Returning to Wynberg Note to our Grade 12s, as we welcome you back to school!
Message from the Principal
Dear Grade 12s It goes without saying that we are so excited to welcome you back to the school campus, and finally to see you face-to-face (or perhaps more accurately, mask-to mask!) And yet I know that you will have realised that the school life that you are returning to will be a far cry from what we are all used to, and love. For the literary souls out there, I suspect after reading the reams of new rules and regulations, you feel as if you are going to be entering a ‘Margaret-Atwood-meets-1984-down-therabbit-hole-type-world’ – and this is certainly not what any of us wished for your final year of school, or signed up for! I am so sorry that it has to be this way.
I have always thought of rules in any society as needing to be linked to one of two things to make them valid – either they are necessary for us to co-exist as a community, or they are in place for the sake of our individual and collective health and safety. In this instance, and for the foreseeable future, the latter will be dominate for obvious reasons. At times, it is going to be feel unreasonable, and almost militant. This is largely because our
'new normal' - as it keeps being referred to as – in many respects goes directly against our human nature: the desire to greet someone by hugging them, or being able to see someone’s smile, or simply being allowed to ‘hang out’ with those whom we love, talking nonsense and sharing our hopes and dreams for the future … rather than trying to unpack what is and is not permitted on which level, and how to do grocery shopping in a safe and responsible manner! For me, the saving grace is that we are all in this together – not just as a school community, or a nation, but on a global scale. We didn’t want it. We certainly didn’t order it. But here we are, and it is what it is … for now. As a result, there is no one who has not found themselves pushed far out of their comfort zone in the past 10 weeks. And now you are being called upon, as the Matric Class of 2020, to venture even further into ‘the unknown’ by being the first to return to class. One of my constant mantras in life has been: change is stressful, change is inevitable, and change is an opportunity for growth. My wish for you is that somewhere in all of this you have an opportunity to discover new aspects of yourself, and that you grow in strength, courage and compassion from these experiences. Stay safe, stay well, and we will see you on Monday! Warm regards Ms J Wallace
What should we do before leaving the comfort of our homes? Every morning, self-screening is a very good idea. If you are not well, stay at home.
These are the important questions: Do you have a cough? Do you have a fever? Do you have a shortness of breath? Do you have a sore throat? Within the last 14 days, did you have direct contact with someone known to have contracted Coronavirus (COVID-19)? Do you have a temperature of above 38°C?
If your answer is "YES" to any of these questions, then, as much as we'd love to see you, please stay at home.
What are the school hours? The school gates will open at 7:00 and will close at 17:00.
What happens at school?
What if I need to be isolated?
Your health and safety is a priority for us. Please help us by wearing your face mask to school.
If your temperature is above 38°C, we will take you to our isolation area and we will contact your parents to inform them of the situation. We will take your temperature, again. If it remains high, your must be fetched so that your parents can do what is best for you. Should your temperature be normal, you will be allowed to go to your class.
You will come into the school through the Aliwal Gate entrance, and make your way to the door of the hall closest to the stage. Your teachers will be on duty to welcome you. They will also ensure that social distancing is maintained at all times, oversee the screening process which includes the answering of a questionnaire, e-thermal testing and sanitisation. Once you've received clearance and earned your colour-coded sticker, you can go to your first lessons. If you arrive before the main building of the school is opened at 7:30, Music Room 7 will be available as a space for you to wait in until 7:30.
Do I wear my uniform? No, you do not have to wear it unless you would like to. You have the option of wearing civvies, your uniform, or sports uniforms, without mixing and matching them! We do encourage you to dress warmly: ventilation is a high priority in classrooms, and so windows and doors will remain open.
Week 1Â
Week 2
What happens at the end of the day? We will be staggering the leaving of your individual classes at regular intervals (on a rotational basis) to minimise congestion, details of which will be provided, and really would like to enlist the support of your parents in picking you up at the appointed time, as far as is humanly possible. Our guiding principle is to be on campus for the purposes of face-toface teaching only, and so our preferred option at all times is that a lift is organised for you at the end of your academic day. Please remember though that the school is closed at 17:00.
What safety measures are in place? Clearing the screening process earns you a colour-coded and dated sticker! On the first day, all of you will be supplied with two additional masks. Foot pedal sanitisers and hand sanitisers have been purchased and have been strategically placed in high traffic areas such as the entrances and bathrooms and at the entrances to offices and classrooms. You will need to sit in the same seats and desks in each venue for your lessons so that we minimise the spread of the virus. Please could you bring three cloths for the purposes of sanitising these specific desks and chairs? Numbers in all areas will be controlled to enable social distancing to be practised. While you will sanitise your own desks, we will sanitise and clean the remaining areas.
Changes to your
Creating our new
school space
norms together!
We will need to keep left in the corridors, and follow one another at a safe distances. Breaks will be taken in the classrooms. Please bring your own snacks for this purpose, since the Wynburger is closed. Feedem is in the process of developing an app, so that you will soon be able to have prepackaged and pre-ordered meals brought to you. Limited areas of the school are open.
These protocols have been put into place to keep everyone safe. That being said, if we discover that something is not working, or we need to put something into place that we had not thought of, then let us know as we continue to recreate our lives, and ensure that Wynberg remains a very special school of which we can all be proud!
And remember EVEN THOUGH
SOCIAL DISTANCING IS OUR NEW NORM, WE ARE ALL IN THIS
TOGETHER!