Kia ora students and whānau,

Welcome back to Term 3!  We are looking forward to welcoming all students back to school on Monday. As you will be aware, we are still navigating the uncertain times that the presence of COVID-19 and winter illnesses in our community brings. 

Masking up for the start of Term 3 

For the start of Term 3, 2022, the Ministry of Education and Ministry of Health has strongly recommended that all schools and kura require mask wearing in all indoor settings for all students and staff. This will be in place for a minimum of 4 weeks. 

In previous years, we have found there is an increase in winter illnesses in schools at the start of Term 3 as students bring back infections after travelling and socialising during the holidays. This year cases of COVID-19 are increasing in most parts of the country, and we are also seeing high numbers of other winter illnesses.  

The requirement for mask wearing will not apply where it is not practicable or would have a significant impact on teaching and learning. This means students will not be required to wear masks while eating and drinking, playing certain musical instruments, indoor sport, PE and singing, dancing or drama performances. In these situations, we will ensure there is good ventilation during the activity, and physical distancing where practicable. In addition to this we have air purifiers in place where we have high student numbers and mask wearing may be limited. 

Wearing masks can reduce new cases of the virus by as much as 53%. It works alongside other measures including vaccination, good ventilation, staying home when sick, and hand washing and other hygiene measures, to protect our students and staff.  

Keep up healthy habits – Unite Against COVID-19

Adult-sized masks can generally be adjusted to fit older children by tying knots in the ear loops. Unite Against COVID-19 shows how to do this:

How to wear a face mask safely – Unite Against COVID-19

We know that some of our tamariki/ākonga are exempt from wearing a mask. If they have an exemption card or a letter from their health provider, or we have agreed that mask wearing is not practicable for them, we will support them to not wear a mask. 

Apply for a face mask exemption pass – Unite Against COVID-19

Please make sure that tamariki/ākonga come to school ready to wear masks. Students can bring a mask from home or one will be provided for them at school. 

Additional response to community COVID-19 cases

As New Zealand’s COVID-19 response continues, the cases we have at Kelston Girls’ College also fluctuate in both staff and students. Our teaching and learning model has enabled us to continue running onsite learning through Term 2. This has been of great benefit to our learners with our regular timetable continuing to run uninterrupted. To ensure the health and safety of our school including the

wellbeing of our staff, in line with Ministry of Education advice, we have made the decision to run 4 shortened days over the coming weeks. This will allow us to maintain staff-student ratios and ensure staff have aquadate planning, preparation and assessment time.  The dates are as follows:

• Tuesday 2 August

• Thursday 11 August 

• Monday 15 August 

• Tuesday 30 August 

On these days, school will be open until 1:15pm when all students will depart for the day. We will run all learning blocks and lunch will be provided as usual. The off-site afternoon time can be utilised by students for self directed learning tasks set by their teachers. The school library will be available for any student under the age of 14 who requires supervision until 3:20pm.

ACCORD Teacher Only Day

In addition to the shortened days we are running, and as previously notified, we have a Teacher Only Day on Wednesday 24 August. The school will be closed on this day and no teaching and learning will take place. Our teachers and staff will be engaged in professional learning and development in relation to the NCEA changes which are to be implemented in 2024.  

Thank you for your support in protecting our school and community. 

Ngā mihi nui,

SARAH STENSON

Tumuaki

Article added: Friday 22 July 2022