Dear mums, dads, carers and colleagues

I am really excited to be able to welcome Prep and Year 1 kids back to school next week. We are currently making preparations for the restart. This is because we have done a superb job in supporting the social distancing and limiting the spread of coronavirus across the last few months. Community efforts across the state need to applauded! Go us!

Families have been outstanding in their support for their child’s learning across the past 3 weeks. I am extremely appreciative of all you have done for us. Your patience, courage to be vulnerable, persistence, flexibility, grit and positive outlook has been wonderful.  A+ on your report cards!

Our next job is to provide a return to school for Prep and Year 1 students on Monday that doesn’t overwhelm them in an attempt to get back into school life too fast. Our focus will be on building a positive start for each child through a safe and supportive classroom environment. Teaching and learning will follow in the future - but not straight away.

Maintaining hygiene and safety standards at school

We are serious about maintaining these standards.  There remains a heavy focus on personal hygiene for everyone at our school.

• Hand washing, hand sanitiser, bathroom cleaning, classroom cleaning and more still remains.
• Day cleaning of bathrooms and high traffic touch points will continue.
• Adventure playgrounds and equipment will be available for use. A cleaning regime will be in place.  Adventure playgrounds will be cleaned twice daily.
• The water bubblers are able to be switched back on but we still recommend that children provide their own drink bottle.  Bubblers will be cleaned regularly across the school day.

Additional restrictions for schools for Term 2

Please refer to the CHO letter to families below for a list of the cancellations and restrictions that apply to schools and our planned activities for this term. We will be instructed on our next plans in the coming weeks. Camps, sports, musicals etc all need to be cancelled. If and when these restrictions lift we will reassess what we can do.

Please contact me (or teachers or Deputy Principals) if you have any questions or concerns regarding our graduated restart.

Life is beginning to return to a new normal but coronavirus is still about. We must comply with all health and social expectations if we are to see the end of the threat soon. So please look after yourself and each other. Once again, thank you in advance for helping us with getting back to normal.

Kind regards

Vic

Our kids are awesome!  Check out this week's Excellence Award recipients.

Prep and Year 1

Year 2 and 3

Year 4

Year 5 and 6

To all lof our wonderful mums and grandmas.  We hope that you have a lovely day.

There are some new rules that have been set by the government that will be in place from Monday. These expectations ensure that we keep everyone as safe as possible. The biggest changes involve expectations around parent and adult movement in and about the school. These are different to what some of us used to do and I will need you to help by playing your part in maintaining everyone’s health and safety. Thank you to everyone in advance!

The government expectations include:

• All Prep and Year 1 students should return to school and instruction from Monday 11 May. Students in Years 2-6 are planned to return on 25 May but a decision to confirm this will be made at a later date.
• Students who are unwell must not attend school. This is really important.
• Parent access to schools and classrooms is restricted for the time being.
• All adults must maintain social distancing of 1.5 metres in and around the school. Social distancing does not apply to students in classrooms.
• Adults must not gather in groups in and around school grounds, car parks, school gates and outside classrooms
• Parents should use Kiss n Go options rather than walking children into school grounds where possible.

Yes and no - but mostly no.

While we are at school that encourages family involvement, these restrictions are really challenging - but they are necessary for the near future at least. The moment we can relax them we will.

• Our Prep teachers still require the Prep students to be delivered to the classrooms by a parent, carer or sibling. Only the Prep students and staff are allowed inside the classrooms so drop off needs to be at the classroom door.
• Parents of children attending the before and after school care service are able to access the hall area to drop and collect their children.
• Parents of older students should drop their children at the school gate. Parents are, for the near future at least, not able to wait inside the school campus before or after school. If students require particular assistance before or after school, special considerations can be made with the Deputy Principal or Head of Special Education.
• Parents who have a scheduled meeting with the teacher are able to enter the campus for this purpose.
• Parents who are volunteering in the cafe. See below for more details about special requirements.
• Parents are very welcome to come into the school office for assistance if they require.

Volunteers

We are not yet allowed to bring volunteers back into classrooms but we will need a few helpers in the school cafe. Numbers of volunteers will be strictly limited each day due to social distancing expectations. The normal induction training and sign in rules apply.

No

While we would like everyone back with us, parents are free to choose to keep their children at home with them. We completely understand the anxiety that many will be feeling about this but please rest assured that we will do absolutely everything we can to maintain a safe and healthy environment for your children.

It is important to note that the home programs for Prep & Year 1 students will need to cease on Friday 8 May so parents will need to provide a learning program if their children remain at home. If you keep your children at home you will need to notify the school so the school rolls can be maintained. Year 2-6 home programs will continue as normal for the next fortnight.

Prep & Year 1

• Prep and Year 1 students need to be in class by 8:25am for roll marking.  If your Prep / Year 1 children are not at school, please notify the office in the usual way.

Years 2-6

• Children of essential workers / vulnerable students need to be in class by 8:25am for roll marking.
• Children in Years 2-6 who are working at home need to check in each morning before 10:00am as they have been for the past few weeks.
• Please notify the office if your child is not doing home learning on any school day.

The school gates will be open:

• Before 8:00am and closed again at approximately 8:40am
• At approximately 2:25pm in the afternoon

School times will be:

• 8:00am Supervision commences. Students should not arrive before 8:00am.
• 8:15am Best time to arrive. Move to classrooms at the bell.
• 8:25am Class begins
• 2:30pm School finishes for the day

Morning tea and lunch breaks are taken in what we call a ’Split Lunch’. This means that approximately half the school is on break while the other half is in class. Then they swap over. We have used this process for quite a few years already and it is a great strategy for minimising the number of students on playground areas at the one time.

We don’t use (or need) bells during the day as it all becomes too confusing. Split lunches will start when the whole school returns.

The split lunch program times are:

Please do not arrive before 8:00am

• Prep (& a parent) and Year 1 students will be supervised in the Cafe Shed from 8:00am - 8:15am when the class bell rings
  Year 2 students who are authorised to attend school will be supervised in the Junior Shed near the Year 2 classrooms from 8:00am - 8:15am when the class bell rings
• Year 3 students who are authorised to attend will be supervised in the Middle Shed near the Year 3 classrooms from 8:00am - 8:15am when the class bell rings
• Year 4 students who are authorised to attend school will be supervised in the Year 4 eating area (Block 4) from 8:00am - 8:15am when the class bell rings
• Year 5&6 students who are authorised to attend school will be supervised in the Senior Shed from 8:00am - 8:15am when the class bell rings.

School uniforms are back in fashion.  Please make sure that you start to purchase pullovers (for blues) and tracksuits (for sports uniforms). It isn’t cold yet but winter is close.  Click here to visit the School Locker to place your orders.

Do you know how to pronounce the title of our newsletter this week? If you are unsure, you should ask one of us! We have not only figured out how to pronounce Jingeri jimbelung, but what it means as well. So, before we delve deeper we wanted to say Jingeri jimbelung to you!

We acknowledge the Traditional Owners of our country throughout Australia and recognise their continuing connection to the land, waters and culture. We pay our respects to their Elders past, present and emerging. This week we discovered more about Australia and Aboriginal people. Our school is on Yugambeh land and Jingeri jimbelung is a part of the Yugambeh language. When we say this, we are saying hello friend or G'day mate!

We worked together with our educators and each other to display some artworks that were inspired by Aboriginal people and our Australian land. A long time ago, Aboriginal people drew stories of cultural significance and use of the land. We were interested in these symbols and wanted to explore their meaning. We did this through contemporary Aboriginal art, we drew many symbols in our sand paintings, created nature mobiles from the land around our school and enjoyed decorating our own boomerangs using skills similar to dot painting.

Our display is hanging in the front of our OSHC room, we would love for you to come and have peek if you get the chance.

It can be difficult to know where to go for help if your child needs support in the areas of social emotional wellbeing, mental health and behaviour. If your child is showing difficulties in these areas at home or at school, there are a number of good quality services available in the local area. The following information has been compiled by our school’s Guidance Officer and is a snapshot of some of the services commonly used by families.  Many of these options are free or low cost and all prefer parents to get in touch with them directly.  Where possible, scanned copies of brochures have been included for further information.