COVID-19 UPDATE

While we have been living with restrictions at school for some time now, COVID-19 is again becoming a feature of our information. It is unfortunate that due to cases of COVID-19 in metropolitan centres and other suburbs between Sydney and the Hunter, NSW schools have been given some additional tightened guidelines to follow for the remainder of Term 3.

We shared with families these areas of advice via email during the week and ask that you read carefully the document so that you are assisting us in adhering to these guidelines to keep our community safe. Once we are given this information, we make this the lens through which we view events and activities in and out of school. While sometimes we all feel regulations don’t make complete sense, we are bound to work with them and we appreciate the support of our community in adhering to these. Should you have any questions or concerns, please make contact with us so that we can try to alleviate them for you.

At this stage, all guidelines are only for Term 3, so we are continuing to plan for more positive conditions in Term 4. Of course we are not able to predict what could happen during Term 4 and beyond, so we will continue to alert you of tighter or looser measures as they occur.

Please find here the advice should you have not yet had time to read it.

OUR COMMUNITY

With so much to feel concerned about in the world around us, it is always wonderful to spread some good news around. Here are my reflections on our school community this week:

• Year 2 Writing Workshop - I had the pleasure of joining Year 2 with Mrs Kelly, Mrs Toole, Mr Kelly, Ms Gamack, Mrs Germain and Aunty Sue on Wednesday as they engaged in a writing workshop. Our clever students were able to work together to write an information report about Australian animals after each student in their small group became the expert on a particular part of the report. They each added their part to the group report to come up with an amazing result at the end. Fantastic work Mrs Kelly in leading this and to the teachers and students involved.
• Year 6 Peer Support - It has been great hearing from different teachers supervising Peer Support that our Year 6 students are rising to the challenge and responsibility of leading other students in lessons to promote quality relationships and respectful behaviour at school. I have personally enjoyed the stories such as “it is so hard to teach them a lesson when they talk while you are trying to give an instruction”. A few knowing looks from teachers show that the penny might drop with our older students now that they are experiencing what it is like to get their message across with excited students who need some hints about active listening! 

OUR THOUGHTS AND PRAYERS

We extend our sympathy to Phoenix Kitching (5H) and his family on the recent loss of his grandfather and to Jasmine Howell (5H) and Mia Howell (4B) and their family on the recent loss of their grandmother. 

Tess Koning
Principal