The children of Sandy Hook Elementary School on Newtown, Conn. will finally return to classes on Jan. 3.
But 20 of their classmates and six of their teachers will not be there.
The elementary school, site of a gunman's rampage two weeks ago, will remain closed indefinitely, while the remaining students will be moved to Chalk Hill School in nearby Monroe.
The new school has been made up to look like Sandy Hook, so children will feel like they are in a familiar place as they try to adjust back into a school routine.
"In one room I visited (at Chalk Hill School), the children's pens and pencils are on the desks, their coats behind their chairs," John Vouros, a retired Newtown teacher. "It's as if time stood still."
On Jan. 2, Chalk Hill will open for faculty to regroup in the new location. In the afternoon, it will host an open house for teachers, students and family to reunite before the first day of classes.
Other students in the school district return from winter break and begin their classes on Jan. 2.
Former principal Donna Page will lead the school on a temporary basis until a permanent replacement can be found for Dawn Hochsprung, the Sandy Hook principal killed while defending her students.
School Superintendent Janet Robinson said most teachers were eager to get back to their classrooms. "We're going to have a lot of support for them," Robinson said.
"Certainly, if they need more time, they can have more time. But I think many don't want their children -- they own those children -- they don't want them to be with a substitute. So I think most of them are going to try to come back," she said.
Additional precautions have been taken to make the school secure, including police presence and security cameras.
It's definitely going to be more secure than any school I've ever seen," said Monroe First Selectman Stephen Vavrek. "Once that child enters that school, they're going to be safe."
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