The campus is alive! The sound of children’s voices is ringing through the corridors and in classrooms once again! Smiling faces, excited chatter and the sounds of activity are welcome aspects of all the children’s return.
Thank you to the parents for your part in the children working remotely; as teachers we very much appreciate the time and effort that you expended over the course of the lockdown. We understand the intricacies of running a family, facilitating your children’s online learning and working from home; a big congratulations on making it through! We also thank you for the smooth transition back to school, particularly in relation to the new protocols for drop off and pick up.
The staff would formally like to thank the CDPA, as representatives of the Donvale community, for their very generous acknowledgement of the staff’s educational and emotional support of the children during the online learning experience. Breakfast was catered by the CDPA Committee and enjoyed by all staff on Tuesday, in line with current precautions of course.
The attributes we regard as important in learners have been highlighted and strengthened in all members of the Carey community throughout these extraordinary times. From the communication and collaboration of the staff; the reflection, resilience and imagination of the children; to the courage and connectedness of the rest of the community, we have grown as individuals and as a community in our knowledge and resilience. What a great community we belong to!
Staff updates
With the end of the term quickly approaching, we would like to acknowledge a few staff changes. Jeanette Jennings, one of our wonderful art teachers, has decided to take the rest of this term and all of Term 3 off on long service leave. We wish her well as she spends time with her family. Replacing Jeanette will be Kylie Crampton, who stood in for Jeanette early in Term 1. Kylie has come highly recommended, has experience working in schools as an Art teacher and has worked closely with Jeanette on community projects. We welcome Kylie to the Donvale team.
As the term draws to a close, we wish Elisa Carroll all the best as she prepares for an exciting new chapter in her life in Vietnam and thank her for her contribution to Carey Donvale. Elisa’s position at Donvale will be shared by Rebecca Yeates and Sandra Trevorah, both well-known and well-respected teachers in the Donvale community. Rebecca will be relinquishing her role in Year 5 on a Wednesday, and will teach the Year 4 students on Monday, Wednesday and Thursday, with Sandra teaching them on Tuesday and Friday. They will be closely working alongside Kelvin Finger for the rest of the second semester. Taking over Rebecca’s role in Year 5 will be Jacob de Paiva, a young teacher with a well-known surname, who will work in a team with Kathryn Mann and Andrew Raines.
We also farewell Mary de Felice who has been our art assistant over the last few years. Mary has loved working with the children in the art room and has provided us with many fantastic displays throughout the School. Mary and her family will be sorely missed, but we wish her every happiness for the future.
As the end of the term fast approaches, we wish everyone a safe, restful, happy and well-earned semester break!
Margaret Adams
Deputy Head of Junior School Donvale
