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The Little Mermaid
Congratulations to all involved in creating the 2024 School Production of The Little Mermaid. Those of you who were lucky enough to see the production will agree that this was an extraordinary school event. The production standards were extremely high and our students really excelled in all areas. On behalf of the very happy audiences, I thank Mr Ben Peake (Director), Mr Stuart Collidge (Producer), Mrs Diana Thompson (Choreographer) and Mr Shane Evans (Music Director) and all of the staff and students involved in creating The Little Mermaid.
COVID Reminders
Since the beginning of Term 2 we have had a number of staff and students unwell due to COVID-19 or influenza infections. Both COVID-19 and the flu are quite contagious. The best way to protect each other from contamination is to stay at home if you have any symptoms. COVID-19 safe practices such as hand sanitising, social distancing as much as possible, using air purifiers and wearing a mask continue to be encouraged at school. To keep our community safe, I remind all parents of the importance of keeping your child at home if they are unwell. Any student who develops COVID-19 symptoms at school during the day will be sent to the nurse and parents are required to collect their child as quickly as possible.
The school still has a good supply of RATs and masks. Please ask at Reception if you need any more supplies.
Teacher Shortages
Illness continues to plague our staff. Yesterday (Monday), Junior School had 13 staff absent due to illness (that is 1/3 of the JS staff) while Senior School had seven teachers absent. With few Casual Relief Teachers (CRT) available at the moment, ensuring all classes have a teacher to supervise them is becoming incredibly difficult. To our daily organisers who ensure all classes have a teacher in front of them each day, thank you Mrs Melissa Roberton (Junior School) and Mrs Kylie Reeves (Senior School).
As winter sets in with the possibility of more COVID-19 and flu infections arising, I remind everyone to follow COVID-19 safe hygiene practices. If staff absences increase, we may need to call some asynchronous learning (i.e. at home) days for students. We will try to give parents as much notice as possible if this is necessary.
Simultaneous Storytime
One of my favourite Junior School activities is reading to the students so it was with great pleasure I read The Speedy Sloth by Rebecca Young to Year 5 and 6 students as part of the National Simultaneous Storytime. This is an annual event held across Australia at 11:00 am. The Speedy Sloth is a beautiful book to read aloud and the students and I had a fruitful discussion afterwards about how excellence looks different for different people, and the importance of trying hard and doing your personal best. I am grateful to the Junior School staff for their annual participation in this wonderful event.
Sorry Day and Reconciliation Week
Last week was Reconciliation Week. I thank our School Chaplain, Mrs Monique Riviere Pendle for the wonderful activities she organised throughout the week. For the first time, our school acknowledged Sorry Day with a ceremonial lowering of our flags. Our Reconciliation Week commenced with a traditional Smoking Ceremony on the oval. Not only were these events educational, they also demonstrated our commitment to Inclusion at Casey Grammar.
Childsafety
As part of our commitment to Childsafety, the staff undergo regular updates and training on the various Childsafe policies. Last week the staff reviewed the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Student Policy and Procedures and the LGBTQIA+ Policy and Procedures. If you would like to refresh your memory on these policies, they can be found on the school’s website or you can use this link to take you to the LGBTQIA+ Policy.
Fiona Williams
Principal
