Ontario might have hit the peak of COVID 19

[ottawamom]

I applaud each and every one of you parents who are doing double duty (you own work and educating your children). You are all unspoken heroes as well. Keep up the good work, it will all pay off in the end.

 

[Silvermist999]

My youngest is in grade 8 and they are supposed to get 10 hours of work each week. Class work is posted online Monday mornings, and my son basically finishes every.single.task in about 2 hours maximum, then he has nothing to do for the rest of the week. The assignments are short and not in-depth. There are no virtual classes held by any of his teachers at all, they have stated very clearly they are only available for questions via email a couple hours a week at set time slots, and outside of those set hours, they will not respond to any emails. Both my husband and I are working full time all day, way too busy to try find things for our son to do so he can keep learning. Luckily he is a very good student. Can’t imagine how it is for parents of children with special needs. As far as I am concerned, the school year is already over.

 

[Best_Vacation_EVER!]

DD10 received a ADD diagnosis in October with high anxiety. Once we solved the anxiety issue with a psychologist, it really helped her. She's always been a very hard-worker and very conscientious so our homeschooling routine is going pretty well. The fact that her 5th grade teacher is doing a 1h chat Monday-Thursday with her class on Google Hangout and gives them homework (optional but DD doesn't know that) to send back to her helps a lot. Being home with both kids made us realized that DD7 probably also have ADD but we will wait before having her get tested so she can grow up a little (mature) and since she has amazing grades, we're not too worried yet. Our deal with the kids is 3h of school work per day for 3h of electronics (that includes tv but not educational apps). No work, no iPads and iPhones.

I think ADHD/ADD is way more prevalent in current times --- because to some extent we actually listen to kids now more than we did before. I'm not sure the diagnosis helps kids a lot since DS's IEP says he'll have issues with presentations but every teacher is like "why doesn't he want to present" --- yeah he's an ADHD kid with an IEP --- but he doesn't want to present the way you think he should. It's so hard to see him struggle with this.

 

[Kaadk]

My youngest is in grade 8 and they are supposed to get 10 hours of work each week. Class work is posted online Monday mornings, and my son basically finishes every.single.task in about 2 hours maximum, then he has nothing to do for the rest of the week. The assignments are short and not in-depth. There are no virtual classes held by any of his teachers at all, they have stated very clearly they are only available for questions via email a couple hours a week at set time slots, and outside of those set hours, they will not respond to any emails. Both my husband and I are working full time all day, way too busy to try find things for our son to do so he can keep learning. Luckily he is a very good student. Can’t imagine how it is for parents of children with special needs. As far as I am concerned, the school year is already over.

Our board is assigning the work daily, so at least they have something to do each day, but yeah, there's no teaching going on, just assignments. My DS (10) is a pretty good student and will just blast through the work knowing the faster he's done, (and done correctly cause we'll check) then the faster he can get back to playing. DD (9) typically had higher marks, but I think she really needs the school environment. At home, it's hours of struggling to get her to even sit down with the work, because she can't comprehend the work on her own. I'm still working full time (and quite a bit of overtime lately, as my client's ramping up), and DW, bless her heart, can only help DD so much as she has to basically learn what DD's is supposed to be learning so that she can help her, because, let's face it, who really remembers their Grade 4 material beyond some of the basics?

 

[starvenger]

So Premier Ford is going to announce some sort of plan for reopening the province during his daily briefing this afternoon...

 

[hdrolfe]

Rumour has it golf courses and curbside pick up for more stores will be among the first. Schools, he has said, will be among the last. As much as I really really need a hair cut, I'm not quite willing to do that yet.

 

[Madame]

Teachers shouldn’t be doing live lessons - every teacher I know has at least one student getting paper copies of work. We cannot legally provide a better experience for some & not others. The only tech we have given out is wave one - tech that already existed...... wave 2 is still waiting, now wave 3 (mostly kids who thought a phone would suffice) is being compiled.... No tech in sight. It is hard to « teach » when kids don’t have equal access.

There is a major disparity between the work pace of students in one single class at all levels. My twins are in gr 5 - 33 kids. That’s 33 individual paces/challenges/familial situations (both parents working/ESL/parents essential services & child is living with grandparents with limited tech savvy.

Then there’s the teacher situation. We are 5 & have 3 computers. Sorry, IPads don’t cut it for real online learning My husband needs his own computer all day - he works long hrs. My daughter’s school has inundated her with work - I think they are slowly putting the brakes on as even my very studious kid was having a breakdown and the lists of participating students posted on Google Classroom showed 4/27 . So she needs her computer. That leaves myself (teacher) and my 2 boys to share my work laptop (yup my own cause teachers were told to do the best they can with what they have ). Sometimes we borrow my daughter’s computer.

All this to say, this is not online learning. Not E-learning. It is emergency pandemic crisis learning.

 

[OnceUponATime15]

Numbers of new Covid19 cases in Ontario are lower again today, it’s the third day of declining numbers #goodNews


but... Sad statistic out of the LTC homes though. 78% of the deaths in the Province have occurred in Long Term Care homes We owe our Seniors so much better - time to work toward safer LTC facilities.

 

[pigletto]

Numbers of new Covid19 cases in Ontario are lower again today, it’s the third day of declining numbers #goodNews


but... Sad statistic out of the LTC homes though. 78% of the deaths in the Province have occurred in Long Term Care homes We owe our Seniors so much better - time to work toward safer LTC facilities.

We owed our seniors and the staff in those homes better long before this pandemic. Overworked , underfunded and understaffed, some of these homes are atrocious. The only good thing to come of this could potentially be a wake up call for better governance and more funding. We should all care very much ... these could be our loved ones, or us one day.

 

[isabellea]

Numbers of new Covid19 cases in Ontario are lower again today, it’s the third day of declining numbers #goodNews


but... Sad statistic out of the LTC homes though. 78% of the deaths in the Province have occurred in Long Term Care homes We owe our Seniors so much better - time to work toward safer LTC facilities.

We owed our seniors and the staff in those homes better long before this pandemic. Overworked , underfunded and understaffed, some of these homes are atrocious. The only good thing to come of this could potentially be a wake up call for better governance and more funding. We should all care very much ... these could be our loved ones, or us one day.

85% of QC deaths are in CHSLDs (our LTCs for non-autonomous seniors that need medical care).

I agree that Canadians have to do a real questioning on how we treat our seniors that unfortunately, don't have a real voice in our society. So sad what is happening and if one good thing comes out from this pandemic, I hope it's that we really change how we treat our seniors and the employees of those centres.

 

[OnceUponATime15]

We owed our seniors and the staff in those homes better long before this pandemic. Overworked , underfunded and understaffed, some of these homes are atrocious. The only good thing to come of this could potentially be a wake up call for better governance and more funding. We should all care very much ... these could be our loved ones, or us one day.

All very true. I work in the Social Services department for a Regional Government - not in LTC. I can though without hesitation add that there needs to be better ongoing training, some of it mandatory public health, other training should be pursuant to the renewal of the licence for the home.
A shocking fact came out of a Ford briefing last week from the Minister of Seniors & LTC

Of all the homes in the Province 200 plus - only 9 licensing inspections were done in 2019 ! Nine. When the Minister was asked outright by a reporter about the number - she did acknowledge it and said they have been working to revamp their system since taking office and it got away on them. She promised better going forward... Every Childcare centre in this province is visited (spot checked) annually and licenses are pulled for not meeting the Act governing Childcare — it should be no different in LTC homes.

No wonder the homes find themselves in such a mess with this pandemic.

 

[isabellea]

QC Premier just announced that only daycares and elementary schools (K-6) will re-open and it will be optional. Kids with chronic diseases and/or with parents with chronic diseases or other risk factors are advised not to send the kids back to school this spring. Dates are May 11th for all except for Montreal and May 19th for Montreal. High schools (grade 7-11), CEGEPS (grade 12 and freshman year) and universities will re-open only at the end of August. They said they might change their mind if the situation changes between now and then.

 

[Jrb1979]

Looks like in Ontario we are still aways from reopening. No announcement of what businesses other then concerts and sporting events is not happening for the foreseeable future. Pretty sure that affects Wonderland too.

 

[OnceUponATime15]

Looks like in Ontario we are still aways from reopening. No announcement of what businesses other then concerts and sporting events is not happening for the foreseeable future. Pretty sure that affects Wonderland too.

The press conference was pretty generic and non committal.. I’m in the middle of reading the actual framework document online.

Looking at it and based on how things are going in this moment- phase one should begin in about 7 days - given we’ve had 3 consecutive declines in new cases. Then 2 to four weeks of continuous decline, enough hospital capacity to handle a new wave if things don’t go well..,

still reading..,

https://www.news.ontario.ca/opo/en/...uiding-principles-to-reopen-the-province.html
links in article to the actual framework document

 

[hdrolfe]

Ontario's plan is pretty vague on dates, and some details. Given they haven't provided a date to move to Phase 2, I suspect it will be a few more weeks. Then each of the 3 steps in Phase 2 is at least 2 weeks long. so 6 weeks minimum. And even Phase 3 is "new normal" with "remote work arrangements should continue where feasible".

I think I need to get a better chair to work from. I kept holding off but now my hips are saying "get a better chair!"

 

[damo]

Ontario's plan is pretty vague on dates, and some details. Given they haven't provided a date to move to Phase 2, I suspect it will be a few more weeks. Then each of the 3 steps in Phase 2 is at least 2 weeks long. so 6 weeks minimum. And even Phase 3 is "new normal" with "remote work arrangements should continue where feasible".

I think I need to get a better chair to work from. I kept holding off but now my hips are saying "get a better chair!"

Yes, I was expecting some more details.

• Stage 1: For businesses that were ordered to close or restrict operations, opening select workplaces that can immediately modify operations to meet public health guidance. Opening some outdoor spaces like parks and allowing for a greater number of individuals to attend some events. Hospitals would also begin to offer some non-urgent and scheduled surgeries, and other health care services.
• Stage 2: Opening more workplaces, based on risk assessments, which may include some service industries and additional office and retail workplaces. Some larger public gatherings would be allowed, and more outdoor spaces would open.
• Stage 3: Opening of all workplaces responsibly and further relaxing of restrictions on public gatherings.

 

[ilovetotravel1977]

How much time is allowed for each phase? Or is it dependent upon how many new cases emerge?

 

[starvenger]

Ontario's plan is pretty vague on dates, and some details. Given they haven't provided a date to move to Phase 2, I suspect it will be a few more weeks. Then each of the 3 steps in Phase 2 is at least 2 weeks long. so 6 weeks minimum. And even Phase 3 is "new normal" with "remote work arrangements should continue where feasible".

I think I need to get a better chair to work from. I kept holding off but now my hips are saying "get a better chair!"

Definitely invest in a good chair. Find something with a wide base, back support and maybe even neck support should you like to sit back and watch stuff.

I bought mine from Amazon. It's out of stock now, but it looks like this


As for the framework, it's pretty clear to me that the government is still trying to figure some things out, but given how antsy people are getting, they wanted to give us SOMETHING so that we don't get even more anxious over when we'll get back to whatever the new normal is. Unfortunately I think it raises more questions than gives solutions.

Looks like in Ontario we are still aways from reopening. No announcement of what businesses other then concerts and sporting events is not happening for the foreseeable future. Pretty sure that affects Wonderland too.

Yeah I think July is the earliest we'll see any sort of mass public gathering like a concert or sporting event or amusement park. And when it does happen it won't be the same because you'll need to sit 2-3 seats apart, or one per row on a ride.

I think that the Zoo will be the first "amusement" venue to open. Probably one of the easier places to control social distancing. Would love to see the Falls open, but I don't know how they'll control that.

 

[hdrolfe]

How much time is allowed for each phase? Or is it dependent upon how many new cases emerge?

They don't give specific time frames

Considerations for each stage

​

To reopen the economy, we will consider factors such as the risk of the spread of COVID‑19 and the ability to implement protective and preventative measures in the workplace. The Chief Medical Officer of Health and health experts will advise the government on when it may begin to ease public health measures using a range of criteria, including:

​

• a consistent two-to-four week decrease in the number of new daily COVID‑19 cases
• sufficient acute and critical care capacity, including access to ventilators and ongoing availability of personal protective equipment
• approximately 90% of new COVID‑19 contacts are being reached by local public health officials within one day, with guidance and direction to contain community spread
• ongoing testing of suspected COVID‑19 cases, especially of vulnerable populations, to detect new outbreaks quickly

​

 

[Donald - my hero]

How much time is allowed for each phase? Or is it dependent upon how many new cases emerge?

during the webinar that hubby participated in with MP, MPP, Mayor and President of the Chamber of Commerce, it was discussed that each phase is expected to be at least 2 weeks. This will allow for the lag in the appearance of cases due to asymptomatic spreading.

I haven't read the transcripts yet but it sounds rather vague.