Stepping Stones Montessori teacher Alan Loomis constantly reflects on his life as a daycare teacher during COVID-19. He said that once Stepping Stones reopened after the initial shutdown in March 2020, the first few months were challenging, terrifying and stressful. 

 

“I don’t know if I necessarily feared for my personal safety, but there’s a responsibility of taking care of kids,” Loomis said. “There’s a lot of gravity now that we’re operating during the pandemic.”

 

Stepping Stones Montessori on Buffalo Street is one of the various childcare centers who have contributed to the Tompkins County community by taking care of young children.  

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Even before Stepping Stones reopened its doors back in July, owner Meg Allen said that she would host online “circle time” and individual Zoom lessons with the kids.

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“I wanted to keep some consistency and familiarity in their lives,” she said.

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Allen said that due to New York State regulations, the daycare only has room for 15 students, where they’re normally licensed to have 21 students enrolled. That is a 40% decrease from previous years. 

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As a solution to these regulations, the children were split up into three groups and must participate in group rotations. 

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“We found a way around it, but we know of schools who couldn’t,” Loomis said. “Even though we’ve found a way around it, the kids have to split the classroom and they only get half the time they normally do before they have to pack up and leave for another room.”

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Despite their nerves about the kids being able to follow the new regulations, both Allen and Loomis were pleasantly surprised at how well the kids followed COVID-19 procedures, such as the transition from room to room or the mask mandate. 

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“I expected the mask situation to be terrible, but the kids blew us out of the water,” Loomis said. “To them the masks were just another piece of clothing.” 

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Loomis even said that even though the masks were an option for them, the kids did not want to take off their masks. “I don’t know if it was that kids don’t like to live in the gray area, they like to know a clear-cut answer, but a lot of these kids would not take them off,” Loomis said. “There was one little guy where we’d have to wait until he fell asleep before we could take his mask off.”

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In addition to the COVID-19 regulations, Allen said that Stepping Stones now uses the Brightwheel Childcare Management app in order to communicate with the parents better. The app is used to take attendance, but also to communicate directly with parents throughout the day. 

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“I think it’s the best for communication because the parents can send a message through the app and all of the teachers can see it,” Allen said. “It just helps all the teachers stay on the same page.”

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Allen also noted how the app lets her take pictures and videos of the children and send them directly to their parents. This way the children’s parents can see how their child is doing during the school day.

 

“Overall, it’s easier to stay in touch with the parents, and especially during COVID-19, I think that helps out the parents and lets them know that their children are safe,” Allen said. 

 

The only downside Allen found to the app was the increased amount of time the teachers have to spend on their phones throughout the day. 

 

“In past, we always have a rule where all of the teachers would put their phones in their cubbies so we would actually be with the children and engage with them,” she said. “I would always take hand notes on what the kids were working on.”

 

In order to minimize the phone usage among teachers, Allen said that their one rule is that the teachers only use their phones to use the Brightwheel app. 

 

Stepping Stone’s mission is to provide a warm, nurturing environment where children can grow and feel connected to their community. 

 

“I’ve been trying to make the best decisions I can with the science and information available,” Allen said. “I just hope the parents feel safe and confident about everything that we’re doing.”

 

A few minutes down the road is the Downtown Ithaca Childcare Center (DICC), another childcare center helping the community. 

 

Although Denise Gomber, executive director of DICC, did not return repeated calls requesting comment. In a letter addressed to the DICC community, Gomber wrote encouraging words to the families.  

 

“I see us individually and collectively try and do our best to confront the “pain and unwantedness” of our current new way of life while seeking understanding, hope, perspective taking and wellness,” Gomber stated. 

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In their February 2021 newsletter to the families of DICC, the administrative team emphasized how important childcare and early childhood education is, now more than ever. 

 

“Childcare and education are at the forefront of advocacy,” they stated. “Please tell us what you need and want and what your insights are related to having equitable, affordable, and socially just opportunities and access.”

 

During the pandemic, DICC has maintained partnerships with a few local organizations, most notably the Family Reading Partnership. The Family Reading Partnership is an Ithaca-based non-profit organization that promotes early literacy. 

 

The Family Reading Partnership integrates reading in a child’s everyday life with programs including Books to Grow On, Story Walks and Bright Red Bookshelf To-Go. 

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Additionally, DICC’s meal program allows students to eat nutritious, family-styled meals. Breakfast, lunch, and a snack is “prepared fresh daily on site with a focus on using organic vegetarian ingredients to encourage a sense of independence and cooperation while enjoying nutritious and wholesome meals,” according to DICC’s website.

 

Though many childcare centers were forced to close as a result of the pandemic, Stepping Stones Montessori and DICC are two of the several childcare centers that have been a huge “helping-hand” to the Tompkins County community. 

  

“We’re all on the same team, we have an amazing community,” Allen said. “Everyone has been so helpful, and it makes me feel like we are truly getting through this together.”