Principal's Report
Principal’s Report - 29th October 2021
Return to School Edition
As you know, all children return to full face-to-face learning from Monday, 1st November. Attached to this newsletter, and sent separately by email, you will find the revised guidelines that will apply from that date. Pick up and drop off will remain the same except that no students will need to enter through the office but should go straight to the playground in the morning and then to their class. There is other information regarding other school events, programs and services contained in those guidelines.
I want to start by thanking the whole community for your co-operation and forbearance during this lengthy and most difficult period of remote learning and particularly during the staggered return to school. Your adherence to our rules and your consideration of everyone’s safety has been greatly appreciated and is a prime reason why we have been able to remain open, unlike many schools in our area. We know that this will continue into the coming weeks and that everyone will keep the safety of our whole community as their primary concern.
The children have started school with amazing resilience and calmness, although the rigour of a full school day is showing on some very tired faces. Be assured that we continue to keep the well-being of our students, and of course our staff, to the forefront of our minds. I was particularly impressed with our Preps and the way they began their second start to school. They looked resplendent in their uniforms, many of which unsurprisingly, look brand new!
On that track, I need to thank and congratulate those parents who have so capably supported your children through this long period of remote learning. I understand the pressure on families that remote learning can impose. I know, just from talking to our teachers who are also parents, that it’s a tough gig. You all need to be congratulated for continuing to keep your children healthy and well, and for continuing their learning with such commitment and dedication.
All of the teachers will take the time to allow our students to gradually transition into face-to-face schooling. This is also, of course, a big transition for our teachers and they will need some consideration as they return to full-time onsite work.
Whilst on the subject of teachers, today (Friday) is World Teachers Day. I am so proud of our teaching team for their commitment and resilience through these months of remote learning. It’s been tough for them but their dedication to maintaining the connection with students and their families and their incredible ability to transform classroom practice into remote learning is nothing short of miraculous. On this World Teachers Day, it would be great if our teachers got a few messages of support from families, especially for their efforts throughout this pandemic. They are a talented and dedicated team who make me proud every day.
As we have returned to school, the wearing of masks has been a new challenge for our years 3-6 students but they have taken this on with ease and with great maturity. They understand the importance of mask wearing for the benefit of everyone’s safety and they have quickly developed good routines. A small number of students have been given exceptions to mask wearing due to a range of issues but it is a very small number of students. For the vast majority it is just something we see so often now, that it’s all a bit unremarkable and just accepted practice. I thank parents and carers for your cooperation and encouragement with this. It’s one more step to keeping our whole community safe.
Over coming weeks, you will see a number of normal school routines gradually return as rules change in response to rising vaccination rates and, hopefully, lower case rates. Vaccination continues to be our key tool to making our way through this pandemic and I encourage everyone in the community to continue to get vaccinated. In many ways, I see light at the end of the tunnel with this latest return to school, but we can’t be complacent. We are still some way from seeing the end of COVID and its impact, but there does seem to be an end far off in the distance. That’s something that I’ve not felt before.
Enjoy this time as you wave goodbye to your little treasures each day and place them in our care. Thanks for being a parent and a learning supporter, but now you can leave it to us.
We’ll take it from here!
