parents will sign children out at the front table.  Please ring doorbell if greeter is not present.  Child’s temperature will be taken before they leave.
  22. Tours will be modified to conform to the COVID19 guidelines.
  23. Tours for new families will be virtual until the Guidelines lift.
  24. Facility Cleaning logs will be kept daily.  Cleaning and disinfecting will take place every 30 minutes.
  25. Sick logs will be kept daily.  When staff and students are sent home this will be included on the log. 
  26. Temperature logs will be kept daily.  Temperatures will be taken upon arrival, at lunch and before leaving for the day.
  27. Handwashing logs will be kept daily.  Handwashing will be done a minimum of once an hour.  (Handwashing is done: upon arrival, before and after snack, after coming in from outside play, before and after lunch, after blowing nose, after sneezing, after coughing in hands, after messy activities, after using bathroom, and when needed- at least once per hour.)
  28. Toy Cleaning logs will be kept daily. All toys will be cleaned and disinfected after use daily. 
  29. Toys will be removed from the classroom after each use and disinfected.
  30. Staff will be required to undergo COVID-19 testing prior to starting school in June and again every 4 weeks.

COVID 19 Cleaning Protocol

Effective June 2020 

  1. Doorknobs (including all classrooms, bathrooms, front door, outside doors, hall cabinets, etc.) will be cleaned & disinfected every 30 minutes.
  2. Light switches will be cleaned & disinfected every 30 minutes.
  3. Tables (tops and underneath) and all chairs will be cleaned and disinfected every 30 minutes.
  4. Water jugs (including container and lever) will be disinfected every time they are used and nightly.
  5. Bathrooms sinks, faucets, toilets, handles, and paper towel dispensers, soap dispensers, hand sanitizers will be cleaned & disinfected every 30 minutes. 
  6. Sinks, faucets, and handles in all classrooms and kitchens will be cleaned & disinfected every 30 minutes.
  7. Counters, refrigerators (including handles), and all flat surfaces will be cleaned & disinfected every 30 minutes.
  8. Any Toy will be removed after a child has it in their mouth and placed in a “dirty toy” container to be disinfected daily.
  9. Logs will be kept daily documenting cleaning and disinfecting.
  10. All toys will be cleaned and disinfected after use daily. 
  11. Toys will be removed from the classroom after each play period and disinfected.
  12. Cribs will be disinfected after each use.  There will be a dedicated crib for each baby each day?
  13. Staff and children will practice frequent handwashing every 30 minutes, or sooner if needed. (after touching face, after sneezing or coughing, before and after eating, when children arrive at school, after playing outside, after blowing their nose) We will teach children to wash for 20 seconds or longer to a popular child-friendly song.  (Happy Birthday 2x)
  14. Only one group at a time outside: 30 minutes between outside times with a full disinfecting between groups.  (In addition to cleaning at end of day by staff cleaning staff + one deep cleaning every weekend.)

 

Home Quarantine instructions for close contacts to covid-19

Definition of a Close Contact

A “close contact” is any of the following people who were exposed to an “infected person*” while they were infectious:

  • a. A household member, intimate contact or caregiver,
  • b. An individual who was within 6 feet of the infected person for more than 15 minutes
  • c. An individual who had unprotected contact with the infected person’s body fluids and/or secretions, for example, being coughed or sneezed on, sharing utensils or saliva, or providing care without wearing appropriate protective equipment.

*An infected person is anyone with COVID-19, or who is suspected to have COVID-19, and is considered to be infectious from 48 hours before their symptoms first appeared until they are no longer required to be isolated (as described in Home Isolation Instructions for People with COVID-19 which can be accessed at ph.lacounty.gov/covidisolation). A person with a positive COVID-19 test but no symptoms is considered to be infectious from 48 hours before their test was taken until 10 days after their test.


*Symptoms may appear 2-14 days after exposure to the virus.


Length of quarantine period:


• You need to stay in quarantine for 14 days from when you last had close contact with the infectious person.  If no symptoms arise during the 14 days, the quarantined person may return to work.


Other times children and staff must stay home:


*When they are sick with symptoms of respiratory illness such as fever and cough.  You must remain at home in isolation and not return for a minimum of 10 days after onset of symptoms AND until symptoms have improved AND free of fever for AT LEAST 72 HOURS with fever-reducing medication.


As of May 2020                          (LA County Dept. of Public Health 5/1/2020-Early Childhood Education)