Return to School                                                                        6 October 2020

Welcome to Term 4 everyone. We look forward to welcoming all our students back to school next week and especially those new students who have enrolled at LPS, but have never been inside the school due to remote learning.

Learning from Home will finish this Friday (cheers and applause!). Congratulations to all our students, parents and staff for their continued resilience and support. We all learned so much and we made it!

As mentioned in the last eNews, our plans for next week were subject to change. And they have changed, for the better! Please read these arrangements carefully. Principals have a scheduled meeting this week to clarify further details.

All students return to school during next week. As on-site schooling resumes, we will continue to have in place strong measures to protect the health and safety of students, staff, families and the community. This includes staggering start and finish times, restricting parent access to school grounds and continued emphasis on hand hygiene and physical distancing where possible.

Please give particular attention to reducing congregation at school gates and take steps to contribute to physical distancing.

Although we are using the same groups to stagger start and finish times each day, there are changes.

Term 4 is important for every Victorian student, and our teachers will strive to deliver high-quality learning for everyone. Our focus for Term 4 is on making sure that every student is supported in their wellbeing, learning and transition needs. 

The DET key priorities for Term 4, which we are following, are:

• Mental health and wellbeing

• Learning and excellence (especially in English and Mathematics)

• K - Year 7 transitions into, through and out of the school

With wellbeing an essential focus, we have planned to start A-L and M-Z families on different days next week. As well as providing a 'whole family' approach to starting school, this will allow teachers to spend time individually with every child on their first day back at school. We are keen to identify the students who have thrived or struggled during LFH, as well as any supports needed this term.

In deciding how to structure next week, we also considered that some children have never met their teacher 'in person', some classes have changed teachers and, most importantly, every child needs to reconnect with their teacher and classmates. Additionally, we need to establish health and safety routines that are part of our new normal. 

Our staff have been working with Therese Raulin, psychoanalytic consultant and psychotherapist, during Learning from Home.  They feel well-prepared to support students' transitions back into classrooms and their playground year-level 'bubbles' from their home environments.

The following Drop off and Pick up arrangements apply from 12 October (for all students)

By 9:30 a.m., we anticipate every student attending will be in class and ready to learn, with the roll being marked then and the Pakenham St gate locked. Only the main Janet St gate will be open during the day, as usual.

Staggered lunch and recess breaks are 40 minutes and 15 minutes to accommodate the DET guidelines and create separate 'playground bubbles' after eating inside.

Arrangements for Drop off on 12 and 13 October

Monday - Students with surnames A - L should be dropped off at school between 8:45 and 9:00 a.m., via the Janet St or Pakenham St entrance. Unfortunately, parents cannot enter the school grounds and must socially distance. The DET Students Using Mobile Phones Policy remains in place.

Students will proceed directly to their classrooms, as there is no ‘before school’ play outside.

Tuesday - Students with surnames M - Z should be dropped off at school between 9:05 and 9:20 a.m., via the Janet St or Pakenham St entrance.  Unfortunately, parents cannot enter the school grounds and must socially distance. The DET Students Using Mobile Phones Policy remains in place. There is no ‘before school’ play outside.

Students who are attending OSHClub will join their classes as usual by 8:50 a.m.

Parents will be called to collect any students with a temperature above 37.4 degrees, or any student who appears unwell, following DET guidelines. If your child has allergies or seasonal conditions, please make any preparations needed and provide the school with relevant paperwork, if we do not already have it. For example. asthmatic children need an asthma plan, as has been the case for years.

Arrangements for Pick Up for October 12 and 13

We revert to only using Janet St RED GATE and Pakenham St BLUE GATE for entry and exit again for these first two days. We need to use every available staff member to ensure students are supervised and then delivered safely to parents/carers, who will be outside the school gates. We introduced 'red gate' and 'blue gate' last time to help students who couldn't remember which gate they used.

• Students with mobile phones will go to the office to pick up their phones before leaving.
• Students without siblings at school will go to the pick-up areas first.
• While these students are leaving, remaining students will be grouped with their siblings and then go to the pick-up areas.

October 12 and 13 Drop Off and Pick Up Zones:

From Wednesday October 14, we will open the Blacks Walk gate as well for pick up and drop off, with the same Group 1 and 2 times as above:

Parents, please note:

• If you need to practise a drop off/pick up routine with your child, please do so before Monday 12 October.
• If you are picking up by car, please make your vehicle recognisable to your child. We have lots of black, white and silver cars! Think about a large name sign on the dashboard or side window, or a scarf etc.
• Please do not arrive too early or outside of your allocated time – we have 2 minute pick up zones and will just need to move cars on to keep pick up and traffic flowing.
• Students awaiting pick up in Janet St or Pakenham St will stand against the school fence if being picked up by vehicles. Please note these areas are reserved for teachers and students involved in car pick-ups.
• No-one is to cross Janet St in front of the school; traffic is moving eastwards only for pick up, so you will need to enter Janet St from Middleborough Rd.
• Students walking or riding home with parents – parents will need to socially distance and wait in the areas indicated above on the map.
• School crossing supervision has been adjusted to cater for the times above.
• If parents are late, students will need to go to OSHClub and a fee will be charged. All students attending school need to be registered with OSHClub (there is no fee for registration). Sorry - we cannot have children waiting in, or being picked up from, the office area. Register for OSHClub here.
• Hand washing and sanitising routines during the school day remain in place.

Things children need to bring to school from week 2, Term 4:

• There are additional requirements around fresh air and ventilation in classrooms, so please ensure your child wears layers of clothing.
• Filled water bottle/s as taps still cannot be used. Make sure your child can open and close any containers independently.
• Lunch and snack (reminder: there are no lunch orders)
• Learning from Home stationery, workbooks, cards etc.
• Learning from Home completed tasks 
• Library borrowing will be resumed as soon as possible. In readiness, Library Books can be returned to school next week as follows:
  • Prep - Monday 12 and Tuesday 13 October
  • Years 1 & 2 - Wednesday 14 October
  • Years 3 & 4 - Thursday 15 October
  • Years 5 & 6 - Friday 16 October

Things children need to leave at home for the moment:

• Independent Reading boxes.
• Computers or iPads – devices on loan from the school do not need to be returned until 7 December.

What else do parents need to know?

• Playground equipment can be used by students who attend school during school hours and should be cleaned by our cleaners.
• Staff have been provided with Personal Protective Equipment (masks, face shields, gloves, aprons/smocks). Please discuss this with your child.
• If your child is late to school, please call our office and a staff member will collect them from the Janet St gate. We hope this doesn’t need to happen!
• Epic! Active Learn/Bug Club, Story Box Library and Sunshine Online will continue to be utilised for home reading purposes to limit the use of shared equipment. 
• If your child has an appointment during school hours, please call our office and a staff member will bring them to the Janet St gate.
• All communication with teachers needs to be by email, phone or Webex. Unfortunately, teachers cannot have face to face meetings with parents yet.

One thing hasn't changed since last term: we will be thrilled to see children walking through those gates!

Kim