With great excitement, our Year 4 students returned to onsite learning. We asked the Year 4 students about their first day back.

My Return to School… Year 4B

I woke up this morning before my alarm and I jumped out of bed as today was the day we returned to school!
I placed my feet on the ground with some wobbly legs, as I had not been up this early in quite some time.
I got dressed rapidly into my school uniform, of which I had not worn for months. Now realising that I must have grown as my uniform looked a bit too small for me and my shoes had shrunk.
Breakfast time, a full day of learning ahead, meant toast, cereal and a boiled egg. I grabbed an Up and Go as well and drank it on the way to school. I asked my mum to drop me to school early so I could see my friends before school started.
When I arrived at school, I grabbed my heavy bag full of my class books and walked up the main entrance. Then I saw them… My Friends!
I could not help myself but scream their names! I resisted with all my urges to hug them to remain COVID safe.
Chatting away, playing in the piazza, exploring the grounds, things finally felt back to normal.

During The School Day…Year 4A

I was so excited to enter the classroom and hastily unpacked all my books. There were so many books to bring back, and after unpacking, my bag was as light as a feather.
My mouth and nose felt stuffy, covered by a mask but I knew that they were important to remain safe. We talked as a class about hygiene and what we need to do to stay safe at school.
In the back of our room was a curious white machine. I wondered what it was. It looked like an air conditioner but we found out that it was a purifier and we named it Sammy. Sammy likes to blow out cold air, especially over the back row. 
I could finally ask questions face to face. Unfortunately, my teacher could now see if I was raising my hand and I could not use ‘technical difficulties’ as an excuse.
My teacher does not have a mute button any more and now has to ask us to be quiet.
The moment we left the classroom for recess and lunch I could see the smiles gleaming in everyone’s eyes. We had separate play spaces and had to stick to our areas.
I was glad to be rid of daily overviews and spending less time on a screen. It was a great opportunity to ask as many questions as I liked.
It was great to have all the resources that I needed to complete my tasks all day, and not have to search my entire house and bug my parents to find what was needed.
It felt fantastic to be back at school, seeing all my friends and teachers.

End of the Day… 4C

I was thoroughly exhausted and sad because the day had come to an end, after so much anticipation. My throat was so sore from talking with my friends all day and my feet felt like they would never feel normal again as I had done so much running and playing. When my parents came to pick me up, I was so talkative that my parents said their ears were hurting. My day was so much fun and so I just wanted my parents to know everything that I had experienced. I am so happy to be back at school with all my friends and teachers and I can’t wait until tomorrow.

Nicola Connelly - Teacher