As the coronavirus spread this winter and spring, nearly all of the United States' 55 million school-aged children saw their schools close. Families did the best they could to balance work, financial instability, family life and efforts to continue their children's learning while distanced from friends, teachers, extended families and support networks. Policymakers, school leaders, public health officials and families are now staring down difficult decisions about how to start the coming school year. And with COVID-19 diagnoses increasing in many regions, it is likely that disruptive and traumatic school closures could continue in order to keep children, educators and communities safe from COVID-19.
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