Parent Information for Returning to Child Care – Summer

What to Expect

Sundowners has been working diligently to plan a safe re-opening of our child care centres for all staff, children and their families. We have revised and developed various policies and procedures with regards to staff to children ratios, cleaning and disinfecting, social distancing, drop off and pick up procedures, revised hours of operation, screening of staff and children and handling potential illness. These revised policies and procedures come from specific guidelines given to us by the Ministry of Education, the Windsor-Essex County Health Unit, as well as from our local school boards. Please bear with us as we navigate the various changes to our daily programming and routines in hopes of making this as smooth as possible. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact your site Supervisor.

What to Bring

At this time, children are asked to refrain from bringing any toys from home to the child care centre. All children are asked to bring a large Ziplock bag labelled with spare clothes, a bathing a suit (for use in sprinklers only), towel, labelled sunscreen, and a hat. Each child will also need a refillable water bottle that is clearly labelled. Toddler and Preschool children are permitted to have soothers at the day care; however, they must come with a labelled case or bag to put them in when not in use. Children who regularly sleep are also permitted to bring a labelled blanket for their child to use during rest periods. This blanket will remain at the child care centre and be laundered each day.

Drop Off/ Pick Up Procedures

At this time, parents will not be permitted to enter the building. Drop off and pick up will take place outdoors or in an empty corridor away from classrooms.  Children and parents will be screened upon arrival, which will include temperature readings, questions, and confirmation of contact information. If you and/or your child is displaying symptoms of illness, or has a fever, he or she will not be allowed to enter. Children will be walked to their respective classrooms by a staff member where they will remain for the duration of the day, except for during outdoor play. Each location will have reduced hours to accommodate the extra cleaning requirements. There will also be limits on the times that children can be picked up and dropped off. Please speak with your site Supervisor directly with regards to when your child can be dropped off and/ or picked up, as well as if arrangements need to made outside of the allotted times. Please speak with your children ahead of time to help them understand why our screening staff will be fully dressed in masks, face shields and gloves during arrival. Also note that when picking up, if children are outside, parents will not be permitted in the playground. Parents are asked and expected to maintain a safe 2 meters/6 foot distance while waiting for their children to be brought to them.

Physical Distancing

Toddler and Preschool children will be encouraged to physical distance, however at this age it is not always possible. Instead staff will focus more on reducing physical contact between children and providing various activities strategically organized around the classroom and outdoor play yard. School aged children will be encouraged to maintain physical distancing guidelines, as well as all staff and parents. School age children will also be provided a variety of activities that are organized to maintain physical distancing guidelines. When physical distancing is a challenge (Staff assisting a Toddler in the washroom), a mask and gloves will be worn by Sundowners staff. Each group will be limited to 10 individuals, staff, and children inclusive. During the summer, our sites will be limited to 2 cohorts of up to 10 individuals. Visitors will not be allowed on site unless absolutely necessary and approved by the administration office.

Ill Children

As a reminder, if your child is ill, please keep them home and refrain from bringing them to any child care centres. If your child begins to display symptoms throughout the course of the day, he or she will be separated from other children, asked to wear a mask, and will need to be picked up immediately. Any suspected cases of COVID-19 will be reported to the Health Unit, and any direction given will be followed.

Screening Procedures

All staff, children and parents will be asked to complete a screening questionnaire daily. All individuals will have their temperature read at drop off and anytime a staff member has reasonable grounds to believe the child may have developed a fever. Any staff, child or parent who may be displaying symptoms of Covid-19, will not be permitted to enter any of Sundowners locations.

General

When we reopen, will will offer care at the following locations:

Holy Cross (7:30am-5:30pm)                                        Dougall (7:00am-5:15pm)
2555 Sandwich West Parkway                                               811 Dougall Ave.
LaSalle, ON N9H 2P7                                                              Windsor, ON N9A 4R2

King Edward (7:30am-5:30pm)                                 Talbot Trail (7:30am-5:30pm)
853 Chilver Rd.                                                                         4000 Ducharme St.
Windsor, ON N8X 5E3                                                            Windsor, ON N8R 1J3

Cleaning and disinfecting of toys and materials will be done after each use and prior to other children using the items. Frequently touched surfaces, washrooms, shelves, tables, and countertops will be disinfected frequently throughout the day by extra staff members. Activities will be planned and offered in a way that promotes physical distancing and does not allow for sharing of materials, including while participating in various art activities. Children will be encouraged to play individually, however in proximity to friends so conversations and plans can still take place. Educators are encouraged to think outside the box when planning activities and to think about safety, as well as being caring and responsive to children during this difficult time. Toys and materials that cannot be easily disinfected will be placed in storage, and all items that are provided for the children will be easily disinfected multiple times throughout the day.

Children will be encouraged and required to wash their hands frequently throughout the day and posters will be placed as reminders in each washroom. Both staff and children will be required to wash their hands when entering the child care centre. Staff will always have access to hand washing sinks and will also be required to wash hands more frequently. Staff will also have access to hand sanitizer should a hand washing sink not be readily available (Ie, outside).

All staff have been trained on the revised policies and procedures and are always required to abide by these policies. Exceptions will not be made for individual families with regards to any of our updated policies, including that children will not be permitted to attend child care if they or their parent is displaying any symptoms of ill health during the screening process. Any symptoms of ill health that develop throughout the day will result in a child being sent home immediately. If the child is not picked up in a timely manner, it could result in the termination of the child care contract as this is putting other staff and children at risk.

Thank you for your understanding, and we look forward to welcoming you back to Sundowners.

Note: If you are interested in seeing our full Pandemic Plan, please speak with your site Supervisor.