“I’m nervous because my mam is nervous, she’s afraid I might get sick .”
That’s one young boy’s response as he prepares to head back to school this week.
It comes as some Kilkenny city schools reopened this morning, including St Canice’s primary school.
Meanwhile, St Leo’s College was one of the first to reopen in Carlow this week, as they welcomed students back on Tuesday.
Long awaited
The return to school has been long awaited by some, as many children and parents have missed their routine since all schools and universities were shut on Thursday March 12th.
That day, a statement was made by the Taoiseach at the time, Leo Varadkar. He announced that the closure of all schools, pre-schools and higher education settings was to take effect from 6pm that evening until 29 March 2020.
Yet as covid cases continued to rise, the closure was extended.
Now, almost six months on,children are donning their uniforms and heading into their classroom once again.
Your thoughts
However, many local parents have concerns about whether it’s safe to reopen the schools while cases of coronavirus are still increasing.
KCLR News Reporter Shauna McHugh took to the Playstation in Kilkenny earlier this week to hear how parents and their little ones were feeling about heading back into the classroom.
Listen back to hear why some parents have reservations about the safety of returning to school, and how the kids have fared without their classmates over the last few months:
