A few families have been in touch with questions regarding our position on the use of the playground when school is not in session. Although we cannot enforce a prohibition, we strongly discourage the use of the playground equipment outside of school hours. As detailed on page 19 of the COVID-19 Addendum to the Parent Guide, we strongly caution against contact outside of school, which "may potentially inhibit our ability to trace illness internally and could lead to unnecessary school wide shutdowns." MMS also asks “families to exercise great caution with respect to their children socializing and coming into contact with individuals who are not part of the Midtown Montessori Community.”

Avoiding the playground will mitigate a number of related concerns, including:

Cohort Mixing - During the school day we take great care to keep the elementary students and the primary students in separate environments, including lunch and recess periods.
Sanitization Concerns - During the school day, Midtown Montessori School staff members sanitize all of the playground equipment before each scheduled use. Outside of our planned daily use of the playground, we cannot control who has been in contact with the equipment.
Outside Playground Visitors - The playground belongs to Trinity United Methodist Church and is used by a variety of neighborhood children outside of our school hours. We have observed that not all visitors to the playground observe physical distancing and mask-wearing protocols.

An alternative to consider is using the grassy area between the parking lot and Evergreen Avenue for free play before or after school. The students also enjoy playing in this area.