Dear Parents/Carers,

Who would have thought just two weeks ago that the majority of our students would be working remotely from home?

Who would have imagined that our staff would have had to completely re-imagine their teaching practice and the delivery of learning? 

Everywhere we turn – in the press, or on social media – COVID-19 images and statistics confront us. This increases our fear and sense of being overwhelmed – of having lost control.

During times of heightened fear and anxiety, it can be useful to put things into perspective.

I am grateful to one of my friends who shared the following graphic with me, highlighting the need to focus not on what we cannot control or change – but on what we can control. 

WE ARE STILL A COMMUNITY

Despite how much we may love being part of a community, schools are complex and challenging places at the best of times and now more than ever.

I want to thank you for your patience as we worked through setting up a very different learning environment to support our students both at school and at home. We are still working hard to finalise access to online learning for some students but each day we are noticing that more and more of our students are accessing learning through Google Classrooms.

The staff are working extremely hard to learn new platforms and build in quality control for our students, as you would understand this is complex work and takes time. They are doing ‘very hard thinking’ to make the learning purposeful, relevant and accessible, but the online environment is a very new one for them to do this work. At this stage, our plan is to gradually introduce more interactive opportunities between the students and teachers as both parties build their skills and confidence in the new platforms we have available. We received nearly 300 responses to the recent technology survey and the input suggests that not all our students have access to devices or reliable WIFI. These are constraints we must remain mindful of in our ongoing planning. I am grateful for the dedication of our staff and their creative reimagining of the curriculum and capacity to learn so quickly. They continue every day to try to make use of new tools to engage with our students and we have a growing sense of confidence that learning will continue in some way, no matter the circumstances.

OUR SCHOOL IS ABOUT MUCH MORE THAN JUST GREAT LEARNING, IT IS ABOUT RELATIONSHIP

Relationships are built upon genuine concern for the wellbeing of the other. Wellbeing is the key word here and even more important during times of stress and anxiety.

At this time, I have no doubt that students, their families and our staff may be feeling a sense of loss. I miss the normal routines of school like greeting families at the beginning and end of the day, our morning assemblies when we gather in prayer and give out awards, chatting to students in the playground and trying to remember names.

We take for granted how good our school is at nurturing quality relationships; at giving people a sense of belonging. It’s the small things, like a smile or a shared joke. We miss being able to do these things in person. Even more so, in these different times, we must all find ways to keep those relationships going; to make sure people still feel they are part of this living community, by ensuring we are looking after our own wellbeing and the wellbeing of others. 

This year our Lenten focus has been on reaching out to others through acts of service through kindness and compassion. There is no reason for this focus not to continue just because we are not physically together. Remember you must be kind and compassionate to yourself before you can do this for others.

During the changed conditions you may find that your child’s behaviour may change, because they are used to learning and being in a very social environment with their peers. Although we have provided learning experiences we acknowledge that every family circumstance if different. We encourage parents to be gentle with themselves and not stress about the completion of tasks or try to recreate learning that would be happening in a classroom. This is impossible. What children need right now is to feel comforted and loved; to feel that everything is going to be OK. On some days, as the people who will be closest to them each day, this may mean you telling them to turn off the computer/device, forget about the tasks, take a break, go for a walk, engage in imaginative play, build a cubby, help with the cooking, have a chat, or just be still. Your role as their parents and carers will be critical, you must give yourself permission not to become overwhelmed, so your children don’t become overwhelmed. 

Together, we will get through this challenge. We will no doubt come out the other end having learnt many valuable and life-changing lessons.  

Thank you for all the messages of support and appreciation as we all work together to keep our community safe.

God bless you and each of your loved ones and I pray you keep safe and well.

On a more personal note I wanted to share some good news with my school family.

Let Christ be our Way and Life