West Aurora School District 129 students returned to classes Wednesday for the first day of the new school year which features full in-person learning.
“While the past couple of years were unprecedented, we grew leaps and bounds. But there’s nothing like having our kids in front of us. I know with my staff there’s an excitement about having kids back,” Schneider Elementary School Principal Olivia Smith said.
The last couple of school years were interrupted when the pandemic closed schools in the spring of 2020. The district is following public health guidelines for the opening of the school year which includes having all students and staff members wear masks.
Smith said it’s great to see her students in person again.
“It’s reassuring to be able to lay my eyes on our students and see they are doing OK and their teachers are making connections with them. There’s an excitement to be able to continue to build relationships with our students,” Smith said.
While teachers cannot see the smiles behind the masks, they can look into the eyes of the kids, the principal said.
“It’s amazing how much you can tell from the eyes of the kids and their body language. Once we’re outside and the masks are taken off, you can check on them as well,” Smith said.
Schneider Elementary is following the lead of the school district on public health guidance, with classrooms set up for social distancing.
Kids are excited to be back with their peers in school, she said.
“There was the socialization piece that students have missed,” she said. “As much as educators tried to recreate it with virtual learning, it still wasn’t quite the same. When we returned to in-person learning at the end of the last school year, there was a little bit of relief and there weren’t any issues when they came back. There was a desire to be back in school with their friends.”
Bryan Cruz, 5, was happy to start kindergarten Wednesday at Schneider Elementary in North Aurora. His older brother, Brandon Cruz, 8, is beginning third grade at the school.
Before heading into school, Brandon said Wednesday he is “excited to meet his teacher” as the new school year begins.
Guadalupe Garcia, Bryan and Brandon’s mother, said Wednesday was also an important day for her.
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“I am excited my boys are going back to school,” she said.
Smith said some parents have mixed feelings about having their children return to school with the delta variant cases ongoing, she said.
“Parents feel differently for their own reasons. There are parents who are excited to send their children back to in-person while others are anxious about it. I am sure we still have parents who have not registered but I encourage them to register their children for school. We are working hard to keep children in school,” she said.
“I feel school is as normal as it can be right now. There are definitely some new pieces we had to add in. We will all be wearing masks. It’s a little bit harder to read people but we are figuring it out and everyone is doing their best to be flexible,” Smith said.
“We are ready for the challenge,” she said.
Linda Girardi is a freelance reporter for The Beacon-News.