PUPIL FREE DAYS

• Monday 25th May, 2020 (Additional COVID 19 Day - to transition back to school)
• Two extra days yet to be confirmed in 2020

TERM DATES

• 2020 TERM 2: Tuesday 14th April - Friday 26th June (2:30pm finish)
• 2020 TERM 3: Monday 13th July - Friday 18th September (2:30pm finish)
• 2020 TERM 4: Monday 5th October - Friday 18th December (1:30pm finish)

CAMP DATES

• Year 5: Lady Northcote Recreation Camp (Tue 06Oct to Fri 09Oct 2020)
• Year 3, 4 & 6: As Camps are closed due to COVID 19 we are looking at rescheduling these 3 camps to later in the year. If this is not possible a full refund in term 3 will be provided to families who have already made a payment.

RETURN TO SCHOOL By now, everyone will be well aware of the staged return to school arrangements across Victoria. School resumes for students in Foundation to Grade 2 on Tuesday, May 26. Today, via COMPASS, all families will receive ‘Return To School Guidelines’ , which need to be READ and ADHERED TO carefully, for the protection of all. There are many areas of particular importance, and in the first instance Pages 3 to 7 of the document outline in great detail the drop off and pick up arrangements. We are asking that NO student enters the school grounds before 8.45am on any day, and that ALL parents drop their children off and REFRAIN from entering the school grounds. You may choose, to avoid the potential for unwanted social contact, to drop your child/ren off at ANY time between 8.45am and 9.20am. In a similar fashion, there are strict guidelines for the collection of students after school. Until the end of term, we are asking that Foundation to Grade 2 students be collected at or just after 3pm and the process for this is explained in great detail and (hopefully) clarity, in the ‘Return To School Guidelines’. When Grades 3 to 6 resume school on June 9, we will continue the 3pm pick up time for Foundation to 2, and Grades 3 to 6 will be dismissed at 3.30pm. The Department Of Education and Training has requested schools stagger these pick up times to reduce congestion, and to enhance physical distancing, and we believe that the processes and procedures we have put in place will minimise the risks and potential for ‘too close’ social contacts. Again, while the above paraphrases the plan moving forward PLEASE read the guidelines carefully and be familiar with them prior to the start of school on Tuesday.

There are many other plans and processes outlined in the guide including hygiene practices, the staggering of recess and lunch breaks between Foundation to 2, and Grade 3-6 cohorts and more. We will, of course, monitor our plans as the weeks unfold in order to ensure the smoothest return to school for all, understanding these are difficult times. Whilst our building works are going to provide us with wonderful new classrooms by the middle of August, they have also contributed to some of the logistical ‘challenges’ of the return to school. Please be patient, respect the intent behind all of our plans, and keep perspective firmly in mind – some inconvenience is far more tolerable than the alternatives.

The school program in operation until the end of term will not quite be the normal one at our school, or indeed all Victorian schools. There will be a fundamental focus on well being. This has been, and continues to be a very challenging and traumatic time for all, and what will be most important for our students is that they feel safe, happy and secure in the familiar surroundings of our school. We will, of course, also focus on literacy and numeracy. Details on school reports will be provided soon, but these will also be the ‘new’ normal – at least for Semester 1 , 2020. They will be considerably abridged, with formal assessments not being possible in the isolation of Term 2 lockdowns. We will publish the DET guidelines that have framed these reports in due course.

BUILDING UPDATES The demolition of the Northern classrooms has been completed and the next phase of the build is underway with the preparatory works for connection to gas, water, power and other communications commencing soon. Below are photos I received this week, showing the progress made in the on-site construction facility of Modscape out in Brooklyn.

PUPIL FREE DAY A reminder that Monday, May 25 is a statewide pupil free day, to enable teachers across the state to plan and prepare for the staged return to school for all of our students. A reminder that OSHClub is open on this day for full day care.

GRADE 3 TO 6 ATTENDANCE If circumstance have changed for families, and there will now be no one at home to supervise remote learning activities for Grades 3 to 6 students from May 26 to June 5 (for example, because you can no longer work from home), you may apply for school on-site attendance during that time. Please email the school office for an on-site attendance application form.

Well, enough from me for now. Your remote learning assignment this weekend is to read and understand the ‘Return To School Guidelines’. In all seriousness, do read them, spend precious time with your family and we look forward to seeing many of you, ever so fleetingly, next week.

Kind regards,

Bill Kersing

Principal

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Transitioning back to school With the transition back to school looming for our Foundation to Grade 2 students, the below websites are full of useful information that may help you to help your child transition back to school. There will not be just one way that will work with every child. The current transition back to school could be particularly challenging for those of you who will have one child coming back to school, and one of more continuing remote learning from home.

Our Foundation, Grade 1 and Grade 2 teachers have had a Webex session with our DET allocated psychologist this week to discuss strategies to support our returning students (and each other!). These were useful sessions to help us pre-plan and identify some potential issues – helping with separation anxiety was high on the list!

Webex Check-ins With Students By now, all classes have had the opportunity to participate in a Webex Check-in. There is no doubt that this was an incredibly valuable thing to do for the mental health of our students. The ability to see each other, see their teacher and to see this as the first step of their return to school. While technology has provided the tools for this to occur, in some cases the technology at home has not worked the way we expected – this has been the case at school too. We would like to thank the parents and family members who we know were trying to adjust settings, ensure microphones and cameras were working, entering meeting numbers and passwords, downloading the app, ‘turning it off and on again’… in the background in an effort to help their child connect with their friends and teacher – thank you!

We would also like to thank the staff for their perseverance. Some of us also had technology problems that we had to overcome…I may have attend a meeting or 2 from my garage where the reception seemed to be better when I had my 2 university aged daughters ‘attending’ a video lecture, and my secondary school aged daughter also attending a video class – bandwith was at a premium some days!

We are planning on having 2 more of the Webex Check-ins for the students in Grades 3 to 6 before all students return on Tuesday 9th June. Please keep an eye out on your child’s grade teacher’s normal communication channels for this.

Have a great weekend everyone!

Patrick

Things have certainly been busy this week at school as we begin the countdown to our Foundation to Year 2 students returning to school on Tuesday.

Additional signage has been posted around the school advising student collection gates, and reminding us all of social distancing protocols. Please read and follow these signs.

Thanks to the hard work of Trev, Chris, Dani and the team from Hi City our school is looking ‘shipshape’ and ready for students. There are a few changes to our school grounds, due to the building works, but our play areas are ready for action.

As we head back to school please remember that this pandemic is not over and we are not returning to normal; we are transitioning to a new stage. We still need to be careful, practice good hygiene and follow all guidelines. Together, we will ease our students back into their school learning environment. Over the next few weeks our focus will be on student wellbeing, literacy and numeracy. Our teachers will carefully explain to the students the changes to their daily schedules and routines that have been implemented and will assist students with their feelings, questions and concerns.

We appreciate that everyone in our school community has faced enormous challenges in recent times. Please show patience and kindness, ask if you are unsure about anything, follow the Returning to School Guidelines that have been released and be prepared to be flexible.

Congratulations to Kori and George Stuckey on the safe arrival of their beautiful baby boy Gus John Stuckey. We wish Kori, George, Alfie and Gus all the best.

Have a great week

Gill Nicholls

Office Hours School office hours returns back to 8.30am-4.30pm as of Tue 26May.

New School Email Address Viewbank Primary School’s new email address is viewbank.ps@education.vic.gov.au

Classroom Cuisine Classroom Cuisine lunch orders will not be offered at school for the remainder of term 2 and all of term 3.

OSHClub (Out of School Hours Care) OSHClub will be open all day on Mon 25May (Pupil Free Day)

Take care

Lucy Addati

Hi everyone!

This week we will be having a riddle, a sudoku, a maze and a mandela for you to enjoy. We hope that the Foundations, 1s and 2s all have a good return to school on Tuesday.

Luke, Phoebe, Joel and Annabella

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Week 5 Answers

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Australia's Biggest Morning Tea - Thursday 28 May 2020

Want to make a BIG difference to those impacted by cancer?

We know it's not the time to be gathering together in large groups, but there are ways you can keep your social distance, and still make a really big difference to people impacted by cancer.

Whether it's a virtual morning tea with your colleagues online, or a catch up and cuppa with your household, every dollar you raise will help fund Cancer Council’s life-saving research, prevention, support programs and information.

Donations can be made online by clicking here.

People impacted by cancer need your support now, more than ever.

https://www.biggestmorningtea.com.au/fundraisers/ViewbankPrimarySchool

ALIA National Simultaneous Storytime 2020 - virtual event This year ALIA National Simultaneous Storytime (NSS) takes place on Wednesday 27 May 2020 at 11:00am and we would love it if you could join us by sharing Whitney and Britney Chicken Divas written and illustrated by Lucinda Gifford. Everyone can join NSS, it doesn't matter whether you are at home, a school, a public library or even a university library! Register to participate - (it's free)

https://membership.alia.org.au/events/event/national-simultaneous-storytime-2020-2

PHONE NUMBER: 0448 075 422

EMAIL: viewbank@oshclub.com.au

Uniforms can be purchased online at www.aplusschoolwear.com.au with one of three delivery options:

• Free collection in store during trading hours
• Postage to address of customer’s choosing, at $12.50 for two items or less, or $17.50 for three items or more
• Free delivery to school, to an existing student at Viewbank Primary. Please note, this option is not available if the customer does not already have a student at the school