The debate over whether or not it's safe for kids to return to school has intensified as the deadline nears for school districts to submit plans on how they will handle safety in the fall.

Delores Falco, a former PTA president in the Copiague School District, says she is counting down the days until her three teenage boys can get back in the classroom. 

"I want my kids to go back," says Falco. "My kids want to go back."

Falco says she is not concerned about her boys' safety as long as they wear a mask, but she knows other parents feel differently.

Dr. Sharon Nachman, head of the Division of Pediatric Infectious Diseases at Stony Brook Children's Hospital, says a recent report out of South Korea is offering some guidance for educators.

Nachman says research has found that children younger than 10 transmit the virus less often than adults. The research also shows that those between the ages of 10 and 19 spread the virus just like adults.

Dr. Nachman stresses that the key is for everyone to wear a mask.

"If the kids are wearing masks and their teachers are wearing masks, I think it is going to be safe for them to go into classrooms, so that is a big take-home message," says Dr. Nachman.

Dr. Nachman says if parents don't send kids to school with masks it will be very hard.

The deadline for districts to submit plans for a safe reopening in the fall is July 31.