The closing of hundreds of U.S. schools in recent weeks because of concerns about swine flu underscores the need for administrators to make plans for continuing their students' education during any extended shutdown, emergency experts and federal officials say. Fears about a severe flu pandemic had eased as of late last week, but experts say school officials should not just breathe a sigh of relief. They should now review their emergency plans and look, in particular, at how prepared they are for using technology to provide instruction and keep lines of communication open. At the peak of concerns about the spread of swine flu, some 726 public and nonpublic schools across the country were closed, according to the Education Department. Public schools receiving federal funds under the Safe and Drug Free Schools and Communities program of the No Child Left Behind Act are required to have an emergency or crisis plan in place, and most public schools receive at least a small portion of funding under the act. However, the law does not lay out specific requirements for such a plan. To aid in such planning, the Education Department has a list of resources for teachers and parents that includes subject-matter lessons aligned with state standards. Those lessons can be accessed by students online. The author reports on how various school districts in California, Texas, Iowa, and Montreal have implemented plans to educate students during extended school closures.