Covid-19

For all information and updates from the diocese, please go to: www.dow.catholic.edu.au/covid19

Thank you for the fantastic support we are getting from parents / carers regarding students presenting with flu-like symptoms. Up till this point, we have had many students tested as well as some staff – all of which have been negative. While cases in the Illawarra have been few, we still must remain vigilant especially as more school related cases are appearing in schools in the greater Sydney area. Please let us know if your child is being Covid tested as well as the outcome when you receive the results.

Procedure if there were to be a Positive Covid-19 case at St Therese

If a student or staff member were to test positive to Covid-19, the school would be notified immediately by the Public Health Unit (PHU). This would then trigger our planned school response with the support of the CEO Covid Co-ordinator, who would come onsite to support the school leadership team, and parents notified. Depending on the time of day of the notification, it may be necessary to send all students home early. In this case, parents will be contacted with details of the Pick-Up procedures. Basically this will involve Kiss & Collect only from the front playground. Students will be taken to the church area in three ‘waves’ according to their surname ie A-H, I-P, Q-Z. Each ‘wave’ will be scheduled 15mins apart and allows us to provide a safe level of social distancing. A plan utilising teachers and support staff is in place so that students are supervised walking to the church or in their own classroom to minimise cross grade interactions.

Please be aware that if this is to occur, it is NOT an evacuation. If parents / carers are not available to pick children up, they will be returned to their own classroom where they will remain for the rest of the day – including recess and lunch. Following this, parents will be advised of cleaning procedures and a timeframe for a school closure.

Covid Safe School Photos

School photos are booked for Thursday, 24 September (second last day of school). Envelopes will be sent home this Friday. Class group photos will not follow the usual tiered format as this ‘squashes’ students together and can take 10 mins in this close proximity to organise. Therefore, the class group photo will be made up of all the individual student photos being put together. Family photos will still occur as usual if requested. Parents are reminded that all students will need to be in their WINTER uniform.

 

Late Arrival

Parents are reminded that the morning bell goes at 8.50am. All students arriving after the gate is closed will be marked as a late arrival.

 

Winter Uniform

Please ensure children are in their correct uniform which includes the long sleeve shirt, ties and their hat. Some children are wearing beanies on very cold days which is fine but we prefer to be in keeping with school colours.

 

Aiden Dimitrievski – 2B

Sophie O’Dwyer – 5G

Anie Spralja – 5G

Going online with your child

Going online with your child gives you the opportunity to see the apps or games your child plays, or the videos he watches.

You can share your child’s experience while also checking that the content is appropriate. One way to do this is by asking questions that show interest in what your child is doing – for example, ‘That looks like an interesting game. Can you teach me to play too?’

You can also show your child sites that are fun, interesting or educational and show her how to bookmark them for later. You could help your child find information she needs for homework by using the right kind of words for her search. For example, if she’s searching for information on a school project about how people lived in the past, he can use a phrase like ‘life in Australia in the 1900s’, rather than ‘past life’.

If you come across pop-up advertisements while you’re online together, it’s a good opportunity to talk with your child about not clicking them. You can explain that pop-up ads can lead to sites with unpleasant pictures or sites that want your personal or financial information.

Sacramental Program

Just a reminder, the second information night at St Therese for the Sacramental Program 2020 will be tomorrow from 7.00pm in the church. Please contact the office if you have any questions.