With schools closed to the majority of children, many parents are wondering when they'll fully reopen.
The Prime Minister has said he hopes it will happen on March 8, but the date isn't set in stone and largely depends on infection rates over the coming weeks.
But one education leader says we need to stop obsessing over when children will be back in class and start focusing on how we're going to do it.
Steve Chalke, founder of the Oasis Community Learning academy trust, says too much emphasis is being put on dates - whether it'll be before Easter, after Easter, or even later in the year.
"The question isn't when, the real question is how," he said. "And if we concentrated on how, instead of when, we'd do a lot better.
"It's not about the date, we need to think strategically and a plan should be published now, not after Parliament returns from recess. That's just wasting more time."
The government has promised to give parents and schools two weeks' notice of pupils returning so that education settings and families can make plans.
But the PM stressed that any plan for schools and colleges to reopen in full 'will of course depend on the continued success of our vaccination programme, the capacity of the NHS and on deaths falling at the pace we would expect as more people are inoculated'.
Mr Chalke says the government needs to start showing the teaching profession more respect - and announcing a thorough plan now would be a start.
"They can't carry on treating school staff in this disrespectful, dishonorary way, because they are exhausted," he said.
"The last thing they need is another Friday afternoon announcement about what they're supposed to be doing by Monday. They should give schools a month to prepare, that would be respectful."
Mr Chalke, whose trust runs 53 academies including Salford's Oasis MediaCityUK and Oasis Academy Oldham, has suggested his own four-point plan for getting kids back in school.
This includes getting staff vaccinated, creating extra space through the hiring of marquees and tents, a rallying call for support staff to help out with the crisis as 'a volunteer army', and finally, creating a rota system so that all the children aren't in at any one time.
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When it comes to vaccinating teachers and school staff, Mr Chalke says it would be a lot easier than the government makes it sound.
"There's around a million school staff," he said. "If we're vaccinating between 200,000 and 250,000 people a day as they say we are, then we could vaccinate all the school staff in four days.
"That might mean everyone else would have to wait an extra four days. So all you're effectively saying to someone in their 60s or 70s is 'can you have your jab on Friday, instead of Monday?' It's not a big deal.
"We can say to these people that they would be contributing to the war effort to beat this virus. The vaccine is so important to teachers and school staff because we have learnt that our schools are the anchor foundations of the rest of the economy - they keep all the other key workers working."
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When it comes to making space to aid social distancing in schools, Mr Chalke believes outdoor covered spaces could provide the answer, especially as the weather warms up later in the year.
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"School buildings are often not big enough to create extra space, but in most cases you could hire marquees," he said.
"They're cheap and effective and can create natural ventilation to make it safer. It would also be a boost to that sector with all festivals and events being cancelled."
Last week we reported how the teachers' union, the NEU, had suggested utilising other buildings for pupils, such as libraries and sports halls. But Mr Chalke says the idea is unworkable.
"If you had a library right next to the school then perhaps it would be an option but to use a building somewhere else, such as the town centre, it would just be a nightmare," he said.
"It's not realistic and you can guarantee the idea wasn't put forward by educational leaders. There's all sorts of problems with safeguarding and ventilation, it's bonkers.
"Teachers move around in a school, especially secondary, and you just wouldn't have the staff to be running a separate building too."
In his speech last week, Boris Johnson said that a 'plan for taking the country out of lockdown' will be published the week commencing February 22, adding: "Our aim is to set out a gradual and phased response. Beginning with reopening schools, which must be our national priority."
He said the government will continue free school meals, with vouchers and food parcels until children return to school and said they are looking at a summer school initiative and a Covid premium, with money for schools to provide tutoring to help with the catch up of education lost during the lockdowns.
Earlier this month Education Secretary Gavin Williamson assured teachers and school staff they will be the 'top priority' in the next wave of Covid vaccinations.
He told an education select committee meeting that it's 'understandably right' to vaccinate those most at risk of being hospitalised in the first round. But he insisted teachers will not be far down the list.
