Head of Junior School

We are looking forward to welcoming our Junior School students back on Monday 25 October and during assemblies this week, we have talked to our students about aspects of what will look the same and what might be different. The wearing of masks is an obvious one and our Student Wellbeing team shared this video with the students about why we will be wearing masks, which you might find helpful too as you talk with your child.

As well as during assembly, in class Circle Time, our Student Wellbeing team led conversations on what the return to On-Campus Learning will look like and the importance for looking out for one another. While there’s lots of excitement in the air, we know that for some, there may be some worries too.

Here are 5 tips for preparing your child for Return to On-Campus Learning from one of our counsellors, Ms Clark:

Discuss things openly and regularly check in with your child about how they are feeling. For example, “How do you feel about going back school? What can help make it easier for you? What makes you feel excited about going back? What worries you about going back? How can we work together to support you?”
Redlands is here to help– remind them of the names of people who can support them at school so they are reminded who to turn to if things get tricky.
Plan ahead. If there is something worrying them about going back to school, determine what could make it easier for them and put a plan in place. For example, if they are worried about drop offs, explain to them what this will look like for the time being, that school is a safe place, and perhaps plan so that a friend can meet them at the gate so they can go in together.
Remind them of their resilience. With all of the changes they have already conquered, remind them that they have already shown such great resilience and ability to adapt already, and that you are confident that they can do it again.
As worry and anxiety can be contagious, try look after yourself so that you can provide a calm and reassuring base for your child.

At the start of next week, I will send a detailed letter to Junior School families with an overview of our specific return to school plans and guidelines keeping community safety at the forefront of our thinking.

What if my child is not coming back on Monday 25 October?

As outlined by Mr Webber in his letter, online learning resources will be provided this term for students who may remain at home. With teachers leading face-to-face learning, there will not be the live connection via Zoom but class teachers are already planning on ways to keep these students connected.

To assist with our forward planning, please could any families planning to keep their child(ren) at home complete this form which will assist us greatly in preparations to support every student.

Return to School Parent Webinar

Ahead of the return to On-Campus Learning, I am pleased to host a webinar for families to join in if they wish to around our return to school plans with information and Zoom link/ passcode within the flyer.

Thank You to our Class Parent Representatives

This morning, along with our Principal, Mr Webber and our Head of Community Engagement, Mr Birse, I joined our Class Parent Reps at our termly meeting via Zoom for the group’s final meeting of 2021. In also recognising that not all Class Parent Reps were able to make this meeting, I wanted to acknowledge my gratitude again to these parents who have served our community in this way.

In another disjointed year, they have continued to think creatively for ways in which to welcome new families, build connections within classes and maintain relationships across year groups, embodying the spirit of School community here at Redlands. On behalf of all of our Junior School families and staff, I thank our Junior School class parents for 2021 and in particular, to the Junior School Parent Group Coordinators, Rebecca James and Becky Gait, for their leadership of the group. On a personal note, I have also valued their capacity to act as a sounding board for me as well as providing another conduit between home and school.

ICAS Assessments Yrs 3-6 Cancelled

Due to the lengthy period of remote learning and the ensuing impact upon the School calendar, ICAS assessments will not be administered in the Junior School this term for those who had signed up for this optional opportunity.

To receive your full refund, please email the ICAS customer service team at icasassessments@janison.com with the following information:

1. Subject line: Refund request (SCECGS Redlands Junior School)

2. A copy of the order confirmation that you received from ICAS when you registered and paid for your child’s ICAS tests

Please contact Ms Leonie Atkins (Dean of Administration Junior Campus) should you require any further assistance.

Request for On-Campus Learning for Children of Essential Workers: Week 3, Term 4

Parents of students wishing to be considered for on-campus supervision are asked to submit the online request form for next week using the link below. This should be completed by 8pm on Friday 15 October to allow sufficient time for staffing to be organised based on the numbers ahead of the weekend.

Please click HERE to submit a request for Week 3, Term 4

Term 4 OOSH

K-6 OOSH will return as year groups stagger their return from 18 October onwards. Bookings can be made via OOSH bookings from Monday 11 October. Please be aware that numbers will be capped.

OOSH RH, K and Yr 1 Students can access from 18 October
OOSH Yrs 2 – 6 Students can access from 25 October

Year 4 Incursion

Yr 4 students have rocks in their heads – igneous, sedimentary and metamorphic. To extract these rocks and minerals, we needed a rock star … enter Flynn, a mining engineer who spends his days roughly 400 metres below the surface of the earth. He helped us to make lots of connections between what happens under the ground and what happens in a game of Minecraft … yes obsidian is a thing. We learned that many of the things we use each day have been produced through mining – lights, cameras … even a match! Year Four posed some big questions such as, how can we work out the age of a rock? It was a lava fun chatting to an expert in the field who was so down to earth … that’s enough rock puns, I’m too tired to dig another one up.

Mr Ari Guha
Head of Junior School
aguha@redlands.nsw.edu.au
9953 6022