Nearly 100,000 children tested positive for the coronavirus in the last two weeks of July, according to a new report from the American Academy of Pediatrics. Just over 97,000 children tested positive for the coronavirus from July 16 to July 30, according to the association.
Of nearly 5 million reported cases of COVID-19 in the U.S., CBS News’ Michael George reports that the group found that there were more than 338,000 children.
Dr Tina Hartert of Vanderbilt University hopes that increased testing of children will help determine what role they play in the transfer, as school districts around the country return to some form of schooling. She is leading a government-funded study that saw DIY test kits sent to about 2,000 families.
“The kits are sent to the families, they are taught how to collect these samples, and then the samples are sent back by the families to a central repository,” she said.
In New York City, home of the nation’s largest school district, Mayor Bill de Blasio announced return to personal schooling in the fall and promise officials “have been working tirelessly to get this right.”
“They’ve looked at examples from around the world of what will keep the school community safe, and they’ve made a series of choices about how to do things first from a health and safety point of view, while also ensuring that we can educate our children, “he told a news conference Friday.
The Blasio allowed parents until Friday night to register students for personal instruction, distance learning as a hybrid.
More than 25 children died of the coronavirus in July alone. Press get children back in the classroom, superintendents in more than 13,000 different school regions across the country have left behind to figure out how to keep children safe amidst a plethora of public health advice, and to treat learning disabilities.
Superintendent Dan Applegate in Niles, Michigan hopes Plexiglas can be a solution for children with speech impediments to share in class.
He demonstrated by speaking behind a transparent ledge at a press conference.
“While I sit here and I can articulate,” Applegate said. “The student on the other hand will wear a mask. Then I can apply my mask, and that student can lower their mask and also articulate.”
Indiana’s Lawrence Township has cleaned school buses with a hospital-class disinfectant spray for students who still need to drive to school.
“You’ll see a very clean and disinfected bus,” said transportation director Matt Miles. “We actually have fogging machines.”
However, they do not expect many students to get on the bus – 35% of children in the area are expected to study remotely, while other school districts in the US will not open at all.
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