Schools in Kenya reopened on January 4th 2021, after being closed since March 2020 due to the coronavirus pandemic. The reopening was much anticipated, although there were concerns among teachers and parents about an increase of infections due to open interaction of children in school. Anxious parents, who were accompanying their children to school on this first day of reporting were still worried about their children’s safety as the country continues to report COVID-19 infections. The Ministry of Education in Kenya assured parents that adequate measures had been put in place to ensure the safety of children and families. Such measures include checking the temperatures of students at the entrance, installation of hand sanitizers, provision of clean hand washing water and wearing of facemasks. Other safety measures include the provision of adequate spacing of desks in the classrooms to ensure social distancing and proper aeration in classrooms.The Corner of Hope schools opened its doors to students on Wednesday January 6th 2021, with 105 students reporting on this first day of school. The teachers used the first two days to clean up and organize teaching materials in the different classrooms, which had been moved to facilitate renovation works recently undertaken in preparation for the reopening of the schools. The last phase of the renovation works was completed in the month of December and this included new gutters to facilitate rainwater harvesting, reinforcing the security in the classrooms and the kitchen, paintwork on the trusses, walls, window grills, the gate, wall grills and pillars. Broken windowpanes and union locks on doors were also fixed. The renovations have given the school a fresh new look that is greatly admired by the teachers, students and the community at large.The children are happy to be back at school and they have embarked on their daily learning exercises with much vigour and energy. At the end of the first week, the children numbers increased to 148 and is expected to rise as more parents are assured that all measures are in place and COVID-19 regulations are closely followed.
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