Some Dallas students head back to school as part of an extended calendar

Chequetta Shed paused at the doors of HI Holland Elementary to gently lift her 9-year-old son’s Ninja Turtles mask over his nose. Now, after so many months and this last precaution, he was ready.

The headmaster hugged fourth grader Donald Burney Jr. as soon as he walked into school.

“It’s so nice to see you in person,” Director Shanieka Christmas-McDonald said to him.

Mama Chequetta Shed (left) watches as Headmistress Shanieka Christmas-McDonald hugs her son Donald Burney Jr., 9, during the first day of school on Monday, August 2, 2021 at HI Holland Elementary School in Dallas. (Juan Figueroa / The Dallas Morning News)(Juan Figueroa / employee photographer)

Fear of COVID-19 has kept Donald and thousands of other Dallas children at home for the past two years, studying behind a computer screen. Monday marked a new beginning. Donald smiled from behind his mask when he talked about being excited to meet his teachers.

“I’m nervous, but I know he needs personal learning,” said Shed. “You have to catch up.”

Holland is one of five schools in Dallas that opened earlier than usual as part of a calendar redesign plan to allow children extra time in the classroom. Another 41 schools will start next week, adding five additional weeks to the year for certain students.

“I think we will see data by the end of the year that there is a big difference for these 46 schools because they were so brave to put in the extra time to get more results,” said DISD Superintendent Michael Hinojosa.

The vast majority of Dallas children, including all high school students, are returning on August 16. There won’t be any virtual learning option this year other than a hybrid school that will enroll a small number of students in fourth through sixth grades.

The students in Duncanville and Garland also started their school year on Monday. Ahead of a broader reopening, North Texas counties are still looking for teaching vacancies – including about 300 in the Dallas ISD.

Hinojosa commended educators in Holland for adopting the extended annual model, which he had hoped would be a more widespread tool to combat learning loss. But it was only implemented in a fraction of the Dallas schools in the end.

The students in Holland, almost all of whom come from low-income families, get thousands of extra minutes in front of a teacher.

In order to introduce a longer school year – which, in contrast to the traditional end date, runs from May to the end of June – a majority of teachers and families had to signal their support through district surveys.

The extra time allowed Christmas-McDonald to block the first 30 minutes of each day of school for social-emotional learning. At the end of each day, students have a “closing circle” to talk to teachers about their feelings. The tutoring lessons are embedded in the students’ timetables, while the teachers also have more time to collaborate on lesson planning.

Educators working through an extended calendar will “be tired, don’t get me wrong,” said Hinojosa. “But I think they are well compensated. We can dive deep with the students who are at the back and catch up with them. “

Around 2,500 students are expected at the five schools that have opted for the newly designed calendar.

Most – if not all – of the Dutch students walked through the doors wearing masks, some decorated with SpongeBob or Princess Elsa or the Dallas Mavericks symbol.

No Texas school district can require students or staff to wear masks this year based on an order from Governor Greg Abbott. The Republican governor has repeatedly said he would not give in, even given the highly transmittable Delta variant of the coronavirus and the pleas from educators and families. The Federal Agency for Disease Control and Prevention recommends that all teachers, staff and students wear masks in schools.

“I’m talking about the Delta variant,” said Hinojosa. “I wish our hands weren’t tied. … We can not commission [masks]. We can only ask and recommend. It’s just disappointing that with this new surge we could find ourselves back in a situation that could get out of hand. “

Christmas-McDonald said the biggest question her parents asked her before Monday was about masks. She told them that the staff, including those who are vaccinated, will lead by example by showing students how to wear masks. She offered face coverings to the children who came in without her.

Headmistress Shanieka Christmas-McDonald hands out masks on Monday, August 2, 2021, the first day of school at HI Holland Elementary School in Dallas. (Juan Figueroa / The Dallas Morning News)(Juan Figueroa / employee photographer)

There are still partitions made of Plexiglas in the library and in some classrooms. Students are encouraged to step back and maintenance teams will perform additional disinfection on campus weekly.

“We will be very transparent,” said Hinojosa. “When we have cases, we will publish them on our dashboard, as we did last year.”

The DMN Education Lab deepens reporting and discussion on pressing educational issues that are critical to the future of North Texas.

The DMN Education Lab is a community-funded journalism initiative with support from The Beck Group, Bobby and Lottye Lyle, Communities Foundation of Texas, The Dallas Foundation, Dallas Regional Chamber, Deedie Rose, The Meadows Foundation, Solutions Journalism Network, Southern Methodist University and Todd A. Williams Family Foundation. The Dallas Morning News retains full editorial control over the Education Lab’s journalism.

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