Internal Transition

Our students moved to their 2021 classes on Wednesday to meet their new teachers. We were extremely impressed with their positive attitude and with how smoothly the session went. The move to a new class, teacher and mix of students can at times be difficult for some students to manage. We are very mindful of this, however experience has also shown us that any initial concerns rapidly dissipate once the new year begins. As parents, you play an important role in supporting your children, focusing on the positives and allaying any fears or concerns - this is particularly important moving into the school holiday break.

Semester 2 Reports

The Semester 2 Reports were published on the parent portal earlier this week. As with the June reports this year, the reports are significantly modified but will provide you with a great summary of your child’s progress across 2020.

Year 5 & 6 Awards Assembly

On Tuesday this week, we conducted our Year 5 & 6 Awards Assembly. This assembly provides us with an opportunity to acknowledge our student leaders from this year as well as announce a number of special awards. Fortunately, we were able to welcome a small number of parents to the assembly which was very pleasing. Congratulations to all students who received an award or honourable mention - you should be very proud of your achievements.

Farewell Year 6

The end of the school year is always tinged with sadness as we farewell our Year 6 students. Graduation provided us with an opportunity to acknowledge them publicly and celebrate their contribution to our school. Unfortunately, the absence of a Whole School Assembly this year means that we won’t be able to farewell them ‘as a school’ although they will undertake a lap of the school to say goodbye to other students and staff.

The past few weeks have provided us with the chance to reflect on the students’ journey through Old Orchard and also to confirm what a fabulous group they have been. We have really been able to enjoy their company in a more relaxed and informal manner and it’s a great credit to this group that they have been able to navigate through this period in such a positive way. We will certainly miss them next year, as a cohort and as individuals, but we know that they are ready to take the next step in their educational journey and we wish them every happiness and success for the future.

To the families that are also departing Old Orchard, we thank you for your support over the journey and wish you well in the years ahead.

Farewell exiting students

In addition to our Year 6 cohort, we also have a number of students / families departing from other year levels. To Ari Pruscino, Frances & Eadie Leicester, Kiara Chamclam, Zubin Majmudar, Yuvan Nathwani, Alvin & Ji Hoon Park, Jessica Roberts, Jack Lighton, Sienna Hooper and Elden Saul, we thank-you for your contribution to our school and wish you and your families well for the future.

Farewell staff

As previously announced, three of our current staff will be moving on in 2021.

Laura Coulter

Laura joined our team in 2020 for her first classroom teaching job and has been incredibly impressive throughout the year, including Remote and Onsite Learning. She is an extremely conscientious and diligent teacher and it has been a pleasure to see how quickly she was able to develop strong connections with students and their families, to readily identify the students’ learning needs and to develop appropriate teaching plans. Laura has been an important member of the Year 1 team, working closely with other team members to ensure that the needs of all students were addressed. We are very sorry to see Laura depart but delighted that she has acquired a position at Kerrimuir PS for 2021. Thank-you Laura!

Grace McDonell

Grace has a long association with Old Orchard, having been a student here when she was at primary school. It was wonderful to welcome her back in 2020 and to see her make such a smooth transition into the Year 5 team. Grace’s gentle, calm demeanour and superb relationships with students have been a feature of her time here. She is a conscientious staff member and dedicated teacher who has worked extremely well leading the Year 5 team and has also been a very strong contributor to our Student Wellbeing team. We will certainly miss Grace (except for her Richmond FC allegiance!) but wish her every success and happiness at Billanook PS for 2021 and the years ahead. Thank-you Grace!

Michael Findlay

Michael has been at Old Orchard for 4 years, teaching in Years 5 & 6 during that period. It has been very rewarding to witness his continued development and growth as a teacher where he has been able to build upon his many natural talents and attributes. We have greatly valued and appreciated Michael’s willingness to be involved in any activity across the school, from the Prep Breakfast, School Camps, Fetes, Discos and many, many more. This commitment is invaluable in any school and will be sadly missed. Michael has made a great career decision to broaden his teaching experience at Canterbury PS in 2021 and I know that his career will continue to flourish. Thank-you Michael and best wishes for the years ahead.

Farewell & thanks for 2020

As a final message, I would like to thank each and every member of the Old Orchard community for their amazing efforts throughout 2020.

Our students have been sensational, adapting with incredible flexibility throughout the course of the year and navigating the numerous challenges that were thrown their way. Their resilience and commitment to doing their best in every circumstance is a great credit to them and we could not be prouder of their efforts. Thank-you boys and girls for your support, flexibility, commitment, endeavour and humour.

Likewise, our staff have been incredible. It is impossible to do justice to their efforts in just a couple of sentences, but I’ll try. From Day 1, their individual and collective attitude has been one of positivity and a determination to get the job done to the very best of their abilities. The challenges of remote learning / teaching were significant, not least being the ‘new order’ of developing and producing online content, teaching live to an audience including parents and connecting and engaging with students and their families. Teachers and our support staff ‘always’ deserve their holidays, but never more than at the end of 2020. It has been a privilege to lead such an amazing staff team.

Finally, to our parent community and families. Thank-you so much for your incredible support, understanding and appreciation. For many of you 2020 has had significant challenges beyond those of remote learning, however your commitment to supporting your children and working so positively with staff has been greatly appreciated. At times we have been in awe of the families attempting to juggle full time work from home with being pseudo teaching assistants. You all deserve a medal and a well deserved rest.

My sincere and very best wishes to every member of the Old Orchard community for the festive season and holiday period ahead. However you and your family celebrate this time, I trust that it is a special one when you will be able to get together with family and friends and to look forward optimistically to a fantastic 2021.

Take care and warm regards

Duncan

From the Library