Dear Parents & Parishioners,

In the Catholic tradition, November is traditionally a month of remembrance of the dead. The month begins with the Solemnity of All Saints on 1 November and the Commemoration of All the Faithful Departed (All Souls’ Day), on 2 November. While no longer holy days of obligation in Australia, the Church has consistently encouraged prayers for the faithful departed and, during November, a list of the names of the dead is usually placed in the church, or read out at mass, so that the community can remember them in prayer.

All Saints’ Day is a time to consider the example saints offer us and to reflect on how we can imitate their lives. As Pope Benedict XVI said, All Saints’ Day calls us ‘to see the Church… as Christ wanted it, that is, as the communion of saints.’

All Souls’ Day follows All Saints Day on 2 November and is also known as the Commemoration of All the Faithful Departed and the Day of the Dead. It is a day of prayer and remembrance for all those who have died.

Remembrance Day

Remembrance Day is one of the most important days on our commemorative calendar. It is a day when we acknowledge those who died or suffered while serving in wars, conflicts and peace operations.

Remembrance Day is held on 11 November each year. This is the anniversary of the Armistice of 1918 that ended fighting in World War I. The war didn't officially end until 28 June 1919 with the Treaty of Versailles. People in Australia and many other countries observe one minute's silence at the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month because that is when the Armistice came into effect. It's a time to honour all personnel who died or suffered in the service of Australia.

With thanks to the Dept of Veterans' Affairs

As this Tuesday is Remembrance Day, we will pause as a school community to participate in a service of story, prayer, poetry and silent reflection.

Keeping our kids safe online: A partnership with families

You may have heard about upcoming government changes in the law regarding social media accounts for children under the age of 16, which will take effect on 10 December 2025.

We are committed to understanding these new changes and working with you to ensure our students have a safe and positive digital life.

Why are these changes happening?

The new rules are all about protecting our under-16s. Many social media platforms have inbuilt design features that can:

encourage too much screen time (like non-stop notifications or content that disappears)
expose children to upsetting, inappropriate or difficult content through their feeds

Experts have linked these features to problems for young people, including increased stress, less sleep, and trouble concentrating.

What is the goal?

These changes give us all a chance to help our children by:

learning about the positive aspects of being online and the things they need to be careful of
building their digital, social, and emotional skills so they can navigate the online world confidently and safely
knowing where to seek help if they see or experience anything that worries them.

While social media platforms have the main responsibility to enforce the age restriction, we all play a part in teaching our children to be safe online.

The best strategies are:

Clear communication – talking openly with your child about their online activities
Effective teaching – helping them understand online safety rules
Positive modelling – showing what responsible and kind online behaviour looks like
Mindful timing – holding off purchasing your child a smart phone.

Quick facts about the upcoming changes

We will continue to update you as more guidance is provided. In the meantime, we encourage every family to subscribe to the eSafety Commissioner alerts so you can remain informed about the legislation change and ongoing digital trends.

Let’s work together to help our children become safe, skilled and responsible digital citizens, who can navigate the online world with confidence and care.

2026 Class Structures

In 2026, we will be offering nine classes at OHR comprising:

2 x Prep

2 x Yr 1/2

1 x Yr 2/3

2 x Yr 3/4

2 x Yr 5/6

Staffing arrangments will be finalised in the next fortnight. At that time a fully detailed list will be communicated through the newsletter.

Formation of Classes

The teaching staff have begun the process of developing class placements for the 2025 school year. The construction of class lists is a process that requires teaching staff to give consideration to a great variety of factors in an effort to create a social, emotional, behavioural and academic balance within any given class, as detailed in the Rationale of our Formation of Classes Policy:

“At OHR we believe that learning is influenced by a diverse range of factors. The professional knowledge, judgement and discretion of all teachers is critical to the placement of students. The class allocation process should follow protocols which address the balance of social, emotional and academic needs of each child.”

A copy of the Formation of Classes Policy is attached below for your reference. Please take the time to read through the Policy carefully, as it clearly articulates a range of considerations that need to be factored when placing every individual child into a class. The Policy informs the decisions of staff as we collaboratively construct class lists during the current time.

Christmas Drawing Competition

The students at OHR have been invited to partake in the 2025, My family, My Christmas drawing competition. Jess Wilson MP invites students to create drawings that show how their family celebrates Christmas - whether it's with sun, sand and barbeques, snow, or a simple lunch shared with loved ones. This competition celebrates the many special ways families in our community enjoy the festive season.

One winner and three runners-up will be selected from each school, with winning entries to be judged by Jess Wilson in late November. All particpating students will receive a certificate of participation.

From among the school winners, an overall winner will be chosen, and their artwork will feature on Jess' 2025 Christmas card.

Students are to submit entries to the school office by this Monday 10 November 2025. Entiries will be proudly displayed in Jess' electorate office in Kew.

Entry forms can be collected from Heather in the school office or, alternatively, download and print off the form below.

Prep & New Families Welcome Mass

All OHR families are invited to the weekly parish mass in the OHR Church on Sunday 16 November at 10.30am. This is a special family-lead mass for our current Prep, Year 1 & 2 families and all 2026 Prep families.

At the conclusion of the mass there will be hospitality.

PFA OHR Colour Run ... Only One Week to Go!

There is only one more week until OHR's Colour Fun Run. To ensure that this event is a real success, we need lots of parent helpers. Please refer to the coms that have been sent out via the class WhatsAp groups.

Next Friday, 14 November, the students are able to wear their sports uniform to school but in place of their sports top they can wear their white T-shirt for the entire day. Each child will also need to bring their clearly named drink bottle.

Calling for PFA Nominations - 2026

Being a member of the PFA is a wonderful opportunity to be involved in your child’s school community, as well as play a part in initiatives that support the education and welfare of the children of OHR.

Please jump to the PFA News page for further details.

2026 Parent Gatherings

As has become an OHR tradition, we invite families to open up their homes to host one of three parent gatherings that are spaced throughout Term One on Friday evenings. These are warm and low key social events. All Parent Gatherings were well-attended earlier this year.

We have currently set aside three dates for 2026:

Yrs Prep-2 Parent Evening - 20 February Yrs 3 & 4 Parent Evening - 13 March
Yrs 5 & 6 Parent Evening: 27 March

If interested in hosting one of these evenings, please let either Heather or myself know.

OHR Twilight Christmas Celebration

The PFA have planned an exciting OHR Twilight Christmas Celebration to fall on the evening of Friday 21 November. The evening will commence with Christmas Carols sung by the OHR students. There are also many other events planned for the evening which the PFA will communicate over the coming weeks. So save the date!

Next School Closure Day

2026 Planning Day - Monday 1st December

Wishing everyone a great weekend,

Frank

Parish News