Connecticut Green Living

I was substituting for a very responsible young teacher. She was one of the first, after my four months with New Haven Schools, to clearly write sub instructions both for full and partial lockdown. I had insisted weeks ago that the District should train subs on lockdown and other emergency protocol. I had been told by the outgoing superintendent Iline Tracey, via e-mail, to check with each school upon arrival. The Director of Emergency Operations Rick Fontana had sent me an emergency guide. I do appreciate all of this, but none of it is enough. When the principal came onto the P.A. yesterday, I was winding down with a group of fourth graders. They were lining up at the door for their teacher to pick them up. I tried not to have any reaction when I heard we were in partial lockdown, but perhaps my expression belied me. A little one looked up at me and said, "One time when we had one there was a coyote outside." The other teacher whispered back to me and answered my question...

I caught this substitute teaching. I have a weird feeling in my chest, sort of a cool sensation, but I can breathe. I came down with a sore throat Thursday, tested negative for Covid , then negative again Friday. But after heavy congestion and a hoarse voice, my brother said, "You sound like me when I had it, but maybe it was from being out in the cold." I had waited 25 minutes for a bus when it was about 17 degrees out. I would not find out till this morning, though, that I'm Covid-positive. After avoiding this successfully since we first learned of the novel virus, my time had come. I even predicted it on New Year's Eve in my annual vision collage, with a single word "Covid." I knew that as a substitute teacher in New Haven, in classroom after classroom with largely unmasked kids and staff and no regular testing, it would only be a matter of time. Is this how we have to live? If the schools were testing kids regularly with rapid tests and providing staff u...