COVID-19

Dear Parents, Guardians, and Students,

The Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) has had an increased impact on our communities. Therefore, we feel it is important to connect directly with you to share more about the steps we at Newbury Park Academy are taking in order to help keep you and our students safe and healthy. 

In this time of increased concern, it is important that we make decisions based on clear information, not fear and speculation. While many throughout the world are feeling anxious, our trust and confidence is always in God, His promises, and His protection. Our goal is to seek His wisdom and direction as we plan for the health and safety of our student body, families, faculty, and staff. 

The NPAA campus receives a daily cleaning as part of our normal course of business. Over the past few weeks, we have increased the frequency and extent of those cleanings. In addition to adding resources, such as hand sanitizers throughout the school for students and employees, we have found other ways that will enhance the safety of our physical campus. We want to make sure that you and our students have the information that you need to stay healthy. We have been consistently informing students who aren't feeling we to stay at home. All of these practices and decisions are informed by guidance from the California Public Health Department, the Center for Disease Control, and the World Health Organization, along with guidance from local and federal public health agencies. 

We want to assure families that we are taking all of the essential precautions and that we have protocols in place to respond to any outbreak of communicable diseases within our school. On our campus and in our classrooms, we are striving to help reduce the spread of sickness while maintaining our critical mission of education. Should it become necessary to suspend classes on campus for a period of time, NPAA is prepared to transition immediately to an online distance learning format. In other words, school will continue with your children, either at home or on campus, until the last day of scheduled classes in June. We are working closely with the SCC Office of Education to determine if/when we should take this step. Please check your emails regularly for updates. 

Precautions

As you come into contact with people, surfaces, and objects throughout the day, you accumulate germs on your hands. You can infect yourself with these germs by touching your eyes, nose or mouth.

To protect yourself: 

  • Wash your hands often with soap and water for at least 20 seconds. 

  • If soap and water aren't available, use an alcohol-based hand sanitizer with at least 60% alcohol. 

  • Avoid anyone with cold and flu symptoms. 

  • Cover your nose and mouth when coughing and sneezing. 

  • Keep sick children home.

If you develop flu-like symptoms, seek medical attention. If you have been diagnosed with coronavirus, isolate yourself in your own home. Do not go to public places, such as work, school, shopping centers, amusement parks, childcare locations, or colleges and universities. If possible, ask other people to get food and other necessities for you and leave them at your front door. Only people who usually live with you should be in your home. Do not let in visitors. You do not need to wear a mask in your home. If you need to leave home to seek medical attention, notify the facility you are coming, and wear a surgical mask (if you have one) to protect others. Home isolation, quarantine periods, and/or the spread of COVID-19 can be stressful and may leave you feeling concerned. There are a range of support services available, including talking to a counsellor or other mental health professional.

Talking with Your Child About the COVID-19

The information below is from the following link: https://childmind.org/article/talking-to-kidsabout-the-coronavirus/ 

  • Don’t be afraid to discuss the COVID-19.

    • Most children will have already heard about the virus or seen people wearing face masks, so parents shouldn’t avoid talking about it. Not talking about something can actually make children worry more. 

    • Look at the conversation as an opportunity to convey the facts and set the emotional tone. Your goal is to help your children feel informed and get fact-based information that is likely more reassuring than whatever they’re hearing from their friends. 

  • Be developmentally appropriate. 

    • Don’t discuss speculative information with children; stick to the facts. Speculation may be overwhelming to them. 

    • Try to answer your child’s questions. Do your best to answer honestly and clearly. It’s okay if you can’t answer everything; being available to your child is what matters. 

  • Take your cues from your child. 

    • Invite your child to tell you anything they may have heard about the coronavirus, and how they feel. Give them ample opportunity to ask questions. You want to be prepared to answer (but not prompt) questions. 

    • Your goal is to avoid encouraging frightening fantasies. 

  • Deal with your own anxiety. 

    • If you notice that you are feeling anxious, take some time to calm down before trying to have a conversation or answer your child’s questions. 

  • Be reassuring. 

    • Children are very egocentric, so hearing about the coronavirus on the news may be enough to make them seriously worry that they’ll catch it.

    • It’s helpful to reassure your child about how rare COVID-19 actually is (the flu is much more common) and that children actually are less likely to get it, and if they do, the symptoms will be milder. 

  • Focus on what you’re doing to stay safe.

    • An important way to reassure children is to emphasize the safety precautions that you are taking. The CDC recommends thoroughly washing your hands as the primary means of staying healthy. 

    • Remind children that they are taking care of themselves by washing their hands with soap and water for 20 seconds (or the length of two “Happy Birthday” choruses) when they come in from outside, before they eat, and after blowing their nose, coughing, sneezing, or using the bathroom. 

    • If your child asks about face masks, explain that the experts at the CDC say they aren’t necessary for most people. If children see people wearing face masks, explain that those people are being extra cautious. 

  • Stick to your routine. 

    • “We don’t like uncertainty, so staying rooted in routines and predictability is going to be helpful right now,” advise many child specialists. This is particularly important if your child’s school or daycare shuts down. Make sure you are taking care of the basics just like you would during a spring break or summer vacation. Structured days with regular mealtimes and bedtimes are an essential part of keeping children happy and healthy. 

  • Keep talking. 

    • Tell your child that you will continue to keep them updated as you learn more. Let them know that the lines of communication are going to be open. You can say, “Even though we don’t have the answers to everything right now, you can be sure that once we know more, mom or dad will let you know, too.”

On behalf of Newbury Park Academy Board of Trustees, Administration, Faculty, and Staff, I want to thank you for your continued support of our school. Thank you for trusting us with the care of your children. We trust in God and know that He will provide answers to our challenges. He is in charge of fulfilling the purpose He has for our students.

Sincerely, 

Sheldon Parris 

Principal 

Newbury Park Academy

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