As we know from the messages from our State and National leaders, we are in a time where we need to be flexible and responsive in all aspects of our day to day life. We value our responsibility as schools to be a safe place of normality and consistency for students and our staff, but we are certainly in extraordinary times where information is continuing to change how we operate.

• Week 10 of Term 1 - Monday 6^th till Thursday 9^th of April (Friday is Good Friday) will be allocated as Student Free Days. These are to allow teachers to undertake professional learning and planning for online provision for the start of term 2

• Schools are planning to be open from the beginning of Term 2

• At the time of writing this letter, we are awaiting information from the Department of Education about online provision of learning

• Please know that if you choose to keep your child at home, as per Prime Minister’s recommendations, that it is without judgement or question. Equally, if children are well enough to be at school, and you intend to send them, we are open and prepared for face to face teaching and learning

Our priority as a community should be the health and wellbeing of each other - Education is critical and will continue, but needs to be secondary to this.

We are fielding questions about learning from home. It is brilliant that families are looking for some routine and enrichment for their children. A typical question/concern is, ‘Can I have work for my child as I don’t want them to fall behind?’. Parents will always be their child’s first and most important teacher, but this is not a Distance Education or Home Education situation. This is 8 days of us all trying to support some normality and routine with the lives of our students and we know parents and staff will do the absolute best they can.

Please know that your child will not fall behind children at school – the programs that are taking place at school until the end of term are simply not business as usual, classes won’t be undertaking significant new learning that students at home will miss out on. Based on health advice, Department of Education have advised vulnerable groups of staff to change their work situation – this will also mean that things will look different in many schools around the state.

Mat Grining

Principal