OLHC News Issue 13 Term 2 Week 2 2022

Principal Report

Dear Parents, Friends, and Carers,

Mrs Bush will be on Long Service Leave for the next three weeks.  Heather and Jeremy are taking the time to visit their daughter, Anna in America to watch her compete in the ACC Outdoor Track & Field Championships in Durham, NC and attend her University Graduation.  We wish Anna all the best in the Athletics and for her graduation and safe travels for Heather and Jeremy.  In Mrs Bush's absence, Mrs Sue Tyler will be teaching the Senior class for the next three weeks.

With the cold weather now upon us can I please ask families to check their child is wearing appropriate winter uniform to school, especially a jumper on these chilly foggy frosty mornings. When students arrive to school in the mornings and playing outside it is important for them to be keeping warm.

Next week, we welcome Ms Charlotte Hird to our school.  Ms Hird is a student teacher from Australian Catholic University (ACU).  Charlotte will be completing her placement in the Junior classroom.  We received notification this week that Mr. Fergus Schier's (from Deakin University) placement has been cancelled at this point in time.

NAPLAN NEXT WEEK

NAPLAN is the national literacy and numeracy assessment that our Year 3 and 5 students undertake each year in May. This year NAPLAN will be held across three days from 10th May to 12th May inclusive.
This year we will administer the NAPLAN tests through the Online National Assessment Platform. The year three Writing test is the only test that will continue as a pen and paper assessment this year.

The NAPLAN test schedule is:
Tuesday May 10 - Year 3 Pen and paper writing test (40mins)  and Year 5 Writing test on line (50 mins)
Wednesday May 11 - Year 3 Conventions of Language (45 mins) and Year 5 Conventions of Language (45 mins)
Thursday May 12 - Year 3 Numeracy (45 mins) and Year 5 Numeracy (50 mins) 

Foundation Enrolment 2023 – Principal Tours
We invite to all prospective families to come to Our Lady's school for  a visit to see for themselves our great school and learning in action. New and existing families are invited to contact principal@olhcmurtoa.catholic.edu.au or phone 53852526 to arrange a personal tour of our school and learn more of how Our Lady's Primary school can be your first choice for your child’s primary education.

I hope all our families have a chance to celebrate Mother’s Day this coming Sunday! I hope all mothers, grandmothers and special carers have a day of happiness and where they feel cherished. For others, it is a day of remembrance of mothers who are no longer with them. The special thing about the day is that we all stop and in our own ways, we take time to honour
motherhood and the gift of caregiving.

Until next week.                                                                                                                                                                

Kind regards

Mrs. Cathy Grace                                                                                

Black Ranges Cross Country

Black Ranges Cross Country was held at Lord Nelson Park, St. Arnaud today, Friday, 6th May 2022.  

The students eagerly returned to school to inform us of their experience.  Eimer and Charlotte ran in the 10 years race and finished the challenging course with smiles!  Maeve finished 9th, and Navraj finished 11th.

Congratulations to Maeve, Eimer, Charlotte and Navraj for participating and representing our school with pride.  We are so very proud of you all.

Thank you to parents who supported their children throughout the day.  This support is very special and valued by us and each competitor.

Mother's Day Liturgy

Yesterday we celebrated our Mothers and Special Carers Day in recognition of Mother’s Day this
Sunday 9th May. Mothers and grandmothers were treated to a beautiful Liturgy with prayers, readings and a heartfelt rendition of "A song for mum".  We welcomed everyone with a beautiful morning tea of a cuppa, scones and chocolates, shared by all.  It was a lovely opportunity to have families back on site, to gather in hospitality and see their children and celebrate a special occasion in our school. 

Many thanks to the staff who worked incredibly hard afterschool, yesterday and early in the morning organising and preparing the food and decorating the multipurpose room to make it so welcoming. A picture says a thousands words and that's just what the photos below do - just absolutely heart felt and so much love evident.  A very special and treasured time was embraced by all.

NCCD....National Consistent Collection of Data

Under the Disability Discrimination Act 1992This link will open in a new window (DDA) and the Disability Standards for Education 2005This link will open in a new window (the Standards), Australian students with disability must be able to access and participate in education on the same basis as their peers. To ensure this, students with disability may receive adjustments to access education, based on the professional judgement of teachers, in consultation with the student and/or their parents, guardians or carers.

The Nationally Consistent Collection of Data on School Students with Disability (NCCD) gives Australian schools, parents, guardians and carers, education authorities and the community information about the number of students with disability in schools and the adjustments they receive. The Australian Education Regulation 2013 requires all schools to report the data collected for the NCCD to the Australian Government on an annual basis.

Please see the NCCD sheet for parents below for further information.

Mass Times & Parish Information

Mass: St Mary's Church, Murtoa
Sunday 8th May                                                                                                   10.30am    Livestream from Horsham                                                                                                                                                             

Free SchoolTV - Screen Time by Dr Michael Carr-Gregg

As a result of the global pandemic, there has been a noticeable shift in the amount of time people spend on screen-based devices. Families are transitioning back to pre-COVID routines but many are still struggling to re-establish the boundaries and rules around screen use. Some continue to deal with digital conflict and tech-tantrums on a daily basis. The latest research found that 77% of teenagers spend more than five hours on screens per day, but it is important to note that not all screen time is considered equal.

Parents play a crucial role in modelling a positive and healthy approach to using screens and assisting children to navigate the content they watch. It is better to model and mentor screen use, rather than monitor it. Children tend to do more of what they see us do, and less of what we tell them to do. However, it is still important to outline the risks and highlight the benefits of screen use to ensure you keep a balanced attitude. Encourage discussions around the issues that people experience in monitoring their screen time and be honest about your own difficulties.

Parents need to remain firm in their approach to managing screen time. Excessive screen time can be detrimental to a child’s overall wellbeing. Ensuring the correct privacy settings are in place is vital to prevent children from being inadvertently exposed to inappropriate content or online predators. Parents need to also be mindful of the potential impact screen time can have on a child’s social, emotional, educational, behavioural, and even physical domains.

If you do have any concerns about the wellbeing of your child, please contact the school for further information or seek medical or professional help.  More information and videos via the website link below.

Calendar Dates

Please click on the link below to take you directly to our School Calendar.

Term 2 COVID-19 information

There are some important changes to COVIDSafe measures for schools that will apply from the start of Term 2.

Face masks

From 11:59 pm Friday 22 April, face masks, while recommended, are not required in any school setting. This means students in grades 3 to 6, staff and visitors in primary schools are no longer required to wear face masks. Any student or staff member who wishes to wear a mask may do so, including those who are medically at-risk.

Rapid antigen test screening requirements

Students who have tested positive for COVID-19, and have completed their 7-day isolation period, now do not need to undertake rapid antigen test (RAT) screening for 12 weeks after their release from isolation. This was previously 8 weeks.

Household contacts

Students who are household contacts of a COVID-19 case are not required to quarantine. They may return to school as long as they undertake rapid antigen tests (RAT) 5 times during their 7-day period. They are required to notify the school that they are a household contact.

Students aged 8 years and above who are household contacts are required to wear face masks when indoors at school unless they have a valid exemption.

If a student household contact returns a positive RAT result, they must isolate for 7 days.

Vaccination requirements for visitors to schools

Parents, carers and other adult visitors (not performing work) are no longer required to show evidence of two doses of COVID-19 vaccine.

RAT screening program reminder

RATs will continue to be supplied for the first 4 weeks of Term 2 to support the early detection of COVID-19 in our school.

The testing recommendations will remain the same this Term for students and staff with:

• mainstream schools – recommended to test at home twice a week
• specialist schools – recommended to test 5 days a week at home due to the higher risk of severe illness for medically vulnerable children.

As we approach winter and flu season, the vaccination of children aged 5 to 11 and booster shots for students 16+ remains the best way to ensure protection for students and staff.

If you have any concerns about getting your child vaccinated, please get in contact with your GP or another health professional who can answer your questions.

Thank you for your ongoing support in keeping our school safe.

Active Kids Voucher program

Round 4 of The Get Active Kids Voucher Program is now open.

Victorian families with a Health Care Card or Pensioner Concession Card can apply for up to $200 to support their child's sport and active recreation activities.

This can be used to support uniform or registration fees, and is valid for Auskick, NetSetGo, junior netball, footy and hockey registrations.

Applicants can apply for one voucher per eligible child between the period Monday 21 March 2022 to Tuesday 31 May 2022.

https://www.getactive.vic.gov.au/vouchers/