Our video brings you inside Calgary's schools as they prepare to welcome back students
Here's what back-to-school might look like in some Calgary schools amidst the pandemic
With a return to classes just days away, Calgary's public school board opened the doors of a high school today to media to show how staff are preparing facilities to welcome back students.
At the Henry Wise Wood High School in southwest Calgary, a number of pandemic safety measures have been put into place.
Hand sanitization stations are installed right inside the school's front doors, and arrows on the floors indicate to staff and students which way they should walk through the hallways.
- WATCH: The Calgary Board of Education released a how-to guide on what back to school will look like. Watch the video above to take a look inside, from elementary to high school.
Signs posted on the walls of the schools display masked emojis, a visual cue to remind students to stay masked.
This high school will have staggered entry when students return to classes next week, like many Calgary Board of Education facilities.
"The idea behind that is we're just going to have a long time in homerooms with teachers, just to help students understand and take them on tours and help them get used to it," said principal Michelle Howell.
"But the reality is, they're going to forget. And so we're going to have supervision out there."
CBE area director Darlene Unruh said students and staff should notice safety measures at work.
"I think one big shift that you will see are empty hallways, because students are expected to be in one location or another," Unruh said.
Desks in many of the classrooms at Wisewood, like many high schools, aren't quite six feet apart, so masks will be on for most of the day.
In Calgary's public system, mask use is required for all students in kindergarten to Grade 12. But masks will not be necessary for students in kindergarten to Grade 3 when they are working within their cohort, if it can be maintained.
Students from Grade 4 to 12 will not be required to wear masks when seated within cohorts, the CBE said, as long as physical distancing can be maintained.
Parents might have plenty of other questions about the return to school. For that, we've created this guide, which will be updated frequently in the coming weeks.
CBC News is also following four families navigating the return to school. Here's the first instalment: Getting ready for school.
With files from Lucie Edwardson