Dearest Families and Friends of OLPS,
We hope that our community is excited by the news that all students are finally returning to school over the coming weeks. We appreciate this has been a particularly difficult time for all members of our precious community, and we sincerely 'hope' the roadmap/plan for all schools has provided some much needed certainty for our students, staff and families. In line with our mandated operational guidelines, we have worked steadily towards a 'return to school' plan, to ensure all aspects have been suitably addressed. From mandated health and safety measures, to prioritising wellbeing and the key academic areas of Mathematics and Literacy, we believe that our staff are prepared and ready to welcome your children back onsite and to do the best they can to support and engage each and every student. School leaders and LSOs will be in classrooms for the teaching of English and Mathematics; these staff members will conduct one to one and small group explicit teaching sessions in conjunction with the classroom teacher. Our priority is to re-establish routines and relationships. We will provide support as the students learn how to navigate the playground and classroom successfully. There will be plenty of opportunities for students to revisit and practise the social skills required to re-establish friendships, play successfully with peers, manage emotions, work collaboratively, take turns and listen to one another.
We understand that we are going to gradually rebuild the children’s learning stamina. Sitting and focusing for extended periods is simply not possible from day one, so we can expect to see lots of movement, brain breaks and re-setting before the students can sustain longer periods of learning. Re-establishing healthy relationships/interactions, 'school/class' routines and the social norms of school life after an extended period offsite will take time, so patience and support from all quarters will be encouraged. Your support will certainly assist the students to make a successfully transition back to onsite learning.
With the Victorian Government announcing the easing of restrictions from 6.00pm on Friday 29th, we are pleased to be welcoming all students from Prep to Year 6 back to onsite learning from Wednesday 3rd November.
Families not returning to OLPS in 2022
If your child/ren (Prep-Grade 5) will not be returning to OLPS in 2022 please click here and fill out the form as soon as possible so that we can plan for the year ahead.
School Advisory Council
I take this opportunity to thank our School Advisory Council (SAC) members for their continued service to our community. There will be a couple of vacancies available on SAC for 2022. We are calling for nominations to fill these positions. Please find attached, the SAC Membership Nomination Request, and a copy of the Terms of Reference. This document contains detailed information regarding the role of the School Advisory COuncil. Also please note the application closing date of Monday 22nd November. We look forward to your responses and please contact me if you have any questions.
2022 Prep Transition
We will provide communication to Prep 2022 families on the dates and times of the transition sessions once we gain full clarity from the Victorian Government and MACS on what is possible.
MACSSIS: School Improvement Surveys
This important survey is available online, can be accessed from Thursday 7 October and needs to be completed by Thursday 28 October 2021. We have sent the link to this survey to all our families at OLA and we value your feedback. There are no ‘right’ or ‘wrong’ answers and all responses are completely anonymous. We currently have 37 out of 204 families who have completed the family survey.
School Fees
Thank you to all families who are up to date with school fees. This is a reminder to all families who may have fallen behind with payments to please make sure to attend to this as soon as possible. We are aware of the impact on families of COVID lockdowns throughout the past 18 months and encourage parents to make contact with me if you require support with the payment of school fees. You can also request support by writing to aengellenner@olsureyhills.catholic.edu.au
Summer Uniform
Changeover to summer uniform couldn't come at a better time with us enjoying warmer temperatures over the last couple of days. However, should this be challenging after lockdown or tricky to obtain uniforms, students are welcome to wear summer or winter uniforms. We also remind parents that Term 4 has a ‘No Hat – No Play’ Sunsmart Policy. Children without hats at school will be restricted to the undercover areas. A reminder that girls wear white socks with their summer uniform and boys wear blue. There must be no logos on white/blue sport socks
