Students will continue to attend the school at which they are enrolled.

If a student is unwell they must not attend school.

Yes. Schools have resumed regular teaching and learning for all students and normal roll marking arrangements are in place.

Where schools identify students who have not returned to school-based learning, schools will follow up with parents and carers to discuss reasons the student has not returned and to implement supports to ensure attendance.

Schools have been identified as low risk in relation to the spread of COVID-19.

The decision for all students in Queensland to return to school is supported by Queensland's Chief Health Officer and aligns with Queensland's Roadmap to easing COVID-19 restrictions.

The decision is also informed by advice from the Australian Health Principal Protection Committee (AHPPC).

Schools will continue to ensure physical distancing and high standards of health and hygiene are practised on-site.

The following measures continue to be in place to support this.

Health and hygiene

• Students and staff showing signs of illness or feeling unwell must not attend school
• Parents or carers will be contacted to collect any student that becomes unwell whilst at school
• Practising regular effective hygiene protocols, including washing hands with soap and water or using hand sanitiser and covering coughs and sneezes
• Increased cleaning frequencies of high-touch surfaces such as light switches, door handles and drinking water fountains/bubblers (students are encouraged to bring their own water bottles for personal use)
• Regular cleaning of playground equipment and play materials
• Use of school facilities such as swimming pools, hydrotherapy facilities and gymnasiums may be limited.

Physical distancing

• Physical distancing of 1.5 metres required by all adults
• Restricted access to school grounds by adults, including parents, carers and visitors
• Parents and carers should contact the school or their child's teacher by phone or online wherever possible
• Adults must not gather in and around school grounds, car parks, school gates, outside classrooms and in office environments
• Use stop, drop and go or similar facilities wherever possible
• Supervision at school gates and during movements between gates and classrooms, including at drop-off and pick-up times
• Technology used for gatherings, meetings and assemblies wherever possible.

No, in school settings students who are 18 years or older are able to interact at school in the same way as their younger peers. They are required to follow the same health and hygiene protocols required of all students.

Each school will continue to actively manage routines and protocols in and around the school. Physical distancing measures between adults remain in place and it is important that we all continue to practise these measures.

While the AHPPC advises that physical distancing is not required for students during classroom activities, schools may continue to use additional strategies to decrease contact between classes and year levels, minimise gathering points and maximise airflow (considering weather conditions and other safety factors) like:

• using larger, alternative locations or classrooms within the school
• making use of outdoor learning spaces
• staggering lunch breaks, start and finish times.

Schools will continue to manage their timetable arrangements locally, including changes to previous schedules, and will communicate any changes with parents and carers.

Any child who is showing signs of illness such as COVID-19 symptoms, or feeling unwell, must not attend school.

If a child is showing signs of illness at school, the school will contact the parent or carer to collect the child.

As advised by Queensland Health and the Chief Health Officer, anyone who develops a fever, cough, sore throat or shortness of breath should contact their doctor or call 13HEALTH (13 43 25 84).

Health support will continue to be provided to students attending school. As well as practising and promoting high standards of hygiene, schools will ensure that staff use personal protective equipment (PPE) for specialised health procedures as advised by Queensland Health.

If your child has not returned to school, you must notify the school and discuss an appropriate approach to your child continuing their learning with their teacher.

Students who are unable to return to school due to medical reasons will be supported by their school, just as they would in the case of any extended medical absence.

This includes students where a medical practitioner has advised in writing that the student should not attend school as a parent or other family member has a medical condition that places them at risk.

Schools will determine the most appropriate approach, taking into account the expected duration of absence, the student's learning needs, available tools and resources, and the school's established approach to supporting continuity of learning.

The learning@home website will remain live.

Schools will choose how they report on academic achievement in Term 2 to reflect the decisions made about curriculum delivery in Semester 1. Please contact your child's school if you have any questions about how it will report on academic achievement.

As senior secondary students would be aware, the Queensland Curriculum and Assessment Authority (QCAA) Board removed one of the three internal assessments from the summative assessment requirements for all General and Applied subjects. The QCAA will continue to monitor the impacts of COVID-19 on senior secondary schooling including any changes that might be required to external assessment.

The QCAA's FAQs for students, parents and carers provides further information about the removal of an internal assessment and clarifies that this will not impact the calculation of students' ATARs.

The department will continue to work with QCAA and provide schools with advice regarding Years 11 and 12.

School camps and excursions are permitted to locations or businesses that have an approved COVID Safe Industry Plan or to Department of Education Outdoor and Environmental Education Centres.

For overnight camps, a business will be expected to have a facility-specific, risk assessment and mitigation process in place to manage the risks posed by COVID-19. Mitigation factors may include:

• reducing attendance
• revising sleeping arrangements
  
• minimising the use of shared bathrooms
• staggering dining times
• maintaining physical distancing of adults
• adhering to effective hygiene measures and cough / sneeze etiquette
• implementing frequent cleaning of high touch surfaces such as door handles and light switches.

Principals may approve a camp or excursion to a location or business not covered by an approved COVID Safe Industry Plan, as long as all departmental and Chief Health Officer's requirements such as physical distancing and cleaning and hygiene measures are adhered to.

School assemblies may occur with the principal ensuring that physical distancing requirements are maintained for all adults and other COVID-19 control measures are implemented.

School concerts and musicals may be held as long as physical distancing and effective hygiene measures are adhered to by all participants, including any audience members.

In accordance with physical distancing measures, principals may decide that audiences will be restricted to students and staff only.

Instrumental music programs, ensembles and choirs can rehearse in the school environment provided COVID safety protocols are in place including:

• at least 1.5 metres between singers/players in all directions and no more than 1 person per 4m2
• choir practice should be held outdoors or indoors with open windows and doors or with air conditioning on
• students clean their hands before and after the lesson
• instruments are not to be shared
• students should not face each other when singing or playing wind instruments
• students with wind instruments should have their own spit rag, which is placed under the instrument while it is being played; the spit rag should not be handled by anyone else and should be kept by the student in a zip-lock bag or container.

Inter-school and external venue rehearsals and performances are not permitted at this time.

Shared equipment, such as Industrial Technology and Design (ITD) resources, musical instruments and sports equipment, used within the school and/or loaned to students to take home will require appropriate cleaning and hygiene management practices including:

• washing hands or using hand sanitiser prior to cleaning or using the equipment
• cleaning of equipment prior to and after use
• cleaning of equipment prior to leaving the school grounds and upon return.

The loan of equipment other than books will be considered and assessed by each school on a case-by-case basis. Long term loans are preferred.

Library books and school readers can be borrowed by students and taken home. When returned to the school, books and readers will be managed in line with departmental guidelines prior to being made available for the next reader.

Consistent with the Roadmap to easing restrictions, the department will undertake a staged reintroduction of school sport competitions in Term 3, 2020.

In line with Stage 3 easing of restrictions, schools are able to conduct inter-school and representative school sport programs for both indoor and outdoor sports. Selected Queensland state championships will also take place.

Further information regarding Queensland School Sport, including FAQs, planning documents and a calendar of state championship events, is available to support schools and sports organisers to recommence training and competitions in a safe, responsible and low risk manner that complies with the latest health advice.

Meetings approved by the principal, including staff and P&C meetings, can occur within school grounds, including indoor and outdoor areas, as long as physical distancing requirements are maintained and other COVID-19 control measures are implemented.

Where possible meetings will include options for teleconference or online platforms.

Contractors and visitors such as volunteers and visiting specialists, can make on-site visits to schools with prior notification and approval from the principal.

All adults must comply with the on-site health and safety measures in place, including not attending the site if unwell, maintaining physical distancing and practising good health and hygiene. Any meetings or interactions with staff or other adults must adhere to physical distancing requirements of 1.5m between adults and ensure the room capacity allows for 4m² per person.

Vocational education and training (VET) courses will continue. Registered Training Organisations (RTO) can attend schools to deliver these programs and students can attend RTO sites, as long as physical distancing and effective hygiene protocols are adhered to.

Schools will continue to ensure physical distancing protocols are applied appropriately in all teaching, learning and assessment programs. This may mean that some practical elements may take place in a different way. Where students use shared equipment, strict hygiene measures will continue.

Schools will give careful consideration to allowing their students to participate in work experience programs in line with:

• current Queensland Government COVID-19 advice
  
• students' Senior Education and Training plans
• the necessity to undertake work experience at this time
• the operations of the workplace environment
• appropriate risk assessment procedures.

If work experience is required as part of structured workplace learning, or through a vocational placement, the school will negotiate with the relevant Registered Training Organisation.

Students can continue to participate in their school-based apprenticeship or traineeship if:

• the student remains enrolled at school, whether attending school or learning on-line at home
• the employer can continue to offer employment and on-the-job training related to their qualification and training plan.

Students who are attending a workplace must adhere to all COVID-19 health and safety measures in line with the Chief Health Officer's Health Direction.

OSHC services will continue to operate before and after school and vacation care. This will include on-site or off-site facilities that cater for school age children, such as long day care, family day care or vacation care.

Parents should contact their local OSHC or vacation care provider to confirm arrangements.

Community kindergartens are open and operating as normal.

Programs such as playgroups, early childhood development programs (ECDPs) and KindyLinQ that involve parents on school sites need to follow Queensland's Roadmap to easing restrictions. Physical distancing requirements for adults will remain in place.

Local school decisions around these programs will be made by the principal on a case-by-case basis to ensure the latest health, hygiene and physical distancing requirements are met.

For ideas, activities and resources to use with your children at home, please visit the Playgroup Queensland website and earlylearning@home.

State school-operated residential boarding facilities are open for all students, having satisfied risk assessment requirements.

Arrangements for students to return to state school-operated residential boarding facilities will be made in conjunction with parents and carers.

Boarding students (state, Catholic or independent) who reside in designated Indigenous communities and have not yet returned to their boarding facility, will continue to have their learning program provided by the school at which they are usually enrolled. These students may continue to access their local school where there is a documented agreement signed by both principals.

While usual Queensland Health school dental services including on-site dental vans were temporarily interrupted due to COVID-19 restrictions, most Hospital and Health Services are now offering these services for people who are well and have been assessed by the dental service as low risk of COVID-19.

If your child requires dental treatment, please contact your local Child and Adolescent Oral Health Service for information about their availability, or ask your child's school for information about school dental services in your local area.

The delivery of the 2020 School Immunisation Program was temporarily paused due to COVID-19.

Schools are planning with their immunisation providers to recommence the School Immunisation Program as soon as it is safe to do so.

Eligible Year 7 or Year 10 students, who may have missed their vaccinations in Term 1 or Term 2, can attend any future clinics held at their school during 2020 to catch-up on their scheduled vaccinations.

Schools or tuckshop providers will advise parents of local operating arrangements.

Principals may negotiate the hire and use of school facilities including swimming pools and hydrotherapy facilities, for external users such as community groups, if the external user has met the requirements of the relevant Queensland Health approved COVID Safe Industry Plan. These organisations must be able to provide the principal with a signed Statement of Compliance.

If external organisations, businesses or community groups not covered by an approved COVID Safe Industry Plan want to access school facilities, the principal can assess and may approve the request on a case-by-case basis. A risk assessment taking into account any COVID-19 control measures will be undertaken prior to approval being granted.

The Chief Health Officer's directions must be adhered to by all groups, including physical distancing, cleaning and hygiene measures. Consideration of the level of cleaning undertaken by the external user will form part of the principal's decision making.

Social and physical distancing protocols continue to apply to adults in a school setting. We can all help to restrict the spread of COVID-19 by adhering to these protocols.

Schools will be taking action to limit the number of non-essential adults entering school grounds, as well as implementing new procedures where required to limit the amount of adult-to-adult contact in and around the school. 

There may be:

• different arrangements for pick-up and drop-off
• on-line meetings between parents and staff rather than face-to-face.

Individual schools will make the appropriate arrangements for their community.

Parents can help by:

• minimising the need to enter the school
• not gathering inside or outside the school
• working with school staff to adhere to new protocols or ways of working in and around the school.

Parents can also assist by ensuring their child stays away from school if they are showing any signs of illness or are unwell.

Schools will manage staffing as they normally do. If teachers are unwell or unable to attend school due to health reasons, principals will engage supply teachers as required.

Yes. School staff will continue to be alert to the needs of students as they return to school. If parents are concerned about their child's wellbeing they should contact their school.

Yes. Normal school transport arrangements apply.

Physical distancing requirements are exempt for public transport (including buses) and travel for school related activities such as inter-school sport, excursions and camps. Physical distancing guidelines should be followed at bus interchange locations, pick-ups and drop-offs and on other shared transport services.

Transport operators ensure that buses and high touch surfaces are cleaned according to COVID-19 cleaning and disinfection recommendations.

Due to the customised nature of specialist school transport for students with disability (minibus, taxi or supported bus travel), parents will need to advise transport providers if their child is not travelling. Individual escort arrangements will continue.

COVID-19 has disrupted many aspects of life and this is likely to impact students in different ways. While some students may have flourished and progressed with relative ease during home-based learning, others may have experienced challenges and difficulty. This is also true for teachers and other school staff who had to adapt and rapidly transition to new modes of working during the pandemic.

Teachers are highly skilled at using a differentiated approach to meet the learning needs of a range of students, and this will continue to be a particular area of focus now that students have returned to their classrooms.

If parents or carers have specific concerns about their child's progress or any particular learning challenges that have arisen, they are encouraged to raise them with their child's classroom teacher. Teachers can employ a range of techniques to address these concerns.

The Department of Education has established protocols if a confirmed case of COVID-19 occurs in a school.

We will:

• follow the advice of Queensland Health
• work with the school community to minimise the impact of a confirmed case
• ensure the health, safety and wellbeing of staff, students and visitors are prioritised.

If there is a confirmed case of COVID-19 in a school community, the school may need to temporarily close to allow time for public health authorities to conduct contact tracing and deep cleaning to be undertaken prior to reopening.