As teachers across the country start returning to the school buildings this fall, we are worrying about how we will stay safe from COVID-19 and protect our families at the same time. I have seen teachers post everything from wearing scrubs (sounds comfy), to cutting their hair (not going to happen), to sleeping in a bedroom by themselves. (Sorry, hubby, but you are stuck with me each night.) Here are ten tips on how to keep yourself safe.

Advice From An Expert

Instead of going to extremes because someone posted about it online or asking Dr. Google, I decided to reach out to an expert. Luckily, Dr. David Beuther, MD, PhD, FCCP, a renowned pulmonologist at National Jewish Health, is also a dad at my middle school. I sent him my questions about how to stay safe, and he kindly responded with incredible detail and thoughtfulness. These tips are based on his information, along with my own thoughts. If you are a parent and wondering how to keep your child safe, you might be able to use some of these tips as well.

Ten Tips for Teachers to Stay Safe

Tip #1: Find a clean, isolated area for your belongings

If you can, keep your personal belongings, such as your teaching bag, in an office, closet or desk. I don’t think I will bring my purse in each day anymore. I plan to put my wallet and keys in my backpack, and keep the backpack away from other humans.

Tip #2: Leave the building without touching surfaces

Before you leave the building, wash your hands in the bathroom, and use a paper towel to touch all door handles on the way to grab your things. Use hand sanitizer as you leave the building (there should be some supplied on the way out the door).

Tip #3: Keep your car decontaminated

Keep your car as reasonably decontaminated as possible. Have a special place for your mask, possibly in a paper bag, and keep it away from everything else. You might want to keep a designated area for your items that have been exposed throughout the day. The trunk of your car would be great for your teaching bag, if you have one.

Tip #4: Change your clothes

It is a good practice to change your clothes when you get home, especially if you live with high-risk people. I loved when Dr. Beuther said, “You do not need to do what the ICU doctors and nurses do, which is to strip naked in the garage and run up to the shower and just about light your clothes on fire afterwards.” He recommends taking your shoes off as an extra precaution before entering the house (possibly leave them in the garage, if possible), but you can change your clothes in your house and launder them with everything else. He also recommends finding a place for your teaching bag that is away from everything, and then washing your hands.

I cleaned out our hallway closet, so I will hang my clothes in there for at least 3 days, especially if it’s a sweater or blouse that can’t be laundered each time or put in high heat. (If you have kids that refuse to change their clothes all of the time, this might be a good way to get them to put on a new outfit for school. Ha) I also put a separate clothes hamper in that closet. Truthfully, I still like my work clothes to not be so cozy with my other clothes for the time being, even though I know this isn’t necessary.

Tip #5: Have a safe water bottle

I don’t know about you, but I guzzle water throughout the day. I’m like a sea sponge that drinks water about 20,000 times their own body volume. (Yes, I looked up to see which animal drank a lot of water for my fun fact.)

At our school, the drinking fountains will be turned off, but the water bottle refilling station will be on. As far as I know, we have only one or two stations, and even though I’m much taller than most middle schoolers, I’m pretty sure some of them could take me out if I cut in line.

I will need to make sure that I have a huge water bottle with me each day. I just ordered this one because it is a gallon, a past student posted one like it on her Instagram, it’s pretty, it has motivational sayings, and there are two different types of lids to use. Dr. Beuther said that he doesn’t recommend one with a fixed open straw. It’s better to have one with a lid you can unscrew or one with a straw that collapses in on itself. I plan to keep it up on a shelf, away from humans, but so I can still have easy access to it.

Speaking of cleaning, I also had purchased this fun item, the PhoneSoap 3, two years ago when a mouse was in the ceiling vent above my desk. It helps to disinfect your phone. If you’re interested, you can read about my adventure here. https://judiholst.com/18x-dirtier-than-a-toilet-my-new-favorite-gadget-phonesoap/. I plan to use this on a daily basis when I get home. If you don’t want to splurge on this device, Dr. Beuther uses a light coating of alcohol-based disinfectant gel or wipe on his phone, but you might want to check to make sure this works for your own phone first.

Tip #6: Keep facial wipes at work

I read this in an article, and it sounds like a great idea. I am not able to open a window or go outside from my classroom during the day, but it sounds very refreshing to use a facial wipe when I take off my mask to eat lunch. Having had acne all of my life, I seriously feel like a pimple is popping out each minute that I’m wearing a mask. “Don’t ever touch your face,” my dermatologist would tell me. Ummm…..I will try to just say no to “maskne” with my facial wipes.

Tip #7: You might want to shower

Dr. Beuther felt it isn’t necessary to come right home and shower. Confession: I told him that if I had to come home and shower right away, then I would never work out in the evening. He did say many people do this if they have a high-risk family member, and it also feels good at the end of a hard day. I will, however, definitely wash my face when I get home before kissing my hubby hello.

Tip #8: It’s okay to have a re-usable lunch bag

I read that you should use a disposable lunch bag each day. Then I remembered that I eat lunch with a friend who is very much into saving the environment (not that I’m against it), but I pictured her shooting a dart at my forehead if I threw away a plastic bag each day.

Dr. Beuther said that disposable would be safer, but it isn’t necessary. One of the most contaminated places could be the staff refrigerator at work, so unless you are cleaning the bag after you touch it, it won’t make a difference. He said he takes everything out the bag, and then he uses hand sanitizer before eating. So smart! I think I will pack a paper towel or something to put my lunch on each day.

He said to keep the bag away from humans in the classroom, and when you get home, don’t put it in the sink where you wash the dishes or on the counter. Leave it with your teaching bag until the next morning when you are going to repack your lunch. It might be a good idea to clean the fabric or metal on your lunch bag beforehand.

Tip #9: Wipe down the inside of your car if others are using it

I am usually the only one driving my car during the week, but if you have other members, such as your 16-year-old who just got her license and is waiting to use your car when you get home, you should wipe down the main contact points. This could include your keys, steering wheel, door handles, gear shift and seats. Otherwise, keep your keys in your bag until the next morning. Also, remember to keep hand sanitizer in your car to use before you touch anything else in it. This will help to keep your car decontaminated as well.

Final tip: Find your friends

To me, staying safe also means keeping your mental health on an even keel. Have those friends around you that will make you laugh either by text, phone call, video, or from six feet away. We will all get through this together, if everyone plays it safe.

TEACHERS: What other tips have you learned to stay safe this school year? Feel free to write them in the reply section below.

*Thank you, Dr. Beuther, for alleviating many of my fears for staying safe this school year. The only way to be 100% safe is remote learning, but since we are doing the hybrid model, I will take his advice to heart. There will be times of panic that I just won’t be able to help, but it does help to have some tips on how to be safe as a teacher.

If you would like to read how to decrease your child’s anxiety about returning to school, check out this blog post: https://judiholst.com/10-tips-to-help-your-anxious-child-return-to-school/