Principal's Message

Dear OLA Families

How wonderful to reach the mid point of Term 1 and be treated with the Labour Day Long Weekend. It has been lovely to hear stories of children getting to relax and chill out at home, getting away, camping, swimming, bike riding and just having fun.

Catholic Education Week

Catholic Education Week is an opportunity for all Catholic schools in the Archdiocese of Melbourne to celebrate our Catholic identity and the role we play within our local community. May all our students be inspired by St Patrick and strive to grow in faith, hope and love.

Loving God,

In this Catholic Education Week, 

when we celebrate Catholic schools in the Archdiocese of Melbourne,

we thank you for the teachers, staff, students, families and administrators

who together create school communities of faith, hope and love.

We ask you to bless our schools as they continue the mission of Catholic education. May they always be places where young people are formed and inspired by the light of Christ and share the joy of the Gospel with all the world.

We ask this prayer through your son and our Teacher, Jesus Christ.

Amen. 

St Patrick's Day 

Happy St Patrick's Day and happy Catholic Education Week! Our school captains represented OLA at St Patrick's Cathedral today. The children did us proud and were among 2000+ students and staff from schools across the Archidiocese of Melbourne. The children and I were grateful to be able to be part of such a beautiful Mass, made all the more special by music and singing by students from Avila College. Following Mass we were invited to be part of a tour of St Patrick's Cathedral led by MACS Board Member and St Roch's Parish Priest Fr Michael Gallacher. After a photo with the Archbishop, we enjoyed having our lunch in the park with schools from all over Melbourne. 

NAPLAN 

Our Grade 3 and Grade 5 students have been involved in the Reading and Writing NAPLAN assessments this week and will undertake Language Conventions and Numeracy next week. Following this we will have allocated days of catch up testing for those students who for any reason have missed an assessment. 

Over the past weeks students have been exposed to the style of questions they're likely to encounter in these assessments. We have also ensured students see the classroom set out in the required testing conditions that they will encounter to ease any potential anxiety students may feel from the experience. To assist our children to feel relaxed and prepared for the tests, we encourage families to ensure students have a restful week at home during this time. As most of the assessments are now completed online, students will need to have their headphones at school 

Below is a post from respected local educationalist Kate Korber. It is such an important message. Whilst we ask our children to turn up ready to do their best and have a growth mindset, we also want them to know that its just one test, on one day and it does not measure everything that makes them incredible...

Learning Walk

We will soon be hosting our first Learning Walk for our parents at OLA. We will visit a Junior, Middle and Senior class (3 classes in all) with each of the classes focussing on Mathematics.  Our Principal, Mathematics Leader and Learning & Teaching Leader will be joined by Family Partnerships Consultant Tony Dalton. For this first walk we will have a maximum of ten parents join us, so if you are interested please RSVP via email to rjacques@olacheltenham.catholic.edu.au If we hit our maximum number of parents attending we will ensure you are invited on the next learning walk that we do.

ECSI Survey 

We invite you to participate in the ECSI Survey which will assist us in better understanding how our Catholic identity is expressed in work and practice here at Our Lady of the Assumption Parish Primary School.

The ECSI Survey is a key element of this process and we request the participation of as many families as possible. The online survey gathers responses from students in Grade 5 and 6, all staff and parents. Please refer to Operoo for instructions on how to access the survey.

As a school, we have organised a lucky draw for families who complete the survey. After the survey is complete, please email a screenshot of your acknowledgement of completion to ctaig@olacheltenham.catholic.edu.au to go into a draw to win a $50 book voucher. You do not need to send your results and your responses will remain anonymous.

The survey period will close at the end of Term 1. The winner of the lucky draw will be notified in the first week back of Term 2, on Friday 28 April.

Mandatory Reporting

Thank you to all OLA staff for completing their annual Protecting Children - Mandatory Reporting training online over the last week. The eLearning module supports us to understand the law and our role and responsibilities when responding to children whose safety, health or wellbeing may be at risk.

Internet Upgrade

We were delighted to have our internet upgraded and our band width tripled at OLA last week.  This will allow for faster access of all online material and it will also ensure greater filtering and safety for all in our community.

Australia's Best Teachers Campaign 

Melbourne Archdiocese Catholic Schools (MACS) has entered into a partnership with News Corp for its ‘Australia’s Best Teachers’ campaign, which aims to elevate the status of teachers by celebrating and highlighting our most inspirational and innovative educators. The campaign calls on Australians to nominate the great teachers who have, and have had, a positive impact on students or their lives. The top 50 teachers will be announced on 6 May 2023. For more information or to nominate a teacher, head to this link.

School Tours for Enrolments 2024

Yesterday we conducted School Tours in the morning and evening and it was brilliant to see so many families visiting our school.  The school really does look amazing and this was noted especially by two dads and one mum who were past students at OLA and now would like their families to come and be part of our great community, culture and learning. 

Our families are our greatest advocates, so please keep spreading the good word about our amazing school to your friends and family. If you have a child or you know someone wanting to tour schools for their child, please encourage them to book a school tour online on the school website or call Sharan in our front office to register.  If you are not able to make these tours please note that you are also welcome to call to make a time that does work for you. With enrolments for Prep 2024 now open, we encourage all families to submit their applications as soon as possible. 

Community                                                             

We look forward to celebrating the official opening of our newly renovated buildings and grounds on Friday 19 May at 10am with Mass, followed by the official cutting of the ribbon, blessing and Morning Tea. Please save the date and join us for this special occasion. 

This term we are learning about 'Community' as part of our Inquiry learning.  We have been treated by a visit from parishioner and past teacher of OLA Sr Margaret, previously known as Sr Anselm (pictured far left in both photos below).  Sr Margaret began teaching at OLA in 1955 when the school as only three years old, with over 90 students in her classroom - which is only one third of the current Library.  Her class was converted into the OLA Church each Friday evening for weekend Masses and returned to a classroom ready to start classes on Monday morning.   

Past student, parent, teacher and current grandparent and parishioner Colleen Gleeson visited with a great range of photos, school reports and even an old school jumper.  Colleen's reflection is so heartfelt and I share a snippet here:

There are times in life when words fail us and for me this is one of them. How do you adequately share all the memories, countless stories, an abundance of friendships and such deep feelings of gratitude, pride, joy and love. How truly blessed we have been!

Our family almost a fifty year association with OLA Parish Primary School, spanning three generations. My older brother was in the very first Prep class all those years ago! We have witnessed the rapid growth of student numbers, along with the huge increase and improvement in buildings and facilities but there remains one constant over all these years: a strong and vibrant community with dedicated teachers, committed parents and supportive parish all working together to provide the best possible Catholic education for our children.

We also had a visit from past student Peter Gourlay who shared some beautiful memories and also donated two very precious artefacts for us to enjoy and display - his very own school bag and OLA ink well. Peter attended OLA from 1958 to 1964 and he said his favourite item of memorabilia is his very own teacher Sr Margaret. Whilst visiting we bumped into Alessio P who remembered Peter's name as Peter donated a Kindness Award that Alessio received at the end of last year. We thank Maree Thomas, Sr Margaret, Peter Gourlay and Colleen Gleeson for popping in to share part of their OLA story with us.

Dogs at OLA

As much as we love dogs and getting to meet our OLA furry family members, there are some members of our OLA community who have high level fears and anxieties about dogs. To resepct this and for everyone's safety, we ask that dogs remain on a leash and with their adult owner at all times. To assist, we ask that dog owners wait for their children at the far end of the basketball courts near the car park. Thank you for your understanding and support with this.

Working Bee

Like many schools, we hold termly Working Bees where we ask our families to commit to one rostered Working Bee a year completing basic gardening and maintenance tasks.

The Working Bees will take place on the following dates:

Term 1 - Saturday 25 March 10am-12pm (Please note change of date from 4 March)

Term 2 - Saturday 6 May 10am-12pm

Term 3 - Saturday 29 July 10am-12pm

Term 4 - Saturday 18 November 10am-12pm (Please note change of date from 4 Nov)

Please find below the 2023 Working Bee Roster - we have families from each of the grades across each of the four Working Bees. For next Saturday 25 March we especially welcome the following families:

You are welcome to bring your children to the Working Bees and they can help with tasks and/or play with other children who are also attending. The sense of pride in our school grounds and buildings is increased dramatically with engagement in activities such as this and it is a lovely informal way to get to know other families at OLA. We also ask families to bring tools along to Working Bees (clearly named) that may assist us in the tasks at hand, for example, wheelbarrows, rakes, shovels, blower vacs etc.

If you have a particular skill that could help the school please also let us know and we can ensure that you are able to be assigned to an appropriate task. Please note you are welcome to swap/change your days with another family or you can make a donation if you are unable to attend. If you would like to request a different date to attend a Working Bee please email Sharan Talbot at the office (office@olacheltenham.catholic.edu.au) with your preference.  Thank you as always for your support of our great school.

Calendar

Please open the ‘Key Dates and Events’ tab in this newsletter for important dates or access the OLA Calendar here.

Key dates for the next 4 weeks...

Congratulations

District Swimming

Congratulations to all children who represented OLA at the District Swimming Championships on Monday 6 March. We are so proud of each and every one of you. Thank you for giving your best and for representing our great school. The manner in which  you participated with such enthusiasm and pride was just wonderful! Our students displayed outstanding sportsmanship.  

Cross Country

Congratulations to our Grade 3-6 students who participated in the Grade 3-6 House Team Cross Country on Tuesday 7 March at Kingston Heath Reserve.  We were so proud of our House Team leaders creating a great spirit with their house team colours and chants. Thank you to Liz Thompson our PE teacher for her excellent organising of the day and to the staff for helping ensure the day ran smoothly. Thank you also to the many parents who volunteered and cheered on all our runners.

Congratulations to all four House Teams:

1st Brigid (Blue) on 71

2nd Fatima (Green) 68

3rd Lourdes (Red) 56

4th MacKillop (Gold) 42

Well Wishes

We wish Gabrielle McGee our Finance and Administration Manager well as she will undergo knee surgery on the 27 March and will be back with us from 22 May. We welcome back Mary McGuire, who will assist in the office in Gab’s absence. If you have any account queries please continue to contact myself or the school office.

Celebrations 

Grade 6 Jumpers

It felt like Christmas Day when the Grade 6 students unboxed their special Grade 6 jumpers earlier this week. They look fantastic and have been worn non stop since we took delivery - even in near 30 degree heat. 

Poppy Planting

Thank you to Poppy and her dad Vince for planting a new garden in the planter boxes outside the Prep classrooms. We hope with some extra watering and love that they will help brighten up the entrances to our Prep classrooms. Thank you for helping take care of our school grounds.

5/6SP Participation in Mass

We are proud of our Grade 5/6 students deepening their faith and partnership with our Parish. Last week they attended Mass with members of their family and parishioners then shared in morning tea.

We look forward to 5/6NC participating in Mass on Wednesday 29 March and then 5/6GO participating in Mass on Wednesday 5 April. 

Gardening Club

Our Junior gardening team has been hard at work picking the best and freshest baby tomatoes in all of Cheltenham. We are so proud of their efforts. It's fascinating to think that all our land used to be market gardens before the 1950s. The Gardening Club at OLA is inspiring our participants to be curious about what is possible and to explore the beauty of nature. We are so fortunate that our students can have experiences such as these, and we thank our LSOs for fostering such a wonderful love for nature and gardening with our students. 

Principal's Award

Congratulations to Zac for his brilliant work on how to grow veggies in old egg cartons. The Junior Garden Club are going to try this out next term.

Happy St Patrick's Day and enjoy the weekend.

For all those AFL fans we hope you enjoy the season's opening round!!

Richard Jacques

Principal