AMA - my child’s been back at (Dutch) school for one week

[Flopjustwantscoffee]

Where we live (Netherlands) they re-opened primary schools part time to all children from 11th May. Although of course the rules won’t be exactly the same in UK schools a lot of the debate here before opening (child/teacher safety, the effect of the new rules on children etc) was similar to the UK. The UK and Netherlands are quite similar in their approach to covid in other ways as well. So I thought it might be helpful to answer any questions on the reality of how it’s actually gone for children/parents/teachers (admittedly from my own limited expat perspective). I’ll answer any questions I can, but obviously no teacher bashing please (my mum was a teacher)

I’m in Switzerland, sounds similar to NL, primary and secondary up to age 16 went back on 11 May one day out if two. Primary are full-time from Monday 25th. No social distancing is expected between children under 12, just between children and adults and between adults, for my 11 yr old’s class there is a line around the teacher that the children don’t cross. No one wears masks at school. At lunch they sit 2 per table diagonally and have to take their own water bottles. At break time each year group has their designated part of the playground. They have to wash their hands when they change rooms. If the child or parents are in a vulnerable group they continue to follow the online lesson plan as the other pupils do on the days they are not at school, otherwise school is compulsory, as normal, although where I live you are allowed to home school even without a teacher qualification. There are very few cases now, about 97% of deaths have been of people with pre-existing conditions and they have told us that the children with no symptoms are not contagious unlike adults and this is physiological not just something that has been observed. I think parents are generally happy that the children are getting back some normality.

Interesting thread. Dh is Dutch (but we live here in the UK) and his family are all in NL.

The impression I’ve got from my in-laws is that it is much more relaxed over there; much more so than this thread suggests. My nieces and nephews have played out with their friends and kids in their streets throughout lockdown, and have gone on play dates. SILs and BIL have met up with their adult friends in gardens and at the beach (but sitting 2m apart). MIL and FIL have also been visiting SILs and sitting in their gardens for coffees. MIL has lung problems and is over 70, so I found this quite alarming, but they all assured us it’s fine and normal over there. They think the UK approach is OTT - MIL said to dh “Ooh, you’re taking this very seriously” when he told her he wasn’t going cycling with friends any more.

Apparently, PIL’s local restaurant is opening soon, and they’ve already booked a table.

SIL is keen for MIL to resume childcare duties ASAP. MIL is also champing at the bit. SIL’s partner is a doctor, which seems to me to make it even riskier, but they are all very relaxed about it all.

Maybe Dh’s family are atypical.

What’s happening with teenagers/high school children?

crumb that is reassuring to hear

I would be interested to know about the children's (and general) mental health - I wonder if it is better than over here perhaps which seems to be so fearful. Did the NL have scary adverts telling you to "stay home or people will die" for example? I think probably not...

Of Switzerland / Sweden...other places too. As I read the reporting in other places has been far less emotive and more practical

Selmaselma
My DC is back at school since May 11th in Switzerland. Similar experience as in the Netherlands: same max 15 children and only half the time. He is really happy to be back with his friends.

I'm also in Switzerland. Ours (8&10) had two days of half class to get used to the hygiene rules and find out how their home schooling had gone, then were full class, full time from the 13th.

Children have to keep their distance from the staff but not from each other although they are discouraging direct contact. They've put arrows on the stairs for an up and down side (one staircase only) and they are supposed to keep a stair apart when going up.
Sports outside, they seem to be doing non contact football, athletics kind of stuff. My 8 year old's class Is not doing any sport but going on walks in the forest instead. All the parents are unhappy because of the ticks.
They're staggering break times and designating parts of the playground on a rota.
Most kids go home for lunch and they've been told not to share snacks at break time and we're not allowed to send birthday cakes in.

Vulnerable children or those with a vulnerable family member are continuing home schooling and ASD children are allowed a gradual return to school.

Did the NL have scary adverts telling you to "stay home or people will die" for example? I think probably not...

I don't watch much tv, but what I have seen was more positive. a bit like it's just another to overcome and together we can do it.

children were encouraged to go out everyday to go for a 'bear hunt'. a newspaper campain asked people to put stuffed toys in windows.

I don't watch much tv, but what I have seen was more positive. a bit like it's just another to overcome and together we can do it

Sounds much better and more reasonable.

I think we in the UK now need some kind of CBT course to overcome the damage caused by the adverts etc. Sadly

No there have not been scary adverts, lots of positive, together we'll beat this and stay 1.5m apart this type adverts . Banners on roundabouts and posters in bus stops.

I don't think it's more relaxed as such, it's just people are not stressing or overreacting. Although the first few weekends were a bit with people going to parks and beaches etc. It calmed down a lot and people stayed at home.
This is for where I live so I don't know what is was like in a larger town or city .
The day we went in lockdown, our snackbar ( chippie) Locked their door, turned it into a serving hatch, drew lines on the pavement outside and fashioned a one way system to pick up your food, they call it the Kroket lokket. Local restaurant, did the same, shut the door, put their menu online and created a drive through to pick your food, or delivered. In my village nothing shut, they just adapted the way you shop, made a one way system and had limited amounts of people allowed in, I never queued once to go into a supermarket, food didn't ran out either. They had people cleaning the trolleys before you can take them and also a washing area for you to wash your hands before you go in and out again. I've seen about 3 people wearing masks.
Kids still played out, I still went for a run and walked the dog, just avoided getting close to people, but that's not difficult where I live. So maybe it was whole different situation Ams for example.
My inlaws who are in their 80's have remained at home normally they're quite active. We've been doing their shopping and leaving it the door for them. We walk past them everyday, and wave through the window. Looking forward to seeing them properly soon.

@ilovemygirls see my posts on p8 of the thread regarding the return of older children to school in NL.

51
Much the same here in Berlin and in the Ruhr area, too.
It seems more like a logistical problem that needs to be solved.
DS school had their hygiene plan approved by the health authorities and is opening up again, though will continue online lessons as well (They very suddenly needed to jump into the 21st century, not neccessarily a bad thing.)

As a teacher you can access the key worker provision at your child’s school.

@ilovemygirls
What’s happening with teenagers/high school children?

The children doing advanced studies after age 15 (a minority as most are expected to do apprenticeships) are going back on 8 June in Switzerland. So far for our local college we just know they are having 3 extra weeks once they go back, as they had been due to break up on 16th. The college doesn’t communicate to parents much, everything goes through the students. They should have the same type of constraints as adults but as far as I know that means no more than 5 in one place so we don’t know if that means shifts, or mostly online with shifts for small groups, or perspex dividers, we’ve no idea. It seems to me that the older-teenager age-group is the one that has been less compliant with the distancing, so it will be challenging to impose the rules.

DS, in his 2nd semester of 4 that all count towards part of Abitur, had online lessons since schools closed, then a catch up lessons in school before the written tests (maths, german, geography, RE, physics, chemistry, art), from the 2nd of June he has to go in for lessons in his special subjects (bio and English) - and the other subjects will be taught online again. School is supposed to break up at the end of June for the summer holidays.
He prefers this type of school, but then he's on the spectrum and not the most social person anyway.

I really like this quote from the dutch prime minister:
The vast majority of children and young people have adapted very well, and I would like to greatly commend you for that. Nobody knows what our country will look like in the near future. We want you to talk about it," he said. "Your ideas and creativity are urgently needed. Come up with ideas. Deliver constructive criticism. Talk about it. The safety rules are not up for discussion, but within this we have to find the best solution together. Children must be involved in the plans for the future.