Mass schools closures are “not inevitable” in Scotland, the country’s chief clinical director said.
Professor Jason Leitch said it’s more likely schools will close based on local cases.
And First Minister Nicola Sturgeon said closures will be kept under daily review but would not be effective now.
A number of schools have been closed, including in Aberdeen, Ayrshire and in Shetland.
Professor Leitch said: “The polling suggests actually the children are worried and we are trying to help with that group as well as the elderly.
“The other thing is our police control rooms are manned by people who have kids, our paramedics have children.
“The science suggests the virus will be there. So when you reopen, the vulnerable will be hit again and your spike will just be later.”
In a BBC Radio Scotland interview, he was asked if all schools will close at some point.
Professor Leitch said: “I don’t think it's inevitable. I honestly don’t.
“I think we will see like we have in Shetland this week where for operational reasons Shetland smaller workforce, specific context, may have to make choices about what it does about education. That will be different there than it will be in Musselburgh or Partick.
“If we have to move to school closures then we are going to think very carefully about that. It will be a very important decision to make.”
He also said over-70s will be asked to reduce social contact, not go into total isolation.
“The last thing that we want is four months of loneliness,” he said.
Conflicting advice emerged over the weekend across the UK, including from UK health secretary Matt Hancock.
Sturgeon said anonymous briefings had been unhelpful and wants it to stop.
“There’s some coverage today suggesting Scotland proposing different policy to rest of UK on over 70s. This isn’t so,” Sturgeon insisted.
In an on-the-record briefing on Monday morning, Sturgeon said NHS frontline staff will be tested to make sure the don’t self-isolate unnecessarily.
Discussions are under way on advice for people with compromised immune systems.
Sturgeon said it is not her aim to achieve “herd immunity”. The plan is to reduce the impact of infection.
Mass gatherings of more than 500 people, including sports, could be restricted for four months.
Scottish Health Secretary Jeane Freeman said 700 additional ICU ventilators have been commissioned for hospitals.
A GP testing system usually aimed at flu outbreaks will be expanded from 42 to 200 practices.
There were 153 cases of coronavirus Covid-19 by this morning in Scotland.
