Welcome
Wawa, Wominjika.
Here at Old Orchard Primary School, we acknowledge the traditional custodians of the land we visit each day, the Wurrunguri and Woiwurrung people of the Kulin nation. We acknowledge and respect the elders and leaders past and present and the elders and leaders of all of the cultures and nationalities that are part of the Old Orchard Primary School community. We express our gratitude towards the orchards that were kept in place by the peoples on this land before us. We thank the traditional owners for sharing this beautiful land that we all love, and for keeping the land, sky, waterways and animals all in great condition for thousands of years, not only for themselves but for all the generations to come.
Pupil Free Day
Our staff had an extremely productive day on Tuesday with teaching and education support staff coming together for a day of learning, reflection and forward planning. A feature of the day was a session with Education Expert and Consultant, Bronwyn Ryrie Jones. Along with other schools, we will be working closely with Bronwyn throughout this year focussing on explicit and responsive teaching.
The nature of schools means that opportunities to reflect on our practices and consider how we might improve various elements of our school are rare. Pupil Free Days provide us with those opportunities when we are not curtailed by rushing off to the next class or meeting. Thank-you to our school community for always being so supportive in this space; I hope that you were able to take advantage of the extra long weekend and do something special as families.
Congratulations Albert On the King’s Birthday holiday, Year 5 student, Albert W, competed in the Contemporary Popular Piano Grade 3 / 4 category at the Ringwood Eisteddfod. Albert was awarded a Silver Medal for placing second, performing “I Still Called Australia Home.” Albert is a passionate musician who works extremely hard to maximise his natural talent and we are extremely proud of his accomplishments. |
Bookfair Prize Winners
At last week’s assembly, we drew the winning tickets for the Prep/Kinder category and the Year 1/2 category for the Bookfair - Open Night competition. The lucky winners were Joseph R from Prep BF and Quinn M from 2AG. Joseph and Quinn took home fantastic prize packs including a selection of books and other ‘goodies.’ The Year 3/4 and 5/6 winners will be chosen this week.
Team Kids
I am very pleased to announce that the School Council has approved an extension of our agreement with Team Kids as our Out of School Hours Care provider. The Agreement will continue through to the end of 2029.
Cross Country
Congratulations to our five Year 6 students (Tom M, Wesley T, Ivy R, Lily B & Kotomi L) who participated in the Region Cross Country Championships at Yarra Glen Racecourse yesterday. The students ran extremely well and should be incredibly proud of their efforts competing against strong and highly talented athletes.
Preps at Old Orchard
Our Prep students have had a couple of very busy and exciting weeks. They have had visits from the Fire Brigade, as well as paramedics (special thanks to Old Orchard parents, Tim & Katrina!) The students learnt important safety practices and how to call for emergency services, as well as other important information.
This week, they celebrated Milo’s Birthday Surprise, a special milestone in the Little Learners Love Literacy program, with various literacy themed games and activities.
Front Entrance Update
The contractors continue to make slow but steady progress. There is nothing significant to report at this stage but we will hopefully have some updates and photos next week!
End or Term arrangements - assembly & early dismissal
Term 2 concludes on Friday June 26th. There will be a whole school assembly commencing at 1.50pm, with students dismissed from classrooms at 2.30pm.
The sad passing of Neale Daniher was a powerful reminder of the impact one person can have, even when faced with a terminal condition. There has been much written about Neale and how he refused to sit back and be defined by his illness, but instead opted to ‘Play On.’ What an incredible person he was.
I particularly loved the words of Neale’s daughter, Lauren, when speaking at Neale’s State Funeral.
‘Dad always said that when life throws you a challenge, you have two options. You can flourish, or you can fold.’
There are powerful lessoons in these words for us all, whether the challenge is relatively small or life changing.
VALE Neale Daniher.
Warm regards
Duncan