Dear Parents and Carers of Good Samaritan,

The second week of remote learning is well underway and we are recognising many successes of the children each day. These successes continue to be built upon with the daily organisation by the teachers of the remote learning plans. 

The school has had to pivot with the adjustments of the restrictions including the wearing of face masks by all staff whilst on the school site and when in close contact with others. I was reminded by this picture that the wearing of face masks during a pandemic has always been part of pandemic safety in Australia.  May Gibbs made this public health poster in 1919, to encourage people to mask up against the Spanish flu pandemic. I wonder how we will be remembered in decades to come when people reflect back on the current pandemic.

Last week I asked the staff to put some words down as to how they would describe the students throughout the week. This was their response.

It was great to see that staff felt students were generally calm and engaged throughout the week. This was also reflected in the Zoom class meetings that I have been able to attend this week. Parents at this week’s P&F meeting were appreciative of the Zoom meetings and the connection being made between students and teachers at all levels across the school. This included the daily messages that our Kindergarten and Year 1 teachers publish.

It is also very pleasing to note that the students’ Zoom etiquette has also been very good given that they have  not had a lot of experience with Zoom for learning. This reflects your support as parents in reinforcing this message at home.

Being fortunate enough to enter the Zoom meetings I have been able to observe some great teaching moments. The teachers are allowing for open ended discussions that support student skills in speaking, listening and reasoning. These are also developing independence in thinking and responding. Teachers never cease to amaze me at their capacity to engage students with their explicit instructions and scaffolding of learning.

An activity as simple as ‘Talk Time’ is aiming to build students’ skills of sharing ideas and effectively engaging in group discussions. 

As we continue over the next week with remote learning students will continue to be engaged by their teachers through Zoom and other platforms such as video recordings and lesson explanations. These will all occur at different rates across the school based on the student needs within each class.

On behalf of the staff of Good Samaritan I thank you for your continued support of our school in this difficult time. I encourage you to reach out if you feel there is any way the school can support you or your family. We offer this prayer for all of us as we continue to work remotely together.

Loving God, 

You fill all things with a fullness and hope that we can never comprehend. 

Thank you for leading us into a time where more of reality is being unveiled for us all to see. We pray that you will take away our natural temptation for cynicism, denial, fear and despair. 

Help us have the courage to awaken to greater truth, greater humility, and greater care for one another. 

May we place our hope in what matters and what lasts, trusting in your eternal presence and love. 

Listen to our hearts’ longings for the healing of our suffering world. 

Knowing, good God, you are hearing us better than we are speaking, we offer these prayers in all the holy names of God. 

Amen.

As we journey together, with Jesus,

Toni Sillis

Principal

Thank you to all parents who continue to follow the government guidelines regarding COVID-19 restrictions during this lockdown. Learning will continue remotely until at least Friday 30 July.

It needs to be emphasised that, during this time, only those families who have no other option should be sending their children to school. It is critical that we follow the stay at home orders and reduce mobility across the community. 

Some children are arriving at school and telling other students and staff that they have a choice of staying at home or coming to school. Without prompting, some children are also disclosing that parents are ‘just at home’. Unfortunately, no one has a choice in a pandemic situation. 

The school will remain open for those families where it is essential that their child/ren attend. We rest on the good faith of all parents that everyone is doing their best to keep to the restrictions and to keep all within the community safe.

Thank you for your support in this.

This week teachers will be offline on Friday 23 July from 1pm-3pm in order to take their Professional Planning Time. 

Professional Planning Time (PPT) is the provision of time issued to teachers under the Enterprise Agreement 2017 NEW SOUTH WALES & AUSTRALIAN CAPITAL TERRITORY SCHOOLS. This provision is to support teachers in achieving learning outcomes for students, for example by planning, programming and carrying out related administrative duties. Good Samaritan teachers take this time as one 2 hour block each week.

Whilst the teachers are observing that the majority of students are calm and relaxed there may be times when your child becomes anxious. If you observe this,  there are ways of helping them through it. Some ideas for helping to break the cycle of anxiety include:

• Check in with your own levels of stress, anxiety and over-protectiveness. Children will feel much safer in the presence of a calm and collected caregiver
• Slow things down. Gentle, deep breathing can help to take the edge off a moment of anxiety.
• Provide a safe space to talk about the worries. Give your child the opportunity to open up about any fears in a comfortable environment
• Seek professional support. If you feel your child’s experience of anxiety is frequent or begins to impact daily life, talk to a mental health professional.

Head to Health brings together a range of resources, many of which are free, from some of Australia’s most trusted mental health organisations.

Lockdown may feel like we are disconnected but we are not unconnected. There are many services that we can access to take care of ourselves and our families.

This term we will be participating in Jump Rope for Heart. Please see below for further information about the program.