Principal's Message

Term 4 Week 3

The Road Map to Return to Face to Face teaching and Learning @ MPRPS

Next week we have Foundation back at school on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday and then Year 1/2 students will be back Thursday and Friday.

The dates of when students will return to face to face learning are below but please see Important Information for a timetable for each Learning Centre for the next three weeks.

Week 3 - Week 5:

Year Level	Date of Return to Face to Face	Days of Week
Foundation	18th October	Mon, Tue & Wed
Years 1 & 2	21st October	Thu & Fri
Year 3 & 4	26th October	Tue & Wed
Year 5 & 6	28th October	Thu & Fri

Drop Off & Pick Up Arrangements have changed:

To minimise interaction at entry/exit points:

Kindergarten:

Kinder students continue to enter/exit through the Hall door off Mount Pleasant Road at normal start and finish times.

Foundation Students:

8:45am Foundation students enter through Reception to line up in the courtyard.
Foundation students will be dismissed at 3.30 pm through Reception. FD first, followed by FH and then FJ.

Year 1/2 Students:

8:45am Year 1/2 students enter through Car Park 1 on Mount Pleasant Road.
1/2 students will be dismissed from Car Park 1 at 3.30pm.

Year 3/4 Students:

8.45 am Year 3/4 students enter through Mount Pleasant Road Gate near Senior Playground off Mt Pleasant Road and line up at classroom doors.
3/4 students dismissed from Mount Pleasant Road Gate at 3:30pm.

Year 5/6 Students:

8.45 am Year 5/6 students enter through double gates (Eugenia Street Gate) on Eugenia Street onto the oval and line up at classroom doors.
5/6 students dismissed at 3:30pm from Eugenie Street Gate.

Additional Information

Parents practice social distancing, wear a face mask and do not linger.
One parent/carer only for pick up and drop off.
Where siblings wish to leave the school together, they may exit through the gate assigned to the youngest sibling.
Students are encouraged to practice physical distancing.

Access to School Grounds

Parents should only enter the school grounds when absolutely essential to do so and must notify the school by phone or email beforehand.
Classroom helpers are not permitted at this time.
Music Online, WiseOnes and other classes run by external providers are cancelled until further notice.

Keeping Everyone Safe

I know this is a very challenging and concerning time for our families. Our School and Kinder staff will have met the Vaccination targets set by the government.

We have spent a lot of time on planning and putting in place procedures and routines to make our school as safe as possible for our students.

I published strategies last week and below is further details:

Key behaviours required for reducing COVID-19 transmission risk include staying home when unwell, performing regular hand hygiene, and where possible pursuing strategies to support physical distancing.

Strategy	Summary
Face Masks	Mandatory indoors and outdoors for all adults and secondary students. Mandatory indoors at school for students in Years 3-6. Masks to be provided by students. Recommended for Years F-2 primary students Masks to be washed regularly/disposed of correctly.

Playgrounds	Playgrounds are open for school use and are available for community use after school hours only, before 7am after 6.00pm in line with community settings.
Hygiene and testing	Hand sanitiser provided and regular hand washing timetabled. Get a test with even the mildest of symptoms. Isolate until you receive your test results.
Social Distancing	Limit mixing with other Year Levels/Learning Centres Utilise different exit/entry points Maintain physical distancing Use large spaces and outdoor learning areas Limit non-essential visitors and density limits in common areas
Vaccination	All staff working in schools will be required to be vaccinated by 18th October and to be fully vaccinated by 29th November.
Ventilation	All schools will continue to maximise ventilation through opening windows and doors. Students and staff are encouraged to wear additional layers. Fans to be used only if in Winter mode and with windows open. Air conditioners can only be used with air from outside.
Equipment	Eliminate or minimise the necessity of using shared equipment at this time. Such items may include shared computers, class sets of teaching and learning materials, and musical instruments. If used, strict hand hygiene should be followed before and after use. Risk can be further minimised with users wiping down items where appropriate, for example using a disinfectant/detergent wipe or cloth. All classes provided with cleaning materials.
Illness	Any staff member or student who becomes unwell while at school with symptoms of COVID-19 must return home immediately and get tested, with a designated space(s) made available on school premises to support isolation where required.
Cleaning	Additional cleaning is provided daily including for high touch surfaces. Classrooms are provided with disinfectant spray for shared equipment and to clean high touch surfaces during the day.
Play Grounds	Playgrounds and Bathrooms to be assigned to Year Levels

Assembly

Kinder Outdoor Space

Our Kindergarten outdoor area renovation continues to progress, with the installation of the new care to replace the train. Hopefully the car becomes as loved as the train.

The mosaics also were installed into the new fence. It is good to be able to use past artwork from students and staff and to ensure we keep parts of our history alive.

Junior Inclusive Playground

We have had some hold ups with finishing off our new Junior Playground but we are hopeful that it will be completed with the final artificial turf installed this week.

On Tuesday 26th October between 7pm-8pm we will be running a Parent Wellbeing night via Zoom. Mount Pleasant Road Primary places a high priority on Wellbeing/Mental Health issues with students and we believe this will be a valuable opportunity for all parents and carers from Foundation to Year 6.

The session will be facilitated by Karen Hall from ‘Wellbeing for Kids’. Karen is a qualified Counsellor, Primary School Teacher, Mindfulness Coach and Facilitator who brings over 25 years of experience in the corporate and education sectors. Karen is currently working as a counsellor in a high school in Melbourne whilst also taking time to deliver different programs within the education sector. She has been working closely with MPRPS to deliver the ‘Peaceful Kids’ program for selected Year ⅚ students.

The one hour session will cover:

Understanding what anxiety is and how anxiety develops in children
What are the signs to look out for if you’re worried about your child
Factors that hinder and help children
A range of strategies to coach parents to support children and foster resilience
Links between anxious parents and their children and how to support the family to make positive changes
Coping strategies and self-care strategies for families during these difficult times
How to access additional support and who to talk to.

October is also Mental Health Awareness Month, and it has never been more important to help children overcome anxiety and improve resilience.

We look forward to your attendance on this night and applying the range of strategies and information covered during the session to help support your child/ren.

When: October 26th 7:00pm-8:00pm

Zoom details:

https://zoom.us/j/93636805210?pwd=UVUva0lnbVRJbFduUWZsMEhjdGR3QT09

Meeting ID: 936 3680 5210

Passcode: EtwV63