Students return to full time face to face learning

Covid-19 has presented our school and the wider community with unprecedented challenges and we thank all our families for your invaluable support. I want to congratulate our students for their resilience and hard work during online learning. We are so proud of all of them.

I also want to thank my staff for their unwavering professionalism, care and commitment to our students and to our learning community. All staff have demonstrated resilience, flexibility and a willingness to embrace new practices to support the continuation of learning and wellbeing of our children.

Students Return to Face to Face Learning

The Department of Education (DoE) has announced that all schools will be returning to full time on-campus learning from Monday 25 May.

Asquith Girls High School will be commencing face to face learning for all students on this date. Students will need to follow their usual timetable, starting from Week B.

All school activities and operations will be in line with Australian Health Protection Principal Committee (AHPPC) and NSW Health guidelines.

School attendance

Normal attendance procedures will commence from Monday 25 May.

All students should attend school unless:

• They are currently unwell
• They have a medical certificate which states that they are unable to return to school due to an ongoing medical condition

It is important to note the following:

• If your child is unwell, do not send them to school. If they become unwell at school, you or your nominated emergency contact will need to collect them immediately. We thank you for your cooperation and prompt response when your child needs to be collected from school due to sickness.
• Students who have a medical certificate to stay at home will be supported to learn from home in line with regular AGHS processes and procedures. These are different to what was offered during the learning from home period. Teachers will not be using dual modes of delivering lessons, which means that they will only be providing face to face lessons and will not be providing separate online lessons for students at home. If you require work to be provided to your child whilst they are at home due to an underlying health condition, you should contact the school for assistance.
• Students who live with a family member in one of the categories identified as being at increased risk by the AHPPC, should attend school unless a medical practitioner advises otherwise in writing.
• If a student is absent for more than three days without a medical reason, this will be recorded as an unauthorised absence and followed up by the school.

If you need any support to get your child back to school or would like further clarification of the attendance requirements, please contact the relevant Stage Deputy Principal by email on asquithgir-h.school@det.nsw.edu.au

Stage 4 (Year 7 & 8) – Mr Philip Batey

Stage 5 (Yr 9 & 10) – Mr John Wigan

Stage 6 (Yr 11 & 12) – Ms Susan Turnbull

School activities from Monday 25 May

What students can do:

• Follow the usual school curriculum in their normal timetabled lessons;
• Use the school library;
• Engage in non-contact sporting activities;
• VET work placement for Year 12 students is able to proceed from 1 June 2020. Year 10 and 11 VET work placement is able to proceed from Term 3 2020.

What students can’t do:

• School assemblies and year meetings (except for critical information); We will do those on line.
• School incursions and excursions, including camps;
• Extra-curricular groups and activities, including bands, choir, dance and drama ensembles;
• Work experience that involves optional or extra-curricular opportunities provided by the school;
• Inter-school activities, such as debating and inter-school sport;
• In-school activities requiring parent or other volunteers;
• Drink from a water bubbler – please bring a water bottle instead;
• Students cannot attend TAFE for study but may continue to learn online.

Cleaning and Hygiene

Students should follow good hygiene practices and will be reminded to do so by teachers. Good hygiene practices include:

• Regularly washing hands
• Avoiding sharing drinks or food
• Coughing or sneezing into their elbow, or a tissue which should be discarded immediately.

The school will receive additional cleaning in line with the AHPPC guidelines and advice from NSW Health. Targeted areas include high-touch areas and other hard surfaces, door handles, lockers, light switches and handrails in stairways and movement areas. There will also be additional cleaning of toilets and bubblers and topping up of supplies like liquid soap.

The school purchased sanitising stations that will be placed at prominent locations around the school for students and staff to use. There will also be sanitiser available in every classroom. Signage around the school reminds students to observe good hygiene practices by washing their hands with soap and keep their environment clean. If you are aware that your child may react to the liquid in the sanitisers, please ask them not to use it and use soap instead. 

Visitors to the School

There should be no visitors to school site, including parents/caregivers. However, arranged meetings for enrolment and wellbeing with the Principal and Deputy Principals can go ahead by observing social distancing. Wherever possible, P&C meetings and parent/caregiver meetings with teachers should be conducted virtually.

Please note: Essential visitors such as DoE and Health personnel and maintenance contractors are still permitted to be on school grounds.

Thank you again for your support as we implement the return of all students face to face learning.

Do not hesitate to contact us on 9477 6411 or via the school email should you wish to seek further information or clarification.

We are looking forward to the opportunity to see our amazing students in person more frequently from the beginning of next week.

Yours sincerely,

Elizabeth Amvrazis
Principal