Elementary School Degrees in Heat Management : Weather: There’s no recess from temperatures that lower comfort level in classrooms at year-round campuses. Teachers study ways to keep kids cool.

Inside Marlyns Price’s classroom, the lights were out and the transoms were wide open, inviting breezes into her muggy kindergarten classroom at Hoover Elementary School.

“We only went outside to eat and the students sat under the shade of trees,” said Price, who strategically placed three large fans in her classroom to help cool the children. “We’ve been taking sips of water whenever they say they’re thirsty and limiting our activities.”

Though Tuesday’s temperatures did not reach the records set Monday, the difference was a fine point for 20 sweaty 5-year-olds cooped up in a classroom in mid-August. Most agreed they would rather be cooling their heels at the beach than listening to Price’s storytelling.

The mercury dipped to 92 Tuesday, down from Monday’s high of 96 here, according to WeatherData Inc., which provides forecasts for The Times. Anaheim again was the hottest spot in the county with a high of 101, matching Monday’s high. El Toro reported a 93, San Juan Capistrano had 89 and Newport Beach reached 75.

But Orange County can expect a slow cooling trend through the weekend, said Rick Dittman, a meteorologist for WeatherData. “By Saturday, we can expect our normal seasonal temperatures again in the low to mid-80s,” he said.

On Monday, Price marched her students into Hoover’s newer, air-conditioned main building so they could read in comfort. Tuesday, she and Principal Helen Romero decided that the kids could remain in the classroom, but limited their activities.

Hoover is one of 38 schools in Orange County that operate on year-round schedules. Santa Ana has 20 year-round schools, a majority of which “have some air conditioning,” said Diane Thomas, a district spokeswoman.

“Usually on very warm days we encourage the children to drink more water and we limit recess activities. If there are shade trees, (teachers) take (the children) outside and have storytelling instead of letting them run or play,” Thomas said.

At Hoover, many children said they daydreamed about being at the beach or a park. In Price’s classroom, 5-year-old Brandon Mikhai said he couldn’t wait to get home and run in the sprinklers. Gabriel Manibusan proudly told the class he was ready to jump in his parents’ swimming pool, which evoked envious glances from his classmates.

One parent, Julie Grode, whose daughter, Tiffanny, is in kindergarten, said she was concerned about the extreme heat and her daughter’s health.

“I was worried about taking my daughter to school because they only have a fan inside. Tiffanny had complained about the heat, but she loves school,” Grode said. “I’m glad we had a breeze today.”

Meanwhile, countywide power consumption declined slightly after the all-time record set Monday, said Criss Brown, a Southern California Edison Co. operations analyst. While millions of people turned up air conditioners again Tuesday, usage fell 409 megawatts short of Monday’s peak of 18,413 megawatts of electricity, Brown said.

In Huntington Beach, Lifeguard Lt. Michael Beuerlein said the beach was declared free of health threats after 20 lifeguards had complained of having unusual flu-like symptoms.

Beuerlein said results from a test taken by county health officials revealed no danger but did show that there is an exotic form of plankton brought here by warm waters, possibly due to an El Nino condition.

Illness forced some lifeguards, who had complained of congested sinuses, sore throats and gastrointestinal problems, to be absent from duty at a time when the beaches were filled with hundreds of thousands of people trying to cool off from near-record heat, Beuerlein said.

The humidity has, however, helped county firefighters. “The humidity is kind of a blanket” that provides moisture which reduces the risk of a major fire, said Maria Sabol, a spokeswoman with the Orange County Fire Department.