Such a great start...

After so many months learning from home, it has been wonderful to see everyone back at school and ready to learn.

We hope the photos in this newsletter capture the joy and positivity that we have seen this week as students see friends again after a long break. The smiles and laughter we have experienced have brought the school grounds to life again. Children bring such great energy! I think the pictures say so much more than I could in words...

The times they are a changin'...

We know that the constant feelings of unsettledness and change has had a huge impact on many children, adults and families. As students return to onsite learning we know there will be anxiety and worry as students settle back into the routines of school life. We have put many things in place to proactively approach these feelings and reassure students that school is still a safe and welcoming place for all students. We also know that there will be bumps in the road and some possible social issues as students find their place once again. I encourage you to talk with your child about their day, highlight the positives and ask them to share their highlights. If they voice concerns it is important to listen and possibly help the reframe their thinking to understand that everyone is doing their best in challenging times and things will get better. Our School-Wide Positive Behaviour Support approach is working well. Our processes work and we follow through quickly when an issue occurs. If you have any concerns at all about your child, please contact your child's teacher in the first instance, or feel free to call Anna or Daniel on 9725 4320 for a chat.

Supporting ALL students

As we return to school, we are making a range of assessments (not just tests, but observations and gentle questioning) to identify the areas each child has made progress during remote learning and the areas they need more support. We have increased our staffing to provide small group targetted support to students each week to ensure everyone has an opportunity to catch up on anything they missed. Mrs Bair Blackburn will be returning to duty from the 26th October and will be providing additional, intensive learning support for those in need across the school. If you have specific concerns about the progress your child has made this year, please speak with your child's teacher. We are looking forward to continuing to partner closely with you in making sure your child has the best education possible.

A few reminders:

Drop Off and Pick Up

We are very appreciative of the patience you are showing during drop off and pick up times. We continue to try and refine our process. Here are a few things that should make everything a little easier:

Don't be on time ! (well, sort of) - It has been great to see everyone dropping their children off a little early each day, it helps spread things our. Students can be dropped off anytime after 8.30am. At the end of the day, everyone wants to go home! To ease congestion during pick up time, we are encouraging parents to come any time between 3.30pm and 3.50pm. If everyone comes right on 3.30pm it makes it a little tricky. Feel free to be a couple of minutes late and pick your child up a little after 3.30pm.
Drive Safely and Be Patient - we are so grateful to everyone for the patience you are showing during drop off and pick up. Please keep you speed below 10km/hr. When cars take off too quickly it kicks up gravel and dust and is very unsafe.
Avoid overtaking - it can be a little frustrating when your child has got into the car, but the car in front is taking longer... because we have students moving around in the car park, please DO NOT overtake. It will only be a moment and traffic will be moving again. The few seconds you might save are not worth the risk of causing a serious injury to someone's child.
Wear seatbelts in the carpark - we have noticed that some parents are allowing their children to sit in the car unrestrained. This is very unsafe - and illegal! Please make sure your child has their seatbelt on at all times when your car is moving.

Assembly and other gatherings

We are not allowed to hold assemblies or other gatherings on site at the moment. We will continue to hold our assemblies online. A link to our Zoom Assembly will be sent out each week. We are making plans for our Year 6 Graduation and Foundation Transition program that fit with these guidelines and will be sharing information with you when it is available

COVID Safe Plan

We are taking every possible precaution and proactive step to keep the school safe and COVID free. We have an enhanced and increased cleaning program with Jamie coming in during the day to clean high-touch areas and Kerrie doing her usual (excellent) full school clean each afternoon. We have hand sanitiser stations throughout the school and ensure students are maintaining good hand hygiene. More details about our approach has been emailed directly to parents.

Surveys

Parents, staff and students are currently being asked to complete surveys regarding how well we are working as a school. One parent in each family will have received an email with a link to complete the Parent Opinion Survey. We would greatly appreciate you completing this survey as soon as possible.

And a MASSIVE THANK-YOU!!!!

Once again I thank you for all that you have done as a school community to support our students, your children, through this time. They say that times of difficulty REVEAL what a community is made of. We have shown ourselves to be RESILIENT, RESPECTFUL and continually striving for EXCELLENCE. I am so proud of all that you have done as parents, friends, and a school community. You are absolute stars. It has been hard, tiring and challenging - but you have met this head on and been enthusiastic, tolerant, flexible and positive throughout the year. THANK YOU.

(School Council chose to donate the items we usually sell as a fundraiser for Mothers Day and Fathers Day, so each student could bring home a small token gift to show their love, thanks and appreciation to those at home who helped them during remote learning. We hope you like them!)

IT'S JUST SO GREAT TO BE BACK!!!

Kilsyth PS Newsletter

Issue 6 · 17 Oct 2020

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