Latest Government Information
You will have heard by now the announcement by Boris Johnson that he hopes it will be safe enough to begin opening school by March 8th.
This may have struck fear into the hearts of many of you and we can certainly appreciate that!. We all carry the pressures of work, of family and of self-doubt. And yet, in a time you are dealing with so much, you reach out to us to thank us, praise us and generally help us feel recognised. Please know we do the same for you. We recognise how hard this is. We can’t change what is happening, we wish we could, but we hope we can help you not to feel alone. We are so pleased you know we are still here trying our best to help and support you and our children by staying in touch and staying connected.
I also understand that many of you by now are really starting to feel the pressure of children perhaps not as engaged with work and pushing boundaries… again, please know that we are here to support you and teachers are happy to speak to you/your child, email you with ideas/strategies and generally try to help any issues you may be trying to overcome to support your children at this time.
Also know that we are 100% behind your decision to keep your children at home through this most dangerous of times. We are all only too aware of how prevalent this virus has become. We do not know how much the children can pass this virus between themselves and others. We are being reminded every day to stay at home and we fully support all those families who are struggling, against so many difficulties, to ensure that this is what you are doing for the safety of everyone.
A reminder also that we close for half-term on Friday February 12th at 1.30pm. During this time home learning will be paused and will recommence on Monday 22nd February. This will be an opportunity to give everyone a well deserved break and a chance to relax a little more within your family ‘bubble’. (Let’s just hope the weather begins to improve too!)
Rapid COVID-19 Testing for Primary School Staff
The DfE have now arranged for all staff in primary schools to be tested for COVID-19 on a regular basis, regardless of whether or not they are displaying symptoms. Up to one in three people who have coronavirus are asymptomatic. This testing is to identify those people who might be infected without knowing. It is important for everyone that we try and break the chains of transmission in order to keep everyone safe. For Blackpool schools this has meant that this week we have been asked to begin our testing. For Our Lady of the Assumption Staff this means that from now on we will be accessing Rapid Lateral Flow Tests twice each week.
What are the implications for our school bubbles?
If your child is attending school during the national lockdown this may affect the bubbles at very short notice. With regular asymptomatic testing the likelihood of closing year group bubbles increases as any staff who are asymptomatic with COVID-19 are detected. Therefore you need to be aware that, if a member of staff tests positive for COVID-19, this would mean closing year group bubbles at very short notice. An isolation period of up to ten days would then be required for all close contacts, typically all adults and children in that year group.
How will I be informed?
A Teachers2Parents app message will be sent to parents as soon as possible (before 8.30am) if this is going to affect your child coming into school that day. We therefore suggest that you take time to now consider how you would manage a short notice bubble closure and a move to home education and self-isolation. Do you know all your child’s passwords to access online learning? They have separate password for the following platforms; Dojo Registration, , TT Rockstars, Bedrock, IXL etc. Please check these passwords are readily available at home, if you need any help with these please email your child’s class email.
If your child attends school remotely during the national lockdown
We want you to be aware of the testing as this may mean that there is an impact on remote education. If a member of staff tests positive for COVID-19 this may lead to a change of staff in the online team and a subsequent change to your child’s current learning timetable..
How will I be informed?
We will send a Teachers2Parents text message to everyone in the Year group. This is more for your information than action if your child is not in school It is worth remembering that we remain in national lockdown due to the prevalence of the COVID-19 virus and related strains that have now been identified. Although this rapid testing is on set days and identifies asymptomatic people, staff in school may also need to self-isolate or leave online learning due to their own health and in response to symptomatic testing. This can impact with year group bubble closures or changes to the online education at very short notice and at any point in the week or the weekend. As before symptomatic testing continues alongside the rapid lateral flow tests taking place.
Support for accessing online learning
StoryTime Online https://www.booksfortopics.com/storytime-online
With access to libraries, classrooms and bookshops limited for many, Storytime have been busy finding some of the best online storie for children to access freely at home. The QR codes and links in the document link to story readings on Youtube and all of the books that are chosen are read aloud by their fabulous authors and illustrators.
If you can get your child to engage in nothing else… reading is the key!
COVID-19 Staying Safe Online :
Advice for parents and carers
Schools, colleges and childcare providers are currently closed to most pupils. Daily routines have changed, with many working and studying from home. We understand there may be more concern from parents about the safety of their children online. It is important for children and young people to stay both connected and safe online. Remember to make use of parental controls and to talk with your children. Reliable information on COVID-19 can also be found at www.gov.uk/coronavirus.
Make use of parental controls
If you have downloaded new apps or bought new devices like web cams or tablets, remember to adjust the privacy and security settings to suit you. There is technology to help you manage the content your children can access: Government has encouraged Internet Service Providers to help parents easily filter content. Switch on family friendly filters to help prevent age inappropriate content being accessed on devices in your home. Parental controls put you in control of what your child can see. Internet Matters has step by step guides on how to set these up. If you are concerned or upset about something your child has seen online: Seek support from the online platform using the report function on the app or website—you can often find these in the ‘help’ section or ‘settings’ or seek support from other organisations and helplines. The UK Safer Internet Centre offers a service, Report Harmful Content, which you can use if you are not satisfied with the result of a report.
Have a conversation with your child about staying safe online
Most children have a positive experience online, accessing educational resources and entertainment and connecting with friends and family. Spending time online can be very beneficial for children, particularly at the moment, but we recognise that many parents may worry about online safety
Reduce the risk.
The UK Council for Internet Safety has guidance on minimising children’s exposure to risks online. The UK Safer Internet Centre with Childnet International has specific guidance on under 5s.
Talk to your child.
Childnet has guidance for parents and carers to begin a conversation about online safety and Ditch the Label teacher resources that can be helpful for parents to discuss cyberbullying and the government also has helpful advice. Encourage your child to speak to you or a trusted adult if they come across content that makes them uncomfortable.
Importance of monitoring/restricting social media use.
We have an increasing number of parents raising concerns about children’s inappropriate use of mobile phones and other forms of social media messaging and usage.
When used correctly social media has many benefits. When used incorrectly social media can cause upset and anxiety for adults and for children. Research says that children can be affected in many ways – they feel unhappy, vulnerable, left out, bullied, can’t sleep and lose confidence.
This is clearly something that we all want to protect our children from. Incorrect or inappropriate use is very often texting on mobile phones to individuals through group chats. We talk often about this in school but it remains the responsibility of ALL parents to manage and monitor their child’s usage of mobile phones and wider internet usage.
Many sites have age restrictions; eg facebook, you tube, Instagram, snap chat, musical.ly - this is to prohibit and ultimately safeguard primary school children from having their own authorised use.
Often peer pressure persuades children that they must have a mobile phone “because everyone else has” OR to join a social network group. This pressure can equally persuade parents to buy children a mobile phone for their child or children. OR to overlook age restrictions on sites. As parents it is entirely appropriate to say “no”. If your child does have a phone (or i pad or tablet or lap top) some simple but important safeguarding messages are:
Set guidelines for when your child has use of their phone or device and what they can use it for
check usage and messages for appropriateness
restrict access to certain sites
age restrictions on sites are there to protect and safeguard children, check and if in doubt say no!
keep phones downstairs and not in bedrooms
remove the privilege of a phone or device if it is used inappropriately
Remind children that digital media leaves a digital footprint; this means that messages and images are stored and are traceable. Think what you say and post
Use sensibly and safely – look after each other and yourself
We will continue to support this through our internet safety teaching for all pupils - but most importantly… BE KIND! At this strange, difficult and particularly unnerving time it remains everyone’s responsibility to ‘treat others as you would like to be treated’ and kindness and empathy are the most vital of virtues to show to others at this time.
Let us pray that we can all make changes for the better during this time and that we can place our hope and trust in God who is (whether we realise or not) taking us by the hand and supporting us through these dark days.
