Late last week, the health department notified the Clovis Unified School District that kindergarten playgrounds were allowed to open back up.
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Bud Rank Elementary School Principal, Ryan Gettman, notified parents Sunday evening of the big news and says it's thanks to them that things have been smooth.
Students must continue wearing a mask, but now they also wash their hands before and after recess. Teacher Staci Bletscher says the students follow those rules to a T, especially after waiting so long to use the playground.
"They kept asking, 'Do you think one day we will go on that play structure?' They have been very creative and I was super impressed with the things they did without using the play structure," says Bud Rank Elementary kindergarten teacher Staci Bletscher.
But now they can and will continue to, unless the health department says otherwise.
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"Kindergarten has not been easy, they are not having the Kinder experience, they did not go on field trips so anything we can open up safely is really a win for the kids, parents, and teachers."
And some sense of normalcy. Starting next week, they will be allowed to use balls and have a little more fun on the playground.
Gettman says first- through sixth-grade playgrounds are still closed, for now.