Keeping kids cool in school
![Victoria School Queen Victoria Public School in Windsor, Ont., on Monday, June 17, 2024. (Stefanie Masotti/CTV News Windsor)](/content/dam/ctvnews/en/images/2024/6/17/victoria-school-1-6930106-1718650340330.jpg)
Local school boards are trying to reassure parents they are doing what they can to keep students safe during record-breaking scorching temperatures.
“The principal is going to know their students best,” says communication coordinator at the Windsor Essex Catholic District School Board, Stephen Fields. “They're going to know their building best and they're going to know what they need to do in order to make sure their students are staying safe.”
A memo was sent to all staff at the Catholic board Monday morning ensuring they are aware of what steps to take to keep kids safe including reducing the amount of time kids spend outdoors.
“Dizziness, nausea, excessive sweating, and clammy skin,” all signs Fields says teachers are watching out for in their students. “If any kids are suffering from those kinds of heat related illnesses they're taking them to a cool place in the school.”
Fields notes the majority of Catholic schools have some form of air conditioning system but not all. He reassures parents students’ health will never be put at risk.
“There's always a cool place in the school,” he adds. “If a child is suffering from any kind of heat related illnesses, you can get that child to that cooler place, make sure that they're getting some water.”
Fields says a memo was also sent parents reminding them to send kids to school with a water bottle and hat, dress them in loose, breathable clothing and have them wear sunscreen.
Tips the Greater Essex County District School Board also recommends. They also request parents speak with their children about the importance of staying hydrated.
“It’s not just drink when you're thirsty, it's loaded up so that you are hydrated throughout the day,” says public relation officer for the Greater Essex County District School Board, Scott Scantlebury. “All schools have water bottle filling stations so it's readily available at all schools in all our buildings.”
Scantlebury estimates between 75 to 80 per cent of schools have climate control systems that allow students to keep cool.
He says it’s financially challenging to air condition or/and heat all schools across the board.
“Anyone who owns a home understands that and we have nearly 80 of them,” he said. “It's the nature of living in southwestern Ontario.”
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
![](https://www.ctvnews.ca/polopoly_fs/1.6940448.1719339188!/httpImage/image.jpg_gen/derivatives/landscape_800/image.jpg)
'Why did I have this surgery?' Ont. mother seeks answers after son's tonsil surgery
An Ontario mother said it looked like a horror movie when she flicked on the lights of her son’s bedroom to find him projectile vomiting blood after his tonsils were removed at McMaster Children’s Hospital.
Protesters try to topple Queen Victoria statue near pro-Palestinian encampment in Montreal
Montreal police were called to intervene after protesters attempted to tear down the Queen Victoria statue at Victoria Square.
Smith tells Trudeau Alberta will opt out of federal dental plan
Alberta is opting out of the federal dental plan, the premier told the Canadian government late Tuesday afternoon.
France bans extreme-right and radical Islamic groups ahead of polarizing elections
France’s government on Wednesday ordered the dissolution of extreme right and radical Muslim groups, four days before the first round of high-stakes legislative elections that may see a surge in support for political extremes.
U.S. health agencies launch new studies of H5N1 bird flu in dairy workers and dairy products
U.S. health agencies are starting new rounds of tests on dairy workers and milk products to better understand the possible impact of H5N1 bird flu.
Puppy mills now illegal in Ontario, but advocates say little will change for dogs
Puppy mills are now illegal in Ontario after the province recently passed legislation banning them, but critics say the new law will do little to curb the problem.
Suspected North Korean hypersonic missile exploded in flight, South Korea says
A suspected hypersonic missile launched by North Korea exploded in flight on Wednesday, South Korea's military said, as North Korea protests the regional deployment of a U.S. aircraft carrier for a military drill with South Korea and Japan.
NATO picks Netherlands PM Mark Rutte as next boss
NATO on Wednesday selected Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte as NATO's next boss, as the war in Ukraine rages on its doorstep and uncertainty hangs over the United States' future attitude to the transatlantic alliance.
Should he stay or should he go now? A look at Trudeau's options after byelection loss
A historic defeat for the Liberals in a downtown Toronto byelection has put a glaring question mark on Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's political future. Here's a look at the options Trudeau and the Liberals face as they enter a summer of soul-searching.