30 January 2019

Newsletter Articles

School Calendar

PRAYER

Prayer for the Start of the School Year

Peace Be With You

Port Pirie Diocesan theme for 2019 (peace with self, neighbour and creation).

God of peace,
Create in us a peace-filled heart.
Help us find quiet times to be still and reflect on your presence with us.
Assist us to act with love, forgiveness and compassion, so we can live
peacefully with others
Guide us in showing respect and care for all of creation
In all our thoughts, words and actions, help us be peacemakers in creating the world you desire.
We ask this in the name of the light of Christ, Spirit of Peace.
Amen

Principals Report

We have all settled in well to the start of Term 1 2019. It was just lovely to see all the children after our long break so happy and cheerful. At our first morning assembly I read to all the students the book, ‘Old Friends, New Friends’ by Andrew Daddo and Jonathan Bently. This book is about identifying the feelings we all go through on the first day of school when we discover the changes. It’s an empowering book about how to cope with change and how to make new friends, while still having other friends in other classes.

The change of composite year groups at OLOR gives us the opportunity to keep classes at similar sizes across the school when we have growing enrolments, as well as preparing our students for the change of high school in later years. The Year 4 students of today will most likely be in Year 7 at high school in three years time! Dealing with change can be a challenge for many and it’s an important life skill in learning how to work through any difficulties we are confronted with.

We have an amazing staff to support all students and teachers who will be teaching the curriculum to each individual student related to their abilities and year levels no matter what composite classes they are in. We also have a teaching time table that is flexible and allows the students in each year level to come together throughout the week, for example in Physical Education and Electives the Year 2’s, Year 3’s, Year 4’s and Year 5’s will all be in separate groups.

Change is something we need to actually teach children to go through. It’s an important skill and often in primary school there are a lot of changes and challenges that we want students to experience and feel comfortable about before going to high school.

In the coming weeks if your child continues to be anxious after returning back to school, one way of helping them is to talk through their fears:

• Set aside time to talk about school and take an interest in what they have been doing
• Listen carefully to any worries your child might have but build on their positive experiences
• Find out about what happens at school during the day so you have a realistic picture
• Keep a regular routine at home to keep stress to a minimum
• Use our Schoolzine App and Website and information sent home to make sure your child knows what is happening and is informed and prepared about any changes to their routine
• Encourage your children to build friendships with children in their class and play with friends during breaks

Listed below are some questions that are good to use for discussion starters with your child.

• What made you smile today?
• Can you tell me an example of kindness you saw or showed?
• Tell me something you know today that you didn’t know yesterday?
• If you could change one thing about your day, what would it be?
• What made your teacher smile?
• What was the hardest thing you had to do today?

Our Lady of the River School is dependent upon us all being open and honest in our communication. As we journey together, I want everyone to know that our doors are always open and on behalf of the staff, I look forward to ensuring our school not only continues to be a safe and joyful place but a Catholic environment where the improvement of educational outcomes is a priority for all. We are all striving for a year full of quality learning, a lot of fun and excitement for all.

Mrs. Ros Oates
Principal

Smiling faces from our first day of school, 2019.

NEW STAFF & STUDENTS

A very warm welcome to the new students and staff at OLOR who are joining us for the first time. We trust that your time with us is rewarding and we look forward to working with you over the coming years.

Foundation: Maddison Adams, Catie Camilleri, Adamantia Dalamagas, Grace Heuzenroeder, Harleen Singh, Jack Burnett, Jaxon Curyer, Jaxon Dolheguy, Troy Howie, Van Koch, Aiden Lacey and Mitchell MacGregor.
Year 1: Zoe Stevens, Alice Colligan
Years 2/3: Tom Colligan, Isaac Martin
Years 3/4: Asher Martin, Declan Stevens
Years 4/5: Mitchell Ebert
Years 6/7: Mika Martin

Staff: James Preece (Years 3/4 Teacher), Mrs Claire Dalzell (Drama Teacher – Tuesdays), Mrs. Jenni Sander (Music Teacher - Thursdays), Brad Krollig (ESO Student support), Bre Michalski (Trainee – Foundation class), Georgia Hauptman (Trainee – Years 3/4 class) and Jesse Frazer (Years 2/3 class).

Beginning School Mass

You are all welcome to our beginning of year ‘School Welcome Mass’ which will be held on Thursday 7th February at 5.30pm in St Mary’s Church. Afterwards we will have a picnic tea (weather permitting) on the school oval. There will be a sausage sizzle, drinks and food van available for dinner purchases.

Swimming Lessons 2019

Students in years, Foundation to Year 3 have swimming lessons at the Berri Swimming pool this week.

Years 3: 10.00 am
Year 2: 1.00 am
Year 1: 12.00 pm
Foundation: 1.00 pm

Our Lady of the River School is a non-government school and does not receive government support funding to access this program. The school will need to pay full price for the wages of instructors and program, however we need to cover pool entry. Parents are asked contribute $15 per child towards these costs for the week if your child does not have a season pass for the Berri Swimming Pool. Please forward this payment to the school by Friday 8th February or this charge will be added to your school fees account.

Swimming SAPSASA

A great opportunity is being offered by the Berri Swimming Club to help your students prepare for the SAPSASA Swimming Carnival on February 18. Would be great for any who are inexperienced/need to build their confidence before the day, or just those who want to improve to get the best out of themselves. Please see the information below and pass on to any who are keen:

The Berri Swimming Club extends an invitation to all students wishing to participate in SAPSASA swimming to training on Monday nights, starting 4th Feb, 5.45 - 6.45pm.

Please wear your school shirt so that it is easy to identify where you are from.

Any queries, please contact head coach Mic Kassebaum - 0417840826

Thanks,
Peter Safralidis

Sport Days 2019

THURSDAY - Mr. Cotter’s Specialist classes – Years Foundation, Year 1, Year 2, Year 3, Year 4, Year 5’s
and FRIDAY – Years 6/7 (double lesson)

Individual classes Physical Education Day

(there are different days to share the school gym and grounds)

Foundation – Mondays
Year 1 – Wednesdays
Years 2/3 (Miss Drogemuller) – Wednesdays
Years 3/4 (Mr Preece) – Mondays
Years 4/5 (Miss Roberts) – Mondays

School Magazine

The cost of the 2018 School Magazine is $20 per copy. If you would like a pictorial magazine capturing the memories of OLOR’s 2018 year, please see Bernie in the front office.

Special Events

PLEASE REFER TO the school website or SZApp for all school year calendar dates.

PARENT INFORMATION NIGHT - Growing with Gratitude Conference

On Tuesday 12th February the students in Years 4-7 will participate in a half day ‘Growing with Gratitude’ workshop. Ash Manuel, from the Growing with Gratitude Program, will work with the students on empathy and gratitude practice, he will run some team building and leadership drills, and also include ideas for the older students to teach the younger students some of the strategies and skills they have learnt on the day.

That evening I ask one parent/carer or (both if you wish) to attend a parent workshop that Ash will also run from 6.30-7.30 pm. We will then invite parents and carers to visit the classrooms for an informal visit to classes and meet the teachers of their children this year.

Professional Development Dates for 2019

To give families plenty of warning and preparation for child care, could you please make note of the following dates that will be student free days in 2019.

Term 1: Thursday 11th April and Friday 12th April
All Staff: Australian Childhood Foundation ‘Making SPACE for learning’ (Trauma training)

Term 3: Monday 22nd July - Friday 26th July (all Week 1 of Term 3)
All Staff: 7 Steps to Writing, Making SPACE for learning and Religious Staff Retreat

REMINDERS

PLEASE READ THE NEWSLETTERS CAREFULLY. Everything you need to know about the school week and dates is on the school app. (SZapp) You can download on all smartphones and tablets for free. We get a lot of phone calls & text about events and programs that have been advertised widely.

Religious Education News

The latest edition of the Southern Cross features all the latest news and information on our Catholic community. Click on the following link below.

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TERM 1 Reminders

Community News

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