We have come to the end of another challenging week, with the continued relentless bombardment of announcements and updates that we have come to expect. How are you feeling? How are you responding at the moment to this situation? Are you becoming a little numb to the experience, feeling the loss of face to face time with friends and extended family, or have you been able to embrace the ‘break’ from the hustle of schedules and enjoyed a slower pace and greater time with the family together? Are you growing increasingly anxious because of the uncertainty associated with COVID-19, and where this will lead our personal circumstances, our nation and world? For me, it’s perhaps a little of “all of the above”. Our worries and concerns are valid and my prayers and support is with the families in our school community who continue to be significantly impacted by this crisis. In the face of such challenge, we can find strength in the many blessings and joys that fill our lives. The opportunity to celebrate Mothers' Day this weekend reminds us of what is most important to us all...family, our children and love. God's love holds you tight.

'Don’t panic. I’m with you.  There’s no need to fear for I’m your God. I’ll give you strength. I’ll help you. I’ll hold you steady, keep a firm grip on you.'  Isaiah 41:10

How timely was our Chapel service today? I thoroughly enjoyed watching the children’s very special messages to their mums – expressed through video, painting and poetry. Thank you Sofia Lo Nero (Year 1) for your beautiful picture which you painted for your mum. We have used this as our main image above in this week’s Newsletter. I would like to take this opportunity to thank Mrs Knoll, our Chapel presenter… Wow, you really have excelled yourself with your singing, dancing, and message, and what I am sure have been countless hours of video editing. 

Today’s Chapel memory verse is such a great reminder for this season that we find ourselves in.

“Therefore, do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own”. 

How true are these words of Jesus! There’s enough to manage and respond to today, without worrying about tomorrow, especially when we don’t have certainty about what tomorrow will look like. At the time of writing this Newsletter (Friday, 11am) the Prime Minister has not as yet made any announcements regarding the easing of social distancing, so I really do not know what tomorrow might look like.

What I do know is that Sunday is Mothers’ Day, so for all of our mums, no matter where we find ourselves… please enjoy yourself. Thank you for being the amazing mothers that I know you are. During this time of COVID-19 I have seen the patience, persistence, care, determination, tenderness, concern and love you have shown your children. You have listened to your children’s worries… after all, isn’t this what mums do so well. You have sat and helped your children with their Off Campus Learning, you’ve played endless games, nagged the kids more than you wanted, you’ve had to keep the house in order, you’ve bought more groceries than you thought possible, you’ve made too many toasties to count, as well as run your own businesses, supported your partner, kept your own job in the balance, often at the cost of your own personal time and wellbeing. I honour you all. Sunday really is a day for being spoilt, hugged and cared for. I pray that it’s a special day for you. As I mentioned in Chapel, perhaps you can take some time on Monday to look after yourself  - however that looks for you.  Maybe it means you take a short break, clear your head, have a quiet coffee or take a long walk… that’s if you are able to drop your kids off at school first! Otherwise, I do hope and pray that you have an opportunity over the coming days to have a break, relax, recalibrate and to be re-energised for the weeks ahead, as your child/ren transition back to school.

With all of this, please do not worry about Monday. We have it covered for you! Today has enough worries of its own.

On Monday 11 May we commence the transition back to school for students and staff. I trust that you have read yesterday’s update that was communicated to our school community via the Claremont College app, email and website. Please check this carefully for all of the details. Further in this newsletter, Mrs Ford has outlined many specific details which we hope will answer any further questions you might have. 

Over this past week, I have spoken to so many parents who are just so pleased and relieved that their children are heading back to school, whether in a full-time or part-time capacity over the coming weeks.

Our Transition Plan seeks to balance the following:

• The need to support parents in their to return and transition back to work;
• To cautiously respond to COVID-19 health issues for those who are vulnerable;
• The need to minimise the risk of transmission of the virus to staff and others on campus;
• Provide the optimal student learning experience and support the student’s ongoing academic development;
• Provide opportunities for social connections to promote student wellbeing, and maintain self-confidence, minimise anxiety and, importantly, for the children to have face to face time with friends and teachers.

My prayers continue for all of the children and their families, especially those who need to take further care and precautions during this time of uncertainty. Please stay in touch with us, should you have any questions or concerns over the days and weeks to come.

I must emphasise 3 important points.

Two weeks at a time

The transition plans we have outlined apply to Week 3 and 4 of this term only. We are working towards the expectation that all children will return to school in a full-time capacity by Monday 25 May. At this time, there will be only a few exceptions applying to ‘vulnerable’ children with individual health challenges. 

Our preparedness

We are well prepared to respond to a notification of either a positive test of COVID-19 in the school (staff, student or family member) OR a community spike or second wave of infections OR new data and research findings. In this situation, Off Campus Learning will occur remotely and immediately, and you of course, will be informed.

Health and Safety

A thorough risk assessment has been prepared for this transition period. Our planning seeks to keep students and staff safe. It is important to note that a priority is to maintain the careful social distancing of adults. We must keep teachers, staff, parents and other visitors safe, as the health data highlights a greater transmission risk for adults. To do this, the following broad controls will be implemented to mitigate risk of COVID impact on individuals across the school: 

• Health and hygiene practices;
• Social distancing teachers and other adults;
• Environmental cleaning;
• Individual transition plans for vulnerable students, staff (or their wider family); and
• Communication strategy (aligning with the College Business Continuity Plan) to promote awareness of workplace decision making, safe workplace practices and broader COVID-19 updates.

Some of the specific health and safety measures that we have implemented are outlined further in this Newsletter.

This has been such a difficult time for us all, and no doubt, things will continue to be tough. Remember, we are here to support you, and we can especially do this by doing what we do best… educating and caring for your children. We love them and we are working incredibly hard so that their learning continues, so they grow and flourish in all aspects of their development and laugh, play and enjoy their precious childhood days. That’s why, I think over this weekend and especially for our mums on Mothers’ Day let’s not worry about tomorrow. 'Today' has enough worries and each day brings many joys of its own. 

Doug Thomas   
Principal

  Follow me @DougJThomas

Please click HERE to see a wonderful presentation from our School Captains and Prefects for Mothers' Day.

Weeks 3 & 4, beginning 11 May 2020

From next week when the majority of our students will be back at school, these students will be working in their own learning spaces with their own teachers.

The lessons for each day will continue to be assigned online with the teachers meeting the students (both online for those at home or in person for those at school) at 8:45am for those at school and at 9:00am for those at home to explain the plan for the day. The lesson content will be the same on-site or off-campus, and the differentiation activities (the pink and blue activities) will continue. 

Students at school will be completing their lessons with face-to-face access to their teachers throughout the day, who will teach, support, assist, assess, encourage and supervise the lessons. Students at school obviously will have the physical face-to-face opportunities and social interactions that they are not able to access from home. Students will also receive verbal feedback, during their learning, which is normal within a classroom and is the most effective form of feedback for learning.

Students at home will continue to be completing their lessons with access to their teachers via zoom throughout the day, who will teach, support, assist, assess, and encourage the learning online. Students at home will continue to have access to online face-to-face support from their teachers throughout the day. Students at home receive predominately written feedback, except when they join zoom to speak to their teacher/s.

Students working both from home and at school will continue to be required to submit their work each day with a particular emphasis on the tasks with a STAR – signifying that these are the compulsory tasks. I refer to my article ‘Term 2 Off Campus Learning’ from the newsletter dated 24 April (linked here), in particular the section under the heading ‘What’s New in Term 2?’, where I said, ‘these activities must be completed and submitted’ as these are the activities that have a particular emphasis on tracking student learning, and therefore they are assessment tasks. Teachers are chasing up all ‘starred’ work not submitted. We understand that this has been a bit challenging for some students and for some families, but with this ongoing expectation, the students will get better at remaining focussed, prioritising these tasks, and submitting them.     

From Monday 11 May, all students returning to school will need to bring their:

• Fully charged iPads,
• chargers,
• headphones,
• all school books, and
• all stationery items they require at school.

Face-to-face Teaching

Because of the emphasis in the media and/or by politicians on term ‘face-to-face teaching’, and the suggestion that all learning at school is ‘face-to-face teaching’ while all learning at home is not, we feel it is important to explain this misconception. 

To clarify, good face-to-face teaching at Claremont College includes:

• Multiple means of delivery including in person and/or through technology;
• Multiple groupings such as 1:1, small groups, large groups or whole grade instruction; and
• Various grouping for direct instruction, support and encouragement.

 Good face-to-face teaching does not include:

• A teacher (or teachers) standing in front of the students delivering the content or telling the students what it is they need to know. This type of teaching is for the delivery of short instructions and to introduce new skills only.  

All of our staff are really looking forward to seeing all of the students back at school if not next week, over the coming weeks. While we have all been learning so much through our Off Campus Learning Programs, long term however, there is nothing like seeing the children in person, being able to connect through all the little incidental learning opportunities and through rich dialogue, and to enjoy the process of teaching and learning together in person. It will be amazing to have all of our kids back on site, at Claremont, where they belong. (This quote is from Brene Brown.)

Janelle Ford
Deputy Principal

iPads, Chargers, Headphones, Books Stationery Items

On Monday all students must bring their iPads (fully charged), chargers, headphones, books and stationery items.

Uniform Requirements

Week 3 & 4

The official changeover date for winter uniform is Monday 25 May; however, there will be a two week leeway with this date depending on the weather so that if cold, students may commence wearing full winter uniform from Monday 11 May. Either summer or full winter uniform is therefore permitted for the next two weeks.

If you have not already done so, please ensure that your child has been measured up for his/her winter uniform and that orders have been placed at Wylies, if your child needs a new winter uniform.

Students may wear their PE uniforms on their designated PE days (see below - these may have changed) and on Wednesdays.

Week 5 onwards

Full winter uniform is to be worn from Monday 25 May. 

Sport & PE Days

Days for PE for the next 2 weeks are as follows. Students should wear full sports uniform, including white socks and predominantly white shoes on these days.

Monday - Kindy , Year 5 & Year 6
Tuesday - Year 3 & Year 4
Wednesday - Sport - all students
Thursday - Year 2 & Year 1

Roll marking

If the child is not at school or not working from home the office MUST be advised by 9:15am. 

Social Distancing

There will be new signage for the Front Office to control the number of parents/visitors in the front office at any one time.  This may mean that sometimes parents/visitors may have to wait outside until numbers inside reduce and the next person is called. 

Temperature taking

All visitors must come via office to have temperature taken.

Cleaning & Hand washing

We are going to be vigilant with the students expecting them to thoroughly wash their hands before and after meals, and before coming into the learning spaces. 

Library Borrowing

Library borrowing commences next week.  Please see Library@Claremont for more details.

Some specific actions at Claremont College across Term 2 will include;

Health and Hygiene Practices

• Temperature testing for all staff, students, contractors and visitors (to be reviewed at the end of Week 4).
• When having your temperature taken, you will be asked if you are experiencing cold, fever or flu like symptoms. Students, staff and others will not be allowed to remain on site if they display these symptoms.
• Students and staff must wash hands thoroughly and regularly.
• Good hygiene practices (coughing and sneezing protocols) will be reinforced with students.
• Hand sanitiser, soap, antiseptic wipes, gloves and face-masks, will be provided across the school
• Main thoroughfare doors will be jarred open, to minimise the touching of knobs and handles and to promote natural ventilation.
• No hand shaking with signage in the school office as a reminder.
• Disposable gloves provided to staff on car line duty in the mornings and afternoon.

Social Distancing of Children, Teachers and Others

• Staff meetings, other meetings and appointments will be via ZOOM unless there are less than 4 adults attending, and social distancing is possible within the space (1 person per 4sqm).
• Prescribed social distancing measures will include a maximum of 4 adults in common spaces including learning spaces and the staffroom, unless social distancing can be maintained.
• Creating a larger space for the staffroom by using the school hall with space created between internal seating, and with the external front driveway area or fishpond area also accessible to staff for breaks.
• The regular staffroom seating and kitchen is only to be used for those who have an office in the ‘Lock Up or Library’.
• Staff are encouraged to eat outside weather permitting.
• Communal food sharing is suspended until further notice.
• Whilst social distancing of students has been identified as low-risk, the spacing of students will be encouraged wherever it is possible.
• Infants and Primary Sport will be held at Grant Reserve later in the term, allowing for staff to supervise in the open air and be appropriately distanced from each other. Arrangements for staff to travel will be developed to apply with social distancing requirements.
• We will create a larger space for the sickbay if necessary and the school nurse will wear PPE (personal protective equipment) as required.
• Parents will not be permitted to enter the school beyond the drop-off and pick-up zones, and reception (with a maximum of 4 people only in the waiting area), with social distancing of parents enforced at gates and other gathering areas. Parent meetings with teachers will be by appointment only and where possible, via ZOOM.
• Large parent meetings (of more than 4 people) and events cancelled for Term 2.
• Chapel will be online for Term 2.
• Semester One Parent Interviews will most likely be held at the beginning of Term 3.
• Only essential contractors will be allowed access to the school during work hours.
• Social distancing signage markers and reminders in potential communal gathering areas including student pick-up gate area and the reception area.

Environmental cleaning

• Increased cleaning rosters with disinfectant of common areas, handles, railings and surfaces throughout the day.
• The cleaning contractors have worked with the school to develop an Action Deep Cleaning Plan of the school should there be a positive COVID-19 infection of a person who has been on site.

Be Active: Make an exercise plan for each day of the coming up week. Write it down and tick it off once you have done it. Keep to the schedule… and have fun!

Larissa Cameron
Deputy Principal

In line with the recent developments and measures undertaken by the Australian Government, NSW Health and the Department of Education to control the spread of the Coronavirus in our community, all upcoming school events and activities have been cancelled until further notice.

Again today we would like to share samples of learning from each grade and specialist lessons.

Term 2 Online Debating Competition for Year 5 and Year 6 students

Masters Academy are running an online debating competition through Term 2. We are inviting students in Years 5 and 6 to register their interest in participating in the competition.

The details are as follows:

• Debates will run throughout Term 2 and each team will participate in 5 debates.
• Teams will be able to nominate times which are convenient to them to debate; there will be 10am, 1pm and 4:30pm time slots available each weekday to debate.
• Debates will be run using secure Zoom links. Masters Academy have trialled this process and it has worked very well as adjudicators are able to organise teams into breakout rooms for prep, and then bring everyone back to a central room for the debate.
• Debates will be adjudicated by expert adjudicators, all of whom having Working With Children Checks and will receive best practice training in Zoom.
• There will be a cost for each team which will be passed onto team members. This includes all administrative costs for the competition as well as adjudicator fees for all 5 debates.
• Teams will receive adjudicator feedback following the debate as well as a written feedback sheet to improve their skills.

Debating coaching may also be available.

If your Year 5 or Year 6 child would like to participate in the Debating Competition and/or Debating Coaching, please click HERE and complete the expression of interest form.

Miss Hannah Mackay
Debating Coordinator

Term 2 Online Debating Competition for Year 5 and Year 6 students

Masters Academy are running an online debating competition through Term 2. We are inviting students in Years 5 and 6 to register their interest in participating in the competition.

The details are as follows:

• Debates will run throughout Term 2 and each team will participate in 5 debates.
• Teams will be able to nominate times which are convenient to them to debate; there will be 10am, 1pm and 4:30pm time slots available each weekday to debate.
• Debates will be run using secure Zoom links. Masters Academy have trialled this process and it has worked very well as adjudicators are able to organise teams into breakout rooms for prep, and then bring everyone back to a central room for the debate.
• Debates will be adjudicated by expert adjudicators, all of whom having Working With Children Checks and will receive best practice training in Zoom.
• There will be a cost for each team which will be passed onto team members. This includes all administrative costs for the competition as well as adjudicator fees for all 5 debates.
• Teams will receive adjudicator feedback following the debate as well as a written feedback sheet to improve their skills.

Debating coaching may also be available.

If your Year 5 or Year 6 child would like to participate in the Debating Competition and/or Debating Coaching, please click HERE and complete the expression of interest form.

Miss Hannah Mackay
Debating Coordinator

Library News

In recent weeks ebook borrowing has rocketed and print books have remained on library shelves all over the world. Over the period of time that the school library has been closed it has provided the perfect opportunity to reassess and reorganise the library collection. It has also given me time to weed outdated or damaged titles from the collection. I have been busy cataloguing and covering all the new books that have arrived.  The Children’s Book Council of Australia (CBCA) shortlisted books nominated for the annual CBCA Book of the Year Awards 2020 have also been ordered. The Australian Library and Information Association (ALIA) applauds the support that many libraries have shown for Australian authors, publishers and book suppliers through this ‘weed and seed’ approach. 

Library borrowing classes are to recommence from Week 3. In accordance with health and safety guidelines, all books as they are returned to the library will be stored untouched in a dedicated quarantine area for a 24-hour period prior to handling and recirculating.

Many students borrowed extra books at the end of last term so please can you ensure that they are all returned to the library. It will be necessary to provide a cloth bag, with your child’s name clearly labelled, to protect the books whilst the library bag is currently being used for iPads and headsets.

For those students who are not returning to school ebook borrowing can continue but families are also welcome to visit the school library on a Thursday to borrow. Please just email myself in advance to ensure a suitable time can be arranged.

Many thanks for your assistance with returning the books.

Harry Potter At Home

This initiative may be of interest to the Harry Potter fans out there.

Seventeen chapters of Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone have been read and recorded. Daniel Ratcliffe read the first chapter of the much loved book and personalities from the entertainment, sports and music fields will be reading the additional chapters. This iconic book with its themes of friendship, family and overcoming adversity is shared with families around the world. There are also lots of fun articles, puzzles and quizzes also to be found at the website. Audio recordings can be accessed via Spotify. 

Visit the Harry Potter At Home hub via the link below.

https://www.wizardingworld.com/collections/harry-potter-at-home

Mrs Susan Kesur
Library Assistant

Happy Mother’s Day to all our dear Claremont mums. The lead up to Mother’s Day has evolved into a rather more passive occasion for the P&F who would have normally been all systems go with the Mother’s Day stall and the lovely Mother’s Day breakfast at school (which would have been run by the Claremont dads this morning). Instead I found myself relaxing on my couch, snuggling up with my kids as we watched Claremont’s special Mother’s Day chapel this morning! Not a bad alternative and thank you to those involved in putting this together. Hopefully we can look forward to reinstating our Claremont Mother’s Day traditions in 2021!

I would like to take the opportunity to thank all the grade representatives who have put time and effort into organising events which have been cancelled due to the pandemic over the past few months. To the Year 2 reps for Grandparents and Special Friends day (Aysun Abal, Anna Chandler, Vanessa Peric Sandra Santos & Helen Squadrito), the Year 3 reps for the School Disco (Lyndel Larby, Natasha Peric & Sylvia Tziortzis) and the Year 5 reps for the Mother’s Day Stall (Amy Bullock & Alana Koch).

As I reflect on what has transpired over the past few months and how this has rapidly changed one’s home life, I am drawn to the image of a circus performer who balances and spins plates on top of a pole, putting up plate after plate, then having the challenge of keeping all the plates spinning as some start to slow and possibly fall off and crash to the ground. Except the circus performers are us mums, spinning all of life’s different demands. Unlike the circus performer who is spinning all the same size plates, mums spin all different types of plates, different sizes, different colours and different weights.

Before the pandemic, maybe we were spinning too many and some were crashing to the ground? I am thankful that over the past few weeks I have been able to put down some plates, some temporarily and maybe a few permanently. I have been able to concentrate on the plates that have my relationship with my kids and family unit on it. I have had to put up a few more plates (hopefully temporarily) like teacher, personal trainer or coach, zoom playdate PA and I am sure if I were to ask many of you, many more.

As we celebrate you as a mum this Mother’s Day, I hope that this time of social distancing has brought a deeper level of relationship within your family unit, especially your children, as we are able to slow down, spin less plates and breathe a bit more. Many mums who I have spoken too have enjoyed the slower pace and do not want it to end. As society slowly returns to normal, I pray that it will be a different ‘normal’ where we as mums are spinning less plates having more time to focus on the important plates in each of our worlds. 

There has been a song that has been resounding in our house since this pandemic started and has given me much peace and comfort. It is based on a verse from the Bible in Numbers 6:24

“The Lord bless you and keep you; the Lord make His face shine on you and be gracious to you; the Lord turn His face toward you and give you peace.”

May God’s grace and peace be with you all this Mother’s Day.

Warm Regards,

Melisse Lee
P&F President

Welcomeasy are delivering recess and lunch orders to school.

Orders must be placed by 10:59pm the night before for delivery on the next school day.

If you are ordering a snack item, please specify in the notes area whether the snack is for Recess or Lunch.

Please note that orders are to be placed on the ‘Welcomeasy’ website and NOT Flexischools.

You must firstly create an account by following some simple steps. Go to www.welcomeasy.com.au  

The Uniform Shop is closed however, if you need to purchase any items, please place your order online via Flexischools.

All new uniform items can be purchased from ‘Wylies’ at

3/17 Green St, Banksmeadow (02) 9344 5796.

Please note that all communication should be through the email address: clothingpool@claremont.nsw.edu.au  

Term 2 Art Classes will commence in Week 5.  **Current students** will have priority to enrol and use their credit from Term 1. Please visit online this weekend to secure your spot. We have been waiting to have our high flow painting, light up clay projects and more! https://artisanathome.com.au/collections/afterschool

We have a new class for Years 5 and 6 only on a Wednesday and limited it to 8 students for an enjoyable crafternoon for older students. Projects such as Knitting, Clay, painting and calligraphy. 3:30 – 5:00pm located in our Year 1 ‘Art Room’. 

**New enrolments** will be accepted from Monday 11^th May Online. If you have a NSW Creative Voucher, we accept these and this option will be available.  To Book Online: https://artisanathome.com.au/collections/afterschool

We are looking forward to seeing you all again! We run with small classes and keep spacious workspaces and good hygiene for your peace of mind.

Phi Morton | 0403 377 420
Artisan at Home Workshops