VANCOUVER -- 13-year-old Sara Shuster loves art.

And when asked about her favourite teacher she responds: “They are all amazing!”

Her 11-year-old sister, Bel, loves to draw and to write.

But as hundreds of thousands of British Columbians head back to school, the Shuster family has made what it calls a “difficult” decision to keep both of their daughters at home.

“Knowing that my dad has that muscle condition, and my mom has breast cancer,” said Bel. “I just would never want to take that risk of…seriously hurting them.”

And because Gary and Dana Shuster are both immunocompromised, they said they believe that B.C.’s guidelines for public schools, when it comes to physical distancing and masks, don’t go far enough.

“They can’t concentrate in class if they’re worried they’re going to catch something that could be brought home,” Gary said.

So instead of entering Grades 6 and 8 in person, Bel and Sara will be spending most of their time at the family’s dining room table.

Bel will be learning online full-time as part of Vancouver schools’ “transition option.”

Because Sarah is in secondary school, that option doesn’t exist full-time, requiring her parents to fill the gaps.

Both daughters are in agreement that staying home was the best choice for everyone.

But Sara, especially, said she misses seeing friends and is already feeling left out.

“I can’t help but wonder what the social impact is going to be on them,” Dana said.

The Shusters are one of two families suing the province, hoping that taking the government to court might convince it to step up requirements around distancing, masks, and ventilation.

The lawsuit is pending, and it’s not clear if the Ministry of Education or Health, which are both named, have responded to it.

A ministry spokesperson previously told CTV News: “We continue to be guided by the health and safety advice of Dr. Bonnie Henry and her public health team.”

Short of requiring mandatory masks and physical distancing in classrooms, the Shusters say they’ll wait and watch to see how COVID-19 cases impact local schools and families.

Gary said Bel will have an option to return to in-person learning in December.

“By then, we’ll have the data, we’ll know,” Gary said.

In the meantime, the family, which is working and learning from their 1,200 square-foot condo, are working out a schedule that Dana called “flexible,” and still sorting out some rules around social media and screen time.

“We’ll do what we have to do to make this work, and find any workaround that we can,” Dana said.