St Leonards Primary School

COVID update

As we rebound from the initial impact of COVID19, we have developed a ‘new normal’ in many areas to ensure that we maintain a safe environment for our staff and students. These decisions are guided by our State Public Chief Health Officer, Nicola Spurrier, and the Department for Education and include:

·        Maintaining social distancing of adults, including ‘Kiss and Drop’ procedures in the morning to reduce the number of adults on site.

·        Grounds not available to the public or community sport groups, or families outside of school hours

·        All essential visitors complete a COVID Site Entry Form every time they enter the site

·        8 hours/day of professional cleaning indoors and outdoors, including the playground

·        Handwashing routines in place before eating and after play times

·        Regular audits of hygiene product supply including sanitiser, soap and hand towel

·        Visual cues as reminders to maintain good hygiene practices

The school remains prepared for a possible second wave of COVID-19, and has procedures in place to respond swiftly under the direction of the Department. Normal timetables and learning programs are being resumed in full from the beginning of Week 4. We are grateful for the unexpected benefits of the COVID-19 crisis, as necessity has expedited the effective implementation of tools such as SeeSaw and Office 365 Teams which will continue to improve learning outcomes and family communication into the future.  

Term 2 Reports

The development of written reports has been affected by the disruption of COVID-19 and the fluctuating attendance of many students. Interim reports will be provided for all students, with A-E grades assigned to Year 1-7 students based on the evidence that is available to teachers. The format of reports will be modified to previous years with a General Comment that incorporates Literacy and Numeracy rather than three separate comments. Reports will be sent home in Week 10 of this term, and as always, we encourage you to contact your child’s teacher if you have any questions or concerns about your child’s learning progress or wellbeing.

Bike Shed

Please remember to bring a lock if you are riding to school, in case the bike shed is full. We are now asking that no more than five children are in the bike shed at one time to reduce congestion and ensure safety at the end of the day.

Duty of Care Before School

Staff are on duty to supervise children in the yard after 8:30am in the mornings. We ask that families do not leave their children in the yard before this time and strongly encourage the use of OSHC if you need to leave before 8:30am to ensure that all children are safe.

Parking

Unfortunately we are still having some issues with parking at the school during drop off and pick up times. This has led to complaints from residents who have been unable to access their properties and also concerns about student safety.

As a result the Council will be increasing their patrols. They came by during the week to remind people of the rules and that fines will be issued from now on.

Please take note of all parking signs. The ‘Kiss and Drop” zone on Russell Street has a three minute time limit and you must stay with your vehicle at all times. If you need to exit your car, please park in the appropriate zones. 

On Jervois Street there is a no parking/standing zone which means there is no parking/stopping on the broken yellow lines between 8:00am and 4:00pm. This is to ensure there is a clear line of sight for students and pedestrians to cross safely.

Please also be mindful of residents and parking restrictions on the side streets surrounding the school.

The safety of our learners and their families is paramount. Your help in this matter is greatly appreciated.

Dave Henty-Smith, Principal

Jo Meredith, Deputy Principal

Kathy Baker, Inclusive Education Coordinator

Parents and caregivers of current Year 7 students received the Starting Secondary School -2021 package last fortnight.

Enrolling for high school in 2021 is now done online. A link has been emailed to families with their unique code and steps to enrol. 

We understand that high schools will no longer be holding school tours or open days due to COVID-19 and suggest you visit the websites of the schools you are interested in and seek out as much information as possible to help decide which school might suit your child's learning needs. Our local schools are very good and have a range of programs to suit most needs.

Please be aware that sibling rights have been reviewed by the Department for Education for Brighton Secondary School, therefore any student who has a sibling who gained entry as an out of zone student via a special interest program in previous years DOES NOT have sibling rights in 2021.

Contact Mel Worden if you have any questions regarding the enrolment process.

Mel Worden, Enrolment Officer

If you have a Reception student commencing school in 2021 and have not let the Office know, please do so by emailing me at Melanie.worden673@schools.sa.edu.au or by  telephoning 8294 9811. Enrolment forms can be sent home with older siblings.

Mel Worden, Enrolment Officer

• No onsite visits from outside providers eg OT, Speech, Psychology.  This will be eased shortly
• No school banking
• Limited volunteers onsite and only with Principal permission
• Kiss and Drop for school drop off and pick up (as much as possible)
• No families on school grounds from 3:15pm
• Before or after school Library has reopened for students only
  
• If you need to collect your child early sign out at the Office and we will collect your child/ren for you
• Canteen has reopened

The SMS number 0427 016 460 is our preferred method for letting us know about any absences.

Messages should include name, room number and reason for absence eg illness or family.

Alternatively, please call the Office on 8294 9811 to leave a message with office staff.

Unfortunately, Facebook messages and emails don't always make it to the Office.

Hi wonderful community!!

How are you going?  Are you ok? 

As I type, the sound of children giggling excitedly, chatting (loudly!) to their friends rings out through the school yard.  The sun is shining and the way I see it, it’s a great day to have a great day!!  Hope this note finds you not only physically well but just as importantly, I hope that your mental health is good too.  As we experience the good news that some restrictions are lifting, you might be feeling another, possibly different wave of emotions at this time … we here in South Australia have been really successful in the management of the coronavirus, meaning we can all enjoy a little more freedom across this wonderful state of ours!  If you and your family have either made the decision (or had it made for you!) to self isolate and perhaps homeschool, you might be feeling a little anxious about the prospect of returning to life as we knew it before all this hit.  I want to say that I believe that is perfectly natural, in fact whatever emotions you and your children are feeling about the latest happenings, you are not alone and your feelings are perfectly valid!    

Hopefully you have been able to stay connected in various ways to those within your family and community … I have to say it’s awesome to see the way families are adapting to drop off and pick up scenarios at school at the moment.  Whilst it may be an emotional struggle (and lets face it, it’s not always the children who are the ones challenged by having to say goodbye and make their own way into the classrooms and out again at the end of the day … sometimes we as parents and caregivers are the ones who have to be extra brave during these times!)   Our children are showing amazing resilience and organisational skills (with the assistance of our incredible teaching staff!) and many are flourishing and enjoying the extra challenges! 

So to all of you playing by the rules … as a parent and worker at our fantastic school, I want to thank each and every one of you for doing the right thing, enabling your child/children to explore and actually enjoy the extra responsibilities that come at this time!  You are all wonderful and we at St. Leonards are grateful for your extra support following the guidelines put in place to keep us all safe!  Thank you!

If you or your children are struggling with anything during this time particularly, please know you only have to reach out to the relevant teaching staff or to either Kathy Baker or myself, should you need extra emotional or practical support … we are in a position to listen, assist if possible (or at least find ways or organisations who are in a position to offer practical help) during what is for many, a really difficult time … most importantly, you and your family do not have to go it alone, please reach out via email, phone or your child’s class page on facebook and we will do our best to help you!

We are all in this together and united, we will come through this with many stories of kindness, support and love to share with each other (along with many hugs, possibly through tears of gratitude!)   Thank you for all you are doing (or not doing!) to make our school a safe and as always, wonderful place for our children to thrive and remain engaged in … you are all amazing!

Please, take care of yourself, your family, your friends and neighbours … be gentle with each other and may you continue to stay safe during this time!

Karen Marks (Thorogood), Pastoral Care worker