August 2020
Dear Parent/carer,
This has been a very exciting week! We are genuinely delighted to be back with our pupils, re-united in our school building. Pupils appear to be so happy to be back in school and we have lots of smiles just now! I just wanted to give you a few updates right now as the newsletter will not be issued until 1st September.
School timings
Our staggered entry and exit systems seem to be working well and we will continue with these for the time being. There is less anxiety around ‘bell times’ and this is proving for a really positive start and finish to the school day.
From Monday 17th August primary 1 pupils will be able to come straight into the building between 8.45am and 9.15am, and they will be dismissed at 3pm.
We have increased the functionality of our lunch system to ensure pupils know exactly what they will be eating and which queue to line up in before getting to the dinner hall. We have also reduced our lunch time from 45 minutes to just 30 minutes. We want to maximise teaching time in class and with extension of outdoor learning for all pupils, there are lots of opportunities during the school day to be outside. Pupils seem happy with this arrangement!
School Hygiene
Increased hygiene and safety measures have been introduced in school at this time. Most importantly we have a day cleaner 10am-2pm each day. Linda is fabulous at patrolling the school ensuring all banisters, door handles, bins, toilets etc are regularly cleaned and sanitised. She doesn’t stop! Pupils have been brilliant at sanitising and washing their hands when asked, even although some pupils’ hands are getting a little dry. If you want to provide a small tube of hand cream for your child just put a sticker on it with their name and pop it in their school bag. Teacher will allow them to treat their hands when needed. For a few pupils we are encouraging them to use soap more than sanitiser as this seems to be less drying. Pupils have been great at helping teachers and staff keep class resources and tables cleaned, thus supporting them to feel safe in school.
Water
If pupils come to school with enough water to last them all day then this is super. If they finish their water during the day and need more or if they forget to bring water with them, we will have a large quantity of paper cups for pupils to use. No pupil in this school will go without a drink of water should they request it!
Visitors
I am sad to say we are not allowed to have ‘visitors’ inside the school building. Visitors could be some visiting specialists (although some are allowed), volunteers, parents etc. Therefore I kindly ask that you do not enter the school building. I really do not like this instruction but it is unavoidable at present – I’m sure you will understand. If you need to speak with me or a member of staff, please contact the school office and I will speak with you on the telephone or call you back. We cannot allow this restriction to damage our school-home relationships. If you have a query, challenge or information to pass on, please DO call – you are not bothering us at all, we want to talk to you! If there is an unavoidable need to speak in person you will require to complete a COVID-19 screening questionnaire prior to gaining entry into the school building.
PPE
Our staff in general are not wearing any PPE. Some pupils are wearing masks and this is fine if it makes them feel safer in the current climate. If we require to deal with pupils in close proximity for longer than 15 minutes we may decide to wear a mask or visor – I would surmise this will be very rare.
Curriculum
It is absolutely crucial that we ‘hit the road’ with learning! Pupils have missed school and we want to get them back on track asap! Pupils will be focusing mainly on literacy, numeracy and health/wellbeing, although we will gradually bring in all other aspects of the curriculum too.
Staff
We are very lucky without staffing allocation at the present time. GCC have provided additional staff to every school in Glasgow to ensure we can progress smoothly along the road of school recovery. Every class has 2 allocated trained teachers in addition to support staff. Pupils are getting intensive support in class. We will soon begin our suite of yearly assessments in spelling, reading and maths to ensure we focus specifically on any gaps which may have occurred during school closure period.
Sadly Mrs Young has not returned to school and will be off for a few weeks recovery from surgery. I am delighted to say that Miss Fraser is acting principal teacher for the time that Mrs Young is not here. Unfortunately Miss Gorrell is also off sick, we hope she can return well with us soon.
We welcome 2 new teachers to the staff – Mr Gillen and Miss Sutton. Mr Gillen is our probationer and Miss Sutton is our supply teacher – both have had an amazing start to the school year, and we are lucky to have them!
Mrs Mair has returned from maternity leave – so lovely to have her sense of calm around again! We have missed Mrs Mair very much!
All in all school doesn’t really feel very different and it appears to have been a very positive beginning for all! Long may this continue!
Obviously COVID-19 has not gone away and we must not become complacent. If your child is unwell with common symptoms please keep them at home, book a test and give us a phone call if you can. If your child becomes unwell in school we will ensure they are comforted, safe and will call you immediately. I would urge you to arrange a test if your child displays symptoms, but this is a parental choice and responsibility.
Please take care everyone and continue to remain safe during this time.
Do not hesitate to contact me at any time if you want to discuss anything.
Kind Regards,
Jane McShane
