Dear parents and caregivers,
As the COVID-19
situation continues to evolve, we have been closely following Department of
Education directives, which are based on the advice of Queensland Health.
I thank you for
your patience as we have worked through these challenging times. Your support
has allowed us to maintain a focus on teaching and learning and some normality of routine for the children
of our school.
The Queensland Government
has today announced that an additional five (5) Student Free Days will be in
place next week, from Monday 30 March to Friday 3 April inclusive.
This means the Term 1
break will start early for students and your child will not attend school next
week, unless they are children of essential workers or vulnerable children,
such as those in out-of-home care.
Essential workers are
those that must currently continue to attend their workplace during this
difficult time and supervision will be provided at our school for children of
these workers where required during the week of 30 March to 3 April inclusive.
If you are an essential
worker and wish to send your child to school to be supervised next week you
must ensure your child is well and not displaying any signs of illness.
The Student Free Days have
been provided to allow Queensland state school staff opportunities to plan for the
delivery of learning in the event that the education sector needs to move to
flexible and remote learning for students at the commencement of Term 2.
Where needed, Outside
School Hours Care (OSHC) may be available for children and families over these
student free days. This decision is at the discretion of the OSHC provider.
This will support parents who are working hard to combat the COVID-19 virus and
assure them that their children have access to a safe and secure site outside
of school hours. Further information about OSHC availability can be found at https://www.startingblocks.gov.au/find-child-care/
School will resume on
Monday 20 April unless health advice determines otherwise. Further information
on the return of students to school for Term 2 will be provided over the Term 1
break.
If you would like to
support your child’s learning next week, a newly established learning @ home
website has been developed by the Department of Education and can be accessed
at https://education.qld.gov.au/curriculum/learning-at-home. This site
contains a range of student learning material and other high quality education
websites that will help your child’s learning.
You are also encouraged to
stay informed of the latest health developments relating to COVID-19 by
regularly visiting the Queensland Health website: www.qld.gov.au/health/
conditions/health-alerts/coronavirus-covid-19
I
realise these latest developments may create challenges for parents and
caregivers, both in terms of disruption for students and for families who need
to manage supervision of children at home. Please be assured that the decision
has only been taken as a necessary response to the evolving COVID-19 situation.
The
Department of Education will continue to keep all principals up-to-date with
any further changes to schooling over the coming days and weeks and I will
continue to provide parents with this information as it becomes available. Further
information for parents, including Questions and Answers has been developed by
the Department of Education and can be found here.
Thank
you for your understanding as we continue to work together to support and
educate your children during this difficult and unprecedented time.
Regards,
Yolanda Tognini
Principal