Sacred Heart Academy Newsletter

Welcome back to Sacred Heart Academy!! We are looking forward to a very exciting and rewarding school year. There have been many questions since the district's release of the Reopening Plans for "A Safe Return to School." This newsletter contains important information that we hope will address the questions you may have about sending your child(ren) back to school. We all recognize that these are uncertain times, information changes rapidly, and we will continue to share that information with you as we move forward.

We also recognize that each student experienced Learning at Home differently. As well, we understand that our students have not been learning in a traditional classroom in over six months. Our staff are prepared to support their transition back to school socially, emotionally and academically.

Our staff has worked very hard to ensure that our building would be ready for opening day. While some aspects of our school may look different this year, we envision a year filled with exciting learning opportunities and many reasons to celebrate.

This newsletter provides you with protocols and practices that are specific to the Sacred Heart Academy learning community and is guided by the Newfoundland and Labrador English School District's "A Safe Return to School Plan" (released August 17), the Newfoundland and Labrador Public Health Guidance for K-12 Schools (released August 17) and the Newfoundland and Labrador K-12 Education Re-Entry Plan (released originally July 6), and will continue to be informed by any updates provided as we move forward. For health advice related to COVID-19 visit NLife with COVID-19.

During the first week of school there will be a staggered opening:

• Wednesday, September 9th - Kindergarten and Grade 5-7 Students Only
• Thursday, September 10th - Grades 1-4 Students Only

All staggered days will take place from 8:15 a.m. - 2:20 p.m.

All students will attend classes beginning on Friday, September 11th.

Please note that all students should use their assigned entrance, as outlined later in this newsletter.

The school district is permitting one parent to accompany their child(ren) to the classroom during the first day of Kindergarten. The parent/guardian accompanying the Kindergarten student will be required to wear a mask and maintain physical distancing. Kindergarten students will enter the school through the K-3 Entrance (see Student Entrances below). Families will wait at this entry point for instructions from staff on when to proceed to the classroom. Entry into your child's classroom will be staggered (beginning at 7:50 a.m.) with a maximum of 5 families in one classroom at one time.

Parents/guardians are asked to use the daily School Screening Questionnaire to determine whether their child is displaying symptoms of illness which suggest they remain home. If the screening questions result in concerns of COVID-19 infection, families should contact their medical service provider, call 811, and/or complete the Risk Assessment Screening Tool available from the Provincial Government’s COVID-19 website.

If a student arrives at school displaying signs of illness, they will be separated from others and accommodated in a designated health room, equipped with appropriate personal protective equipment for both students and staff while they wait for their ride home. It is very important that families have plans in place to get a child home as quickly as possible when they become ill. Sick children will not be permitted to travel on the school bus. The student is not to return to school until medical clearance has been provided.

The classroom placement process is very complex and many factors enter into the decision making process. Our staff takes class placement very seriously. The task for each grade level team is to develop balanced classrooms based on the knowledge they have about their students. We assure you that each grade level team (with assistance of specialists, guidance counselor, instructional resource teachers) takes much time, effort and care in developing class rosters that result in offering all children a quality educational experience. Following are factors that are taken into consideration:

• the program needs of the child (IEP, ISSP, Student Assistant Support, Reading/Numeracy Interventions, etc.)
• a balanced ratio of boys to girls
• a balance of academic achievement levels
• behavior factors regarding each student
• social needs and the compatibility of students with others in the classroom
• independent work habits and leadership skills

Once balanced rosters are created, teachers are assigned by the school administration. Since our number one goal is to create balanced classrooms, we are unable to honor requests for students to be placed with specific friends, teachers or classes. Thank you in advance for your understanding and support of this process and be assured we do all we can to ensure thoughtful placement of each child.

Our school doors will open for students at 7:50 a.m. Students should plan to arrive at school at this time. Students will be asked to proceed immediately to their homerooms upon entering their designated door. See below for a graphic of the entrances that students will use. If a student arrives late (after 8:15 a.m.), they should proceed to the main entrance.

Based on the current low prevalence of COVID-19 in Newfoundland and Labrador, the province’s Chief Medical Officer of Health has indicated K-6 students do not need to wear a mask while seated in classrooms, although students and staff may choose to wear them at their own discretion. Masks will be required on school buses. K-6 students who arrive by bus must wear their mask until they are seated in their classroom, at which point it can be removed, stored and hand hygiene completed. K-6 students will also be required to put their masks on again, in their classrooms, at the end of the day prior to making their way to the bus. Mask wearing will not be required of K-6 students who do not take the bus.

The Provincial Government has recently announced Grades 7-12 students will be required to wear masks in all common areas of schools (including hallways), and if seated in their classroom if a one-metre physical distance (face to face) cannot be achieved. However no student is required to wear a mask if they cannot tolerate it. Public health guidelines indicate this will be closely monitored and if there is a change in epidemiology or evidence regarding COVID-19, the recommendation may change.

Classes within a cohort will make planned washroom visits for hand washing. If children are unable to access sinks for handwashing in a timely manner, hand sanitizer can be used.

Hand sanitizer will be placed in all main entrances and instructional areas. Students should sanitize their hands upon arrival at the school, and as a general routine every hour thereafter. Specifically they should also sanitize hands before eating and before using any type of equipment, along with washing their hands after using the washroom. While the sharing of equipment is discouraged, there will ultimately be cases where common equipment must be used by more than one student. In these cases, hand sanitizer should be used before and after usage. Students are permitted to bring their own unscented hand sanitizer to school.

A "Grab and Go" breakfast program will be implemented, and students will eat in their classroom cohort. The program will serve juice, milk, granola bars and fruit. "Grab and Go" tables will be setup next to the school library and the main office. The breakfast program will begin on Monday, September 14th.

Students in K-7 will eat their lunch in their classroom with their cohort to decrease the contact that would have occurred in a cafeteria setting.

Meals pre-ordered from the cafeteria will be delivered to classrooms by food service workers. Cafeteria service will begin on Monday, September 14th. The cost for a meal is $3.50. Envelopes which includes the weekly menu will be sent home each Thursday for the upcoming week. Please use the envelope system to pre-order your child's lunch. If using a cheque when ordering meals, please make payable to First Venture Cafeteria. We encourage you to contact the school cafeteria at 279-5504 if you have any questions regarding the envelope system.

A no food sharing policy will be enforced, and teachers will not be permitted to assist students opening food packages. Children bringing their own lunch should bring all food in a lunch bag and containers that can be packed in and all remaining food and wrappers will be packed out. Students bringing their own lunch must remember to bring their own eating utensils from home, they will not be provided at school. Please use containers that your child can open independently.

During the pandemic, microwaves will not be available for student use.

Outside food from restaurants or chains may not be delivered into schools since non-essential visitors are not permitted in the school during this time.

Visitors, volunteers, and parents/guardians will not be permitted inside NLESD schools during the COVID-19 public health emergency. The exception to this is parents who may have necessary programming meetings scheduled by school administration. If a parent has to pick up their child, school staff will escort the student to the exit door, where the parent will be waiting outside. When a school visit is essential, visitors will be screened using the School Screening Questionnaire before they enter the school. If a visitor answers YES to any of the questions, the individual must not be admitted into the school.

Lockers will not be used at this time. Student coats, book bags and belongings will be stored inside their classrooms. All student belongings are to be kept in their personal area, i.e., no use of shared spaces such as coat racks or cubbies.

Our school doors will open for students at 7:50 a.m. with homeroom beginning at 8:15 a.m. Each cohort has its own schedule for recess and lunch. School dismissal is at 2:20 p.m. Students will be dismissed by cohorts at staggered times.

Students will be dismissed by cohorts at staggered times. Students will leave the building through the same designated door in which they entered. All teachers will walk ALL students to their buses. Teachers will then take students to the designed area for pick up by parents. Parents are not permitted in the bus area at any time. Students waiting to be picked up will be in clearly marked pick up areas on the walkway at front and rear of the building. Staff will remain with students until all students are picked up. Parents are not permitted inside the school.

For the safety of our students, we ask parents/guardians to be patient and vigilant when driving on the school parking lot and only drop off students at designated drop off areas. We have two Student Drop Off Areas: K-5 Student Drop Off (Primary Entrance) and 6-7 Student Drop Off (Rear Parking Lot). If you drop-off at the Primary Entrance there are two lanes of traffic. The left lane will be restricted for buses. The right lane will be for parent/guardian vehicles. All cars arriving at the school will stay parked in a line until it is safe to move to the drop off area. Children should exit vehicles from the left-hand side onto the side walk and not walk through moving vehicles. Please respect signs indicating No Parking Areas. Once all the students have exited their cars and are making their way to their cohort doors, the cars will be permitted to leave the drop off area and the next group of cars can move in. Once classes begin at 8:15 a.m. students arriving late to school will use the front entrance of the school.

We receive a high number of calls from parents throughout the school day requesting to send messages along to their children with instructions about dismissal. Our office is very busy at dismissal time and once classes begin dismissing for the day we cannot guarantee that a phone message will make it to your child in time. If you must change your child’s dismissal arrangement, please call our office before 2:00 p.m.

School attendance in Newfoundland and Labrador is compulsory up to the age of 16. Regardless of age, however, research is clear that there is a strong connection between attendance and success. Therefore, all students are required to attend class on time and regularly unless prevented from doing so by illness or other legitimate reason.

To enhance our existing absence check procedure, Sacred Heart Academy employs the student absence reporting system called SchoolMessenger Safe Arrival. This system reduces the time required to verify student attendance, makes it easier for parents to report student absences and allows staff to promptly respond to unexplained student absences.

There are THREE ways to report a student absence:

(1) Call the SafeArrival Toll-Free Number: 1-844-408-9360

(2) Use the new SafeArrival website: https://go.schoolmessenger.ca The first time you use the website, select Sign Up to create your account using your email address. Your email address must match the email address on file at the school. Select Attendance to report an absence.

(3) Using your mobile device, download and install the SchoolMessenger app from the App Store (iOS) or the Google Play Store (or from the links at https://go.schoolmessenger.ca). Be sure to download the SchoolMessenger app with the BLUE icon (not the yellow icon). Use your new login information to access your account. Select Attendance to report an absence.

By reporting your child absent in advance using the SafeArrival toll-free number or SafeArrival Portal website/app, you will NOT receive a call.

Sacred Heart Academy is a scent aware building. Some of our students and staff are sensitive to scented products or have conditions which are impacted by scents. We ask that you avoid the use of scented items including:

• perfumes
• aftershave
• cologne
• scented hairspray, hair gels or other styling products
• scented face and body creams, lotions and sprays
• scented deodorant

Within our school community there are several students who have potentially life-threatening allergy (anaphylaxis) to the following foods:

• peanuts/products with peanuts in the ingredients
• tree nuts (e.g. almonds, Brazil nuts, cashews, hazelnuts, macadamia nuts, pecans, pine nuts, pistachios, walnuts).
• kiwi
• soy
  
• egg
• fish and shellfish products

To provide an “allergy-safe” environment for children at risk of anaphylaxis please avoid sending these foods to school. Any minimal contact with these foods and their derivatives may cause anaphylactic shock and unconsciousness within a matter of minutes. In such a case, the allergy may even cause the student’s death. Because even the slightest residue and in some cases even the odor of these allergens may trigger a life-threatening reaction, we need to make the whole school as allergy safe as is practically possible. A “no sharing” policy of food, utensils, containers, straws, etc. is recommended for children with food allergies.

Students will not be permitted to use personal electronic devises (cell phones, tablets, gaming systems, iPods, etc.) while at school. Unauthorized use of these devices disrupts instruction and distracts from the learning environment. If students are to bring cellphones to school to contact home after school hours, they must be powered off and kept in their school bags at all times. If a parent/guardian needs to contact their child in the event of an emergency during class time, we ask that you call the main office and we will assist. Students are permitted to use the school phone located in the main office in cases where they need to call home. Sacred Heart Academy shall not assume any responsibility for theft, loss, or damage of personal electronic devices. Students and parents are urged to give appropriate consideration to what is brought to school.

In accordance with School District policy, all (prescription) student medication must be brought to the office. Prescription medication can only be administered by a parent, or by school personnel with the signed permission of a parent/guardian and a Physician. Permission for the administration of medication to students can only occur once parents have completed the appropriate School District forms. The medication policy forms can be found online at www.nlesd.ca.

To enhance your child’s experience in Physical Education class we encourage families to provide their child with a pair of sneakers designed for active play both in the gym and on the playground. This footwear is not required to be in school every day but certainly should be available for days on which PE is a part of your child’s scheduled routine. Sneakers can be secured with laces or velcro and should fit snugly and comfortably. Children may be unable to participate in some activities if the teacher deems the footwear unsafe.

Our students go outside for outdoor play daily, weather permitting. Students are asked to please dress appropriately for varying temperatures and weather conditions.

When school opens, there will be no extra-curricular activities. More information on this will be released after the school year is up and running.

The following forms that need your immediate attention will be sent home with students on the first day of school:

• Student Demographics Form
• Media Consent Form
• Acceptable Use Policy Form (Kindergarten and New Students Only)
• Emergency School Closure Protocol

Please complete, sign and return the forms to your child's homeroom teacher by Monday, September 14th. If you prefer to submit these forms electronically, please click on the links for each form above.

For more information visit our school website at: sha.nlesd.ca

Sacred Heart Academy

Home of the Sabres

Email: sacredheartacad@nlesd.ca
Website: sha.nlesd.ca
Location: 1 Columbia Drive, Marystown, NL, Canada
Phone: (709)279-2051
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Sacred-Heart-Academy-445779129137917/
Twitter: @SHA_NL