Term 1 Week 6 Newsletter - 14.03.25
Principal News
The weather begins to change, calendars continue to turn, Christmas and New Year’s celebrations drift further into the rearview mirror.
All are signs that Lent is drawing near and has now arrived!
Lent is one of the five seasons of the Catholic liturgical calendar, along with Advent, Christmas, Easter, and Ordinary Time.
Lent precedes Easter and is a solemn period centered on prayer, fasting, and almsgiving. While it is often associated with the Catholic faith, many Christians, including Protestants and Orthodox, observe it.
There is no better time to reconnect with or deepen one’s faith than Lent. During this time, we can draw closer to God as we prepare for the joyous celebration of Christ’s resurrection at Easter.
Dear Families,
I am sure that you are all breathing a sigh of relief now that Cyclone Alfred has passed and the possibility of a major flood event has also passed. It is reassuring that we have family, friends, and a community that comes together to keep each other safe. Your strength, resilience, and care during these times of challenge are a credit to each of you.
I wish to thank our families, students, and staff for their flexibility in adapting to the ever-changing situation, including days of supervision only and early pickups. We are grateful that everyone is safe. In particular, I wish to acknowledge our wonderful team here at OLHC, which ensured that they maintained a calm and supportive environment for our students when they also faced the challenges and uncertainty of this cyclone event.
As we reflect on this shared challenge, we move forward with renewed optimism and an even stronger commitment to providing our students with the opportunity to experience the fullness of life.
Attendance Targets
The Diocese of Lismore Catholic Schools have updated the procedures for monitoring and supporting schools to promote student attendance. Every school day builds upon the previous one, making it essential for students to attend regularly. Regular attendance is crucial as it fosters resilience and enables students to form vital social connections. Across all NSW education systems the expected level of student attendance is above 95%, and we aim to support all of our students to achieve this.
If your child’s attendance is below 90% you may receive a COMPASS communication in the coming weeks. We acknowledge that there may be many reasons for absences and you may have already provided information to the school about why your child has been away. However, this communication is to ensure all parents are aware that their child’s attendance is currently at or under 90%.
We believe that by working together, we can ensure that every student has the opportunity to succeed. Please ensure you contact the school if you would like any support with your child’s attendance.
KISS and DROP
You may have noticed we have made some small changes to our KISS and Drop routine to improve traffic flow and safety. We have added extra rails at the bottom gate, which we have used for the morning drop-off. This has been very successful. We have also worked with the council to have crossing flags for the pedestrian crossing during our pick-up and drop-off times. These should arrive in the next couple of weeks.
Unfortunately, we still have some cars stopping across the entry and others lining up to enter on the road. This is unsafe and blocks pedestrians and the bus bay. As communicated, cars should continue around the block until space is available to enter the Kiss and Drop Zone. While this may be frustrating, it is about keeping your children safe and may also save you from receiving a ticket should a parking officer be present.
Cross Country
Congratulations to everyone for a wonderful Cross-Country Carnival today. It was fantastic to see everyone finishing their races with 100% effort and the sportsmanship that was evident with everyone cheering each other on. We will look to share some of the images from the day with you. Thank you also to the many families that were able to come along to share in the day.
Thank you to Mr Denny for his preparation and planning and to all those involved in helping set up the day. This preparation is why we have such successful events like this. WELL DONE everyone!
Parent Forum Meeting
We will hold our first Parent Forum Meeting for 2025 on Thursday 3rd April at 6pm. An agenda will be provided closer to the event. We look forward to seeing you there.
NAPLAN
Our Year 3 and Year 5 students will begin their NAPLAN testing this Monday. This is a delayed start due to the disruption of last week with cyclone Alfred.
PUPIL FREE DAY
A reminder that on Monday 24th March staff will be engaging in professional learning, this day will be a PUPIL FREE DAY. Families who should require children to be booked into our OSHC service on this day are asked to contact Sofia and ensure they are booked in.
Parent / Teacher Conferences
During Week 10 we will be providing the opportunity for families to meet with their child's/rens classroom teacher with our Parent Teacher Conferences. This is a wonderful opportunity to celebrate the learning of the year so far, and also communicate to you the learning focus for your child.
The bookings will be published today via COMPASS for you to book a suitable time.
Build the Habit of Regular Attendance
Artist - Belle 12 years old.
Together, let’s continue to make our schools a place where everyone feels cherished, loved and inspired. Belle says, ‘I believe that what makes coming to school great is the loving and caring friends I play with. I love the amazing teachers at our school, they care for us and teach us kindly. I love being at a Catholic school. I love it in every way.’
Every Single Day Song Watch this powerful clip together and explore its meaningful messages. Lyric clip.
Mission News
Project Compassion
This Lent, our school is supporting Project Compassion, helping those in need through acts of kindness and generosity. Each classroom has a Project Compassion box, where students can donate money to make a real difference .
We encourage students to earn their donations through small acts of service - helping at home, doing extra chores, or showing other acts of kindness towards others. Every little effort adds up to bring hope and change to communities in need
Thank you for supporting Project Compassion and living out the spirit of Lent through giving!
St Patrick’s and St Joseph’s Feast Day Liturgy and Activities
We will be celebrating St Patrick’s Day and St Joseph’s Feast Days as a school on Thursday 20th March with a Liturgy at 2:30pm led by 5P.
Students are encouraged to wear green and bring a gold coin donation. A huge thank you to our Year 6 students and families who have organised a bake sale.
Please see details in the flyer below.
Upcoming Mission Events
Date | Mass/Liturgy |
Thursday 20th March - 2:30pm (Week 7) | Sts Patrick/Joseph Feast Day Liturgy and activities - Year 6 bake stall & whole school St Patrick theme dress up |
Saturday 29th March - 5:30pm | Schools Mass (OLHC, St Carthages, Trinity, Woodlawn) at Cathedral |
7th April - 11th April - Times TBC (Week 10) | HOLY WEEK (events at school to be confirmed) |
YOU ARE INVITED TO...
Schools Mass
Each term this year, our four Lismore schools will join together for a special Schools Mass at the Cathedral. The Term 1 Mass will be held on Saturday 29th March at 5:30pm at St Carthage's Cathedral.
Each term, schools will be asked to have students particiapte in the mass. This term, OLHC has been asked to do the Offertory. If your child is interested in doing the offertory and you can committ to being at the Schools Mass, please ask them to come and see me (Mrs Hague) at school.
Learning & Teaching News
In Mathematics this fortnight, Year 3 have been learning about measuring length and quantity of numbers. They have had a great time building towers of approximately 1 metre in length and measuring other items in their room and around the school.
Sports News
At OLHC, we love celebrating the sporting achievements of all our students. If your child has a special achievement that you would love for us to share with the school community, please send any photos and a short paragraph outlining their achievement to Mr Denny - zachary.denny@lism.catholic.edu.au
Our 2025 Cross Country was a great success and all students should be congratulated on their positive attitude and efforts, which created a fun and encouraging atmosphere. Congratulations to those students who placed in the top 5 of their race as they will progress to the Zone Carnival which will be held on the 28th of March (see compass for more information). Presentations of medallions will be completed at next week's assembly.
Winter Sports Trials:
The new revised dates for both the Diocesan Sports Trials for Soccer and Rugby League is the 27th of March.
Congratulations to Anika who travelled to Grafton to compete in the Diocesan Hockey Trials last week. While not successful, she should be congratulated on her efforts and resilience.
Term 1 Sporting Events:
25th of March- Newcastle Permanent Soccer Gala Day for Stage 2 and 3 (Rover's Soccer Fields)
28th of March- Zone Cross Country (Hepburn Park)
Community News
