Welcome

Week 7, Term 2, 2020

Dear Parents and Carers,

Welcome Back! It is all about the children. We understand that some children may be anxious about returning to school. Rest assured that the children’s wellbeing is our number one priority. Teachers will spend Monday planning for a calm and soft transition back to school for all children. We will welcome your children back to school, where they will be with their friends and feel happy and safe.

Additional cleaning of the school

In addition to the cleaning of the school that I outlined last Wednesday, I have contracted the cleaners to some progressive cleaning throughout the day. The cleaners will now also clean the toilets twice a day, door handles, any high touch areas, chairs, benches and counters.

Thank you to Parent Community

Thank you everyone for your amazing commitment and hard work with your children. The parents I have spoken to have seen this as a unique opportunity to see firsthand all the learning their children do on a day to day basis in a class, how much they actually cover in a day, (which might explain why they are so tired at night!!).

Many parents have commented on how hard the teachers work, all the planning and preparation required for one lesson let alone 5 - 6 lessons in a day, how teachers differentiate lessons to meet children’s needs, how they need to prepare different resources etc. I have had many emails of thanks and support which have been greatly appreciated. I personally want to thank all parents for your support and patience especially at the beginning as we got ourselves sorted with google meets, it was greatly appreciated.

Mrs Hedley wrote a story for all families to read to and with your children to prepare them for some of the changes they may experience when they return. This story was sent via email and Skoolbag app last week.

HERE IS THE LINK TO THE STORY 

To alleviate unnecessary anxiety, please ensure your child knows where you will meet them at the end of the day and reassure them there will always be teachers on the yard if they are unsure or they cannot find you.

A PRAYER FOR ALL THE CHILDREN

WELCOME BACK

Dear God

Come be with us today.

Fill out hearts with joy.

Fill our mind with learning.

Fill our classroom with peace

Fill our lessons with fun

Fill our friendships with kindness

Fill our School with love

AMEN

Pupil Free Day - Today

From today onwards, all staff are back onsite. At the beginning of today, we spent some time in silent prayer, to reconnect with God and with each other. Just as the students will have the time to pray, talk, tell stories, share experiences with each other when they return to school tomorrow or on June 9th, staff too require that time.

Kath Murdoch joined us for a couple of hours in professional learning. She facilitated a process of analysis and reflection about home learning. She asked provoking questions such as :

● What have you noticed about what has happened to you as a learner?

● What we have learnt about ourselves as inquirers?

● What have we learnt about your students?

● What have you learnt about your parent community?

● What are we going to continue and take back to the classroom?

● How are we going to move forward?

This time for reflection and discussion will continue over the weeks as we implement and continue some of the great practices that remote learning has provided us.

NATIONAL RECONCILIATION WEEK 2020 and Whole School Prayer

This week is National Reconciliation Week. National Reconciliation Week provides us with the opportunity to celebrate and investigate the richness of Indigenous history and culture. Each week at Whole School Prayer, we acknowledge the original owners of the land and pay respect to the traditional owners for they hold the memories, the culture and the wisdom upon which our nation’s future will be built. During the week, the teachers will work with the children to enable them to make connections with the past and present.

Whole School Prayer

This week’s prayer we will focus on National Reconciliation Week and the significance of the Aboriginal message stick and its connection to us as a Christian community.

Fun Friday - Crazy hair Day

Fun Friday has really been a hit and gained lots of popularity among the children. This week the children have suggested that we have a crazy hair day. (Oh, my…..What will Mrs Watson’s hair look like?) Join us for Whole School Prayer to find out on Facebook Live this Friday at 9:00am.

CANCELLATION OF SCHOOL CLOSURE DAY –WEDNESDAY JUNE 3

On Friday, I received notification from Catholic Education Melbourne (CEM) that due to COV-19 our original date (August 10 th) for our School Review has been postponed to November 9th 2020. Therefore, our scheduled School Closure Day for June 3rd is cancelled. A new date for a school closure day for review purposes will be scheduled for Term Three. I will let you know the new date as soon as possible. Therefore, school as usual for F - 2 on June 3rd and remote learning for Year 3 - 6 students.

Parent, Teacher, Student Conversations

In next week’s newsletter, I will provide you with more information regarding reporting for Semester Two.

School Fees:

We are still accepting School Fees if you would like to come in person to school, however, many families have asked for bank details for direct debit. If any families need to discuss alternative arrangements for the payment of fees please contact me directly. I have included the Bank details for your ease of payment:

Please note once you have made a payment can you email Ann Russo

annr@sfmoreland.catholic.edu.au with the amount you have deposited.

Have a great week, 

Manuela