Good Shepherd Catholic School, 1300 Newport Ave., Northampton, plans to hold live classroom sessions this fall following an approved health and safety plan by the Diocese of Allentown.

Starting Aug. 31, prekindergarten to eighth-grade students will return for their normal 8 a.m.-2:15 p.m. days - under new circumstances.

Principal Susan Parker discussed a new routine set up for the school amid the COVID-19 pandemic, and it begins immediately upon morning arrival. Traffic will be controlled both outside and inside the school with two separate entrances for those who arrive by car versus the bus, as well as two separate stairwells used for going up and down levels.

Every student will have his or her temperature screened and a health and safety survey completed once greeted by school officials. The survey is the same survey used by any person who works within the Diocese of Allentown. The school is in the process of developing an app for the survey, so parents can complete it at home before their children head to school in the morning.

Classrooms will follow Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidelines on social distancing in relation to desk placement and mask coverings.

The preschool teacher will still conduct classes using a large shared table, as opposed to individual desks, to better accommodate the younger children. However, customized dividers will be inserted into the table to create a separation between the children.

Bathroom times will also be regulated per grade, with exception to emergencies.

Families who feel uncomfortable sending their children to live classroom sessions will be provided with a virtual school option. For the 2020-21 academic school year, every student will be equipped with a Chromebook, whether they are virtual or not. The live classroom and live Zoom classroom will be designed to coincide by utilizing the Chromebook, workbooks and textbooks.

The parishes that comprise Good Shepherd Catholic School enrollment are St. John Fisher Church, North Catasauqua; Queenship of Mary Catholic Church, Northampton; Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary Church, Northampton; Holy Trinity Roman Catholic Church, Egypt; St. Peter Roman Catholic Church, Coplay; and St. John the Baptist Catholic Church, Stiles.