10 Jul 2021
To our Parents,
As we move into a deeper lockdown, I want to reassure you that we are ready to support our students’ learning in term 3, which begins for students next Tuesday 13 July.
The NSW Government and the NSW Department of Education have made it clear that students from Greater Sydney will be learning from home next week (13-16 July) as we begin the term. This has been confirmed for the first week of term, and may continue past that time depending on the number of COVID cases circulating in Greater Sydney moving forward.
AHS teachers and support staff have been working hard to ensure students will have access to quality online learning that they can find and complete from home. In most instances, teachers will be using Google Classroom to communicate and share work with students. Our students are familiar with google classroom and most will be confident to access their learning this way. Those who are unsure can contact their teachers or the school via a phone call or email. Students are to broadly follow their normal timetable, logging in to the relevant google classroom at the time they would have attended each lesson at school. Each faculty will post a message on Facebook and our website on Monday next week (12 July) to give faculty-specific information regarding their subjects, and to confirm how and where students can access their learning.
We will be receiving from the Department of Education a limited number of ‘dongles’ to support senior students’ access to the internet. If you are the parent of a senior student and you would like to be considered for a ‘dongle’, please contact the school by phone or email on Monday 12 July to indicate your interest. Please only do so if your child will have genuine difficulty accessing the internet. We will be prioritising Year 12 students as they approach the HSC, followed by year 11 students.
We will also be making available laptops for students to borrow during this period of learning from home. Again, please email or telephone the school on Monday to indicate your interest for your child to be considered for a device to support their learning.
It is very important that students access their learning from home where that is an option for your family.
The ‘delta’ strain of the COVID virus is highly contagious, and we are committed to caring for our students and staff during this difficult time. This is why it is so important that students learn from home if this is possible. Students in Year 12 may be contacted by their teacher to organise on-site visits to ensure consistency of learning, particularly in terms of projects and major works, as we move towards the HSC.
If you are unable to make arrangements for your child to learn from home, then school remains open. Students who attend school will be required to wear a mask at all times when they are inside. If students refuse to wear a mask when inside, or are repeatedly not wearing a mask inside, parents will be contacted to collect their child. Please be aware that students who attend school will engage in their learning in general spaces where staff will supervise their engagement with the online learning that students at home are accessing. The canteen will be closed and playground breaks will be segregated into year groups or possibly stage groups, to limit students’ exposure to others.
Some hard copy learning packs will be available for students who do not have access to the internet and are not in the senior student group receiving ‘dongles’. For week 1 learning Yrs 7-10 will be provided with a general learning package. If you are interested in accessing a hard copy general learning package, please email or telephone the school on Monday to register your interest.
Please be aware that all excursions and extra-curricular activities are currently on hold until further notice.
Many parents will be contacting the school on Monday. We have organised for this and have additional support staff ready to take your call. Nonetheless, there are limited lines into the school and I would ask for your patience as we respond to the many enquiries we will receive. Alternatively, you may find it easier to send an email. We will endeavour to respond to all enquiries as quickly as possible.
On Monday we will post on the website and FaceBook the arrangements to collect packages, dongles and/or laptops for students who are receiving one or more of these items.
Thank you for your continued support.
Regards,
Louise Barnott-Clement
Principal
Ambarvale High School