Fáilte ar ais

Dear Parent / Guardian, Staff Member,

RE: Fáilte ar ais

The BoM and School Staff are looking forward to welcoming all our pupils and parents / guardians back to school for the 2020/2021 school year on Thursday next, 27^th August.

We are satisfied that we have control measures in place to ensure that this will be a safe re-opening. It will take some time for all of us to get used to the “new circumstances” as we become familiar with the new routines and procedures designed to keep everyone safe and to prevent the spread of the virus. There will, undoubtedly, be some unforeseen challenges and we will deal with these as they arise.

We would like to thank you for your co-operation in making preparations to date and look forward to working with you as we assist the children adapt to the necessary changes. We are also conscious of the fact that our pupils have not been in school since March and that they are looking forward to coming back to school to meet their friends again. We are aware that our new pupils are beginning a school year at a challenging time and have made plans to ensure that their arrival will be as free from stress as possible.

The following are some important points to remember for the coming weeks.

· Boys do not bring school bags to school. They only carry their lunch in a clear plastic bag.

· Everything that your son brings into school in the lunch bag will be disposed of in his class. Do not send in water bottles etc that need to be brought home.

· Everything will be in your sons class that he needs. Copies, colours, pencils and books etc so they do not need to bring anything to school. Any pencils or colours that you have at home keep them at home for working there.

· Please also remember that we operate a healthy eating policy in O Connell Primary. Chicken fillet rolls are not part of a healthy eating plan and are not allowed in the school.

· School starts at 8:50am on Thursday for 3^rd-6^th class. All classes go home at 12:00 o clock this Thursday. Friday will be a normal school day for 3rd to 6th class from 8:50 to 2:30

· School is from 9:30am-12:00 this Thursday and Friday for 2^nd class.

· When bringing your son to school we have new drop off and collection procedures. Parents leave their son at the drop off point and leave the yard. Parents are asked not to congregate in the yard.

· Parents driving into yard please do so with care and follow the new drop off route. You son gets out of the car and goes to his class line and you continue out of the yard. There will be no parking in the yard during morning drop off.

· Parents will not be allowed to enter the school for any reason on Thursday or Friday. From next Monday anyone wishing to visit the school can only do so with an appointment.

· Any family who have visited a foreign country in the past two weeks must contact the school before sending your son back to school.

· If your son is displaying any symptoms of covid 19 they must stay at home and seek medical advice.

· Pupils in primary school are not allowed to wear face masks.

· There are many new procedures in school. Please speak to your son about his behaviour and make sure he tries to listen carefully when teachers are teaching them the new way of entering school and working in the class and in the yard during break time.

· All uniforms must be collected from the school tomorrow afternoon. The secretary will call you with a time to collect.

We hope to post a short video with a lot of this information tomorrow. If you have any questions please contact principal@oconnellprimary.ie.

le meas,

Chris Purcell Michael McHugh

Chairperson of BOM Principal