We know that it is beneficial for children to have an opportunity to get outside for fresh air, to play, and to expend energy during the school day. It is necessary that you ensure your children are dressed appropriately each day as they usually go outside.
During inclement weather, we may have students stay inside for recess. Please see the following for our criteria for indoor recesses:
Cold Weather
On days where the temperature reaches -20 (with or without wind chill), we will have an indoor recess to ensure student safety. We will also allow students into the school at 8:12 am (as opposed to 8:18) when it is -20 or colder. Supervision is not available before that so make sure students are not arriving before that time.
If we see a warming trend throughout the day, we may move the morning recess to the afternoon and/or swap our eating and lunch recess times. Please note that we do monitor the weather diligently throughout the day using The Weather Network when making these decisions.
Rainy Days
On days when there is a soaking rain, we may move to indoor recesses.
Air Quality
If we see a reduction in air quality (usually due to smoke from forest fires) we utilize the Air Quality Health Index as a guide. Health Canada recommends that if the AQHII is above “7”, outdoor activities must be moved inside and strenuous activities such as games/practices should be cancelled.
For a further breakdown of recommendations, please see the following link:AQHI Health Messages. We strive to ensure a safe environment for all our students and will err on the side of caution when making decisions around air quality.
* Note: Red Deer Catholic School Division is currently working on a draft Administrative Procedure for Inclement Weather. We will update our practices as necessary upon completion and approval of this new procedure.