Newsroom

I am sure you were all expecting COVID-19 to remain a part of our world and will be for some time. 

Star of the Sea School is a Parish School and that means it is run by the Catholic Church through the South Australian Commission for Catholic Schools.  The day to day operations are managed by Catholic Education SA (CESA) who is responsible for most of the Catholic Schools in SA.  The COVID 19 decisions, in regards to the Health and Safety of those who are part of Star of the Sea, are directed by CESA.  In South Australia, there is a great system for dealing with Covid in schools.  SA Health are generally responsible for disseminating information in this area and they meet with the three schooling systems in our State, to work on how this is going to be implemented in schools.  The Independent Schools, State Schools and CESA then distribute this information to their schools, so that generally all schools in SA are implementing the same strategies. 

THE FOLLOWING COVID SAFE MEASURES WILL BE IN PLACE FROM 31 JANUARY:

So, all schools in SA are implementing the following:

1. Anyone who is unwell, who are household/ close contacts from other exposures or people symptomatic must not be at school, preschool or childcare. This applies to staff and children.
2. Vaccination

• All eligible students aged 5+ strongly recommended to be vaccinated.
• All staff, governing council members/ employees, contractors and volunteers (incl. parent volunteers) must be vaccinated in accordance with the Emergency Management Direction to be on site.

3. Masks are:

• required for adults, except when teaching
• required for students in years 7 to 12
• strongly recommended for students in years 3 to 6
• medical exemptions also apply.

4. Ventilation, to be maximised by leaving doors/windows open, continued use of air conditioning (set to fresh air intake where available) and fans, including with doors and windows open
5. Outdoor learning is encouraged where appropriate
6. Physical distancing where possible

Almost two years ago, when Covid began, extra cleaning in the middle of the day, began in our school.  You might be interested to know that we have continued to do this extra cleaning to this day.

Could I ask you to remind your child/ren about personal hygiene.  The hygiene standards in our schools are critical to reducing the risk of infection.  Please encourage your child/ren to:

•          wash their hands regularly, particularly after using the toilet and before eating

•          avoid spreading infections to others by staying home if unwell (this includes parents)

•          cover a cough or sneeze with a tissue

•          bring their own personal, labelled and named water bottles (these can then be     refilled at the drink fountains or water taps, there is no drinking directly from any        school taps)

SCHOOL ACTIVITIES

Our school and all Catholic Education SA schools are following the advice of SA Health in order to minimise the potential for entry of COVID-19 into our school environment.

Consequently, for Weeks 1-4,

• School sports (other than Physical Education classes) and other extra-curricular activities (eg instrumental tuition, ensembles) will be put on hold;
• Assemblies, masses and other gatherings will be postponed;
• There will be no playgroup during this time
• Entry to our school site will be confined to essential visitors only (who will be required to wear a mask and check in using our COVID Safe QR code)

School Times – Reminder

8:20am – Children are welcome at school from this time and are to come to the basketball courts, where a teacher will be on yard duty

8:45am – The school bell rings and children move to class to prepare for the day

8:50am – Lessons begin (any parents in classrooms should leave at this time unless they are volunteering)

3:05pm – The school day ends (teachers on yard duty finish at 3:25pm and all children are expected to be collected by this time)

Regards
Damian Weeks