Kia ora whānau. Our Year 4 team had the first of this year’s school EOTC days, with trips to Long Bay Regional Park this week. They had a great learning experience with students learning safety practices while outdoors. They learned how to survive in the outdoors and developed personal and social skills through a series of challenges. Working with a variety of students across two classes, meant they developed their social and communication skills also.

As the country has seen the number of positive covid-19 cases increase, so to have we with the first cases in our school community this week. At the time of writing this (Friday morning), we have 7 confirmed covid-19 cases but we know this number will rise. This is to be expected and in line with what we are seeing in other schools and settings. I have communicated with each class concerned and asked you to be extra vigilant if your child is displaying any symptoms. Please do get them tested if they, or any household members, are sick at all. If one child needs to stay home as they are unwell, please keep siblings home too until you have had a negative test. The results of a Rapid Antigen Test (RAT) are quick, so you have the result within 30 minutes. The Ministry has advised us that the most common symptoms in children at the moment are a headache and/or a sore tummy. Please do take these seriously. If your child tests positive or is a household contact, please let us know as soon as possible. We do need this data. Positive cases, and household contacts, need to isolate for 10 days. This starts the day after the symptoms start or the test is taken (whichever is earlier). That day is Day 0 and the 10 days start from the next day. Students can return to school on the 11th day.

While the increase in numbers can be worrying for parents, we know that for most children they will have mild symptoms and recover quickly. It may be tempting to keep your child at home, in the hope they won’t catch Covid-19, however we would prefer them at school, to minimise the impact on their learning. Distance learning is supplied for those who have to be at home, although it is not always able to be checked or feedback given. The main reason for this is teacher workload. If we are expecting our teachers to put their time and energy into teaching their class, we cannot expect them to also monitor a distance learning programme. We will continue to do everything we can to mitigate risk while your child is in our care.

Have a lovely weekend everyone, and enjoy these lovely summer days.

Noho ora mai (stay well)

Sue