VANCOUVER -- With most B.C. students returning to class in less than two weeks, school districts throughout the province are required to have their COVID-19 safety plans posted online on Wednesday.

Education Minister Rob Fleming spoke about the new plans and shared in a live briefing how some districts have personalized them for their specific needs.

The education ministry also outlined what the various plans could look like in small, medium and large districts in different parts of the province. They're all based on health and safety guidelines that were released in late July, including using "learning groups," which are meant to limit students' contact between their peers and staff.

The education ministry also noted that school districts can easily adapt back to a hybrid learning model – similar to what was seen in June – if COVID-19 cases increase dramatically.

Parents, students and staff should be able to see their district's plans on its individual website Wednesday. Independent schools' plans will be posted online on Monday. Most students will be able to have full-time, in-class learning, but larger secondary schools may opt for a blend of in-class and online learning.

"We've learned a lot as a province over the last several months," Fleming said.

"We've been through a lot and we've stayed resilient while our province and its public health leadership helped B.C. tackle the pandemic and keep our people safe … that's why our goal continues to be ensuring most students can safely return to the classroom full time this year." 

Here are some of school districts' plans:

Smaller district's safety plan: Sea to Sky

The Sea to Sky School District has about 5,000 students, across a geographically large region.

Supt. Lisa McCullough says individual schools are in the process of increasing signage and contacting students and guardians to explain the new health and safety protocols.

Schools will also have a "room readiness policy" for each classroom, to ensure custodians can have safe access to clean high-touch surfaces each day. That policy includes reducing clutter, taking personal items home, removing materials from surface areas at the end of the day and limiting the number of high-touch surfaces.

Since schools in the Sea to Sky district are comparatively small, students in all grades will have 100 per cent in-class instruction. Secondary school students will learn through a quarterly model, meaning they will only take two courses at a time for 10 weeks each. Fleming said 70 per cent of secondary schools across the province are switching to this quarterly model. Some schools, like in Chilliwack and Prince Rupert, will offer just one course at a time so secondary students stay in that one classroom for a five-week period.

Medium-sized district's safety plan: Saanich

In the Saanich School District, there are about 8,000 students across eight elementary schools, three middle schools and three secondary schools. The Vancouver Island district's superintendent says their plan aims to provide an inclusive learning model with support for students in classrooms and in resource rooms.

For elementary schools, Supt. Dave Eberwein says cohorts will be aligned by grade and will mostly be the same as they were divided in the spring. Lunch breaks and recess will all be staggered.

Students in Grades 6 to 8 in Saanich already have a timetable that's more similar to elementary schools than high schools, and Eberwein says that structure will remain, with more instruction time given to home room teachers.

In secondary schools, students will also learn under a quarterly system and will be in two extended courses for 10 weeks. But some year-long classes will keep their schedule, like band. For those, they'll either be physically distanced or within their learning group.

Those students, in Grades 9 to 12, will attend class in-person about 75 per cent of the time.

Large district's safety plan: Surrey

Surrey, which has more than 70,000 students in its district, first announced its back-school-plan for secondary schools earlier this month, with start times, end times and lunch breaks all staggered. District Supt. Jordan Tinney says the goal is to have only 40 per cent of the school break for lunch at any given time. 

In Grades 8 and 9, cohorts will be 60 students, or roughly two classes. Those students will take two classes per term in a quarterly schedule and all the instruction will be face-to-face.

In Grades 10 through 12, students will be in cohorts of 30 students. They will also take two classes per term, and the goal is to blend virtual and in-person learning.

Tinney did not outline how elementary schools will operate, but their plan will be released online. 

After plans are posted online, families should expect to be contacted by school principals to confirm students' attendance. When contacting families, Fleming said schools will also need to determine if families need remote learning options, saying he expects schools to be flexible.

With files from CTV News Vancouver's Bhinder Sajan