Mary Immaculate Primary Newsletter

On Friday 13 March, the Australian Government announced new advice as part of its response to the spread of COVID-19 (coronavirus).

The new advice is that 'non-essential' events with more than 500 people should not take place and to avoid overseas travel unless it is essential. Other than where there is a case of COVID-19 confirmed, schools will remain open. What does this advice mean for our school? 

The health and safety of our community is our priority. With this in mind, and consistent with the latest advice we will:

● avoid gatherings of students and staff such as whole school assemblies.

● wherever possible, use technology options for communication and collaboration.

● avoid 'non-essential' school activities involving more than 500 students.

● respond at a local level, when possible, drawing on the best advice of relevant authorities.

● continue to provide information for parents/carers, students and the wider community using email through our usual channels.

 ● postpone or cancel some events, and we apologise in advance for the short notice that may be given as the health and well-being of our community is our major concern.

● strongly encourage 'social distancing' practices such as discouraging handshaking, hugs and other forms or incidental social contact.

Students are being assisted to wash their hands properly and with appropriate regularity. Please make sure students also practice proper hand washing procedures at home.

Schools can only be closed at the direction of the Executive Director of Catholic Education for the Diocese of Parramatta after consultation with the Minister for Education /Minister for Health. Should students be required to remain at home for an extended period, teachers will support the students' learning opportunity at home.

We appreciate your continued trust in supporting the learning and well-being of our students, plus, the positive support from our community during these challenging times as we endeavour to remain calm and proactive with our own health care. We will continue to monitor the situation and post updates as deemed necessary, as outlined in this newsletter.

It is now even more vital that all parents have the Skoolbag app downloaded on their devices and set to receive all notifications from the school. 

Stephen Dowd

Principal

CHILD PROTECTION CHECKS

Dear Parents and Caregivers,

As you know at Mary Immaculate Primary, we warmly welcome any parents or caregivers who are able to offer their time and skills in a voluntary capacity to assist the students in our school.

We are required to ensure all volunteers working in our school comply with Child Protection policy and practice.

All volunteers working in the school are required to complete a Child Protection workshop online every two years, through Catholic Education Diocese of Parramatta. This is a requirement for any volunteer and once the workshop is completed, the school is notified via email and then clears you to work in a voluntary capacity at Mary Immaculate.

The address for this link is https://www.parra.catholic.edu.au/About-Us/Building-Child-Safe-Communities. We greatly value your help at the school and look forward to working with you in the future. If you have any questions or concerns not addressed through the above website, please ask Mrs Sharon Mizzi or myself for clarification.

Yours sincerely,

Stephen Dowd

Principal

We are dedicated to promoting health and well-being at both school and home for all our students. As part of living a healthy and active life, families are encouraged to pack healthy lunch boxes for children. Along with a healthy lunch and snack, children are also encouraged to keep hydrated.  It’s great to see many students with refillable water bottles, not only to refill and stay hydrated but to also help save the environment from plastic waste and expenses. 

Benefits of Drinking Water

Children need 1-1.5 litres of fluid per day. Although some of this can come from the food they eat, most of it should come from drinking water. It’s important to drink even more water on hot days and during exercise when water is lost as sweat.  Regular tap wate is safe to drink, contains fluoride to help protect teeth from decay, is available in most public places and best of all is FREE!

So pack a refillable bottle every day for school and save your family from unwanted costs.

For more information for parents visit : https://sport.nsw.gov.au/sectordevelopment/activekids

We are seeking ‘Expression of Interest’ from parents who wish to volunteer their time and skills to help coach various gala day teams during school schools: Soccer, Touch Football, Basketball and League Tag. If you are interested, please email your name and phone number to mimmac@parra.catholic.edu.au with attention to Miss R. Benjamin.