Principal's News

Dear Parents & Parishioners,

Welcome to a new school year.  On behalf of the staff I also extend a special welcome to all the families who have joined the OHR community this year.  We hope that in a realitvely short matter of time you will begin to feel 'right at home'. 

During the Christmas & New Year period, I was fortunate to be able to holiday in Europe with my wife Janet.  While settling down to sleep one night when in Copenhagen we decided to watch some BBC Sport on the TV.  The program featured a retrospective on the development and rise of Erling Haaland, a professional footballer who is the striker for Premier League club Manchester City and the Norwegian national team.  Currently he is considered one of the best players in the world. 

The documentary focused on the early life of Erling Haaland playing football in his parents' hometown of Bryne, Norway.  Bryne is only a small town consisting of approximately 12,000 residents.  Our attantion was captured by the way the town embraced all those who wanted to play football by ensuring they all learned valuable life lessons from a very early age.  Some of these lessons are captured in the following quotes:

“The role of the football club is to keep people active, to be a social place for the kids.  It’s not necessarily a meat grinder to get the most talented footballer up there.

So the emphasis is on things like how to behave and be a good teammate.”

Journalist

“Erling was gentle, nice funny but he was one of the 40.  For us it was all about developing the human being first and after that, the football thing.”

Former coach

It made me reflect, that when we strip everything away, aren't these the very qualities we want developed in our own children regardless of what interests they pursue?

You might be interested in watching the following YouTube clip, The Making of Erling Haaland, which contains the key points of the documentary.

An Exciting Year Lies Ahead

While the school staff officially resumed on Monday, many had returned throughout the month of January to prepare their classrooms and plan for the exciting term ahead.  Last year's MACSSIS data reflected that our staff attained a very high score against ‘Collaboration in Teams’.  Seeing the groups of staff coming in during the holidays to meet and work with colleagues, and communicate and plan online,  is a testament to that great score.  It speaks volumes of their commitment to the students in their care.

During Monday's meeting we took the opportunity to welcome: Mrs Margaret (Margie) Maher, who joins the Year 5/6 team and will be working on Mondays and Tuesdays; Mrs Nicki Durrant who will be working five days per week as a Learning Support Officer; Mrs Danielle Willis who returns from Parental Leave to re-join the Year 3/4 team on a part-time basis; and Mrs Julia Widdeson who is taking on the role of Library Technician in the LRC.  

Throughout both Tuesday and Wednesday, Mrs Michelle Hollow met with each of her Prep (Foundation) children in a 1:1 environment where each child received a personal orientation and completed some assessment tasks.  The parents also had the opportunity to individually meet with Michelle for a brief period of time where they had the opportunity to share valuable insights about their children.

Today, we officially welcome our Prep (Foundation) students as they commence their first day of schooling at OHR: 

Isaac A, Sebastian A, Esther B, Zara C, Lily C, Eleanor C, Ruby D, Edward F, Aspen G, Annabelle K, Gracie L, Joshua L, Esther L, Esther R, Felix R, Romily T, Thomas VH, Imogen W and Leonie Z.

As always, I encourage every current family to take the opportunity to introduce yourself to any new families and make them feel ‘at home’ and a part of our vibrant school community.

2024 OHR Staff

It gives me great pleasure to provide our staffing arrangements for the 2024 school year:

Prep:   - Michelle Hollow (5 days)           

1/2:     - Tina Hautot (4 days)/Penny Hansen (1 day)      

             - Lana Gill (3 days)/Lisa Canty (2 days)

             - Mary Dening (5 days)

3/4:    - Carmel Pettinato (3 days)/Aria Karagiannis (2 days)    

             - Esther Jackson (3 days)/Danielle Willis (2 days)

5/6:    - Cara Mitchell (4 days)/Nick Byrne (1 day)

            - Kate Mackay (3 days)/Margaret Maher (2 days)

Yr. 3-4 Mathematics Co-teacher: Nick Byrne

 

Staff holding leadership positions in the school include:

Principal:                                   Frank Dame

Deputy Principal:                    Nick Byrne

REL / Learning & 

Teaching Leader:                    Nick Byrne

Mathematics Leader:            Penny Hansen

Literacy Leader:                       Lisa Canty

Student Wellbeing Leader:  Lisa Canty

Learning Diversity /

Pastoral Care Worker:          Carmel Pettinato

 

Digital Technologies 

Manager:                                  Josephine Harrison

Literacy Intervention:          Meaghan King

Specialist Teachers:            Science: Stephanie Axon

                                                     STEM: Stephanie Axon                                                  

                                                     Phys Ed & Fitness: Jo Golds

                                                     Performing Arts: Jon Bode

                                                     Languages (Mandarin): Chao-Ying Li

Administration Officer:       Heather Neil

Library Technician:               Julia Widdeson

Learning Support Officer:   Deidre Campbell

Learning Support Officer:   Rosha Vincitorio

Learning Support Officer:   Lana Nikolic

Learning Support Officer:   Themi Manou

Learning Support Officer:   Nicki Durrant

Student Leadership 2024

Leadership is about the art of motivating, influencing and directing people so that they work together to achieve the goals of a team or broader organisation.  It’s important for students to experience leadership opportunities during their schooling, to learn the art of building relationships within teams, defining identities and achieving tasks effectively.  It also provides an opportunity to learn to identify and display effective communication and interpersonal skills. 

I take great privilege in announcing the Year 6 Student Leaders for the 2024 school year:

Operoo

In 2024, OHR will transition to using the Operoo system for all medical and permission forms. Operoo provides a simple (and paperless) way for parents/guardians to sign forms and safely share emergency and medical data with schools. Many parents may already be familiar with the system as it is used at a lot of schools and clubs. More information for parents can be found by clicking here. 

Parents will receive an email this Friday (2nd February) from the Operoo system for Our Holy Redeemer asking them to sign up or create an account. Simply follow the instructions to create your account. You will then be able to respond to forms and receive messages from the school on any device, including PC’s, tablets and smartphones. There is also an easy to use App. 

Parent Information Evening

Next Thursday, 8 February, class teachers will be conducting Parent Information Sessions in which teachers will outline the procedures relating specifically to their classroom and, therefore, the approach to your child’s learning during 2024.  Sessions will run for 25 minutes.  As parents and teachers share joint responsibility for the education of our children, we would expect that at least one parent attend your child’s information session.  The sessions will be conducted in your child's classroom/learning area.  At 7.00pm all parents are warmly invited to attend a special presentation in the Hall on Maths at School, Maths at Home by Michael Ymer who is a highly regarded Maths Consultant.  As some families have a number of children spread across various levels, the information session times will be staggered throughout the evening:

• 6.30pm: 1/2 level
• 7.00pm: Mathematics - Michael Ymer  To be held in the hall
• 7.30pm: 3/4 level
• 8.00pm: 5/6 level

Note:  Parents are strongly encouraged to attend the session with Michael Ymer, as this is an invaluable opportunity to learn how to support your child with Maths in a supportive and engaging environment.  Please refer to the Learning & Teaching page in this Newsletter for more information.

Parent-Teacher Conversations

Please refer to the Learning & Teaching page further in today's Newsletter for details.

Assembly

The first whole school assembly will be held this Monday 5 February commencing at 8.45am in the hall.  Parents are warmly invited to attend.

2024 Parent Gatherings

Late last year we invited families to open up their homes to host one of this year's Parent Gatherings, which are traditionally held during Term One.  Thank you to the following families for quickly responding to the invitation to host one of the evenings.

• Prep - Yr 2 Parent Evening: 23 February 2024 at the Lewis' home
• Yrs 3 & 4 Parent Evening: 1 March at __________________
• Yrs 5 & 6 Parent Evening: 15 March 2024 at the Love's home 

We now only require one family to open up their home to host the Yrs 3 & 4 Parent Evening on 1 March 2024.  Remember, hosts only need to supply the home and some ice.

Child Absences

• In order that the safety of all children at OHR is met is met during school hours, it is important that student absences are reported to the school by phone or email prior to 8.45am on the day of absence. All registered schools must record student attendance twice per day and note the reason for each absence.  This is necessary to: (a) meet legislative requirements; and (b) discharge the school’s duty of care to all students.  To this end, and for your child’s safety, we ask for your assistance with this important matter.
• The staff at the school must be able to account for the absence of a child, so please ensure that any emails providing the reason for the absence are sent to both Heather (ohradmin@ohrsurreyhills.catholic.edu.au) and the classroom teacher.

Parents will always be notified when there is an unexplained absence.  

Child Safe Standards

Our Holy Redeemer School has developed and actively enforces Child Safety Standards to ensure that every person involved in ‘child connected work’ is aware of their obligations and responsibilities for ensuring the safety of all children under their care.  In accordance with the requirements of the Victorian Government's Ministerial Order No 1359, Our Holy Redeemer School maintains a culture of ‘no tolerance’ to child abuse. To achieve this it has established a holistic Child Safety Strategy.  A link to Our Holy Redeemer’s Child Safety Standards is located on the School’s website.  The Standards include the School’s Child Safe Policy.  A Child Safe Standards page can also be found towards the end of the Newsletter.

In accordance with Ministerial Order No 1359, all parent volunteers are required to complete and return to the School Office a signed copy of:

• Child Safety Code of Conduct

This document will be emailed home tomorrow.

• A current Working With Children Check needs to be brought to the Office in order that it can be verified and photocopied.  The Card MUST be displayed at all times when volunteering at School in any capacity.  Upon expiry of the Working With Children Check, legislation requires that you obtain a new card and have it verified at the school office    

2024 OHR Photo Day

School Photo Day will be Monday 26th February 2024. Click on link below for online ordering instructions as online ordering is now available. 

Wishing everyone a great weekend,

Frank Dame