What a week of the changing and challenging 'new normal' in our community, country and world. What a difference a week can make.

I would like to once again apologise for the confusion that has been caused by our governments in relation to school operation. We have been trying to come to terms with it all as you all are. 

The position of Catholic schools has not changed. If you need to send your child to school you can, however we would encourage those families who can keep their child at home to do so.

Moving forward, I have staff who are now working from home due to caring for their own children and other circumstances. This does mean that we have limited staff remaining at school. Whilst the children who come to school will be supervised and cared for as always, we do not have 'normal lessons' occurring. They will not be receiving one-on-one or small group teaching as some might think. We have structured our remaining teachers to rotate taking the small group of students and supporting them with their Remote Learning in the library. When teachers aren't doing this, they are online supporting students at home and they are planning for future Remote Learning. 

I continue to be overwhelmed by the conversations, the emails and phone calls, thanking us for what we are doing. For the support we are offering both at school and remotely, our preparedness for going to remote learning at short notice and keeping everyone informed. Thank you!

Helping children cope through COVID-19

This is an uncertain time for everyone, and children may be impacted by fear and anxiety. Some tips on how to ensure your children are supported;

• Talk about it with your child. Don't shy away from the topic. It is most likely front and centre in their minds too. 
• Give your children extra attention and reassurance. Where possible, minimise their exposure to media and social media that may heighten anxiety.
• Acknowledge your own feelings about the situation and let children know it’s okay to share their own feelings.
• Include your children in plans and activities around the house.
• If you don’t see an improvement or if you’re concerned, seek professional help.

I have said to our staff, it is so important to be looking after ourselves first. We can only help others when we are in a good space ourselves. 

Manage your exposure to media coverage- you can become consumed by seeking updates, have breaks and set time limits.

Follow a “calm yet cautious” approach- be prepared, think ahead but remain calm. This is not a short term thing, pace yourself. 

Show compassion and kindness to one another- seek out these feel good stories and share with your children. Can you do something as a family?

Actively manage your wellbeing- find time for that walk or run. Wellness meditation, read a book, watch a movie. Watch eating habits. 

Fee Remission

I acknowledge the unprecedented economic impact on families as a result of COVID-19 and associated government directives.

Consistent with our enrolment policy “no child is to be denied Catholic schooling simply because of an inability (as opposed to an unwillingness) of a parent/guardian, to meet financial requirements”.

Effective immediately are the following fee relief measures:

• Credits (for amounts paid) will be placed on fee accounts for cancelled excursions (excluding non-recoverable deposits), sporting events or activities as a result of COVID-19.
• All debt collection activities will be suspended until further notice
• Fee concessions will be available on outstanding fees at the end of Term 1 for those families eligible for Government COVID-19 supplement payments.
• Fee concession will be available for Term 2 fees for families eligible for Government COVID-19 supplement payments.

I anticipate delaying fee statements for Term 2 until there is greater clarity about the duration of the pandemic. General fee concession arrangements are being considered and will be communicated once finalised.

If you have been financially impacted by COVID-19 or have any concerns around fees, please contact me directly.

Remote Learning

I will conclude with a post I wrote for our Facebook site.

I know many of you are probably feeling anxious about this Remote Learning Journey you are about to embark on with your child. We are all in it together!

Know that at times it is going to be tough. It is one thing to have your child at home for school holidays, it is a whole other thing to have them at home everyday and asking them to do work.

A little secret to share - yes, we sometimes get frustrated each day, we sometimes don't feel listened to, we sometimes get children refusing to do work, we sometimes get children getting angry, we sometimes feel like we are going around in circles. There will be times you too, will feel these things.

Throughout this, there are the moments of true learning, the moments of spark, the moments of joy, the moments of wonder, the moments of hope and the moments of laughter. These are the moments that make it all worth it. Remember that when you are taking a few deep breaths each day.

We are trained professionals, experts in our field. Thankfully the St Michael's community value what we do, because it is hard work, it is hard to switch off, it is hard to relax. You too will find it hard at times. It is important to have some structure around remote learning in your house, to ensure that you and your child have a break and enjoy this bonding time together.

Whilst we value Literacy and Numeracy, we also don't expect that it is done all day everyday. Plan to spend about 2 hours on Literacy and Numeracy each day. Another hour on other curriculum areas and the rest of the time on those things that will bring extra joy to the time with your child. Do some gardening, art, craft, sports, cook, bake, construct something together, meditate, board games, puzzles, Lego, read a novel, watch a movie, coding, photography and technologies, research something they are interested in. Learning should be fun! Learn something new like knitting or origami. Part of being a teacher is learning too. You will find you are learning a lot along the way as well.

Plan for breaks in between reading, writing, spelling and mathematics. Don't forget to have fruit break (they never let us forgot), recess and lunch. Enjoy the sunshine, have a picnic in the backyard! There are so many moments in our day that are opportunities for learning. Seize these moments. These are the moments children will remember most about the experience.

What is happening this year will be written about in the history books. Our children will look back on this period of time and talk about it with their children. We have the opportunity to take some control of this situation and flip it into a positive for our children.

We are all in this together.

Welcome to the world of teaching - be as organised as you can, so you can be as flexible as is needed (and remember we do this with 30 children everyday), YOU GOT THIS!

Please email, call and interact via our web platforms when needed. We are all in this together. It is not the year we intended for our children, but these are the cards we have been dealt and it is up to us to make the most out of them. A good lesson for our children.

Kind regards, 

Pat Ellis (Principal)