Schools scrub away as little ones head back

BY MARIA GALLUCCI
The News

Sunday, May 10, 2009

[Ria's Note: Conflict of interest much?]

Alejandra Luna Cerillo, who teaches a class of one- and two-year-olds at Montessori's World, a private preschool in the Roma Norte neighborhood in Mexico City, spent part of Thursday wiping plastic elephants and dinosaurs individually with a damp cloth dipped in soapy water and bleach. Even their wood wicker basket home couldn't be spared a swipe.

With kids heading back to class on Monday, the entire Montessori staff had met for three consecutive days to disinfect the campus - inch by inch. They're not alone: This past week, teachers nationwide have been hastily scrubbing floors, wiping tables and hosing down playground equipment in a race to sanitize schools before students from a two-week hiatus meant to quell the spread of the H1N1 flu virus.

The Health Secretariat has also ordered both public and private schools to put into place screening techniques to prevent influenza from reaching students. At the Montessori school, students will be evaluated every morning at the entrance for signs of illness; teachers will greet them wearing surgical masks. Bottles of anti-bacterial hand gel will be everywhere, as will be the stark scent of bleach used to disinfect classrooms and hallways.

The Health Secretariat has ordered the new sanitation regime for at least the first week back to school, but many expect it to continue through the end of the school year in early July.

Some teachers don't think the measures will be tough to implement. Luna Cerillo, for instance, said her students are accustomed to washing their hands before and after using the bathroom, eating lunch and using playground equipment - guidelines the Health Secretariat strictly requires.

"We're just going to have to reinforce these things more often," she said as she polished off another plastic figurine. "And now they're going to have to apply anti-bacterial gel before entering the classroom or taking off their shoes."

In the Montessori's basement classroom on Thursday, teachers wiped stacks of flashcards and puzzle pieces one-by-one and hosed down colored pencils and crayons with cans of disinfectant spray. They took rags to everything from textbook jackets to chalkboards and laminated posters of the solar system. Teachers on the second floor, meanwhile, drowned each plastic cup and fork in tubs of foam and left no piece of faux fruit unturned. Floors, walls, tables and chairs received the soapy water treatment as well.

TAKING NO CHANCES

Principal Cristina Vélez said that while she doesn't have any particular reason to fear anyone at the school would contract the virus, the preschool would exceed the government requirements anyway.

A nurse will monitor each child's body temperature every morning before they enter the compound - anyone with figures above 37.8 degrees Celsius, or 100.03 Fahrenheit, will be sent home. A team of five teachers will take turns twice a day, every day, inspecting the cleanliness of classrooms and bathrooms.

Seema Iyer, a high-school English teacher at the international Greengates School in the State of Mexico, said the next few weeks would be a period of adjustment for everyone.

"Everything is a bit a chaotic at the moment. Our hope is that we can maintain a bit of normality so the kids can come back and work through the end of the year," she said.

Iyer said rescheduling final exams would likely be a nightmare and that school days might be extended to compensate for lost time.

She also said that after-school activities would be canceled for the next week and that all public displays of affection would be strictly prohibited - which she expects will be difficult among her adolescent students.

At Montessori's World, teachers have an altogether different problem: worried parents. Many have called to verify that the school is truly safe for their children's return, Luna Cerillo said.

Virgilio de Mier, whose toddler Mateo attends the preschool, said that at first, he was deeply troubled by news of the influenza epidemic.

The closing of schools and businesses, however, turned out to be a positive experience for his family. They spent an entire week at his parents' house in Querétaro, reading in the garden, flying kites and stargazing.

Still, after two weeks, it's time for normalcy. "We think Mateo can and should go back to school," de Mier said.