James Cook Boys Technology High School logo

James Cook Boys Technology High School

James Cook Boys Technology High School

Empowering Young Men Through Innovation

Telephone02 9587 1770

Emailjamescookb-h.school@det.nsw.edu.au

Previous Messages from the Principal

Scroll down to see all previous messages - 2020, 2021, 2022 & 2023

  • General information
  • Homework Club Revamp
  • New Home Learning Policy
  • Google Classroom to Support Home Learning
  • HSC holiday workshops
  • P&C Fundraiser

  • JCBTHS Football Team
  • NAIDOC Week Celebrations
  • Attendance Matters
  • Remember to visit the school website regularly

Download the latest Principals' Message here

  • Term one wrap up
  • Open Evening
  • ANZAC Day
  • New STEM building
  • HSC holiday workshops
  • Year 7 and 9 Camp
  • SRC Induction and Easter Morning Tea
  • P&C Fundraiser
  • Term 2 School Development Day
  • Ramadan
  • Important Dates
  • Remember to visit the school website regularly

Dear Year, 7 Parents and Carers

This is JCBTHS’ first edition of a new publication to inform parents of what information and events have taken place over the previous week and what is coming up.

The purpose of this communication is to provide parents with information about what your son’s have experienced during the week and how you can assist them to be prepared and organised for daily and upcoming events.

It has been an absolute pleasure getting to know you and your sons during the previous week and we look forward to strengthening the relationship between parents/carers and staff during this term and for the duration of your son’s time at JCBTHS.

Download Edition 1 here

Principal's message end of Term 4 - 2022

The end of Term 4 Principal's message can be viewed/downloaded here

Contents

1. Thanks for your support 5. Collection of TTP and school loan laptops 9. Important dates for 2022
2. Year 6 to 7 Transition Day and Year 5 Taster Days 6. P&C Morning Tea 10. Term 1 2023 dates
3. Raging Waters Excursion 7. Activities Week - December 12th Week 10 11. Staff changes
4. Positive news story 8. Presentation Day  

The start of Term 4 Principal's message can be viewed/downloaded here

Contents

  • 12th December (Week 10) Activities Week
  • Presentation Day
  • Important dates for 2022

  • Welcome to Term 4 and upcoming HSC details
  • Year 12 Graduation
  • SRC Induction and School Captain induction

  • Term 1 2023 dates
  • Visit our Facebook page or school website for updates, information, news, and pictures of school activities

James Cook Boys Technology HS, in conjunction with Moorefield Girls HS, will be hosting Year 5 Taster days in the coming weeks for our local feeder Primary schools.

  • Monday 21 November - Rockdale PS
  • Tuesday 22 November - Arncliffe PS and Kyeemagh PS
  • Friday 2 December - Ramsgate PS
  • Monday 5 December - Brighton Le Sands PS
  • Friday - 9 December - Carlton South PS

The start of Term 3 Principal's message can be viewed/downloaded here

Contents

  • Welcome to Term 3
  • Year 7 and 9 Semester 1 parent teacher report evening
  • Year 8, 10 and 11 Semester 1 parent teacher report evening
  • Rewards excursion
  • Year 12 - Term 3
  • Year 11 - Term 3
  • P&C Evening
  • New staff
  • Excursions and activities in 2022
  • Building update

Dear JCBTHS Parents,

Welcome to Term 2 - 2022

Change to Covid Close Contact guidelines

Students and staff who are close contacts can attend school as long as they wear a mask, RAT test negative everyday and have no cold or flu like symptoms. You must contact the school office if your son is identified as a close contact.

If a student tests positive, they must isolate for 7 days. Upon returning they need to be symptom free and wear a mask for 3 days when they return to school,  parents will need to notify the school.

As with last term, no one can be on the premises if they have cold and flu like symptoms.

If you require additional RAT test kits, please have your son attend the student services office to collect them.

If you have any questions, please contact the school office on 9587-1770

Kind Regards

Mark Marciniak 

Principal

27/04/2022

The Term 2 Principal's message can be downloaded here

Contents

  • Term 2 - halfway point of the term
  • NAPLAN Years 7 and 9
  • Semester 2 Reports and Parent Teacher Evening
  • Year 6 Robotics Transition Project
  • New Student Support Officer
  • Excursions and Activities in 2022
  • Wednesday Sport

Change to School Operations

The NSW Teachers Federation has called for a 24-hour strike for Wednesday the 4th of May 2022 in relation to the Teachers Award.

As a result of the strike action our school will be non-operational on Wednesday 4th of May.

The Department’s learning from home resources will be available for ongoing curriculum support. You can access these at https://education.nsw.gov.au/teaching-and-learning/learning-from-home

Students should learn from home for the day and return to school on Thursday 5th May.

If there are further changes, I will update parents and caregivers immediately.

Yours sincerely

M. Marciniak

Principal

JAMES COOK BOYS HIGH SCHOOL P&C is fundraising through Return and Earn

Thank you for your past support in fundraising via Return & Earn for improvements to the School’s quadrangle.

The P&C has a new fundraising campaign under Charities on the Return & Earn App so you can continue to donate the 10 cent refund on eligible drinking containers at any Return & Earn vending machine to “James Cook Boys High School Parents & Citizens Association”. 

Download the Return & Earn App and create a login, under Charities search for “James Cook” to find the P&C’s fundraising campaign “Quadrangle Equipment & Facilities Upgrade”, click on the icon to read the campaign information and then select “Set as Payout”.

Watch the video on the School’s Facebook page to see how easy it is to donate.

We urge everyone to get involved in turning rubbish into a resource!  Your ongoing support is highly valued.

Irene Omeros

President

The End of Term 1 Principal's message can be downloaded here

Contents

  • Term 1 challenging but rewarding 
  • Year 9 Camp
  • Year 7 Camp
  • Year 12 2021 Graduation Evening 
  • Year 6 Open Evening
  • Year 7 meet the teacher moved to Tuesday 5th April 
  • Easter morning tea and Easter Egg hunt

  • ANZAC Day
  • Term 2 important dates
  • Requirements for Term 2
  • Health precautions for Term 2
  • Unwell at school 
  • What happens when a student tests positive for COVID-19
  • What we offer - items for sale via the Student Services Office

Successful Opening Evening 2022

Thank you to the parents and prospective students who attended our Open Evening last night.

Despite the terrible weather we had a great turnout.

If you were unable to attend and would like to find out more about our great school please call 95871700 to organise a time for a personalised school tour.

The start of Term 1 Principal's message can be downloaded here

Contents

  • Welcome back to school for 2022 
  • Welcome Year 7 
  • Extra-Curricular/after school activities 
  • Grant applications 

  • School carpark 
  • School procedures 
  • What’s happening in Term 1 

Dear parents and carers,

Welcome to a new school year, an exciting time as our students start or return to their school journey. I want to share how we are building on our experiences of the last 2 years and continuing to safeguard our school community while keeping our school open, where we know the best learning happens.

We will start 2022 with a layered approach to COVID-smart measures that have been developed in partnership with NSW Health to help to minimise transmissions at school. The health and wellbeing of our students and staff remain our priority, and these measures are designed to help to keep our school open and our students learning in the classroom.

Please take the time to download the information sheet covering the key measures the school will follow to ensure a safe learning environment, information regarding Rapid Antigen testing, how and when the RAT kits will be available plus additional relevant information.

Kind regards

Mark Marciniak 
Principal

Download from here

RAT Collection

The end of Term 4 Principal's message can be downloaded here

Contents

  • End of term preparation
  • Check-in assessments
  • STEM Garden
  • Properties update
  • P&C Contribution

  • Extra-Curricular projects
  • School Captains 2022
  • HSC Exams
  • Staffing
  • Preparing for 2022

Dear Parents and carers

I hope you are all back into the swing of learning from home for the beginning of Term 4. This term will see a lot of changes as we gradually transition back to face-to-face learning as the Premier announced in the adjusted return to school plan last week. Attached are the key dates and details to help prepare you and your family for the return, including some changes in the staged return to school.

'Return to School' plan can be downloaded here

Sincerely 

Mark Marciniak, Principal

The end of Term 3 newsletter can be downloaded here

Contents

  • COVID update and return to school
  • Student and family wellbeing
  • Learning from home
  • NAPLAN 2021 results

  • Year 10 subject selection interviews
  • Stage 5 Elective Choices
  • School Captains 2022
  • New staff

The end of Term 2 newsletter can be downloaded here

Contents

  • Year 7 Meet the Teacher
  • NAPLAN 2021
  • Elite Athlete Program (EAP)
  • P&C Information
  • Primary School Robotics Program
  • Building work
  • Shopfront theatre program

  • Drama Club
  • Year 7 to 11 parent and teacher evening
  • National Consistent Collection of Data on School Students with Disability 2021
  • Winter Uniform
  • Rewards excursion
  • Staff information

Thank you for your ongoing support this term.

Term 1 2021 has definitely been an extremely busy and at times challenging term for our students, staff and parents and we are looking forward to the opportunity to have a break. 

In Week 1, school photos of all the students were taken and on Thursday 1st of April, the last day of school photos were issued to the students who attended. For any students who were not present at school on the last day of term their photos will be provided to them on the first day they resume Term 2 (Tuesday 20th April). 

The newsletter can be downloaded here

Contents

  • Year 9 Camp
  • JCBTHS Open Evening
  • Swimming Carnival
  • Year 7 Camp
  • Year 7 - Meet the Teacher
  • School Athletics Carnival
  • Easter Morning Tea
  • Sustainable Schools Grant
  • 2021 - 2024 Strategic Improvement Plan
  • P&C News
  • Great loss to our community
  • Student drop off, pickup and car park access

Thank you for your ongoing support this term. 

Just a reminder that school resumes for all students on Tuesday 20th April. Student timetables always start on Week A when they return from holidays.

Welcome back to all our students, and a special welcome to our Year 7 students who have joined our community. I hope that everyone had a restful and safe holiday break. 

Although we have only been back for over a week it seems everyone is working frantically to get all the planning done for a very busy first term.

The newsletter can be downloaded here

Contents

  • Principals Message
  • Welcome to our new teaching staff
  • Covid 19 update
  • Year 7 -  information that has been provided to Year 7 students and a list of whole school upcoming events
  • General Information including upcoming P&C Annual General Meeting (AGM)

Welcome back to 2021

Dear parents and students I hope you had a restful and safe holiday. Just a reminder that school starts for Years 7, 11 and 12 this Friday 29th January. Years 8 ,9 and 10 will start on Monday 1st of February. The school will be open Wednesday and Thursday for staff. If you need to contact the school the front office will be open from 8am Wednesday 27th January.

P&C Annual General Meeting (AGM)

The proposed date for the P&C AGM is Wednesday 24 February 2021 at 5:30pm for a 6:00pm start.
Venue: James Cook Boys Technology HS Staff Common Room.

The following representative positions will be elected at the meeting.

  • President
  • Vice President
  • Secretary
  • Treasurer
The meeting agenda can be download from here.
 

Kind regards 
Mark Marciniak 
Principal 

JCBTHS External Validation 2020

In Week 2 of this term our school participated in our School External Validation process. This was our second External Validation, in 2015 JCBTHS was involved in the pilot program. The External Validation process is a mandatory evaluation that all schools in NSW are required to complete over a four year cycle. The school assesses/evaluates its performance against the Department of Education’s School Excellence Framework (SEF) using collected annotated artefacts and evidence that demonstrates it performance against the SEF. The process involves school representatives presenting the collection of evidence to a panel to validate the schools self-assessment.  This year due to COVID social distancing the panel meeting was completed remotely. This was an extremely valuable opportunity for the school to reassess the progress it has made during the current School Plan 2018 to 2020. The External Validation panel agreed on the school’s self-assessment that we are “Sustaining and Growing” or “Excelling” in all of the elements in the Domains of Learning, Teaching and Leading. 

School Plan 2021 to 2024 Strategic Improvement Plan

After the completion of the External Validation the School Executive (Principal, Deputy Principal and Faculty Head Teachers) continued to collect student performance data and analyse the schools performance in NAPLAN, VALID (external testing in Year 8 and 10 Science), Year 10 grades, Year 11 grades and HSC performance during the last five years. To compliment this data the school also gathered student feedback using focus group meetings from cohorts in Year 7 to 12. All of this information will be used by the school to develop its new strategic directions and projects for our new school plan, now known as the school’s Strategic Improvement Plan (SIP) 2021 to 2024. The draft plan will be presented to staff and parents early next term for implementation in Term 2 2021. 

Orientation Day

On Tuesday the 1st of December JCBTHS held our Year 6 to 7 Orientation Day. This year due to some of the COVID restrictions still in place around social distancing and the increase in student enrolment numbers in Year 7 2021 we provided buses to transport students coming from our local primary schools. The day was great success with students participating in a science lesson and Co2 gas propelled cars. We provided information packs to all Year 6 students to take home to their parents and also placed all the information on our School Website along with a welcome video to Year 7 students and their carers.

Activities week

Week 9 Tuesday 8th December to Friday 11th December students participated in Activities week. This was one of the first opportunities for most students this year to be involved in activities outside of school. Students in Year 7 and 10 participated in a variety of activities ranging from swim school, sporting activities, movies, beach sports and transition programs at school. Year 11 completed immersive learning sessions for their first Year 12 HSC assessment tasks. 

Presentation Day

Will be held on Tuesday the 15th of December. Unfortunately we will not be having any parents or special guests attend this year due to social distancing. I do appreciate that there are provisions where parents and guests can attend school grounds, however a school based decision has been made this year to proceed with presentation day in this manner. This year we will be having two presentation day ceremonies, Year 7, 8 and 9 and Years 10 and 11. The two ceremonies will be videoed and will be made available to parents shortly after the day. A link will be forwarded to parents to access the video. 

Student Semester 2 2020 Academic Reports

Congratulations to all the students for their perseverance and commitment to learning during a very difficult year. Semester 2 Yearly 2020 reports for Years 7 to 10 will be issued via email and posted to all parents and carers on Tuesday 15th December.    

Teacher Professional Learning Days 2021

Next year there will be two student free or Teacher Professional Learning days at the start of the year (Wednesday 27th and Thursday 28th January) compared to the previous one day. Year 7, 11 and 12 will commence on Friday 29th of January 2021. All other students will return to school for their first day on Monday the 1st of February 2021. The school will be open for any enquires from Wednesday 27th January 2021 if you need to make contact with the school.

The last day for all students for 2020 is Wednesday 16th of December. Office staff will be available on Thursday 17th and Friday 18th of December if you need to make contact with the school.

I would like to thank all our parents and carers for your ongoing support throughout this year. On behalf of JCBTHS we wish you a Merry Christmas, a safe and restful break and a Happy New Year. We look forward to seeing and hearing from you in the new year. 

Kind regards
 
Mark Marciniak 
Principal

Dear parents/carers,

I hope you are all well. Earlier this week new guidelines were published to schools around mitigating the risk posed by COVID-19 to our school communities. Please see the information below which is an extract from the website listed at the bottom of the page. 

In accordance with advice from NSW Health, parents and carers are reminded NOT to send children to school if they are unwell, even if they have the mildest flu-like symptoms. Schools will make arrangements for students who present as unwell or have flu-like symptoms to be sent home.

NSW Health have requested that schools encourage anyone who is unwell or has even mild flu-like symptoms, to arrange to be tested through their local medical practitioner or one of the COVID-19 clinics.

Students and staff with flu-like symptoms will need to provide a copy of a negative COVID-19 test result before being permitted to return to school.

Schools are not required to conduct widespread temperature screening or mandate the wearing of a mask.

 https://education.nsw.gov.au/covid-19/advice-for-families

I appreciated your cooperation to ensure that we work together to make our school and community a safe place. Should you have any questions please contact me.

Yours sincerely 

Mr Marciniak 
Principal 

Message to parents,

A continued approach to maintaining a hygienic environment

I would like thank all parents/carers and students for working together to ensure we all prevent the spread of colds and flues this season by maintaining good hygiene practice at school and staying at home when feeling unwell. At school students and staff have access to sanitising products in every classroom and in common areas and we encourage students to wash their hands regularly during the day and to bring their own refillable water bottles.  If you have any concerns regarding your son’s health please do not hesitate to contact me.  

Semester 1 Academic Reports

Year 11 and 12 academic reports were issued at the end of last term.

Year 7 – 10 reports will be issued during this week. Due to Social distancing parameters we are unable to hold a face to face parent/teacher interview evening. As an alternative we will be providing parents and carers the opportunity to obtain feedback regarding their son’s Semester 1 progress via phone conferencing. An online booking system for parents/carers will be available for them to book a phone interview with their son’s Year Advisor and classroom teachers. Further information regarding the online parent/teacher interviews will be provided to parents/carers when   the academic reports are issued. 

In addition to Year 8 and 9 students receiving their Semester 1 academic reports and the opportunity to obtain teacher feedback  students and their parents will be provided with information regarding subject elective choices for Year 9/10 2021. This information will be provided to students in Years 9 and 10 and a copy will also be posted home with the academic reports. There will also be an online presentation explaining the subject elective process.

All Year 10 students will also be selecting their Year 11 subjects for 2021 in Weeks 6 and 7. Year 10 students in addition to receiving their Semester 1 report will also be provided with a Subject Selection Information booklet. Year 10 students have already received information regarding transitioning from Year 10 to 11 and have had the opportunity to meet with the Careers Advisor to develop an individual transition plan for 2021. Parents/Carers will receive a copy of the Subject Selection Information booklet to allow parents/carers the opportunity to discuss options with their son’s prior to having a phone conference with the school panel. The panel consisting of the Deputy Principal, Carers Advisor and the Year 10 Advisor will assist students and parents/carers through the subject selection process for Year 11 subjects. Further information will be provided regarding how to book for the panel interview. 

Year 12 2020

Year 12 HSC candidates have been provided with their Trial HSC Exam which will be commencing in Week 6 (24th August) and running until the end of Week 7 (4th September). Homework club recommenced on the 3rd of August and all Year 12 students are encouraged to attend. Year 12 and 11 students have been offered another homework club day, every Thursday to further prepare students for their upcoming exams. Year 12 students have also been provided information on how to access their individual HSC exam timetables. To support Year 12 student to meet their post school goals students will be individually supported by the School’s Careers Adviser to ensure they have relevant information relating to post school goals as well as a personalised support to complete university applications, early entry options and UAC Educational Access Scheme assistance. This year, Year 12 students will be receiving their HSC results and their ATAR on Friday 18th December which is the official last day of Term 4 2020. We encourage all students to participate in the opportunity to diligently work on finalising their post school transition planning well before this date as it will be difficult to access staff on the 17th and 18th of December due to the majority of staff finishing the school year on Wednesday 16th December. 

If parents or carers would like further information regarding information or support for their son’s transition from school to post school destinations please contact the Careers Advisor, Ms Julie Blatchford, Year 12 Advisor Ms Smith or myself. 

The school is still in the process of discussing the available options for a Year 12 Graduation. Traditionally our Year 12 Graduation Ceremony consisting of a formal dinner with students, parents and staff that takes place in the last week of Term 3. Due to the current situation around social distancing and following the advice from the Department of Health and the Department of Education we are considering alternative options. Further information will be provided to Year 12 students and parents and carers within the next couple of weeks. 

Student Representative Council (SRC) 2020

In concluding I would like to congratulate all the students who were successful in our SRC elections that took place earlier in the year. Unfortunately we were unable to hold our SRC induction ceremony at the end of Term 1. However we will be holding a small induction ceremony at school and providing the successful boys with their SRC badges. The SRC for 2020 will run for an extended period of time due to delayed nominations. The period will extend into Term 2 2021 to provide students with the opportunity to lead and be part of school events that would normally happen. We are also looking at ways in which our SRC can have alternative opportunities to demonstrate their leadership skills through online workshops and media releases. 

I would like to congratulate all of our students for their commitment and perseverance toward their learning during Semester 1. Despite the unprecedented challenges that they have had to overcome they have conducted themselves in a mature manner and adapted and overcome any adversity during a time of great uncertainty. I would also like to thank the parents and carers for their ongoing commitment and support toward the school and trusting us with the care of their sons.   

JCBTHS P&C 

Due to social distancing guidelines and the advice from the Department of Education schools are advised to restrict non-essential people visiting the school. Following this advice we are looking at alternative options to enable us to conduct non face to face meetings.  Our next scheduled P&C meeting is on 19th August 2020. I will be discussing possible alternatives to face to face meetings with the P&C committee this week. Once a decision has been made I will advise all parents. 

Co-Curricular Activities

 I am pleased to announce that Homework Club has commenced along with STEM Club. I encourage all students to take up the opportunity to attend Homework Club, to complete any unfinished work, homework or work on assessment tasks. Our teachers are there to assist the students along with ex students who are currently attending university. Homework Club is on every Monday from 3 to 4pm in the school library and adjoining rooms. An additional day (Thursday) has been provided for Year 11 and 12 from 2:10pm to 3:30pm. 

This term in STEM Club students have the opportunity to develop their skills in Minecraft, LEGO Robotics or working with the Virtual Reality kits (VR). STEM Club runs every Tuesday afternoon from 3 to 4pm. All students are welcome to attend, please remember to obtain a note and return it to the front office. 

Sincerely,

Mark Marciniak
Principal

1. A copy of the email sent to parents can be downloaded here

Dear parents/carers,

As you are aware all schools have returned to full-time on-campus learning. With updated health advice and changes to state and national restrictions, schools are able to recommence the majority of school-based activities from either 15 June 2020 or the start of Term 3 (20 July 2020). For detailed information please see attached document.

Semester one academic reports will be issued for Year 11 in Week 10 Term 2, the week starting the 29th of June. Reports will be emailed to parents and a copy will be posted home. There will be an opportunity for parents to contact their son’s classroom teachers by phone to receive feedback on their son’s progress. Teacher parent contact information will be provided in the email to parents when the reports are issued.

Semester one academic reports for Years 7 to 10 will be issued later than usual. Students will have their reports issued to their parents email address and a copy will be posted home before the end of August (Week 6 Term 3). Parents will be notified via text message closer to the date. It is uncertain at this stage if schools will be able to hold face to face parent teacher report evenings. Further advice will be provided to parents next term.  

For the remainder of Term 2 students will be participating in their non-contact alternate Wednesday Sports. Sports options will be reviewed for Term 3 in line with updated health advice later in the term.

Schools remain to be safe places with all students and teachers encouraged to maintain healthy hygiene practise by regularly washing hands and using hand sanitisers that are situated in every classroom and in sporting areas. 

I have noticed that there has been an increase in the number of parents dropping off and picking up their son from school. If you have to drop your son off in the morning please ensure that he is at school well before our 8:43am start time. If you are picking your son up after school it is essential that you arrive at least 15 minutes before the school day ends to ensure that motor vehicles are not trying to come in to the school carpark whilst students and vehicles are attempting to exit. JCBTHS is very fortunate to have access to a school carpark that parents can enter and we need your assistance, patience and care to ensure that we can manage the traffic in a safe way.

Just a reminder that all students are required to bring their laptop fully charged to school as part of their learning equipment. We greatly appreciate your assistance in this matter. 

Should you have any questions regarding the above information please do not hesitate to contact me. 

Yours sincerely,

Mr Mark Marciniak
Principal

Dear parent/carer,

Thank you for your ongoing support during the last two weeks as students have been making a gradual return to face to face learning. 

As you would be aware the Premier and the Education Minister officially announced on Tuesday morning that all students will be returning to full-time face to face learning on Monday 25th of May. 

As announced the best outcome for students is that they are back at school. Schools continue to be safe and operations are in line with AHPPC guidelines and all students are expected back at school unless they are unwell or have a medical certificate to support their absence.

From Monday 25th of May all students will resume learning with their subject specific classroom teachers and will follow their original timetable that was issued to them at the start of the year. 

School structure and most activities will recommence, with some minor exceptions. School incursions and excursions will not occur during Term 2. Work experience programs, inter school activities including competitive sport, TAFE classes and school camps will all be suspended until further notice. 

Wednesday sport for students in Years 7 to 10 will be reallocated with students able to make new non-contact sport selections for the duration of Term 2. Sport options include table tennis, tennis, volley ball, cricket, softball, participation in STEM Club, music and other activities.  Students will select their new sport on Monday 25th May.  Further information regarding sport selection for Term 2 will be provided early next week. 

To ensure schools are safe enhanced cleaning will occur during school hours with additional cleaners targeting high touch areas, sinks, lockers, stairwell railings, outdoor seating areas and the library space. 

Cleaning and hygiene supplies have been provided to the school to ensure all students and staff are regularly using hand sanitiser when they enter a room and cleaning tables/chairs and practical lesson equipment with disinfectant wipes.    

It is recommended that all students bring their own water bottle that they can refill. The canteen will be open during recess and lunch. Students can also bring their own food and reheat it using the schools microwave ovens. Students are also expected to bring their laptop to school to assist their learning. Any student that does not have a laptop will be provided a school laptop to use for the day or if needed for an extended period of time. 

For further information from the NSW Department of Education regarding students returning to school please refer to A guide to NSW school students returning to face to face learning

Should you have any questions or wish to discuss your son’s return to school please contact me on 9587 1770.  

Yours sincerely,

Mr Marciniak
Principal
21/05/2020


 1. A copy of the email sent to parents can be downloaded here

2. A copy of the Face_to_Face_Learning_Guidelines_for_Families can be downloaded here

Message to parents/carers,

I hope that you and your family are well. Following up from our previous correspondence dated 24th April 2020 I would like to outline our plan to support students returning to face to face learning  starting from Monday 11th May (week 3 Term 2).  In response to the NSW Department of Education's “A managed return to school” document phase 1 (see attached), JCBTHS will be holding classes to allow each school year group to return for at least one day a week (see attached). During week 2 Monday 4th May to Friday 8th May the school will continue to be operational for students who need to attend, however as advised in our previous correspondence, the majority of students will continue to learn from home until week 3.

Students who are present at school from week 3 on their designated day/s will be continuing to work on their learning materials that have been provided for them through Google Classroom.  Students will have the opportunity to work with their classroom teachers and ask questions and receive feedback on their current work. When students are not attending school on their designated day/s or if a student is absent they will continue to complete their Learning from home work (Google Classrooms) and follow their new learning timetable from home. Students will receive their new learning timetable on their first designated day of attendance in week 3.

To ensure that students and staff are safe, smaller class groups will be established, student movement across the school will be reduced, additional cleaning will occur during school hours and hand sanitisers and hygiene products will be provided in every classroom and across the school. Students and staff will follow good hygiene practices that will include frequent hand washing, maintaining physical distancing, covering face and nose when coughing or sneezing and refraining from attending school if feeling unwell or presenting with any flu like symptoms. 

Students will be required to wear their school uniform (not their sport uniform) on their designated day/s. Students will have to bring their own digital device for learning, in exceptional circumstances students will be provided with a loan device. The school canteen will be operational for students to purchase food and drinks and the microwave ovens will be cleaned and accessible for students to use. It is recommended that every student either bring their own water bottle or purchase a water bottle from the school canteen to reduce the risk of virus transmission from the water bubblers. There is a water tap in the canteen area to allow students to refill their water bottles.  School will commence as per normal at 8:45am and finish at normal times. 

Student designated days will be Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday. Wednesday will be a non-designated day for student attendance at school to allow teachers time to prepare work for their online classes. If parents are unable to support their son’s Learning from home on Wednesday or any other day of the week the school will be open to support their learning. However where possible it would be greatly appreciated if students can attend only on their designated day/s.

We are looking forward to seeing your son return to school in phase 1 in week 3 term 2. Further information will be distributed regarding the implementation of phase 2 and onwards as it becomes available. 

I do understand that this is a complex situation and that you may have questions and individual concerns that you may need to discuss, if so please contact me or your son's Year Advisor directly on 9587 1770. 

Yours Sincerely

Mark Marciniak, 
Principal


1. A copy of the email sent to parents can be downloaded here

2. A copy of the Managed return to school for families guidelines can be downloaded here

3. A copy of the Return to school poster can be downloaded here

Message to parents/carers,

I hope that you and your family are well and coping during this very unusual time.

As you may be aware the Premier and Minister for Education on Tuesday 21st April made an announcement regarding School operations in Term 2. The details of the announcement were that Term 2 will begin as it finished in Term 1. The majority of students will continue to learn from home, schools will be open and operational from Wednesday 29th April (an additional professional learning day Tuesday 28th has been provided for teachers) for students that need to attend. But where practical parents are encouraged to keep their children at home.

From week three of Term 2 (Monday 11th May) there will be a phased approach to have students reintroduced to some face to face learning at school. Phase 1 of the approach will have students attending at least one day per week. Learning from home will remain an integral component of the phased return to face to face learning as we will be operating a dual mode of supervising a reduced number of students on site and at home. Provisions will be in place to enact social distancing measures as the reduced number of students attending each day will allow us to maintain smaller class sizes and manage student movement. 

Specific operational information including the designated day your child will be attending face to face learning, a provisional timetable for learning, equipment requirements and hygiene practices regarding phase 1 return of students starting Monday 11th May (week three) will be provided to all families within the next week. 

For further information regarding student transition back to the classroom in Term 2 please visit our school website and access the “from the department” section.

I do understand that this is a complex situation and that you may have questions and potential individual concerns that you may need to discuss, if so please contact me directly from Monday 27th April on 9587 1770  

Yours Sincerely

Mark Marciniak, 
Principal

1. A copy of the email sent to parents can be downloaded here

2. A copy of the Managed return to school for families guidelines can be downloaded here

Message to parents/carers, 

Thank you for your ongoing support to assist your son in transitioning to our Learning from home platform during the previous week. 

Download latest update from the Principal here

Dear Parents/Carer

On Wednesday 25th March we emailed parents information specific to each year group regarding Learning from home. Follow the link to the generalised version of information. https://bit.ly/2JcpRlt If you have not received the email please check the 'Junk' or 'Spam' folder for your email client.

Dear Parents/Carers,

In regards to the Premiers announcement this morning urging parents to reconsider sending their children to school, classrooms will remain open (please refer to recent media releases)

JCBTHS is transitioning to Learning from Home to provide all students with a continuation of their learning. I have addressed the students this morning and will be meeting with the staff this afternoon to provide them with the latest information and to prepare them to go online.

Parents/Carers will be texted further information in the next 24 hours regarding how they can access their son’s Google Classroom accounts and continue to follow an online study timetable.

Should you have any questions please call the school.

We look for to your cooperation in supporting your sons learning during this time.

Yours Sincerely 

Mr Marciniak
Principal