Great Ryrie Grapevine

From the Principal Team   

There is light at the end of the tunnel....we are nearly there.

When life has been different for a while, you might feel hope and excitement to go back to normal, but also fear and worry at the same time.

It’s very natural to find it hard to adjust after a stressful period of time! 

I am sure you have all heard the saying, it takes a village to raise a child.

I can assure you, that the village is here, ready and willing, to assist your children to adjust to life out of lock-down.  As always, your child’s safety and well being are our number one priority, so the measures outlined have been developed to ensure we do all we can to keep our community safe.

 

I hope you have read the wonderful, yet sad news, that our amazing Jo Bell has decided to retire at the end of the year. We wish her all the very best with her new adventures and I am hoping we can send her off in style. 

Return to School Guidelines

Next week marks the beginning of the State Government’s staged return to school with our Foundation students returning Monday – Wednesday and our Year Ones and Twos returning for Thursday and Friday.  

 

To ensure our return to school is seamless and COVID-Safe the school we have combined  the successful operational guidelines and practices from our previous Return to School Plans:

  • As much as possible, staff and students will operate in sub-schools/zones. This will apply to learning areas and staff spaces (staff rooms and workstations).
  • Hygiene processes and protocols will be maintained with both self-care and cleaning equipment a part of our processes.  This includes specialist subject areas between classes.
  • Unfortunately parents have restricted access to the school grounds as specified by the Department of Education, and the Chief Health Officer. We hope that we can work with you to make it a positive experience for all our students returning to school.

Drop Off 

  • As of Monday 18 October, the classroom doors will be open at 8:45am for all students to enter through the external classroom doors with teachers on duty.
  • Students attending the Essential Worker On-site Program, will be in the Library to enable normal school operations in classrooms. They will need to enter through the external door in the quadrangle from 8:45am.
  • All students can enter using the gates and the drop off zone near the Brian Allen Hall, and proceed to the external doors of the classrooms. We ask that parents do not leave their cars and no overtaking to make safety a priority for our children.
  • Students who are confident and capable of walking  through the gates unsupported are welcome to walk through the gate of their choice from 8:45am each morning and on dismissal.
  • Students who need support to enter the school grounds at 8:45am, can be accompanied by one adult wearing a mask. Adults must QR Code at the gate and not enter the buildings.
  • I would ask that you consider organising a walking school bus if possible, with one parent accompanying a group of children onto the site.
  • We ask that you kiss and drop and without delay, leave the school grounds and adhere to the social distancing regulations.
  • Children of Authorised Workers who are attending school for Onsite Learning will now enter and exit the school consistent with the dot points above unless they are scheduled to leave earlier.  Those students will continue to be picked up at the Administration building.

Staggered dismissal 

There will be two staggered dismissal times starting from Monday. 

  • Children without siblings at the school will be dismissed at 3:25pm
  • Children with siblings will be dismissed at 3:30pm  

Pick Up

  • Students who are confident and capable of walking through the gates unsupported are welcome to walk through the gate of their choice at their dismissal time, or to a point where a parent has set up a meeting point in the surrounding streets.
  • Students who need support at dismissal time can be attended to by one adult, wearing a mask, on the grounds 5 minutes before pick up time.
  • Adults must QR Code at the gate and not enter the buildings as teachers will be unavailable for face to face meetings or catch ups. Teachers will continue to be contactable through email or a phone call.
  • You might choose to organise a pick up point on the oval or the playground, at their external classroom door or a gate around the school. The Gates will be alphabetized from A-D, and the back gate will also be open for easy access.
  • We ask that after pick up, you leave the grounds without delay, and adhere to social distancing regulations.
  • Children of Authorised Workers who are attending school for Onsite Learning, will now exit the school consistent with the dot points above unless they are scheduled to leave earlier.  The school drop off zone will not be available in the afternoon for pick up.
  • No Parking will be available in the staff car park.

Mask Wearing Years 3-6 

Year 3 - 6 Students - Mask Wearing

 

A key change for Term 4 is the requirement for our 3-6 students to wear a face mask, (unless an exemption applies), when indoors on the school site. 

 

We appreciate that this will be new for our students and we will support them to transition to wearing masks. This will be expected to begin upon the return to onsite learning. I will provide clarity on this in the coming days via Compass when we receive more communication from the Chief Health Officer and DET.

 

Please note that students with a physical or mental disability are not required to wear a face mask where their disability means it would not be suitable. 

 

Talking with children about face masks can help them cope and explore their feelings. Here are some suggestions to talk with your children about masks from the 

Raising Children Network.

 

For older children, you can work through the steps below.

 

1.  Make time to talk about face masks. The best time to talk about face masks is when you can give your child your full attention.  This could be at dinner, bath time, or bedtime.  If you can, have a mask ready to show your child.

 

2.  Use a calm, reassuring and positive tone.  If you sound calm and reassuring when you talk with your child about face masks, your child is more likely to feel safe and secure.

 

3.  Find out what your child knows.  Start by asking your child what they know about face masks, whether they’ve seen people wearing face masks and whether they have any questions.  

 

4.  Explain face masks in a way your child understands.  This is about sticking to the facts and focusing on the positives.  For example:

  • ‘When we talk, breathe, cough and sneeze, snot and saliva can come out of our nose and mouth.  Face masks can stop the snot and saliva getting on other people. It’s best to keep snot and saliva to ourselves!’
  • ‘Healthy people wear face masks.  Lots of people, like doctors, nurses and teachers, wear face masks to do their jobs.  Wearing masks is one way we can help to keep everyone safe from COVID-19.

5.  Tune into your child’s feelings about face masks.  Ask your child how they’re feeling and listen to what your child says.  Let your child know that their feelings are OK.  You can also ask your child what they need to feel better.  It might reassure your child if you share your own feelings and let your child know what you’re doing to cope.

 

Some parents will feel apprehensive about sending their child back to school so I have included an excellent video from the Children’s Hospital with professionals discussing why it is OK to send children back to school. There are also some great links on our Well Being page. 

https://youtu.be/5c7M7xawWxo

 

Staff Vaccinations

As previously shared, our school has had an overwhelmingly positive response rate of staff vaccinations.   It is hoped that our collective COVID-Safe practices provide the safest environment we can give our community in the current climate.

Ventilation and Outdoor Learning

Classrooms will be ventilated as much as possible unless there is a weather event preventing this (e.g. extreme pollen count, smoke). Doors and windows will be open. It is important that on cooler days your child has enough clothing to keep warm. We will also be conducting classes outdoors if possible. Sun hats are mandatory and sunscreen is also to be applied.

Birthdays and Sharing of Food 

 Please do not send any food to school to share due to COVID. Teachers will endeavour to eat lunches and snacks outside where possible. 

 Children & Illness

It is now more important than ever that we keep our school community safe from the spread of germs.  Please read an important message from our Office Team on their page. The Department of Education has issued specific protocols for dealing with students who present at Sickbay with any COVID-type symptoms. 

 

There will be more information to come so thank you for your cooperation and as always, your support.

 

Karen and Melissa