The last few weeks have once again been very busy at OLOR. We’ve had a couple of performances at the school, and our Foundation students had their first excursion to the Pevan and Sarah concert in Gawler. They had a great time and enjoyed the very long day. 

Our Year 6 students had their Kangaroo Island Camp last week. This was a great adventure for all involved. We shared the experience with the Year 6 students from St Albert’s Loxton, and all of the students got along very well. Experiences included a visit to Clifford’s Honey Farm, going onto the beach at Seal Bay to get an up close look at the wildlife, as well as visits to Admiral’s Arch and Remarkable Rocks. The highlights for lots of students were the bird and reptile shows at Raptor Domain and the sandboarding at Little Sahara. It was a great experience for all of the students and I’d like to thank Miss Stewart and Kailey Waechter for their organisation and support on the camp. 

Next Saturday night we look forward to our Movie Night. Students and their parents are invited to have a fun evening at school to celebrate our ‘Called to Community’ theme of 2023. Students will be able to have a sausage sizzle and drink before heading into the hall to watch a movie, while parents are invited to socialize outside with a drink and some nibbles. Parents wishing to bring some more substantial food for themselves are welcome, and we will have some drinks available to purchase from the hall canteen. It promises to be a great way to meet new families and have a bit of fun. 

In Week 6 we are pleased to be able to offer swimming lessons to all of our students at the Berri pool. Learning to swim and survive is vital in our wonderful Riverland, where the dangers of water are ever present. We look forward to hopefully some nice warm weather to make the lessons even more inviting. On the Thursday we are planning to have a Splash Day at school between lessons, where all students will be able to have fun, while raising money for Catholic Missions. 

A reminder that we have a Student Free Day on Friday 24th November for staff professional development. Keeping staff up to date with professional learning around curriculum, wellbeing and good teaching and learning practice, is something that we know will lead to better outcomes for all students.

I would like share some staffing news with our community. Recently, Miss Tori Martin and Miss Jade De-Gregorio were successful in winning permanent positions at OLOR. We congratulate them on their positions and look forward to them being part of the OLOR team for years to come. Recently, Mrs Lisa Rayner won a permanent position at St Joseph’s Barmera, starting in 2024. We thank Lisa for her time at OLOR and wish her well in her new role at St Joseph’s. Miss Amalie Fiebiger and Miss Emma Remkes have decided to move back to Adelaide to be closer to family. We thank them for their year at OLOR. Miss Gemma Stewart will be taking a year of leave, and we hope to welcome her back to OLOR in the future. Mr James Canavan is moving back to Mildura with his wife to be near family as well. I am pleased to announce that Miss Shyla Lange will be part of our Junior Primary team next year. Shyla, who hails from Loxton, is a recent graduate who is looking forward to working at OLOR and beginning her teaching career. Once class teaching positions for 2024 are finalised I will let families know of the outcomes.   

We look forward to a great second half of Term 4 with lots of great experiences still to come.  

Mr Michael Slagter
Principal