Teachers and students are headed back to summer school and other summer programs with precautions againt spreading the new coronavirus in mind, Minot Public Schools Superintendent Mark Vollmer told school board members on Thursday.

Following state health department guidelines, students and teachers will have to undergo temperature scans before they can enter a building and will have to wear face masks when social distancing is not possible, Vollmer said.

The schools are also limiting contact between students and teachers by limiting access to large areas like playgrounds, gymnasiums and lunch rooms and staggering bathroom breaks for students.

In some cases, there will be a blended model with some face-to-face classes and some online delivery for students to limit the number of students who will be in class at any one time.

If any student or teacher tests positive for the new coronavirus, in person summer programming will be canceled and all classes will be delivered online, said Vollmer. He said the summer session is to short for it to make sense to close for several days and then reopen.

Parent-teacher meetings would also be limited to just one parent rather than two attending meetings or meetings being held over the phone or online.

A committee is discussing how best to resume classes in the fall.

Vollmer said teachers anticipate that some students may have lost academic ground because classes were delivered solely online this spring and others may have emotional difficulties when they return to class. Teachers will have to assess the kids and begin teaching them from where they are at academically and emotionally.

Vollmer said the district will not deviate from the safety guidelines established by the health department.