Updated Information for Monday 12th April 2021

11th Apr 2021

School Meals

School Dinners will be available for all children in school. There is an updated School Dinner Menu on the School Website.

Snacks

All pupils should continue to bring a healthy break to school and where they are not availing of a school meal, they should also bring a packed lunch.
Please ensure that you send in a ‘Child Friendly’ lunch. Due to social distancing between adults and children, staff will not be able to peel fruit, open wrappers and open drinks.

Illness

If your child is unwell (especially if they display any of the symptoms of Covid-19) you should not send them to school under any circumstances. We would encourage parents where possible to attempt to take their child’s/children’s temperature before coming to school. Any pupil with a temperature of 37.9oC or above will not be allowed to enter the school building.

Symptoms of Covid-19 include:
- a high temperature – this means you feel hot to touch on your chest or back or;
- a new, continuous cough – this means coughing a lot for more than an hour, or 3 or more coughing episodes in 24 hours (if you usually have a cough, it may be worse than usual), or;

- anosmia - the loss or a change in your normal sense of smell (it can also affect your sense of taste)

If a pupil becomes unwell during the school day, PHA advice will be followed. Parents will be notified immediately, and the child will be supervised in an isolated area until collected. We have a contactless thermometer for use in school.

PHA advice will be followed regarding anyone testing positive for Covid-19 in the school community.

Pupils will also have their temperature taken each morning as they enter their classrooms using contactless thermometers. It is also recommended that parents test their child's temperature before coming to school.

Uniform

All uniform should be worn as usual.
Please ensure that your child comes into school with a freshly washed uniform every day to avoid the risk of spreading COVID 19.
Pupils should bring a waterproof coat to school each day, as we will be going outside as often aspossible. Please ensure all items of uniform are named. Where possible, your child’s coat should be wiped down or sprayed every day and washed once a week.

School Routines

The school day times will run as normal apart from there being an extended lunch time to accommodate two sittings at lunch time.
Children will go outside during break as much as possible – each class will play in a designated zone to ensure that ‘protective bubbles’ are maintained.
If the weather is bad, pupils will stay in their classroom.
When outside of the classroom pupils must respect the 2m distance between them and their teacher and the reduced social distance between peers.

Lunch Time

Year 1 and 2 will go into the hall at 12:00pm and sit in their allocated area.
Year 3 and 4 will go into the hall at 12:05pm and sit in their allocated area.
Year 5, 6 and 7 will go to the playground at 12:00pm.
At 12:30pm or whenever all children in hall have completed their dinner or packed lunch, they will be taken out to the playground to play in their designated area.
The tables and benches will be wiped clean and the Year 5, 6 and 7 pupils will enter the hall to have their dinner or packed lunch.

Social Distancing

We ask that everyone adheres to social distancing in school as outlined below:

- Reduced social distancing between pupils in their bubbles. - 2m between pupils and adults
- 2m between adults and adults

When outside of the classroom pupils must respect the 2m distance between them and their teacher and the reduced social distance between peers.
Each class will operate as part of a protective class bubble. Each pupil will be assigned a desk and chair within that room to use throughout the day, every day.
We will have a routine for everyone in place for safe arrival to class and dismissal at the end of the day. Personal Hygiene
Pupils must wash their hands and use the toilet before coming to school. They will be asked to wash their hands on arrival in the classroom. Pupils will be asked to wash hands frequently during the day. If your child has sensitivity to particular handwash or sanitiser, please do send in a suitable soap or sanitiser for their personal use and inform the class teacher in writing if you prefer, they do not use the school soaps.
Pupils should avoid touching their faces including mouth, eyes and nose as much as possible when in school.
Hand sanitiser has been provided at the main entrance and exit points for visitors to the school. Each child MUST have their own hand sanitiser at their desk.
Pupils should carry their own personal tissues. There are designated tissue bins in each classroom which MUST be used for all tissues.

Cleaning Routines

There will be cleaning materials in each classroom and a cleaning routine will take place twice a day.

Drop off for Pupils and Collection of Pupils

Dropping off and times to collect your child from school are as follows: -

P1and P2 will enter school through door at Mrs Speers room between 8:50am and 9:00am. Pupils should not be on school grounds before this as there will be no supervision provided.
P3 and P4 will enter school through door at Mrs Speers room between 8:50am and 9:00am. Pupils should not be on school grounds before this as there will be no supervision provided.
The side gate will be open to allow pupils around the back of the school. Parents are allowed to bring their child to the outside door but will not be allowed any further.
P5, P6 andP7 will enter school through main door from 8:50am to 9:00am. Pupils should not be on school grounds before this as there will be no supervision provided.
Older children with siblings in P1, P2, P3 and P4 can walk these children around to their door and enter the school accordingly if they wish.
Parents must leave the school as soon as their child/children have been dropped off.
If your child is running late for school, please ensure that they enter the school via the main doors. Children should also be accompanied to the door by a parent/guardian.

P1 and P2 will leave school via the side gate every day at 2:00pm. (Adverse weather conditions may mean children will leave through the main doors).
P3 will leave school via the side gate at 2:00pm on Monday, Wednesday and Friday. P3 will leave school via the side gate at 3:00pm on Tuesday and Thursday.
P4 will leave school via the side gate every day at 3:00pm.
P5/P6/P7 will leave through the main door every day at 3:00pm.
Parents must remain spread out around the school gates to comply with social distancing.
Please respect social distancing otherwise we will have to stagger drop off and pick up times for each class, which we know will not be as convenient for everyone. Parents/Guardians must not gather at the gates, school doors or enter the school building unless they have a pre-arranged appointment.
It is recommended that only one parent/guardian should escort children to school.
School staff cannot police your social distancing, so it is your role and responsibility to ensure you follow the guidance. This also applies when collecting children from school. Regardless of weather conditions, children will be dismissed from the school in the afternoons from the front of the school as normal.

Breakfast Club

There will be no Breakfast Club for the week beginning 12th April 2021.
Once we are notified of any changes to these arrangements, we will let you know.

Additional Information

At the end of the day Parents will be invited to collect their child around the school grounds. All parents MUST adhere to social distancing and wear a face mask, while waiting to collect their child and walk them safely to their car.
Access to the school buildings will not be permitted unless with prior permission and appointment only.
If Parents/Guardians have an appointment or are coming into school they must wear a face mask, use sanitiser on arrival and respect social distancing procedures at all times.
Teachers will not be available to discuss your child with you at pick up times due to the current climate, so if you want to talk to a member of staff you will need to phone or email the school -info@tobermoreps.magherafelt.ni.sch.uk and your child’s teacher will contact you directly.

Please note that our Facebook Page, will only be used as a means of providing information to parents about class activities and new procedures. Please do not contact our Facebook Page to ask questions. All questions or queries should be directed to the above email.
Teachers will no longer be responding to parents using their own personal C2k email addresses, which were given out during the lockdown period.

Equipment

Pupils are required to have their own equipment - for example: pens, pencils, rulers, calculators – and should not share with others. Equipment lists are published on our school website. These resources will remain in school to help to reduce the transfer of the COVID virus.
Pupils are encouraged to have their own clearly named water bottle which is cleaned every day before coming into school.
Pupils are encouraged to only bring necessary items into school.

Curriculum

In this phase of pupils returning to school after the Easter break, each day will have a strong emphasis on emotional wellbeing, social and physical activity sessions throughout the day. Alongside this we will continue to deliver the normal curriculum with an emphasis on literacy and numeracy.
The plan is for lessons to be taught as normal as possible, as per the government guidance. Once children are settled, they will be assessed to see where they are with their learning. This will be done when their teacher feels they are ready.

Homework

Homework will be set on a Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday. On Thursday children will focus on learning their spellings, number facts and any other facts from Numeracy or Literacy.
Homework will be sent home and completed. Once completed at home it will be uploaded to either SeeSaw or Teams on the day/night it has been sent. If you are having trouble accessing either of these Home Learning platforms, please email any work to the school email account.
Homework will consist of spellings, number facts, Numeracy/Literacy and reading. Spellings and Number Facts will be kept at home to reduce the amount of content coming back into school.
Reading books will be allowed to be taken home. Children will bring reading books back into school and they will remain in isolation for 72 hours before being used again.
If you are having any difficulty completing homework, please contact the school office informing them of this.

Pastoral matters

Returning to school will be exciting but also potentially challenging for the children, with some having been away for nearly three months. They will be coming into a school environment that will be a little different to what they have been used to in the past. However, we are committed to supporting each child’s academic, social and emotional wellbeing.
During the lockdown some children will have, in different ways, experienced a form of loss. They have been away from their friends, teachers and people they had become accustomed to. Their sense of school-based routines and structure will have disappeared, to be replaced by restrictions alien to all. Freedoms and opportunities, they have been used to, such as playing or going to the park with friends, have been reduced. Some children may well have experienced the loss of a family member during this time.

Money

At present it has not been possible to eradicate cash handling arrangements in the school. Therefore, we would ask you that when sending cash to school you place it in school envelopes, plastic bags or cling film clearly labelled. It is essential that the correct amount of money is provided as change will not be given.
To make the handling of monies easier for staff, Tobermore Money Envelopes are available to buy from the school office. One packet of envelopes cost £2.50.

This plan and the precautions set out in it have been put in place to help stop the spread of Covid-19 virus and to ensure that we will all take responsibility for this. These arrangements will be kept under review and any changes will be communicated to you as and when appropriate and/or necessary. It is therefore important that you regularly check our Facebook page and School Website.

If your home circumstances have changed or there is anything you feel school would benefit from knowing, please contact Mr Cheevers on the school email or call the school to discuss anything further.

We trust the return to school will run smoothly for your child and your family and we are looking forward to having everyone back in school.

Many thanks and stay safe,

Mr Cheevers