Toronto’s top doctor says local COVID-19 cases remain “relatively low” even though kids have been back in school for more than a month.

Dr. Eileen de Villa says there’s cause for cautious optimism.

“However, we have not yet fully appreciated the impact of the Thanksgiving weekend,” said Dr. de Villa.

Asked if the fourth wave is ending, de Villa says she’ll withhold judgement but points to children getting vaccinated as a way out.

“I’m quite hopeful about the arrival of vaccine for five-to-eleven year olds and what that means for us as a community with respect to overall protection and getting us to the other side of this pandemic, I can’t be definitive about how soon this might be.”

The city is now planning the rollout of vaccines for children once approved working with pharmacies, hospitals, doctors’ offices and schools. The city is also launching a toolkit for parents and guardians to share reliable information and address questions about the shots.

De Villa says the city will be running town halls and information sessions for parents in the coming weeks.

Pfizer has asked Health Canada to approved its vaccine for kids aged 5 to 11.

Meantime, Mayor John Tory says less than 215,000 Toronto residents need to be fully immunized to reach the goal of 90 percent fully protected. Of those, more than half have received one dose.

The city is holding six vaccination drop-in clinics at some TTC stations starting October 21st through Saturday at Bathhurst, Finch West, Kennedy, Islington, St. Clair West and Union.