By: Betty Fox
“Please stay six feet apart!” That is a common phrase we hear all the time now especially as we begin in person learning this week. Imagine for several weeks that phrase would disappear and we could live in a perfect COVID-19-free paradise. This is what many sleep away camps tried to accomplish this summer by creating a bubble to prevent the virus. To find out how this went, we asked three teens about their experiences at camp. All three camps were successful using the bubble strategy. The bubble strategy works by first, keeping the virus out, and making sure no one leaves or comes into the bubble, and then, in the bubble, following the CDC guidelines including wearing a mask when close to others, increasing ventilation while indoors, and testing continuously.
What were the main components that accounted for the absence of any COVID cases at these camps? That is a question many people want to answer in the hopes of enhancing the safety of in-person school. A common theme in all three camps was that all campers and staff were tested prior to arrival at camp, and tested continuously over the summer. In the early days of the bubble, campers and staff maintained social distance except with others in their bunk. Each bunk, in other words, acted as a pod in the bubble. All campers and staff wore masks during the first couple weeks. After those two weeks were over, Robin Hood and Modin campers and staff were able to take off their masks. However, at camp North Star, campers and staff wore masks indoors for the whole summer except in their bunks (NPR). At Modin, the buffets, and shared bathrooms were closed all summer. Natalie Sloan, currently an 8th grader at Rodeph Sholom School and camper at Modin, said the reason she felt safe going to camp was because in 2009, Modin successfully managed an outbreak of swine flu (HINI). Modin offered prophylactic tamiflu and required that campers and staff wear masks to control the spread (CDC, NYT, JTA). Gabe Goldberg, who is a current 8th grader at University School in Cleveland, Ohio went to North Star this summer. He also said he felt safe because of the bubble. The only people who were allowed in and out were the UPS and US mail delivery people, all of whom wore masks and cleaned all packages. Additionally, the two delivery people were the same all summer. Gabe explained that camp was a way to quarantine with friends away from the increasing cases of Covid-19 outside of his bubble. Jemma Fox, currently an 11th grader at LREI, Gabe and Natalie all went to sleep away camps this summer and all believe that maintaining low COVID-19 cases at day school is very difficult. All it takes is one person to contract the virus and the whole community shuts down. Gabe explained, “everyone is living their own lives outside of school” therefore it is very hard to control the virus, unlike at camps, or boarding schools.
Even though camps can create isolated worlds that day schools cannot, students in day schools can still employ some of the same precautions used by campers by following CDC guidelines including wearing a mask, and staying socially distant. At camp, Gabe Goldberg was in a perfect bubble, but once he left he more deeply understood the precautions he had to follow. Natalie Sloan said, “ I learned that it’s necessary to be mindful of others and their health. It’s not about you getting Covid-19; it’s about the community, and you shutting down the whole school.” Natalie’s worry is valid and many others have the same concern as we begin in-person learning. To create a semi-bubble at day schools, schools have begun making cohorts. Each student is placed in a cohort of 8 to 10 others who they see every day for the whole year. As an added precaution, the cohorts stay in the same classroom all day. The concept of cohorting allows students to limit the amount of people they come in contact with. Dr. William Miller says, “The beauty of cohorts is if the whole bubble stays safe then everyone within it stays safe.” Even though cohorts are a positive way to prevent COVID-19 outbreaks in schools, there are emotional repercussions. It can be hard not seeing some of your friends just because they are in a different cohort. Jemma Fox experienced this when she first arrived at camp. Initially, her bunk was split in half, meaning she could only be less than six feet apart from the girls on her side of the bunk although she saw her friends on the other side. There were positives for Jemma because she got closer to the girls in her cohort. For Iris Dennison, a current 9th grader at Avenues, cohorts are a positive experience because they allow her to be as safe as possible and attend school in person five times a week. Cohorts are a version of the bubble system currently being used in schools in Manhattan and elsewhere(NPR).
The current schedule for students in person at LREI is created so that students move from class to class, with a shift in the students who are in the classes. Is that the safest solution for the students and faculty? Would a modified bubble created by cohorts be preferable, even though there are emotional and social repercussions? All of these are questions worth considering.
Sources:
- https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/community/schools-childcare/summer-camps.html
- https://www.npr.org/2020/09/08/910586944/sleep-away-camps-offer-covid-free-bubbles-for-remote-learning
- https://www.jta.org/2020/05/18/united-states/a-jewish-camp-in-maine-is-actually-o ening-heres-how-it-plans-to-keep-covid-19-away
- https://www.nytimes.com/2009/07/23/health/23flu.html
- https://www.cdc.gov/h1n1flu/qa.htm
- https://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2020/08/06/897295450/how-safe-is-your-schools-reopening-plan-here-s-what-to-look-for