OLHC News Issue 25 Term 3 Week 8 - 2 September 2022

WELCOME TO COUNTRY...

Our Lady Help of Christians Primary School acknowledges that God has been walking with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, making God's presence known through a continuous living culture over many thousands of years. We pray in thanksgiving for these ancient peoples who have enriched and sustained our continent over all that time. In particular, we praise God for the people who nurtured the lands where our schools are built and the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander families who continue to support Catholic schools.

As partners in Catholic Education and open to God’s presence, we pursue the fullness of life for all.  Our Lady Help of Christians Primary School is committed to the safety and well-being of all students.

We respectfully acknowledge the Traditional Owners of Country throughout Victoria and pay respect to the ongoing living cultures of First Peoples. This newsletter comes to you from the lands of the Wotjobaluk, Jaadwa, Jadawadjali, Wergaia, and Jupagalk Nations.

Principal Report

Dear Parents, carers, families, and parishioners,

Staffing 2023

Mrs. Bush has requested leave for the 2023 school year to pursue full-time university study.  We are saddened already that Mrs. Bush will not be here next year however we understand her need to extend and upskill herself.  We wish her all the best as she continues her learning journey and look forward to her return in 2024.

Miss Georgia Kirby informed me yesterday that she has accepted a full-time teaching position at St Patrick's in St Arnaud.  We thank Georgia for all she is doing for our school and we wish Georgia all the best for the next step in her teaching career.

Advertising for replacement teachers for 2023 will commence next week.  If you know of any teachers who are looking for a full-time position or part-time position, please let me know so I can direct them to the advertised positions.

Footy Colour Day and lunch - on Wednesday 14th September, all staff and students are to wear their favourite footy team clothes.  This is the last day of term for our students, so a special lunch will be provided of pies, party pies, or hot dogs with a fruit box.  

REMINDERS:

On Thursday 15th and Friday 16th of September (the last two days of this term), staff will be having professional learning in Halls Gap.  There will be no school for students on these days.  The professional learning will be focused on our Catholic Identity and Faith formation.  The two days will be facilitated by consultants from the Catholic Education Office, Ballarat.  Staff from St Patrick's school in Nhill will also be participating in these two days.  This will be a great opportunity for us to finally have some face-to-face professional learning in Religious Education as this has been a challenge for us the last two years due to the pandemic.  Please mark these two dates in your diary.  Therefore the last day for students this term will be Wednesday 14th September.  Students will finish at the normal time of 3.15 pm on this day.

Parents and Friends Meeting

The next Parents and Friends meeting will be held next Wednesday, 7th September at 6 pm at the Railway Hotel.  Thank you to the families  have RSVP and booked the pub for a table/meal.  Kids are most welcome to come and enjoy a social catch-up and a meal.  Once again it looks like it's going to be a great turnout and hopefully get a few things finalized re: some upcoming social events.  

Upcoming Events

Family night on Friday 28th October at Murtoa Mechanics Hall.  This is a music family trivia night with a Halloween theme.  More information will be advertised in the near future.  Please mark the date in your diary as it will be great to have every family represented plus extended family, friends, and community people.  So please spread the word and keep your eyes peeled for explicit details.

Murtoa Big Weekend - Saturday 1st October and Sunday 2nd October.  This is the 150-year celebration for Murtoa so there is lot happening in the town over this weekend.  Our school will be open on Saturday from 1 pm to 3 pm.  Further information closer to the date!

School Christmas Pageant - Thursday 8th December at 6:00pm BYO picnic tea for a 6:30pm start.  Concert is called ‘The Night the Angels Danced’.  This will be held at school in the Multi-purpose room.

Until next week - have a great weekend and please travel safely if you are on the roads.               

Kind regards

Mrs. Cathy Grace                                                                                

Father's Day Breakfast and Blessing

All fathers and significant adult male family members were invited to breakfast on Wednesday 31st August, at 8:30 am.  Breakfast was eggs/bacon muffins or muffins with jam/vegemite and tea/coffee/orange juice.  It was awesome to see everyong share this special meal with the significant male people in their lives.  The children performed a very special song called "Not All Heroes Wear Capes.” 

The link to the song is here - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LVD7PYE7_mM

Father's Day Blessing  

As Father’s Day nears we think of all fathers and those who are like fathers to us and wish them a wonderful day on Sunday. Pope Francis has some beautiful words for all father figures in our life:
Nothing could better express the pride and emotion a father feels when he understands that he has
handed down to his child what really matters in life, that is, a wise heart. This father does not say:
“I am proud of you because you are the same as me because you repeat the things I say and do”.
No, he does not say anything so simple to him. He says something much more important, which we can understand in this way: “I will be happy every time I see you act with wisdom, and I will be
moved every time that I hear you speak with decency. This is what I wanted to leave to you, that
this one thing becomes yours: the attitude to feel and act, to speak and judge with wisdom and decency. (Pope Francis June 15th 2020).
You might like to pray the following at home for all father figures:
God of blessing, God of life,
We thank you for the gift of our Fathers and those who are like fathers to us. We place them in
your loving care and trust that you will give them all that they need for life. Amen

Not all heros wear capes...

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Enrolment 2023: Beginning 2023 - Tuition Fees are not charged for your child’s first year of school (Prep/Foundation).

Gifting Mass

On Tuesday 6th September at 2pm, our school will be celebrating a 'Gifting Mass' at St Mary's Church, Murtoa.  The focus of this Mass is to reflect and pray for community members who need assistance in a wide range of situations. As a school community, we offer up a variety of supplies of food and toiletry items that are generously collected and donated by our students, staff and families over the weeks leading up to the Mass.  The generosity and kindness of our community can be felt through seeing our students presenting baskets to the church altar, giving people access to food that they need but find it difficult to purchase.
These baskets of food will be accepted by St Vinnies and the Christian Emergency Food Centre, who will then provide them to our community members in need. 

Please take some time to clean out your pantry and send your non-perishable items to school and have them placed in the baskets at the front door.  Below is a list of possible/suggested items:

Child Safe Standards - Commitment Statement

Below is a link/file attachment that is the updated Statement of Commitment to Child Safety from the Catholic Education Commission of Victoria (CECV). This statement has been updated in light of the revised Child Safe Standards that came into effect on July 1st.
Please take the time to read the updated statement.
We are committed to continuous improvement in our approach to child safety and wellbeing and welcome feedback from families and members of our school community on ways we can further
strengthen our child safety policies, procedures, and practices.
If you have any suggestions, comments, or questions, please contact Cathy via phone or email.. 

Murtoa Show

136th Annual Murtoa Show will be held  on the Big Weekend on Friday, 30th September 2022.

Students have been preparing entries during various lessons at school.  The school will enter student's work into the show to represent OLHC.

Children are welcome to enter other sections as a Murtoa resident.  If they have time during the school holidays, they might like to create an entry and follow the directions in the show schedule below to enter into the particular category. Detailed instructions, including entry information, are contained in the flyer below.  Click on the 'Murtoa Show Categories for Entries' link below for further information.

Mass Times & Parish Information

Mass: St Mary's Church, Murtoa
Sunday 4th  September Mass 8.30am

Calendar Dates

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

UPDATED COVID-19 information

As part of the changes, parents and carers who have COVID-19 can transport their non-COVID-19 children via private vehicle to their primary or secondary school when an alternative person is not available to assist. This will include school holiday programs held on school grounds.

This means that parents and carers will be able to leave COVID self-isolation to take their non-COVID-19 child to school or school holiday programs via a private vehicle.

The parent or carer must travel directly to and from the school only. They must remain in the vehicle at all times unless it is reasonably necessary to leave the vehicle to walk the child to and from the entrance of the school safely. They must wear a face mask at all times.

Family members are asked to continue reporting positive COVID-19 cases to the Department of Health.

You must also let the school know if your child is a close contact. Students who are close contacts and want to attend should still take 5 RATs over 7 days and wear a face mask whilst indoors if they are aged 8 years or over.

Students should continue to stay home if they are unwell, even if they test negative on a RAT.

It is strongly recommended by the Department of Health that face masks are worn in indoor settings, with face masks mandatory for those aged 8 and over who are household contacts and attending school. This is because wearing masks is effective in reducing the transmission of COVID-19.

In practice, this means that the Victorian Government is recommending that, through to the end of winter, students aged 8 and over and staff will wear masks when in class, except where removing a mask is necessary for clear communication or when a particular activity requires the removal of a mask.

Masks are not required to be worn outdoors but can be worn when physical distancing is not possible. This recommendation should not constrain student participation in the full range of school activities, including music, sport and performances.

Reduction of Testing and Isolation Exemption Period.

The period of time when someone is considered a recently confirmed case and therefore exempt from testing and isolation requirements has been reduced to 4 weeks. Previously, this period was 12 weeks.

This means, that staff or students that have recovered from COVID-19, are not required to get tested or isolate/quarantine again if they are re-exposed to a case within 4 weeks of ending the isolation period.

After 4 weeks, the relevant advice must be followed depending on the type of contact.

Additionally, where a student or staff member who is a household contact wishes to attend school (and not isolate for 7 days) they must:

• Continually test negative using a rapid antigen test, on at least 5 days out of the 7-day period (ensure tests are spaced at least 24 hours apart)
• wear a mask indoors when outside your home (for those over 8 years of age)
• notify their employer/school, and
• not visit hospitals or care facilities.
• More information is available via the coronavirus.vic.gov.au webpage.  See links here for close contacts and COVID-19 cases.

Thank you for your support as we continue to make these adjustments.