It is count down now until we start back to classes on Saturday 12th September and we cannot wait! We are getting very excited and have been working hard to make sure we have everything in place so that we are able to welcome everyone back safely.

All students have been allocated bubbles in which they will do their classes. Within these bubbles students will be socially distancing and we have put in place various things to help with this. The only bubble that is not expected to socially distance is the pink bubble (3 & 4 year olds).

We have simplified our procedures into a little film demonstration that we would like you to let your child watch before their first class back.

Students need to:

1) Arrive in the correct uniform for their class with a crossover, jumper or sweatshirt/hoodie. We will have the windows and doors open so we will allow students to wear jumpers.
2) Bring their own hand sanitiser. We will have a sanitiser station too if someone forgets but if everyone has their own it will make it easier to control.
3) Bring their own bottle of water. The water fountains will be out of use.

We will not be dancing in face coverings. However, students can wear them to arrive and leave class in if they wish to. We do have social distancing 2m+ outside where the floor spots are placed and they will be walking a very short distance inside the building socially distanced, but it is completely yours and your child’s choice. If your child does wear a face covering to enter the building, please make sure you provide your child with a bag to put the face covering in if it is a reusable one, or they will need to place it in our bin in the hall if it is a disposable one. Also, please teach your child how to remove the face covering safely.

Arrival for classes

Please arrive on time but not early. If your child’s class is before 6pm, the car park gates will be closed. You will need to use the side pedestrian gate next to the car park gate and walk down the path using the one way system.

Hall – As you approach the main entrance you will see coloured floor markers spaced out along the path. Please ask your child to stand and wait on one. There is to be no waiting inside the entrance lobby even if it is raining. This is another reason why it is best to not arrive early.

Gym – Walk around the left outside of the Bowmansgreen School building and outside the fire exit by the gym will be the coloured floor markers spaced out. We will not use the other entrance from the playground next to the gym.

No parents are allowed in the school apart from the parents of the Saturday morning prep ballet classes. We will have to only limit this to one parent per child and we would like to ask these parents to wear face coverings as they bring their child into the hall. (Please see next point ‘coming into the hall’). Children are now more used to seeing adults wearing face coverings in society and I hope that this protective measure supports the health and safety of all parties. We appreciate that not everyone is able to wear face coverings, for a range of reasons.

Coming into the hall/gym:

When it is time to come into class, one of us will come outside to collect the students. They will be directed to walk into the hall or gym and in the case of the main entrance they will be asked to wait for each student to walk through the lobby area before walking through themselves. As each student enters the lobby they will be asked to use the hand sanitiser that is mounted on the wall and then continue into the hall where they are to go straight to one of the blue chairs that are placed around the edge of the hall. In the gym it will be the same but they will use their own hand sanitiser. (If they don’t have their own we will have some positioned on the side). This is where they can put their belongings and change into their dance shoes. If you are worried about your child doing their jazz shoe laces, you can either put on their shoes outside before they enter or thread elastic into the shoes so they just have to pull them on. If a child has difficulty, of course we will help but we will have to put on our face covering and help the child from behind them.

around the edge of the hall. In the gym it will be the same but they will use their own hand sanitiser. (If they don’t have their own we will have some positioned on the side). This is where they can put their belongings and change into their dance shoes. If you are worried about your child doing their jazz shoe laces, you can either put on their shoes outside before they enter or thread elastic into the shoes so they just have to pull them on. If a child has difficulty, of course we will help but we will have to put on our face covering and help the child from behind them.

Dance Time:

Once everyone has their shoes on and ready to start, we will then direct them to a coloured ‘boogie spot’ and the class can start. We will keep reminding students to be aware of their space and where their boogie spot is. The windows and doors will be open for extra ventilation so we will allow students to wear jumpers. Depending on the amount of students in the class in the hall, we will be teaching some of the classes from the stage.

Home time:

At the end of the class the students will be directed to go to their chair at the edge of the hall, change their shoes and collect their belongings. The students will then be directed to go back to their ‘boogie spot’ and then line by line will follow out socially distanced back to the coloured floor markers outside. From here I ask parents to stand well back socially distanced from each other or in their cars. Please make sure that we have seen you and then I will tell the student to go to where their parent is.

Please make sure you are not late for pick up. If you need to speak to us about something, the best thing is to leave a message on my voicemail so that I can telephone you either when I stop teaching or the next day. We will be unable to talk in-between lessons as we have to prepare for the next class.

Cleaning:

We will be cleaning the floor, toilets, the blue chairs and all touch points before we start teaching each day. We will also be cleaning the blue chairs and touch points in between each class.

Health:

It is very important that you do not bring your child to their Excel class if they or anyone else in your family displays any of the Coronavirus symptoms which are: high temperature (37.8 deg C or more), a new continuous cough, a loss of or change in their normal sense of taste or smell.

Instead please book a test and inform us. Tests can be booked online through the NHS
https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/coronavirus-covid-19/testing-and-tracing/