As a VA educator, a mother of a small child, and someone who is considered high risk for COVID19 I ask that you strongly consider not only CDC guidelines for reopening but the reality of what those will look like in an elementary setting. It is unrealistic to ask young children to stay 6ft away from each other at all times and getting students to wear a mask all day without causing undo stress/anxiety to them would be incredibly difficult. As an elementary teacher, most of my most powerful teaching comes from small group focused instruction. Doing this given the 6ft distancing guidelines (which I completely support) would not be possible. It is however possible during a virtual setting and I truly believe given the right virtual tools and professional development teachers will be able to give quality and engaging instruction to students while keeping everyone safe at home. The money that would be required to ensure that CDC guidelines are met is unbelievable. I strongly believe that schools are better off putting funds into supporting virtual learning right at the start knowing that the reality is that whether or not we start in person or virtually we will likely be teaching virtually at some point until a vaccine is available. Please support continuity and safety for students and teachers not only for our emotional well being but our health as well.