St Mary's School
Tuesday 1st February 2022
May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope (Romans 15:13)
Dear whānau, tamariki and parishioners,
Welcome back, school starts at the usual time tomorrow morning with the school gates opening at 8.30! We can't wait to see you all.
The teacher only day focused on how best to keep our children well, and how we would manage the tracing or interactions across the school. You'll see below what we came up with! We are all in this together, and as always, we will lean into our home and school partnership to support one another.
We will make sensible decisions, but there is a level of stress that can impact decision making, so bear with us as we navigate this new space.
God bless, Annie
School managing COVID - Omicron variant
Our main aim is to minimise potential numbers of close contacts should we ever have a positive case in our school. All our staff and volunteers are vaccinated which is considered a significant mitigation of risk. We have a wealth of health and safety measures that put in place to help keep those on site as safe as possible:
- we will treat all parents and caregivers coming onsite to support their child’s learning, as unvaccinated, and we will continue to show the value of love to all,
- there will be no events and activities that bring parents and caregivers onsite, but we will share what we can on zoom/facebook so you are all still involved,
- all visitors must wear a face covering, exemptions will be respected, and we will also have spares for those who need them,
- staff will be encouraged to wear a face mask when meeting with visitors, including parents and caregivers,
- physical distancing of two metres is recommended where practicable - thinking of the school gate(!)
- hand sanitiser is available indoors, each class and at the office,
- if children or adults are feeling unwell then staying at home is key.
Other useful things to know
Please name fabric masks - we don't want to make things worse!
Bring a water bottle rather than rely on the fountain
Staff have created a timetable for regular breaks in designated spaces for every class
If, for any reason, your child will arrive before 8.30 any day please speak to Annie Nelson who is managing who is on site, and when they are on site.
Pick up after school
There is no staggering to end of the day, everyone will finish at 2.50 and will be at the designated pick up points.
If your child is in Room Piwakawaka (Mrs Christie), Moa (Miss Hood), Kiwi (Mrs Gray and Mrs Hansen) or Takahē (Miss Bond) the back gate is your pick up point at 2.50.
If your child is in Room Kereru (Mrs Knowler), Tui (Miss Sutherland) or Ruru (Miss Smith) then the pick up is the front carpark near the garage. Parents are requested not to use the staff car park so the children can move with their teachers safely.
If you child is in Room Pūkeko (Mrs Thacker, Mrs Cruickshank) or in Kea (Mrs Butterfield) then they will be at the main front gate at 2.50pm.
If you have more than one child who are being picked up from different points then you can tell your children where you wish to pick them up from, and they will let their teacher know. Feel free to drop Annie or Di a line to ensure the message gets through.
Te kupu o te wiki - the word of the week
The reason we are all here - children. In Te Reo Māori the word for children is tamariki.
