HIVE CHILD CARE GUIDELINES

Background

The following provides the minimum standards that must be achieved to operate Child Care in accordance with Physical Distancing and Sanitation Protocols as defined in the existing San Mateo County Health Order effective August 6th, 2020.  These guidelines also align with the CDC Guidance for Child Care Programs, guidelines created by the Community Care Licensing Division of California, guidelines provided by San Mateo County Office of Education’s Pandemic Recovery Framework, and the California Department Public Health (CDPH) COVID-19 Industry Guidelines for Child Care Programs and Providers.  All Hillsborough Recreation programs must be able to comply with these guidelines to operate.  These guidelines are subject to change based on changes in local, state, and federal direction related to COVID-19.  The HIVE Child Care in Hillsborough targets children 5-14 years of age.

Definitions

Child Care: foster children’s emotional, social, and physical and creative growth through various interactive activities and relationships with role model instructors/leader

HIVE Child Care Leader: an adult (18 years of age or older) hired by Hillsborough Recreation having received necessary background checks and health screenings prior to starting employment as a Recreation Child Care Leader.  All Child Care Leaders are required to attend a Pre-Child Care Leader Training.

HIVE Child Care Jr. Leader (Staff): this may be a staff member hired by Hillsborough Recreation having received necessary background checks and health screenings prior to starting employment as a Recreation Child Care Jr. Leader.  Their main job will be to assist the Leaders in providing a safe and quality experience for our participants.

HIVE Child Care Cubbies:  This is where their camp materials and supplies will be stored each day, and where they can place their lunch, jacket, backpack, Distance Learning school supplies, etc.

HIVE Child Care Director: An informal title given to the Site Director that is the lead staff member for a specific Child Care setting and oversees all operations of the program on that site.  This can be either an hourly staff member or a full-time staff member.

HIVE Child Care Bubble Cohort: A cohort is a bubble group of 12-16 students that will be housed in the same classroom for the duration of Child Care.  The Bubble format allows for students to fully engage in camp within this group.  Bubble Cohorts will not be able to intermingle with other cohorts at the same site/location. 

Disinfecting: refers to using chemicals, for example, EPA-registered disinfectants, to kill germs on surfaces.  This process does not necessarily clean dirty surfaces or remove germs, but by killing germs on a surface after cleaning, it can further lower the risk of spreading infection.  This is best described to staff as a bleach/water ratio solution where protective PPE must be worn by staff at sites where camps are hosted.  Centers for Disease Control (CDC) states a disinfecting solution is mixing five tablespoons of bleach per one gallon of water.

Personal Protective Equipment (PPE): includes, but is not limited to face shields, gloves, goggles, face covers, head covers, and masks.

Pre-Care Training:  A six to eight hour training that is mandatory for all staff working Child Care to attend.  All aspects of Student  management will be covered as well as COVID-19 care and treatment guidelines.

Sick Bay (Isolation Area): This will be a room that is set aside for isolation should a camper or counselor fall ill suddenly.  There will be first aid equipment and areas for these isolated persons to rest.

Sanitizing (Cleaning): refers to the removal of germs, dirt, and impurities from surfaces.  It does not kill germs, but by removing them, it lowers their numbers and the risk of spreading infection.  This is best described to staff as a soap and water solution to be used on surfaces after they are disinfected with chemicals.  This is a best practice to avoid harsh chemical residue on surfaces after disinfecting.  

Facility Requirements

HIVE Staff will assess facilities to ensure that proposed child care activities can be conducted with necessary physical distancing prescribed by the County of San Mateo Public Health Order protocols for childcare and outdoor recreation.  The following requirements will be met for indoor and outdoor camp times.

• Check-in/Check-out area is sufficiently spaced and marked so that participants and parents/guardians can line up six-feet apart.  We will be doing this outdoors.  Check-in/Check-out will be located in pre-designated spaces for each cohort on a site, so parents/guardians do not break the physical distancing protocol required of our bubbles.

• Restrooms will be accessible during all camp hours and is regulated to ensure that only one-person per stall is inside the restroom facility.  We will be assigning restrooms to each Cohort, so that the cohorts have designated bathrooms for those campers.

• We will follow guidelines set by Hillsborough City School District and the San Mateo County Health Order for cleaning and frequency of cleaning restrooms.

• Handwashing facilities or hand hygiene stations, will be accessible so that participants and staff can wash hands or use hand sanitizer at minimum at each transition of activity and/or every 45 minutes.  

• Lunch and snack areas will be set-up to provide Bubble cohorts their own space.  There will be no mixing during camp time at all especially during lunch.  Lunch and snack areas will be disinfected and sanitized after each use.

• Signage area is available at the entrance to be visible by staff and participants.

• Each bubble cohort of 12-16 students will be in separate areas and will not interact with each other at any time.  The participants in a bubble must remain with that group for each session (at least 3 weeks), and cannot be removed from one group to another.  Participants in our program are not allowed to join other child-care activities during the duration of their program time.

• Rotation of areas/shared facilities will only be performed if the area is cleaned, sanitized, and disinfected prior to another cohort using the area.

Check-In/Check-Out Procedures

The HIVE Child Care staff will select areas for check-in and check-out of camp participants that will follow a process to ensure that all participants and staff are able to practice physical distancing.  Staff and participants will conduct a health screening prior to arriving on site, and a secondary screening will be conducted during check-in.

• Prior to camp, families will be communicated to their designated areas for drop off/pick up. Clearly visible signage will advise participants that they should: avoid entering the facility if they have a cough or fever; wear facial coverings (any student 3rd grade and up including staff); maintain a minimum of six-foot distance from one another; and not engage in any unnecessary physical contact.

• Prior to arriving at the camp location, HIVE staff, participants and parents must perform a self-conducted health screening by taking their temperature, and ensuring that they do not have a fever of 100.4 degrees F or higher.  They must also ensure that they do not have symptoms that the CDC has indicated are symptoms of COVID-19.

• Upon arrival, the HIVE Child Care staff must receive a health screening, which includes taking their temperature with a contactless thermometer.  Staff must not have a temperature of 100.4 degrees F or higher, and must be asked to confirm that they do not have any of the symptoms that the CDC has indicated are symptoms of COVID-19.  

• Check-in locations will be spread out on campus to ensure that no more than 12-16 students and their families are checking in at the same time or location.  

• Upon arrival, Child Care participants must receive a health screening, which includes taking their temperature with a non-contact thermometer.  Participants must not have a temperature of 100.4 degrees F or higher, and must be asked to confirm that they do not have any of the symptoms that the CDC has indicated are symptoms of COVID-19.

• A non-contact (temporal) thermometer will be available for health screening.

• Staff conducting the health screening must wear a facial covering during the screening.

• Staff must wear disposable non-latex gloves. The same gloves may be used to conduct all health-screening checks provided this task is uninterrupted as long as no other surfaces were touched during the duration of the health-screening process.

• If a participant has a temperature of 100.4 degrees F or higher there will be an allowable grace period (up to ten minutes) where the camper can wait with their parent/guardian in a vehicle or a reasonable distance away from the facility.  This guideline recognizes that temperatures can rise quickly if the camper was running to the facility excited, wearing a hat, or drinking a hot drink.  If after the second test, they still test 100.4 degrees F or higher, the camper will need to leave the area immediately for the remainder of the day. Staff must also disinfect all surfaces and areas that the dismissed camper may have touched.  If the camper has a temperature of 100.4 degrees F or higher, a new pair of gloves is required and the non-contact thermometer should be disinfected and sanitized before additional participants are checked.

• When parent/guardians want to check-out their child, they will remain six feet distanced apart and notify the staff they are there.  Staff will then visually check out the student indicating on the sign-out sheet who picked up the child on that day.

Equipment Requirements

The HIVE Child Care plan is based on the current order with Bubble Cohorts being able to fully engage with one another and share equipment within those bubbles. We have provided equipment that is designated for each bubble that would provide them all with the necessary toys and equipment to participate in our games and activities..

• When applicable, each HIVE Child Care participant will have their own set of supplies (i.e. craft materials, art supplies, sports equipment, board games, etc.)

• Paper based materials are not considered high-risk by the CDC for transmission, so we will have stacks of paper in each classroom for kids to use for multiple purposes.

• Any equipment shared (ozobots, Dash robots, etc.) between cohorts will stay within those cohorts for the entirety of the week.  At the end of the week, that equipment will be disinfected and sanitized thoroughly before being used the following week by another cohort. 

• HIVE Child Care staff and students are not allowed to bring any equipment from their home to camp.

Staffing Requirements

Prior to conducting HIVE Child Care activities, the HIVE Child Care Site Director will have appropriate staffing to manage the ratios needed to safely run care.  HIVE Child Care will run at a 16:3 (with the three leaders rotating) ratio, and secure back-up Floater leaders/jr. leaders(those who stay with the Site Director and have not joined a Bubble) to ensure if someone gets sick, we have support for that cohort.

• Upon arrival, HIVE Child Care staff will have their temperature checked and complete an informal health screening of answering a set of questions, such as “do you feel sick?”  If the temperature check and informal health screening was passed, staff will then wash their hands and start their shift.

• HIVE Staff must be available to lead a camp cohort of 16 or less participants.  The participants in that cohort must remain with that cohort each day, and cannot be moved from one group to another.

• To the extent possible, HIVE staff should remain with their assigned camp unit and should not be assigned to other job functions.  Staff will not interact with multiple camp cohorts during the course of the day/session.

• HIVE staff must be provided all required PPE to ensure theirs and participants safety.  They must wear a mask (covering mouth and nose) during all camp activities.  Reusable masks must be disinfected daily.

• Should a HIVE staff member fall suddenly ill, they will be relocated to the sick bay room, and monitored.  

• In addition to the HIVE Child Care Site Director, a floater(s) may be designated at camp should the need arise.  The floater may assist with supervision on the yard, check-in/check-out, etc.  The floater must always maintain at least 6 feet of distance with all other staff and campers and wear a face mask covering as to avoid cross contamination.

Management of Participant Requirements

HIVE will operate in Bubble cohorts of 16 participants or less.  The participants must remain in their camp cohort throughout the camp (minimum of 3 weeks), and there can be no interaction between other Child Care cohorts or other child care operations.  Each Child Care cohort will have a designated area/room as their home base, and will not rotate to another shared facility space unless that space has been cleaned, sanitized, and disinfected prior to a new cohort using it.

• Areas for the HIVE Child Care Bubble cohorts will be designated.  Inside our facilities, a specific room will be designated for each Bubble group.  For outdoor activities, the areas will be designated with cones or delineators, and separated from general community use.

• Participants must wash their hands or use hand sanitizer to clean their hands every 45 minutes and/or between activities.

• Reasonable accommodations shall be made for inclusion program participants.

Lunch, Snack, and Consumption Requirements

HIVE Child Care will be provided pre-packaged snacks (popsicles, nut-free snacks, etc.) when applicable, but they must bring their own lunch that will then be stored in their Cubby.  

• Kids may bring backpacks to the care program, but please limit what is brought to/from home.  No stuffed animals/toys/etc.

• All lunch contents must be disposable.  We are not allowing for reusable lunch bags and containers to come back and forth from home to camp.

• Lunch/snack areas designated for these purposes must be cleaned and sanitized before and after each use.

Cleaning, Sanitizing, and Disinfecting Requirements

Areas that are used for HIVE Child Care activities will be cleaned, sanitized, and disinfected regularly.  Staff and Site Director will adhere to the local guidelines when it comes to cleaning, sanitizing, and disinfecting.  We envision following the directives from HCSD on their level of protocols.

• Each day, our indoor facilities including restrooms will be cleaned, disinfected, and sanitized by the same janitorial staff that Hillsborough City School District and Hillsborough Recreation use throughout the school year.

• Our Child Care staff  and custodians will also be diligent about cleaning and disinfecting frequently touched surfaces (door handles, sink handles, etc.)

• Our Child Care program is prioritizing outdoor activities to limit the proximity of participants, but also to encourage fresh air, including Distance Learning outdoors when appropriate.

• By limiting the locations of participants on campus and limiting visitors, our Bubbles will be able to maintain physical distancing from one another throughout the camp experience.

Preparing for When Someone Gets Sick

HIVE Child Care  will do everything possible to mitigate risk as much as possible, knowing that we cannot eliminate 100% of risk inherent in sending kids to Child Care settings.  

• Any students or staff exhibiting COVID-19 symptoms prior to coming to care, should not attend care until feeling better (fever-free 3 days) or ensuring a negative COVID-19 test. 

• If they feel sick or start exhibiting symptoms while at camp, they should immediately be required to wear a face covering (if not already) and be required to wait in an isolation until they can be transported home or to a healthcare facility, as soon as practicable.

• Any student or staff who has been in contact with someone who is exhibiting COVID-19 symptoms or is a confirmed case should not come into care/work.  If they are a Contact of a Case, they will need to refrain from coming to care and self-quarantine for 14 days from the point of contact. Please refer to the Information below about Cases, Contacts, and Contacts to Contacts for details.

• All areas or facilities  in which this student/staff member will be vacated and will be cleaned, disinfected, sanitized before being used again for HIVE Child Care. 

• If someone in one of the Bubbles test positive for COVID-19, that Bubble will be closed and sent home for quarantining.  The purpose of utilizing bubbles is to eliminate cross-contamination with other Bubbles, and therefore the remaining bubbles will be allowed to continue care as they did not come into contact with one another or share facilities/equipment.

• In accordance with state and local laws and regulations, we will notify local health officials, staff, and families immediately of any case of COVID-19 while maintaining confidentiality in accordance with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).

If someone becomes sick…

• Before they arrive at school: They should stay home and monitor their symptoms.  If they exhibit symptoms that CDC provides for COVID-19, they should get tested.  See table below for next steps.

• While at school: They will be taken to an isolation area where they will be monitored and required to be picked up.  The request is that the person gets a COVID-19 test to determine if they have it or not. 

COVID-19 Terms 
Case/Close Contact/Indirect Contact:
Case: A person who tests positive for a disease. 
Close Contact: A person who has come in close contact with a case (less than 6 feet for more than 15 minutes). 
Indirect Contact: People who may have been in proximity to a close contact. 

Considerations for Care Closures
We will do our best to mitigate risk and safely enforce our bubble cohorts so that groups don’t intermix.  By doing so it allows for HIVE Child Care to continue for Bubbles that are not affected by a positive test.  That being said, we may still implement a closure due to increased risk or concern in our Community.