Dear Parents/Caregivers,

Welcome back to Term 2, it is a very busy and exciting term with many events and learning opportunities.

There have been some updated COVID-19 restrictions in place, they are as follows.

For the first 4 weeks of Term 2, when indoors, face masks are:

• required for all adults (including visitors), except when it impedes ability to teach
• required for students in years 7 to 12
• strongly recommended for students in years 3 to 6.

 The use of face masks in education settings will be reassessed by the Emergency Management Committee and the department ahead of the start of Week 5. 

Exemptions will continue to be made for students or staff who have a medical condition, such as problems with their breathing, a serious skin condition on the face, a disability, or a mental health condition.

It is the intent of the Department to remove restrictions to allow the following to resume from Week 3, Term 2

     overnight, intrastate camps with shared indoor spaces (ie dormitory accommodation) with no restriction on travel time within the state

     indoor assemblies can be held in a COVID safe manner

     parent/caregiver attendance at large indoor events.

We are still required to report COVID positive cases of students and staff so please let us know if any of your children test positive.

This week our Year 3 and 5 students will be participating in NAPLAN Assessments.

NAPLAN assesses the literacy and numeracy skills that students are learning through the school curriculum and allows parents/carers to see how their child is progressing against national standards and over time.

NAPLAN is just one aspect of a school’s assessment and reporting process. It doesn’t replace ongoing assessments made by teachers about student performance, but it can provide teachers with additional information about students’ progress.

NAPLAN also provides schools, education authorities and governments with information about how education programs are working and whether young Australians are achieving important educational outcomes in literacy and numeracy.

Please remind your children that if they are participating in NAPLAN this year, that the assessments do not however assess what makes each of our students exceptional and unique.

They do not show how some of our students are amazing at singing, are good at drawing or can teach others to use computers. They do not see the way that some of our students can dance with grace or speak confidently to a large group. They do not see that our students are supportive and loyal. They do not show that some of our students participate and excel in sports, help around the house or look after their siblings. They do not see that our students are kind, thoughtful and every day do their best. You cannot test for these attributes.

The assessments will test how students perform on that day, but they do not tell us everything.

They do not tell us that our students put a smile on our faces every day, just by being themselves.

We are very happy to be able to have parents/caregivers at our Sports Day in Week 3. It should be an amazing day, students have been practicing with Ms Mooney-Doe and are excited to show off their skills. There are Sports Day Accessories available for sale on QKR!, get in fast so that you don’t miss out.

More information about the upcoming events this term will come out soon.

Thank you again, for all of your support to keep our community safe in these uncertain times. Knowing that we have a supportive community has made what could have been a very challenging time much more enjoyable.