SEAL BEACH, Calif. — "Back to school" for many kids in southern California means remaining at home with distance learning due to the pandemic. One district in Orange County, however, will have kids back on campus this year.

Los Alamitos Unified School District will welcome elementary students back to classrooms — for those families who chose to send their children. The district and 24 private schools in Orange County have received approval to resume in-person instruction from both the Orange County Health Care Agency and the California Department of Public Health.

The district has opened up in-person learning only to elementary schools. Families who opted in by August 10 will be taking part in a hybrid model which includes both on-campus and at-home learning. Families who did not opt in for the hybrid model will be distance learning 100 percent of the time. Six of the nine schools in the Los Alamitos school district are elementary schools.

Daniel Logue’s 8-year-old daughter is a third grader at Jack L. Weaver Elementary School in Los Alamitos. “Having an opportunity to watch my daughter do distance learning after the shutdown last year, it was clear that there’s really no comparison, and no replacement for in-person instruction, especially for this age group," Daniel said. Kids his daughter’s age have shorter attention spans, he said, and not quite self-motivatied yet.

His wife Carrie explained that a lack of in-classroom interaction has also taken an emotional toll on their daughter. “The anxiety was real," she said. "The mood changes were real. And it’s something I’m sure a lot of families have struggled with." She said Annika hasn't had the opportunity to develop her independence during this pandemic either.

Beginning this school year, however, Annika will be heading back to class and is very excited. “I miss all my friends so much, and I even miss, kind of, the teachers," she said.

Annika will only be in class part-time. Under the district’s hybrid model, kids will be split into two groups: One group will be on campus in the morning, and the other attends class in the afternoon. The groups follow this schedule every Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday. On Wednesdays, only one of the groups would be on campus, switching off each week.

Some parents say the hybrid schedule can be inconvenient, especially if they’ve returned to work in offices or have a job that can’t be done at home. Daniel says the hybrid model is going in the right direction. "She needs time in the classroom," he said. "You know, obviously as two working parents, we need time to dedicate to our careers as well."

Daniel is a software developer and his wife is the executive director of a nonprofit. While having Annika at school at least part time allows them the time to schedule meetings, Daniel says the benefits of in-person learning for his new third-grader is the main reason  his family chose to enroll in the hybrid model.

Annika is ready to go back, especially to take part in her some of her favorite subjects. “I like history, art," she said, in addition to her love for learning.

Her parents love that she’ll be learning not only in a classroom, but in a place that has safety measures in place, including plastic dividers between desks, sanitation protocols, and personal protective equipment. “I think they’re doing as good of a job as possible to stop the spread of the virus," Daniel said.

If COVID-19 cases go up and Annika’s school shuts down again, Daniel says they will adapt. "We’ve done it before, and we’ll do it again.” In the meantime, the Logues say they're hopeful that in-person learning is here to stay.

Annika’s first day of school is August 31, 2020. Her first week will be entirely digital and at home. But the day after Labor Day (September 8), Annika will be back in class.