PRINCIPAL'S MESSAGE
Dear Parents and Carers
As you have no doubt already heard, the lockdown in the A.C.T. has been extended until Friday September 17, the end of Term 3. This means that our Remote Learning will continue for the remainder of the term. It remains the preference of the school, where possible, that students remain at home, although of course we understand that for students of essential workers, this is not always possible.
The teachers will continue teaching their students in the same manner that has been in place for the last few weeks. We are fine-tuning as we go and making improvements to the delivery of our lessons, however the broad contours of the school’s Remote Learning delivery will remain the same. The Remote Learning website will include, for each grade, the lockdown letter, a two-week overview and a daily timetable of the day’s learning, updated on a daily basis. The teachers are in the process of preparing a two-week overview for Weeks 9 and 10, which will go on the school’s website this Friday. Daily or twice-daily check-ins will continue for each class, with the times set by each class teacher. Weekly assemblies will also continue.
A reminder for Kindergarten parents that they can pick up their child’s learning packs for weeks 9 & 10, tomorrow between 10 am and 12 pm. The teachers will be handing them out in a drive-through format. If you are unable to pick up your child’s learning pack at that time, you will be able to collect it from the front foyer after 12 pm tomorrow.
A reminder too for this Thursday’s weekly assembly, at 2 p.m. The link to the assembly can be found here:
It is of course the hope of the school that we return to face-to-face teaching for Term 4. We miss all the children a great deal and are very much looking forward to their return. The decision to return to face-to-face teaching is – as it is for us all – out of our hands, and we are learning to live with a situation that is somewhat out of our control, in terms of the way we teach the students. What is in our control is our capacity to respond to the current reality with hope, as well as an ongoing commitment to meet the needs of our students and to ensure that they are as cared for and taught as well as they can be. In other words, our vocation as a school remains as it always has. As always, I will update the parent community as information about the lockdown, and the way it affects the school, comes to hand. Please contact your child’s teacher, or me, if you have any concerns or queries.
School Community Council
Last night, the Community Council met, as it does in Weeks 3 & 8 of each term. The Council had a number of social events planned for the social calendar, involving both families and occasionally just parents; unfortunately, these have had to be put on hold, due to the A.C.T. lockdown. The Council will inform parents when such events can take place, which will not be until Term 4, at the earliest.
General School Events
A number of school events have had to be postponed until the restrictions ease and we return to face-to-face (for example, Book Week, as I have written elsewhere). As the lockdown progresses, however, we are working through ways we can hold events in an online world. This will particularly be the case if the lockdown continues into Term 4. The Leadership Team and the staff are currently working through what that might look like and will communicate accordingly with the parent body. Communication is a quality which is vital at the best of times; never more so than in a situation like a lockdown and remote learning. For the moment, weekly assemblies and the daily routines of class learning are our focus. Should there be a need to communicate with parents regarding extracurricular events, such as Book Week, this will be done accordingly. I thank all parents for their understanding.
Fathers' Day
Finally, I would like to take this opportunity to wish all fathers a very Happy Fathers' Day this Sunday. I hope that your day is a very happy and affirming one, and that it is very blessed.
I wish all of our parents and families a very good week. Please contact the school if you have any questions or queries.
Best wishes
Cameron Johns
Principal