Dear Parents,

With the beginning of our school term we want to assure our Children's Country Day families that the safety and health of
our children, families, and staff are of the utmost concern.  With this as a priority, we want to share the following information.  In regards to the H1N1 flu; we are in contact via email with the CDC, the Minnesota Health Department, and Dakota County to make sure that we have the most current and accurate information available.

During the month of August, while the school was closed, we washed and sanitized all surfaces; walls, tables, chairs, cots, furniture, etc.  We had all the carpets and rugs washed and sanitized.  Our professional weekend cleaning staff have a list of all areas to be washed and sanitized and our preschool staff wash and sanitize all surface areas multiple times during the day.

Currently, the H1N1 flu seems to be acting like a seasonal influenza in terms of how sick it makes people and how it is spread.  Influenza spreads when a person with the flu coughs or sneezes.  You can help us prevent the spread of the flu at Children's Country Day School by taking the following important steps:

1.  Keep your child home if they have symptoms of the flu.  That means a fever of 100 degrees Fahrenheit or greater with a cough and/or sore throat.  Please check your child for these symptoms each morning before sending them to school.  Children who have these symptoms at school will be sent home.
2.  Sick children should stay home for at least 24 hours after their fever is gone without the use of a fever-reducing drug such as Tylenol or Motrin.  Usually that means staying home for 5-7 days.  Children should not return to school if they are not well enough to participate in school activities, even if their fever is gone for 24 hours.
3.  Teach your child to clean their hands often with soap and water or an alcohol-based hand rub.  Hand washing is a priority!!!!!!
4.  Teach your child to cover coughs and sneezes-coughing into an elbow or arm
5.  Teach your child to avoid sharing personal items like drinks, food, and utensils.
6.  If your child is at high risk for complications from flu, you should plan some additional precautions.

Children's Country Day will be requiring our staff and children to do the following...
1.)  Wash hands frequently; when entering the school, when coming in from play, before snack and lunch and after active play, etc.  Frequent hand washing has been found to be the key to prevention.
2.)  The children will be using soap and water to thoroughly was hands including fronts and backs - hand sanitizers will be used when soap is not available (i.e. by the animals)
3.)  Cover Coughs and sneezes using their arm or elbow-not their hands.
4.)  Stay home when sick or showing flu like symptoms.
5.)  Contact the school to inform us of absence and flu like symptoms.

We will be sending home updates as more information becomes available.  We encourage parents who wish more specific information to check out the following websites from the CDC and the Minnesota Department of Health.

www.cdc.gov/h1n1flu
www.health.state.mn.us

We thank you for your support as together we work towards a happy and healthy school year.
Your Children's Country Day Staff