Dear Parents,
Now that we have received direction from the Department of Education we are working very hard to ensure the children’s return to school is positive and that school is a place where they are safe and happy. We are being guided by the DES Covid-19 Response Plan. We have published our Covid-19 School Response Plan in the Policies section of our website. You will also find the Covid-19 Policy Statement for Killeshin N.S here. The details below contains a lot of essential information for parents and pupils about our school re-opening. Please look often at our school website and watch out for text messages via Text-a-parent from us as there may be further information or changes.
What you could be doing to help us;
Children MUST NOT attend school with ANY cold or flu symptoms.
Please take your child’s temperature and wash their hands before school each morning.
Please let us know if your contact details or emergency contact details have to be updated.
Talk to your child and let them know that the return to school is going to be safe and happy. Be positive about this return.
Start to practise regular handwashing and how to cough and sneeze safely.
As always everything should be labelled. Due to Covid-19 doing this is essential. There will be no sharing of anything. Label everything clearly with your child’s name - coats, shoes, lunch boxes, school bags, uniform, books, copies, pens, eraser, pencil sharpener etc.
Put plastic covering on all copies and books so that we can keep them clean.
Every child should have a lunch box and drink bottle. It is very important that these items are washed in soapy water every day at home. It is important that the lunchbox and drink bottle are made of a material that can be disinfected.
We are asking parents to provide a plastic box (24 litres) for children in all classes to store their books in. Please do not bring in box lids. The school will be open on the Monday/Tuesday/Wednesday of the week we are returning if any parents wish to drop in books/boxes. Time to be confirmed closer to the reopening.
There is no reference in public health guidance to daily washing of school uniforms or any clothes. Acting Chief Medical Officer, Dr Ronan Glynn has confirmed no such advice has been issued by health authorities. If parents wish children are able to alternate between school uniform and the PE uniform to allow for washing.
Measures we are putting in place in the school;
The school now has hand sanitiser pumps at all entrance/exits. Everyone who enters the school will be asked to sanitise their hands. If you look at our Facebook page you can see some of the physical changes we have made to prepare for re-opening.
Hand sanitiser pumps are in all classrooms and children will be asked to wash their hands regularly during the day especially after playing outside and before eating.
There are floor signs to facilitate safe passing in the corridor.
Each room and all surfaces will be disinfected and cleaned every day.
Staff will wea face shields/masks in situations where they cannot maintain a 2 metre distance.
Each class will be in a bubble and will not mix with any other class bubbles. Within the class bubble children with be in small groups (pods). There will be a distance of at least 1 metre between all pods.
We are asking parents to provide a plastic box (24 litres) for children to store all their books in. Children will leave their pencil cases in school every day also.
We will be operating a staggered yard time with reduced numbers on the yard to ensure children only interact with those in their class bubble.
To facilitate a staggered drop off in the morning children can be dropped off from 9am. They are to go straight into the school and to their classroom once dropped. Teachers will be in their classrooms to supervise from 9am. Our school day still begins at 9:20am.
Junior Infants will not start until Monday 31st August. Junior Infants are asked to come to the yard no earlier than 9:30am on Monday 31st August where they will be met by their class teachers.
Parents should not park but simply drop children off and go.
Parents can not come down to the yard.
We ask parents to remain in their cars, away from the school entrance when collecting children at the end of the day to allow children to leave the school safely and quickly.
To facilitate a staggered closing time classes will alternate between leaving at 2:50 and 3pm. This will alternate every week. From Thursday (27th August) to Friday (4th September) inclusive the following classes will leave at 2:50pm; Ms Kelly, Ms Shiels, Ms Cooney, Ms Keating and Ms Fitzpatrick (5th). All other classes will leave at 3pm. The next week (7th -11th September) the classes will alternate and leave at the other time.
Senior Infants will be collected from the school yard and Junior Infants will be collected from the Infant door at 2pm. Parents are asked to socially distance when collecting children.
Parents are not permitted to enter the school building unless arranged by prior appointment.
You can contact teachers through their school email address which will be provided to children or by ringing the school.
If a child has to be picked up early during the school day to attend an appointment we ask parents to ring the school when they are parked outside. We will walk out with your child to your car. Please do not enter the school building. Similarly if your child is returning from an appointment during the day please ring the school and we will meet you outside (059-9147852).
Thank you for your support and understanding as we work together to ensure the safe return of all our school community. Stay safe and enjoy the remainder of the holidays.
Conor Denieffe,
Principal
Click on the link below to download the official school letter: