Seven north Georgia districts head back to the classroom Friday morning, capping off a busy first week across the state back to school.

Students in Banks County, Dawson County, Habersham County, Hall County, Madison County, Putnam County and White County all report for the first day of school today.

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Most Putnam County students and employees will be required to wear masks this year. The other districts have a mask optional policy.

“Based on discussions with our internal and local medical community and our safety taskforce regarding cases in our school system and county, the Putnam County Charter School System will require masks to begin the 2021-2022 school year. We will return to the same masking protocols we used to begin the 2020-2021 school year.”

Here is what students and parents in the districts need to know about the upcoming school year.

[SPECIAL SECTION: Channel 2′s complete guide for back to school 2021 in north Georgia]

Dawson County

Masks will be optional for all students and staff in all Dawson County Schools. Masks will be made available at each location.

DCS says it will continue to report positive cases to the Department of Public Health to assist with contract tracing efforts.

If a student tests positive for COVID, parents must contact their school nurse. If someone tests positive for COVID in a classroom or school related activity, families will receive a message from the school via telephone or email. Dawson County Schools will not issue precautionary quarantines for healthy students.

The district says vaccinations will not be required but remain available for families and employees in Dawson County.

Habersham County

Habersham County Schools’ COVID-19 response team will allow for students to return to in-person learning this year. Masks are allowed for staff and students who choose to do wear them, but are not required at this time.

Any Habersham County Schools student or staff member who has been exposed to COVID-19 will have to quarantine from the date of exposure for either 10 days or for 7 days if they are tested on day 5-7 and receive a negative test result.

Any person who is fully vaccinated will not be required to quarantine due to exposure to a positive case unless they develop symptoms.

The district’s complete COVID-19 response plan can be found here.

BACK 2 SCHOOL

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Hall County

Hall County will welcome back 26,258 enrolled students on Friday morning.

As of today, masks are optional for students and staff in Hall County School buildings. Masks will be optional for bus drivers.

The district says regular handwashing encouraged will be encouraged and high touch surfaces will be wiped down regularly. During lunch, students will sit by class at the elementary school level.

Contact tracing will continue in Hall County Schools. After being notified that an individual has tested positive for COVID-19, school officials will conduct contact tracing and notify all direct contacts. Direct contacts will be required to quarantine for 10 days.

People who have been vaccinated or had COVID-19 in the past 90 days will not be required to quarantine if they are identified as a direct contact. A full list of COVID-19 protocols can be found here.

To address any learning losses from last year, several camps were held this summer and involved students in highly engaging learning activities. Additionally, the district has utilized CARES funding to hire content specialists to help address learning needs determined by each school.

Some schools are offering tutoring. Parents should reach out to their child’s school for details.

Madison County

Madison County Schools will return to their normal operating procedures for lunchtime and class bell schedules. Assemblies and field trips will also resume.

Special events will be open to parents and families. Parent volunteers can work throughout the school, including in classrooms.

Staff and students are not required to wear masks in MCCSS schools, offices or transportation at any time, but can choose to wear them. The district says they will have masks available for anyone who requests them.

COVID-19 vaccinations are not required for employees or students. The district recommends families consult with their primary care physician regarding vaccinations.

Students or staff who test positive for COVID-19 will continue to follow DPH guidelines, which require you to stay home for 10 days since symptoms first appeared and be fever-free, without use of fever-reducing medications, for 24 hours before returning to school.

Putnam County

Putnam County Schools will return to a traditional, in-person learning plan this school year. The district says it will continue to offer after school programs and in school remediation for learning loss resulting from the pandemic.

Students in grades 6th through 12th are required to wear face masks at school when physical distancing is not possible. Grades K through 5th are strongly encouraged to wear face masks at school when physical distancing is not possible.

All PCCSS employees are required to wear masks when physical distancing is not possible All students are required to wear face masks while on school buses.

Students are also encouraged to bring their own personal hand sanitizer for use on the bus and during school.

Putnam County Schools’ complete COVID-19 response guide can be found here.