Principal's News

It’s been an extremely busy week at Old Orchard as we continue to adjust back to onsite learning. This time of year is always a very busy one and this is certainly compounded at the moment as we reconnect with our students and prioritise key learning, look to deliver on significant events and of course, juggle the challenges of COVID-19 restrictions.

School Production - Oliver Junior

We were thrilled to finally be able to present our school production of Oliver Junior last Friday night at Karralyka Theatre. It really was an incredible performance following such a long lead in and numerous postponements and rescheduling. We are incredibly proud of all of our students who excelled on stage and it was wonderful to see their delight and enjoyment on stage and before and after the performance. The show included many solo singing parts and it was incredible seeing how professionally our students delivered such challenging roles. I must extend a huge thank-you to everyone involved in the show in any way, but particularly to our Performing Arts teacher, Rhiannon Trimby, who maintained her patience and calm demeanour throughout many, many months. Thanks also to others who played a key role in James Sharp and our Admin staff, Fiona Kirby and Sheree Knight.

Aths Sports

Similarly, following multiple cancellations & postponements, our House Athletics Sports finally went ahead yesterday, albeit in a significantly modified format. It was fabulous to see our students participating in physical activity and having fun together. Very special thanks to Sam Snow for her composure and elite organisational skills - we are indeed fortunate to have such capable and committed staff members. 

Next Week

We have a couple of great events coming up next week with the Year 3 Urban Camp and the Year 2 Sleepover. We are very appreciative of our parent community who have supported these events enthusiastically and of course, to our staff who have ‘put their hands’ up to participate at a time when it would be understandable to be a bit cautious. 

First Aid

The care and safety of our students is paramount and we are consistently reviewing our practices in this area. With the departure earlier this year of Leanne Trembath, we advertised a specific First Aid role as part of our Admin team. With the return to onsite learning, we have seen the clear benefits of this appointment. Lisa’s Alfredini’s expertise and commitment has been welcomed and we have implemented modified practices in the management & care of students in the Sick Bay, including the use of the Sentral Health module to communicate with parents. I trust that parents are appreciating the revised model and communication structure.

COVID-19

The announcement of eased COVID-19 restrictions as from Friday November 19th will have minimal impact on ‘day to day’ operations at Old Orchard. I will send home a separate communication with updated details, however please note that masks continue to be required for adults and students from Years 3 - 6 in primary schools.

Staffing 2022

Our 2022 teaching staff structure is now finalised as detailed below. We are very excited to welcome a number of new staff members to our team and will introduce them in more details in the weeks ahead.

Warm regards 

Duncan