27th August, 2020
Dear
Parent,
We are
looking forward to welcoming the new Junior Infants on Monday 31st
of August. Each class will be a ‘bubble’. Contact between bubbles will be very
limited. Classes will be divided into groups or ‘pods’. Children can line up in
their pods for the first morning. These children will sit, work and play
together in the classroom. They will stay in the same pod for a number of
weeks. There will be four pods in Junior Infants. Children will play in their
bubble at break times on the yard.
The
First Day at School
As it
is the Junior Infants first day of school we will start a little later than the
other classes. Please see the following timetable.
|
Red Pod 9:20am |
Orange Pod 9:25am |
Blue Pod 9:35am |
Yellow Pod 9:40am |
|
Alicja Hanna Antoni Katie Emily Ben Ross |
Omar Umm Christian Noah Sofia Lily |
Kamil Samuel Aoibhinn Maria Caelan Shayna Ultan |
Ema Dariusz Dylan Pádraig Evie Zoe Micheál |
There
will be pod markings outside the main entrance door (near the office) for the
Junior Infants. If you are in the red pod you can stand on a red dot.
Unfortunately, parents will not be permitted to enter the school building with
their child on the first day of school (or subsequent days). We ask that only
one parent accompany each child to the main door to allow for social
distancing. Mr. Horan will be there to meet you on your first day. I will
collect each pod of students outside the main door and walk them to their
classroom. They will place their school bag and lunchbox under their pod table
and wash their hands. (Children can line up on their dots at the main entrance
at 9:00am on subsequent days.)
What
You Can Do to Prepare
Please
practice washing hands properly, with soap, for 20 seconds. Make sure that your
child also knows how to dry their hands thoroughly. Children could also
practice how to use hand-sanitizer correctly and that it should not be
ingested. Please remind your child of the correct sneeze etiquette – cough or
sneeze into a tissue, or into your elbow if you do not have a tissue. Put the
tissue in the bin and wash or sanitize your hands. It would be a great help if your child can
independently open and close their lunchbox and bottle, their coat and their
shoes. Of course, staff will help where needed. Staff will try to maintain
physical distance from children where possible and will wear face coverings and
other PPE when needed.
Play
The
number one priority of our first few weeks at school will be children’s
well-being. Books, toys and resources will be cleaned regularly or quarantined
for 72 hours before being reused.
Communication
with Class Teacher
Parents
will not be permitted to enter the school building. This does not mean that you
will not be able to communicate with the class teacher. Appointments may be
made through the school phone to visit the school for essential purposes. You
can also request a return call or place a note in your child’s school bag.
Home
Time
Junior
Infants will go home at 12 noon for the first two weeks of school. Children
will be collected at the main entrance door (near the office). There will be a
queuing system in place to help with social distancing. The class teacher will
call your child’s name and your child will walk out to meet you. Home time will
be 1:50pm from Monday 14th of September.
Looking
forward to seeing you all and a fun filled school year.
Kind
Regards,
Mairéad
O’Connor
Junior
Infant Substitute Teacher