Principal's Message

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.

Year 6 Camp

Best wishes to Our Year 6 students, staff and helpers ahead of their week at Camp Coonawarra. The weather is looking kind and I know that our students will return with great stories and memories.

Peer Mediator Badge Presentation

Our 2026 Peer Mediators are being presented with their badges at Assembly on Friday. The Peer Mediation program at Old Orchard is an outstanding example of how our students can support each other in the playground and develop problem solving and conflict resolution skills. Students receive practical and specific training in how they can undertake their duties and assist younger students in the playground throughout the year.

Breakfast Club

Our Old Orchard Breakfast Club (also known as Breakfast with Ginger!) commenced this week and we look forward to this becoming a regular feature on our school calendar and a positive way for students to engage with their peers and commence the school day. Thanks to Kate Buckley for her fantastic work in this area.

Classroom Cuisine & Zooper Doopers

Early feedback from students and staff in relation to Classroom Cuisine (our lunch order provider) has been extremely positive. Complementing our lunch orders has been the sale of Zooper Doopers a couple of times each week. This initiative has been extremely positive, particularly with the warm weather we have been experiencing. Thank-you to Sheree and Fiona for coordinating the Zooper Dooper sales and to the many parents & carers who have given up their time to assist.

New Security Gates

School families will have received an email outlining several new or modified child safe practices at Old Orchard. I strongly encourage all families to familiarise themselves with these. The change which is likely to have the most immediate impact on some families is the installation of automatic security gates in three locations:

Lantana St entrance
Koonung Reserve entrance
Koonung Rd pedestrian gate (closest to the oval)

These gates will be closed between 9.10am and 3.20pm, meaning that visitors & school families will need to use the main Koonung Rd entrance to access the school between these times.

Lunar New Year

The Lunar New Year is a major 15-day festival marking the start of a new year based on the lunisolar calendar, falling between February 17th to March 3rd in 2026. The festival is celebrated by millions of people worldwide, primarily in Asian countries including China, South Korea, Vietnam, Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore, Philippines, Japan, Tibet & Indonesia. The festival signifies the end of winter, honouring ancestors, and welcoming spring. Key Aspects of the Celebration include:

Significance: It is a time for family reunions, cleaning homes to sweep away bad luck, and welcoming fortune and prosperity.
Traditions: Celebrants wear red, hang red lanterns, exchange red envelopes containing money, and enjoy fireworks and lion/dragon dances.
Food: Re-union dinners feature symbolic foods like fish (abundance), dumplings (wealth), and rice cakes.
Duration: The festival lasts from the new moon to the following full moon, ending with the Lantern Festival.
2026 Focus: In 2026, the celebration marks the Year of the Horse.

We wish our many Old Orchard families the very best for their celebrations and festivities and encourage them to wear a splash of red as part of their school uniform if that is appropriate.

Warm regards,

Duncan