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It was an untraditional first week of school for thousands of students across Minnesota. Some returned to school buildings -- wearing face masks and social distancing -- for the first time since the spring, when the state suspended in-person learning as the pandemic took off. Others logged on to their laptops from home for distance learning. 

It was an untraditional first week of school for thousands of students across Minnesota. Some returned to school buildings — wearing face masks and social distancing — for the first time since the spring, when the state suspended in-person learning as the pandemic took off. Others logged on to their laptops from home for distance learning. 

Students give each other air hugs from across their desk.

Evan Frost | MPR News

A young girl holds a "first day of school sign" with a blank expression.

Students in masks walk in a line with their arms out in front of them.

A boy sits at a desk behind a plexiglass shield.

Elizabeth Flores | Star Tribune via AP

A woman wearing a face mask reads a children's book. 

David Joles/AP

Children sit behind plastic barriers at desks spaced apart in a classroom.

David Joles | Star Tribune via AP

A girl in a face mask kneels in front of a locker as others walk by.

Alex Kormann | Star Tribune via AP

A students walks in a hall with taped arrows on the floor.

Alex Kormann/AP

A teen sitting at a desk wears a face mask and raises her hand. 

A teacher works on a computer between two kids.

Two young women sit on a suburban deck with laptops in front of a fireplace

Photos: What going back to school looks like in a pandemic

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