Field Guide: Dream Classes' Covid Preparedness and Camp Policies

Dream Enrichment Classes' Covid Response policies

Dream Enrichment Classes has been providing after-school enrichment classes and summer camps in the Greater Sacramento region for over 10 years. In response to Covid preparedness, when we were all asked to Shelter In Place, Dream Classes switched gears and moved its programs to the online version where possible. Now that our state and local governments are allowing communities and businesses to open up, Dream Classes has formulated strict policies based on the guidelines made available to us from Sacramento County health department. The objective of this field guide is to clarify Dream Classes' policies for parents and instructions for camp staff to reduce potential exposures and contain spread of Covid19 infections.
Per CDC's Guiding Principles, the risk for COVID-19 spread is the lowest when "Small groups of campers stay together all day, each day. Campers remain at least 6 feet apart and do not share objects. Outdoor activities are prioritized..." - this is exactly what Dream Classes intends to do in its camps.

Camp Hours
9:00 AM - 4:00 PM

Age Requirements
Camp is open to children ages 5-12. Must be age 5 by June 1, 2020. In most cases, campers will be divided by age, into two groups: 5-7 & 8-12.

What to Bring
Dream Enrichment will provide all high-quality supplies. All you will need to pack is a water bottle, lunch, and a snack. We are a nut-free camp, so please keep this in mind when packing a lunch and snack. Thank you!

Field-Guide Topics

Masks

Dream Classes shall provide and require all camp staff to use face masks per county guidelines. Dream Classes agrees with CDC observations that state "The cloth face cover is meant to protect other people in case you are infected". We recognize and respect a parent's face-mask choices for their little ones, we sincerely hope that parents would consider coaching their little campers to wear a mask at all times. If you wish, our staff will be very happy to help ensure that your little one wears a mask at all times.

Hand Washing

All camp participants and staff will be advised to wash their hands at least once every two hours and more frequently if needed. Each camp participant will maintain a log of hand-wash timings. Dream Classes shall make available soap and water and if soap and water are not readily available, we will use a hand sanitizer that contains at least 60% alcohol.
(CDC's Guiding Principles for hand-washing)

Social Distancing

Dream Classes prefers to use the term physical distancing. While we do follow the basic 6-foot apart rule, Dream Classes has also taken several steps to minimize physical sharing of resources in its camps. Each camper's station will be self-contained, without having to share resources with another camper. For example, each camper will have access to their own set of Firefly Art and Super Scientist supplies. We have modified our camp's curriculum and have removed programs like HoneyCode which would require an instructor to travel to each student's station to debug code. We encourage a lot of physical activities which can be played in groups but require only solo-gameplay (like HopScotch) or Skipping.
(CDC's Guiding Principles for Modified Layouts)

Screening

Camp Staff will be required to record the body temperature of each camper and of themselves prior to entering the camp. This data will be made available to camper's parents/guardians for review at the camp premises.

Covid19 Incident in Camp

a) In the event of a Covid19 incident in camp, Dream Classes will cancel the rest of the camp immediately, any remaining funds will be credited to the camper's account.
b) Any staff that is exposed to Covid19 will need to quarantine themselves immediately for a period of 14 calendar days under the guidance of their medical professional and will need to provide a copy of this guidance to Dream Classes. Dream Classes will offer a paid Covid19 sick leave for any member of staff that misses work due to this self-quarantine.
c) Campers and Staff are required to report back to Dream Classes any incident of Covid19-positive-diagnosis if it happens within 14 days of completion of camp, so that Dream Classes may alert the parents of that camp about possible exposure.

Release of Liability

Camper's guardians agree that they shall indemnify and hold Dream Enrichment Classes, their staff, officers and executives harmless from and against any and all liability, loss, costs, expenses, including without limitation reasonable attorneys' fees and costs of suit, or damages however caused by reason of any injury (whether to body, property, or personal of business character or reputation) sustained by any person or to any person or to property by reason of any act, neglect, default, or omission of said party or any of its Consultants, agents or representatives.

Camp Literature

My daughter (almost 7) just attended a five day art camp, and it. Was. AWESOME! The instructors were friendly and fun, and the curriculum was outstanding. Quite honestly, I didn't think they would be able to keep my daughter's attention for 5 hours a day for five straight days doing art, but they did. The projects were varied, interesting, and very entertaining to make, and the final pieces- showcased at an "art gallery" the last day- were adorable. One of the best things was that they got to do a bunch of messy art (like paper mache), and the mess was theirs to clean up. The directors tell you to send you camper in clothing that can get messy, and there are daily emails informing parents of the day's happenings and other tidbits, such as which artist they studied, etc. Firefly art is simply fabulous.

Kelly H, Sacramento