Learning & Teaching

Book Week

Book Week 2024 was a wonderful success celebrating the theme 'Reading is Magic' which truly came to life as students and staff participated in a variety of engaging activities and competitions designed to foster a love of reading.

The week began with our lively Book Week Parade, where students proudly dressed up as their favourite book characters, filling the school with vibrant costumes and creative expressions of beloved stories. Throughout the week, we hosted an array of exciting events. 

The highlight was undoubtedly the Author Visit from Anna Fienberg, who inspired everyone with her storytelling and encouraged us to remember our dreams and write down our feelings and memories. The Library Scavenger Hunts added an element of adventure, while the Spelling Bee showcased the impressive skills of our students. The students took part in Buddy Reading sessions which created wonderful moments of connection through shared stories.

Thank you to everyone who participated and made Book Week 2024 an unforgettable celebration of reading!

Wakakirri

It was a memorable day at the Frankston Arts Centre on Tuesday 20 August, where our Grade 5/6 students showcased their talent by participating in Wakakirri. Months of hard work and countless rehearsals culminated in a performance that truly brought their efforts to life. Each student gave their all, and the result was nothing short of spectacular. We are immensely proud of their commitment and efforts, which shone brightly on stage. The energy and enthusiasm they displayed was exceptional, making the experience unforgettable for everyone involved. 

Judge's Feedback - "Is there nothing OLA can't do!"

OLA Received the following Show Awards

Creative production award for Minimalist Production Design

Ensemble Award for Overall Performance

Lead cast award for Performance in Dancing and Acting

Storytelling Award for a Great Story

Production award for Projection

Ambassador Feedback

"First off, a special mention for the 'paper planes in the sky' song - such a beautiful moment of community and finding belonging! This really made an impact on me. From the very beginning there was a glorious array of stories being told to captivate our attention. This was supported beautifully by projections. Lead bird established beautifully in your intro. I love the use of classical dance to represent the character of your initially outcast lead. This helped us understand the contrast in status within the community compared to the energetic movement and music which followed. Loved the contrast in story-dancing our eagles showed. This made the audience feel something! Such a strong presence from the eagles with well embodied physicality. Puppeteers - commitment with your eyes to your puppet helped endow the puppet with life. Well done with this! I'm so impressed you took on my feedback so quickly. This was such a moving piece of belonging. Loved your musical choices throughout. You should all be so proud of what you achieved with this piece and for warming our hearts with such an important story of belonging! Congratulations! I also wanted to mention that I am so overwhelmed with how wonderful your behind the scenes initiative is. Thank you for taking care of your community!"            

                                                                                 - Lauren Jimmieson, Wakakirri Ambassador.

Earlier this month 34 enthusiastic students participated in the 2024 Australian Mathematics Competition (AMC). This competition provides unique problems designed each year by leading educators and academics to challenge and extend students’ problem-solving skills. We congratulate the following students who were fully engaged and worked solidly for 60 minutes to complete the test.

Nicole Collins

Mathematics Leader

Melbourne Archdiocese Catholic Schools – School Improvement Surveys (MACSISS) 

Melbourne Archdiocese Catholic Schools – School Improvement Surveys (MACSSIS) are conducted annually for schools in the Catholic Archdiocese of Melbourne. This year’s MACSSIS window is from Monday 2 September to Friday 20 September 2024.

MACSSIS is a low impact, high return set of tools for creating, collecting, analysing, interpreting and using data to inform Catholic school improvement. MACSSIS produces perception data. This data tells us about what different people in a school community think and feel about their learning environment.

The surveys have been designed in alignment with Horizons of Hope: Vision and Context and the School Improvement Framework (SIF) Rubric capabilities, and gather data from:

• students in Years 4–12
• families
• teachers and non-teaching staff.

Families will be invited to participate via an email invitation that is valid anytime across the survey window. Families will be emailed a code and PIN. Surveys are available for families in Arabic, Chinese (simplified and traditional), English, Tagalog or Vietnamese. Please contact Michela Vella on mvella@olacheltenham.catholic.edu.au if you have any questions.