These are the schools that have had COVID-19 cases in the Edmonton area

An empty teacher's desk is seen at the front of a empty classroom at in 2014. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Jonathan Hayward

EDMONTON — CTV News Edmonton is tracking and updating the schools that have had cases of COVID-19 in the Edmonton area.

Alberta schools began welcoming students back at the end of August 2020, more than five months after they were sent home at the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Alberta Chief Medical Officer of Health Dr. Deena Hinshaw said cases of COVID-19 in schools are inevitable and introduced public health measures to help ensure a safe return to classrooms.

Staff and students are screened daily for COVID-19 symptoms, cleaning has been increased and people are maintaining physical distancing in shared spaces. Masks are mandatory for all students in Grades 4 to 12 and encouraged for younger students.

When a case is confirmed within a school, parents will be notified and may be asked to keep their child at home.

If there are two or more cases at a school within a 14-day period, the province will declare an outbreak. To meet this criteria, the people must have caught or transmitted the virus in the school rather than in the community.

Families are asked to monitor for symptoms daily before going to school. Anyone experiencing symptoms is asked to call 811 and stay home until they can get a negative COVID-19 test.

The province announced an interactive map of COVID-19 outbreaks in Alberta schools on Sept. 9.

Here are the Edmonton-area schools that have had COVID-19 cases this school year: