Dr Carmel McGrath

Return to School May 25

Following 2 weeks of low transmission rates, state schools will return to school for all students on Monday 25 May.  This was very welcomed news for families and staff at New Farm State School. 

Following are some key points that will apply during this return to school.

1. Social distancing

Physical distancing protocols continue to apply to adults in the school setting. It is important that all adults:

• maintain 1.5m physical distance from each other, including in staff rooms and offices;
• conduct meetings online or via telephone wherever possible so please contact teachers on your class Dojo to discuss issues or arrange a telephone meeting;
• refrain from congregating in and around areas such as our office, school gates, carparks and outside classrooms.
• Our drop off zone in Heal Street has been working very well in the mornings and we will continue to use this for all students. At the end of the school day we will continue with:
• Preps ready for pick up at 2:45pm from the Hall,
• Year 1s at 2:55pm from outside C Block (low demountable classroom on corner of James and Heal Streets)
• Yr 2 – 6 at 3pm from either Heal Street or Hawthorne Street Pick areas;
• practise effective hand hygiene and cough/sneeze etiquette;
• stay away from the school if unwell.

2. Vulnerable people

• Students who are unable to return to school due to medical reasons will continue to have access to learning through the learning@home site. I would also encourage students and families to continue to stay connected to their classes via the class Dojo app.  This has been a great way for communicating.
• Staff who are unable to return to school due to medical reasons will continue to work from home and the school will employ other relief teachers during this time. Our staff changes will be finalised this week and I will update parents as soon as possible.   

3. Hygiene Procedures

• With an increased number of students attending school next week, we will continue implementing our strict hygiene measures, including:
•  Regular handwashing and hand sanitising, particularly before and after eating, and after going to the toilets;
• Increased cleaning of school classrooms, particularly high frequency touch points including drinking bubblers, door handles, toilet taps, toilet door handles and handrails.
• Students are also encouraged to bring their own personal water bottles for use during the day.

2021 Prep

Enrolments and Interviews

• Applications for 2021 are now open.
• For those families who meet the Enrolment Management Criteria, you will have a place in 2021.
• Steps to enrolment include:

1. Complete the Expression of interest form and Prep interview booklet (on website)

Using the checklist on the website, to collect and submit your supporting documentation with the EOI – proof of age and proof of residency.

2. Receipt of your Expression of Interest will be via email by the enrolment office.
3. Once approved for enrolment, you will be able to collect an enrolment pack from the office.
4. An interview date will be advised.

Virtual Open Day Presentation

• Prep Open day this year will be a virtual presentation, which will be available for viewing on the website early in Term 3.

Play Day and Class Visits

• We are still hoping to be able to hold our Prep play dates and 2021 Preppie class site visits in term 4. This will be dependent on COVID guidelines.  Keep an eye on the website for updates. 

Pick up and drop off – LOOKOUT Program

Staff will be on hand from 8:30am at the Drop off zone on Heal Street in the mornings and in the afternoons at both Heal Street and Hawthorne Street.  Please ensure you:

• Tell your children which pick up area you will use on a regular basis
• Complete the lookout form so that you can display your family name as this helps staff identify you and call your child to the car
• Display the lookout display label on your car visor as this is the best place for visibility

Camps, Excursions and other Extra-Curricular Activities 2020

• Just a reminder that unfortunately we will not be conducting assemblies, interschool activities, camps, excursions, sports or arts events including concerts and performances until further notice.

Kay Bradley

• School Uniforms

 As the weather turns cooler it’s time to drag out school jumpers.  As a uniform school, jumpers are part of our winter uniform and are now available on School Locker.  These will be delivered to your child’s class. Alternative jumpers may be worn whilst waiting on delivery.

• Report Cards

 Due to the unusual circumstances surrounding term 2, our semester one reports will be postponed until week 3 or term 3. This will give our students the extra time needed to settle back into school and show evidence of their learning.

• Heal Street Pick up Zone Trial

 With social distancing for adults in place we are aware that more parents may be using our drop off and pick up zones.

Our drop off zone, in Heal Street, works really well in the morning and up until now we have operated a pick up zone in the afternoon, in Hawthorne Street.  As a trial, we will begin to use Heal Street as an additional pick up zone, from Monday the 25 of May. 

The procedures for using this zone will be:

• From 2.30 p.m., Heal Street will become a Loading Zone
• At 3pm, students utilising the Heal Street Pick up zone, should assemble on the benches outside C block. This is adjacent to the gate closest to James Street.
• Students will be supervised inside the school grounds and will only be allowed to move onto Heal Street when their car is outside the gate.
• The gate nearest Jabiru, on Heal Street, will be for pedestrian use only.
• Parents should inform their student which pick up zone they will be using.
• Any student not collected by 3.20 p.m. will be taken to the school office.

We appreciate your support in following these procedures that will ensure the flow of traffic and the safety of students.

Lighting upgrade for the Hall – thank you to the NFSS P&C for their wonderful contribution to this exciting project- these works will be completed this week by Behind the Scenes.

Evacuation and lockdown drill for Term 2- by Year level groups

Our mandatory emergency drills for Term 2 will be conducted differently in light of the current pandemic and planned return to school of the majority students.

The Building Fire Safety Regulation 2008 requires fire and evacuations drills to be undertaken and this requirement is still in place during the current COVID-19 pandemic with a sensible approach ensuring controls are in place to maintain safety. 

As part of each school’s Emergency Response Plan, alternative assembly points should be considered. We will still use the oval at this stage.  Cones will be placed at several point on the oval to maintain distance between groups. Sanitiser will be available in the first aid kit.

Schools can complete their required drill using staggered options e.g. each individual classroom staggered over a week or by year level.

Ensuring adults maintain physical distancing requirements.

Communications to parents from the school via the newsletter will help alleviate any concerns and provide peace of mind that the fire and evacuations drills are routine and required each year, have been scaled to smaller groups of students to ensure that DoE is complying with the mass gathering restrictions and the students safety is the department’s key focus with an all hazard approach.

We will complete the drills for the remainder of the school when they return to classes.

Lockdown Drill – week 7 of Term. All year levels

Cleaning and Sanitising of classroom- daily. Our cleaning staff will continue with the daily precautionary cleaning regime for all areas. Grounds staff will continue to sanitise handrails, bubblers and playgrounds during the day.

Covid 19 poster for families 

Building Project- Pool Change rooms upgrade. J&D Contracting will be onsite for the remainder of this term.  Honeywill Consulting will be managing this process. We may have to move the Year 1 classes from B block due to the demolition noise. The project manager anticipates this will be from the 18 May for 7 to 14 days. The two Year one classes in B block will be relocated to Music and Art rooms for period of the demolition. Mr Chapman our classroom music teacher and Ms Lee our Junior Lote teacher will visit individual classes for their lessons. Mr McIntyre will be working from B block staff meeting room on the day of instrumental music takes place.

Pool entrance gates – to be heightened. Delayed due to Pool upgrade project. Mr Rainbow requested the pool entrance gates be heighten to allow more control over entering the area. The entry latch will be heightened as well. Works will commence after the change room project is completed.

Social Distancing measures for the reception area, photocopier room and staffroom. You will see the reception area looking a little different. We will have sneeze guards installed at the front desk and floor markings will be present. We will have 3 rooms in B block open for staff at lunch times. Hand sanitiser and washing facilities are available in each room.

School Watch

The School Watch Program is a partnership between Education Queensland, the Queensland Police Service and the State Government Protective Security Service.  It aims to reduce criminal activity in Queensland schools and encourages everyone to look out for after-hours crime in our schools.  If you see anything suspicious, please don’t attempt to intervene.

Call the School Watch number – 13 17 88

Uniforms are currently available from The School Locker website.

https://theschoollocker.com.au/schools/new-farm-state-school/uniforms

Customers have the option to choose DELIVERY to their home for a small nominal fee.

They can also choose PICKUP which would allow them or their student to pick up the parcel from the school office.

I have the opening date for the campus set for Wednesday 27 May which is in line with the hopes the government will lift restrictions on school based learning.  We will operate the online option till then, picking and packing orders each week.

Thank you so much for your understanding and I am very looking forward to things becoming a lot more ‘normal’ as the weeks go on.

Welcome flyer

Online Ordering

The State Government is offering a prep-aged vision screening program to all primary schools in Queensland under the Primary School Nurse Health Readiness Program. This will involve registered nurses screening the vision of children in their first year of formal schooling. Early identification of vision problems can result in better school achievement and health outcomes which lead to more productive and healthier lives in the future.

There is no cost for your child to participate in this prep screening service. You will, however be required to return the parent consent form that was handed out last week. Consent forms need to be returned to your child’s teacher by this Friday 22 May. This is a strict timeline and any forms returned after this date may result in the student being ineligible to participate in the program. Please contact your child’s teacher if you haven’t received a form. Screening will commence at New Farm State School on Monday 20July.

This service is only a screening test and is only available for prep students. If you have other concerns regarding the vision of your child or other children in a different year level, please have them assessed by an optometrist.

 Please do not hesitate to contact the school office if you have any questions or concerns regarding this vision screening program.

 Sandy Chambers