Parkhill Primary School Newsletter
Issue 13, Friday May 29 2020
Dear Parents/Carers
It has been so wonderful to see the lower school back onsite this week! We are all enjoying the chance to be back at school and in the classrooms with the children doing what we do best! We are very much looking forward to seeing our upper school join us on 9th June.
I have left the information regarding return to school below for your information - this remains unchanged at this stage.
The morning drop off and afternoon pick up is working really well for everyone. I thank you all for your flexibility and understanding. I would strongly encourage you to maintain physical distancing at the gates and try not to hang around for too long. Please avoid turning up too early so you are waiting in groups: 8:50 - 9am is drop off and 3:30pm pick up.
I have had a couple of parents mention that cars are making U turns on Cassinia Avenue. Again, please use safe practices around the school as always. Drive up , drop off and keep going. We are very lucky that all of the streets around us link well. There really is no need for U turns at all.
Return to School Arrangements:
The decision to stagger the return is not based around the children. Children have been deemed low risk in terms of transmission of the CoVID virus. The staggered return is to reduce the adult to adult contact in our community and to support physical distancing in the staffroom.
There are a few basic rules we have established to make the return to school as smooth as possible. I ask for your support with these rules to ensure we are working together to protect the health and wellbeing of everyone in our community. I ask for your support in honouring and being respectful of these guidelines.
I have outlined these rules below:
Children must enter the school and leave the school through designated gates
F/1 use the front gate of the school, walk around the admin building to their classrooms.
2/3 will enter via the oval and use the path at the side of the soccer park to access the decked area and their classrooms.
The children in our Y4/5 classes will enter across the top of Ashwood High School oval and in the back gate beside the orchard. They should use the steps behind the art room to access their classrooms.
Y5/6 classes will enter the school via the Roger Beech Hall gate and use the undercover walkway access to get to their classrooms.
Parents are not allowed on site. There will be teachers and ES staff at the gates to meet and greet the children and help support the transition to their classrooms.
At pick up time parents are advised to arrange a meeting place outside of the school boundaries to meet up with their children. Again staff will walk their classes to the exit points outlined above.
Volunteers and parent helpers will not be needed for the remaining weeks of term 2. We will review this for term 3 - this applies to music instrumental teachers as well.
Due to our size staggered starts will not be necessary. School will start at 9am and finish at 3:30 as usual. Children can start to arrive from 8:50.
Children cannot be onsite before 8:50 and must meet a member of staff at the allocated gate.
Additional information:
Children will not be allowed to use the drink bubblers - please send a drink bottle with them.
The Department of Education has added additional daily cleaning hours for high touch areas.
Any students who are showing symptoms of cold and flu must not attend school and will be sent home immediately if exhibiting symptoms. We will temperature test students if needed.
Students with any illness should stay home at all times.
Any devices loaned must be returned to school with your child on their first day.
Social Media:
Having encouraged the children to spend more time online over the past few weeks we have been discussing the increased use by children on social media. It can be a great way to stay in touch during the remote period we have all experienced. While it is understandable that children, as well as adults, have been seeking these connections, we need to be even more mindful of the platforms the children are using and how they are conducting themselves. I urge you to check your child’s social media regularly and monitor who they ‘chat’ with and who they have listed as ‘friends’. Using devices in shared spaces and checking accounts regularly is healthy active responsible parenting.
https://www.esafety.gov.au/parents
If you have any questions or feedback for us please do let me know - we don’t know what we don't know and you are living through the platforms every day from the other side of the screen. Your knowledge, thoughts and information are super valuable to us at this time.
brady.elaine.e@edumail.vic.gov.au
Welcome back Parkhill!
Best wishes,
Elaine Brady
Principal
Calendar of Curriculum Events
Tuesday 9 June - Y4 - 6 Students Return
Friday 26 June - Term 2 Ends 2.30pm
Reconciliation Week at Parkhill
We have been acknowledging Reconciliation Week this week at Parkhill through various events in classrooms – both in person and virtual.
To continue the journey, we offer access to the film “In my blood it runs”, recommended to us by one of the Parkhill community. Find out about the film at https://inmyblooditruns.com/
It deals with the real problems faced by first nation children, and may be quite confronting. It may be best viewed by older children with their parents.
Access the film here: https://indee.tv/screener/view/pLKFcPziTE0H9lHIsOe11kuxh42fmJRv/
This is a limited time offer and will only be available until 7 June.
Thanks to Jane Vadiveloo.
Michelle Smith
Assistant Principal
Writing in F/1 During Remote Learning
The F/1s did some wonderful writing during remote learning at home. They wrote for lots of different purposes. They wrote letters, text responses, recounts, alliterations, retells, lists and descriptions. They are all amazing authors and we can’t wait to see what they write next!
Y3/4 and Y5/6 Camp
As previously advised there will be no camps in 2020. Those of you who have already paid have been contacted directly via email with refund options. If I do not hear back from you, your refund will be credited back onto your school account for future use. If you have any questions, please email me on Ravida.jo.j@edumail.vic.gov.au
Borrowed Devices During Remote Learning
Now that we are finishing with remote learning, please return your borrowed devices to school. Please make sure to include the devices as well as the power cable. If you notice that the device or the power cable has been damaged, please let us know.
If your child is in Y4-6, they can continue to use the borrowed device until they return on 9 June.
Thanks
Michelle Smith
Chaplain’s Corner
I think we’re all a bit sick of hearing about and reading about CoVID. I don’t want to write about it, I don’t want to think about it. I want to have this amazing inspirational idea that helps in some other area of life and write about that. But we’re still stuck here in “CoVID land”. Stuck in this weird season of wanting CoVID to be over but it’s not quite gone yet.
So what do I say, how do I encourage you and myself through this weird transition phase after lockdown but before things are truly normal?
I want to ask you a question:
What are you looking forward to?
It can be a hard thing to think of at the moment, especially if there are things you would normally do or places you would normally go that are still off limits for a while. But it helps our mental wellbeing to know there is something we are going towards. Don’t look at it as a ‘I wish I could’ or ‘I want to but it’s never going to happen’, acknowledge it might take a while, but it will happen eventually and then plan something. Dream. Imagine. Look forward to it.
So what are you looking forward to?
Is it an outing to the beach, the movies, a favourite meal, a trip you’re planning for whenever? Meeting up with friends or family?
Dare to dream and hopefully it won’t be too long before that dream can become a reality.
Suzanne Carmody
Chaplain
Parkhill PS
Parkhill Primary School
Email: parkhill.ps@edumail.vic.gov.au
Website: www.parkhillps.vic.edu.au
Location: 4A Parkhill Drive, Ashwood VIC, Australia
Phone: 03 9807 2239