Local doctor gives tips for kids returning to school

HUMBOLDT COUNTY, Calif. (KIEM)- Several schools around Humboldt county have reopened or are doing hybrid learning meaning, students are doing both in classroom and remote learning.

There is still a lot of resistance against reopening schools but, if you are a parent getting ready to send your kid back to the classroom, here are some tips from a local doctor. 

Dr. Stephanie Dittmer, a Family Medicine Physician, said the first thing that is important is to normalize the wearing of masks. 

The second thing is to make the kids a part of the process of either choosing the masks or making the mask. 

The last thing Dr. Dittmer suggested, was making sure the mask fit appropriately. “So, sometimes the masks are so large that they really are not really protective or sometimes the masks are too small for adolescents that are…have normal adult heads,” said Dr. Dittmer. “So, one of those things is making sure the fit is right.”  

 Dr. Dittmer says one of her big concerns is that kids won’t follow coronavirus safety rules once they leave the school grounds.

“I do get concerned about seeing groups of people outside of school. Hanging out and walking down the street in middle school, high school age, groups of five six kids that are clearly not socially distanced but walking around after school,” said Dr. Dittmer. “So the idea of how to insure that our children are safe in school and after school I think is the hard part, quite honestly.”