A big welcome back to Term 2. The holidays came at just the right time for many as we were beginning to see an escalation in our COVID numbers.  Unfortunately, we are still feeling the effects of living with COVID in our school, we have staff and students currently away due to COVID or having cold and flu like symptoms. The health advice is still currently, if your child has cold or flu like symptoms, please do not send them to school. If you require any RAT test kits please just call or ask at the office.

In the past students presenting with small coughs and sniffles have been allowed to stay at school, however there are now strict guidelines not permitting any staff, parent, visitor or student access to the site if they show any cold or flu like symptoms. Please help us stop the spread of these illnesses by keeping children at home when sick.  Currently we are experiencing many problems when trying to find relief teachers, we try our upmost to find replacement teachers, however if there comes a time when we are unable to find a relief teacher for all classes, we will have no other option but to collapse classes and spread students into classes with lower numbers. As I mentioned this is our very last option to support the teaching of all our students.

Changes to the close contact rules

There have been changes to the close contact rules made by the government.  These rules now state that close contacts can return to school or work, however close contacts must do a RAT before leaving their home in the morning for the length of the family members isolation. All close contact adults or high school age students must wear a mask. Primary school children do not have to wear a mask but must do RATs before leaving home.

Welcome new staff members to our school

I would like to take the time to welcome Ms Batt to Punchbowl Primary School. Ms Batt has replaced Miss Johnstone for the year as she is on leave. I would also like to welcome Mrs Kirk to our school.  Mrs Kirk will begin at Punchbowl on Monday, 16^th May as the Grade 5/6 teacher replacing Miss Bodell.  Miss Bodell has decided to relocate interstate with her finance. We also welcome Miss Richardson to our school as she replaces Mr Sutton on the Grade 4/5 class who has taken leave for the remainder of the year. Miss Richardson will be sharing the class with Miss Shephard.

Assemblies

We have been really missing celebrating our student’s success and achievements and the presenting of certificates.  This week we were advised that we are now permitted to have small group assemblies in our Multi-Purpose Room. In two weeks time we will begin a rotation of assemblies, these will be done with 4 class groups.

Unfortunately, we are not permitted to have parents attend these assemblies. However, we will make every effort to share photos on our Facebook page, in the newsletter and via our class communications.

Group 1 – Prep Wilson, Prep Baker/Walkinshaw, 1 Millen and 1/2 Cameron

Group 2 – 2/3 Stagoll, 2/3 Peachey/Jones, 3/4 Faulkner, 3/4 Crawford/Dykman

Group 3 – 4/5 Shephard/Richardson, 5/6 Bodell, 5/6 Frerk /Marshall, 5/6 Airey

NAPLAN

In the next two weeks we will begin the NAPLAN online testing period.  Students have all had a chance to practise using the online format and teachers will support our Grade 3 and 5 students through the testing schedule. It is important to always remember that we should not put pressure on our students around these tests, your child’s teacher knows their student’s skills in so many more ways than what is reflected in these tests.  Please support your child by calming any nerves and taking pressure off them.  This is one test on one day in the year and we know so much more about your child and their exceptional capabilities then this test will ever tell us!

All we want is for our students to go into the NAPLAN testing weeks giving it their best.

School Association

On Wednesday night we held our AGM followed by our normal School Association meeting.  It was great to see some new faces at the meeting and some new volunteers to the committee.  Firstly, I would like to thank the retiring members of our School Association and thank them for their tireless and committed work, especially during such a difficult year in 2020.  Thank you to our retiring members - Bec Frerk, Ashlea Mastroyanis and Sukhwinder Singh Sohal. At our AGM we were able to welcome our new committee members on board and establish roles.

Congratulations to Shelly-Ann Cassidy (School Chairperson), Bronwyn Burgess (Deputy School Chairperson), Natasha McConnell (Treasurer), Krystle Kaine (Secretary), along with committee members – Jane Jones, Mark Padgett, Felicity Smith, Gemma Green, Rachel Thompson and Nikki Daking. We look forward to working with you all in 2022. Please remember that anyone who is a parent of our school community is a member of our School Association and we would love you to join us at our meetings.  Our next meeting date is Wednesday, 27^th July.

Fundraising Committee

We would like to try and establish a fundraising committee at our school.  This committee would be responsible for leading and organising one-off events or regular annual fundraising events. If you would like to be a part of this committee, interested in organising specific events or helping in any way, please come along to our fundraising meetings.  We will be holding these meetings on the first FRIDAY of each month at 8.45am till 9.15am in our new Resource Room (this is the new classroom on the basketball court). We have no one on this committee yet and will be starting from scratch.  We would love to see some new faces and helpers involved in our school.

Mother’s Day Stall

Unfortunately, we were unable to get any volunteers to run a Mother’s Day stall this year.  Some lovely donations have brought into school and we are hoping to use these donations at a fundraiser in the future.  However, if you would like your donations returned to you, please see Janelle in the office.

Thank you to those parents who were able to support with donations it was really appreciated.

Hot Lunches

This week we sent out our orders for hot lunches.  A huge thank you to Adele Davis who is the co-ordinator for the hot lunches and all her helpers who have offered to support her on a Wednesday.  Please remember orders need to be into the office no later than 9am Friday morning as food items need to be ordered ahead of time.

3 - 6 Cross Country Carnival

Our annual Cross Country carnival will be held again on Wednesday, 18^th May at the Punchbowl Reserve.  The events will begin at 1.15pm starting with our Grade 6 students.  Only students competing in the cross country will be permitted to be with us at the Punchbowl Reserve.  Students who are unwell will need to stay home.  Once again, this is an exciting and much anticipated event for all students and as always they are expected to participate at their own ability. It will be fabulous to make use of Punchbowl Reserve, giving us a true cross country feel.  Parents will be able to come and watch, however we ask that social distancing rules are adhered to and that parents spectating away from the area where our students are seated. We thank you for your help with this.

2022_parent_information_3_6_carnival.pdf

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K – 2 Cross Country Carnival

Our ECE Cross Country will be on our school grounds and is on Thursday, 19^th May at 9.30am commencing with the Grade 2 students.  Parents are welcome to watch and support students at this event, however we need to remember that COVID safe practises apply such as physical distancing and parents spectating away from students. We thank you for your support with this.

2022_Gr_K_2_Programme.pdf

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Happy Mother’s Day

Lastly, I would like to wish all our Mums and Grandmothers a very happy Mother’s Day this Sunday. We are lucky to have such wonderful, loving, and hard-working mums that support our children each and every day. Happy Mother’s Day!

 

Liz O'Donahue - Principal

This term, our school will again be particiapting in the Premier's Reading Challenge. More information regarding this will be sent home in the near future.

Are you ready to get out and about to enjoy the best things in life? Buy an Entertainment Membership to support our fundraising and your next adventure could be around the corner. Buy a Membership and Punchbowl Primary receives 20% of the purchase.

To order: https://www.entertainment.com.au/orderbooks/2406h04

In Autumn the City of Launceston are planning a fuel reduction burn in the Punchbowl Reserve.

Notifications of tthe scheduled burns will be updated on the Council's website - www.launceston.tas.gov.au/works and the Tasmania Fire Service website - https://fire.tas.gov.au

Peopke with medical conditions are advised to have a personal plan for avoiding smokefrom the burn. Advice is available from theDepartment ofHealth and Human Services website www.dhhs.tas.gov.au/peh/alerts/air/precautions

For more information please contact the Cityof Launceston on 6323 3000 or via email contactus@launceston.tas.gov.au

SUBWAY ORDER UPDATE

Subway have advised they are in the process of updating their website which means that at present the only order option date on their platform for this term is Thursday 19th May (Week 3).

The upgrade is due to be completed by the end of the month. Once the upgrade has occurred the remaining order dates should become available.

Unfortunately, this has possibly also caused a problem with some orders being doubled up and some students not receiving their order.  Office staff will ensure that all students that have ordered food will receive something to eat and Subway will refund those parents whose children did not receive what they ordered.

Subway apologise for any inconvenience this may cause.

• Mobile Phones are to be handed into the office at the beginning of each school day.
• Please name your childs clothing as a lot of our lost property is not named.   
• Please remember to bring your water bottle to school each day.                                        
• If your residential address has changed or have a new telephone number, please contact the office to request a change of details form.

• Please notify the office if your child test positive to COVID-19 or is a close contact to someone that has tested positive.

If you wish to purchase any uniform items for your child, to limit the number of adults we have on site and congestion in the main corridor, we would greatly appreciate orders and payment via telephone.  Clothing purchased and a copy of receipt will be sent home with your child.  Office staff are happy to assist your child try on clothing if you are uncertain as to what size is required.

IT IS AGAINST THE LAW FOR A PERSON TO WORK OR VOLUNTEER AT PUNCHBOWL UNLESS REGISTERED!

If you currently hold Volunteer Working with Vulnerable People Registration,  please bring your card to the school office so we can record your registration.  Teachers will also ask to see your registration prior to initially doing Parent Help, as it is a requirement to carry your card with you at all times. 

If you nominated another organisation in which you volunteer when you registered, unfortunately at present we are unable to check you are registered. Please update your registration status via the below link to update and advise all organisations in which you volunteer.

If you wish to register, please complete the online application via the below link:

http://www.justice.tas.gov.au/working_with_children/application

The Australian Government will start its program in Tasmania to vaccinate residential aged care and disability care staff and residents at the same time as the Tasmania Government’s roll-out program commences.

I recognise that you may have questions about the vaccination program. I encourage you to visit www.coronavirus.tas.gov.au/vaccine for the latest information on the vaccination roll-out. Additionally, you can visit the Australian Government Health website for further information at www.health.gov.au.

Keeping yourself and others safe

We must all continue to play our part in being COVID safe. While the vaccine is an important measure in our response to COVID-19, it is part of a suite of things we need to do – including maintaining our COVID-safe behaviours:

• Stay at least 1.5 metres away from others;
• Wash your hands often with soap and warm water;
• Stay at home if you are unwell;
• Get tested for COVID-19 if you have any cold or flu-like symptoms; and
• Be aware of, and follow, current gathering, business and travel restrictions.
• Practise good hygiene, such as covering coughs and sneezes and washing hands
• If you or your child do get sick, stay at home until symptoms have passed, even if a COVID test is negative

Remember, symptoms include fever, tiredness, cough, headache, sore throat, sniffling and sneezing.

To keep our school safe, we are still:

• continuing with increased cleaning
• making sure there is plenty of soap, sanitiser and tissues available
• applying restrictions to large gatherings of adults and encouraging physical distancing

For the latest updates on the COVID-19 restrictions in Tasmania and across Australia, visit  http://www.coronavirus.tas.gov.au.

The Student Assistance Scheme (STAS) is now open for 2022.  Applications for 2021 are now closed. Families who were approved for STAS last year will receive written notification regarding their eligibilty (approved or not approved) for 2022. Application forms for 2022 are available from the school office.

2022 Term Dates

• Term 1: Wednesday, 9^th February to Wednesday, 13^th April  

     (Tuesday, 8^th February & Thursday, 14^th April) – Student Free Days

• Easter: Friday, 15^th April to Tuesday, 19^th April

• Term 2: Monday, 2^nd May to Friday, 8^th July

• Term 3: Tuesday, 26^th July to Friday, 30^th September

                       (Monday, 25^th July - Student Free Day)

• Term 4: Monday, 17^th October to Wednesday, 21^st December

                      (Friday, 4^th November – Student Free Day)

Students  have the opportunity to purchase books via Scholastic Bookclub. Catalogues are sent home throughout the year.

Orders can be placed either via the school office or via the Scholastic website.  If you wish to place an order via the office, please enclose named order and money in an envelope and hand to either the class teacher or to the office.   

Closing dates for Bookclub orders will be stated in the newsletter. 

Public Health has reviewed their advice about hay fever in the current COVID-19 environment.

Hay fever symptoms are similar to COVID-19 symptoms, so it’s important families know what they need to do if their child experiences hay fever symptoms.

If your child has hay fever symptoms, please keep them at home and test for COVID-19 using a rapid antigen test (RAT).

If your child tests negative on a RAT and symptoms continue, Public Health advises that you must do a second RAT 24 hours later, or seek a PCR test. 

If the second RAT or PCR remains negative, this is sufficient evidence for your child to return to school if they feel well.

If symptoms change or increase in severity, please see your treating medical practitioner for review.

Please know that Public Health advice can change at short notice and we appreciate your patience as we respond to these changes as quickly as possible.

If you have any questions, please contact the school office. For more information, please visit the Tasmanian Government Coronavirus website or contact the Tasmanian Public Health Hotline on 1800 671 738, or Department of Education COVID Support Hotline at COVID19support@education.tas.gov.au or on 1800 816 057.

From 12.01am Saturday, 26 February 2022, people with COVID-19 are only required to quarantine for a single 7 day period – the 7 days will not be extended if subsequent people in the household test positive (as long as they are symptom free and return the required negative test result).

This advice applies to all COVID-19 cases i.e. anyone currently in quarantine and anyone who needs to quarantine from this point onwards. If a person is already part way through their quarantine period, then they will complete their 7 days from the time of the first positive diagnosis of COVID-19 in their household.

As long as the person completed the correct testing requirements, has returned negative results and does not have any symptoms they are free to leave quarantine at the same time as the primary case.

As an example: If a child is home because their parent/carer was positive, then their sibling tests positive after 5 days, does the quarantine still end after 7 days, not reset?

The quarantine period will still end 7 days after the diagnosis of the parent/carer – as long as the child is symptom free and returns a negative test on Day 6. Quarantine length does not reset due to the sibling’s positive test. If someone in a household has already tested positive and is isolating in the household, and subsequent household members test positive, close contacts in the household do not need to restart their quarantine period. Close contacts only need to complete 7 days from the date the first case in the household tests positive.

For more information, visit the Tasmanian Government Coronavirus website and refer to Public Health’s factsheet.

Changes to close contact requirements

Public Health has recently changed the rules for close contacts of COVID-19 cases so that they no longer need to isolate.

This means that if your child is a close contact – and importantly, symptom-free – they can attend school (except for support schools).

They would however need to pass a daily rapid antigen test before leaving home each day, for a seven-day period. Advice for close contacts is available on the Tasmanian Government Coronavirus website.

You will only need to let us know if your child is a close contact if they’re not attending school.

Close contacts should practise COVID-safe behaviours including good hand hygiene, physically distancing from others when they can and staying away from school if they have any symptoms.

While primary aged close contacts are not obliged to wear a mask in school, they can still choose to if it is practicable for them and they are happy to do so.

If your child is medically vulnerable and you have concerns with the changes to close contacts, then you may wish to work with your child’s medical practitioner to identify further options to reduce the risk of COVID-19 to them. If you have any concerns, please talk to us about alternative learning options.

If you have any questions or concerns, please contact our school office.

For more information about COVID-19, please visit the Tasmanian Government Coronavirus website or contact the Tasmanian Public Health Hotline on 1800 671 738, or Department of Education COVID-19 Support Hotline at COVID19support@education.tas.gov.au or on 1800 816 057.

If you need support translating or interpreting this information, contact the Translating and Interpreting Service on 131 450.

Everyone is welcome to attend our School Association meetings as it's a good way to learn about what is going on in the school. Our next meeting will be on Wednesday, 27th July, comming at 7pm at school. 

School Association Meeting Dates

Wednesday , 27th July

Wednesday 19th October

Wednesday 30th November

Thank you to our entire school community for your cooperation this term by practising COVID-safe behaviours.

As you know, an important COVID-safe behaviour is to stay at home if you’re unwell and get tested for COVID-19 using a rapid antigen test.

Public Health tells us that the number of cases of COVID-19 in children is low, and they’re likely to have milder symptoms.

It’s a good reminder to be mindful of the symptoms of COVID-19 in children. The most common symptoms of COVID-19 in children are cough, fever, runny nose and gastrointestinal symptoms like nausea, vomiting and diarrhoea.

For more information, please visit the Tasmanian Government Coronavirus website or contact the Tasmanian Public Health Hotline on 1800 671 738, or Department of Education COVID-19 Support Hotline at COVID19support@education.tas.gov.au or on 1800 816 057.

If you need support translating or interpreting this information, please contact the Translating and Interpreting Service on 131 450.