Launceston students who made their way back to classrooms on Monday would have felt a bit like Marty McFly the moment he stepped out of the DeLorean in alternative 1985.
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The rooms might look the same but with some subtle differences, as teachers and staff adjusted their delivery to maintain social distancing and take precautionary safeguards against COVID-19.
Despite this, there were smiles on the faces of returning Youngtown Primary School pupils, who were happy to see their favourite teachers and friends in the flesh after weeks of home learning.
The return to physical school classrooms was brought forward by the Tasmanian Government who initially said home learning would be in place for the entirety of term two.
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However, successful flattening of the curve and a reduction in new and active cases has allowed schools to return to relative normal and deliver the curriculum in a face-to-face setting.
Youngtown Primary School pupils Hudson Young and Kayla Rabac said while they had enjoyed home learning, they were looking forward to being back with their friends and teachers.
Hudson said there had been some positives to the online delivery, which included being able to pause and go back over particularly tricky points in the lesson.
He said while adapting to the technology made it slightly harder in the first few days, once he had gotten used to that he had been able to complete his schoolwork relatively easily.
Parents Lynda Rabac, Hannah Osborne and Belinda Young said they had appreciated the hard work done by the teachers and staff at Youngtown Primary to make sure their children didn't feel like they had missed weeks of learning.
Ms Young said she had particularly enjoyed being engaged with her children's learning while at home, and all parents agreed they enjoyed not having to contend with pick-ups and drop-offs.
However, they said returning to the classroom was an important milestone for their kids, who missed their friends and teachers.
Youngtown principal Deaine Coyle said learning at home had had many positives for families and there were some the school would continue to use, such as recording lessons.
She said recording lessons would allow the same lesson to be delivered multiple times at once but also gave pupils the ability to go back over parts they didn't quite get the first time, to help them understand complex material.
Ms Coyle said the school had reinforced hand washing and increased hygiene and cleaning protocols, as well as introducing social distancing where appropriate.
She said the school has also made changes to its staff room, to allow for only smaller groups of people to be there at one time.
Children will also be discouraged from kissing or hugging their friends and teachers but teachers have introduced alternative greetings, such as giving a thumbs up.
Excursions, assemblies and other large gatherings will continue to be off the table but will be reassessed under health advice.
School returned across Tasmania on Monday for kindergarten to grade six, along with students in year 11 and 12.
High school students from grades 7 to 10 will return on June 9.
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