Newsletter Term 1, Week 3, 2023

COVID

This week we have seen an increase in children contracting COVID.  This is in line with media reports of another spike in number in the next few weeks and the return to school.  At Our Lady of the Visitation School, we continue to follow the advice of government agencies concerning how COVID impacts students, staff and parents.  Our focus is on minimising risk and ensuring we do all that we can to ensure our communities are safe.

Our message is that students and staff should stay away from school if they are unwell or are displaying Covid-19 symptoms. This remains the most effective control against an outbreak of COVID-19 in a school community.  SInce14 October 2022, it is no longer mandatory for those who test positive to COVID-19 to self-isolate at home. That said, anyone with symptoms should not be at school.

To protect our school community, staff and students should note:

• If you are unwell stay home
• If you have cold or flu symptom get tested for COVID (RAT / PCR)
• If you have COVID stay home until your symptoms (runny nose, sore throat, fever) have cleared.

Please report any COVID case to the staff in the Front Office, as we are still required by SA Health to report weekly on our school’s COVID numbers.

Stage 1 Early Years Building

Unfortunately there has been a hold up with the building caused by unexpected sandy soil in the area where the building was demolished.  This required extra engineering reports and a process to build safely in this area.  This issue has finally been resolved and the remaining footings and slab should be completed by next Friday.  I have been assured by Mossop Constructions that they can catch up the delays with our students and teachers moving into the new building for the start of Term 3.

SEQTA

SEQTA is a student management system which has primarily been used in many High Schools. If you have a child at St Michael’s or Mt Carmel College, you may be familiar with some of the features and benefits of using this platform.  Catholic Primary Schools in SA have now begun using SEQTA and will begin to use this platform to report student progress to parents.  Here at OLV, we have been using parts of SEQTA for several years and at the start of this year our teachers have begun exploring how to use SEQTA to plan and program lessons and units of work.  

This year, all end of semester reports will be generated via SEQTA.  This means our reporting format and process will look different to how it has been in the past.  We are currently working with CESA on this process and hopefully we will have more information on how our reports will look as the semester progresses.

2023 Student Residential Address and Other Information collection notice

This notice is from the Australian Government Department of Education, Skills and Employment (the department), to advise you that the department has requested that your child’s school provide a ‘statement of addresses’, in accordance with the Australian Education Regulation 2013 (Cth) (Regulation).

Purpose of the collection

This collection is routinely used to inform Commonwealth school education policy, and to help ensure that Commonwealth funding arrangements for non-government schools are based on need, and are fair and transparent. The information collected in the statement of addresses will be used to inform school funding calculations.

For more information please refer to the document below.  

Parent Information Night

I’d like to thank all the families who came along to the Parent Information Night last week.  It was great to see so many parents and caregivers come along to support their children, the teachers and the wider school community. As I have mentioned previously, the staff at Our Lady of the Visitation School are here to work in partnership with you, working together to educate the students in our school community.

Parent-School relationships are so important.  Parents play a vital role in the education and development of their children.  There are many benefits to a parent-teacher partnership. When parents and teachers work together it sends a clear, consistent, and positive message to students that school is important, that learning is important and that achievement is expected.

If you wish to discuss any concerns about your child’s education and needs, please in the first instance communicate with your child’s teacher, or staff member who is most directly involved with your concern.  Communication can be in the form of an e-mail, a telephone call or by coming in to see your child’s teacher.  Please note that if you are coming to see your child’s class teacher, please make a mutually convenient time to meet as teachers often have commitments before school or after school and are often surrounded by other students and parents, which can make discussing complex issues difficult.

By dealing directly with your child’s class teacher, you as parents will be able to develop a relationship built on trust.  Also your child’s teacher is in the best position to share with you their observations and deal with your concerns.  If after speaking with the teacher, if you are not satisfied with the response, then please feel free to contact me.

2023 Assembly Roster

Assemblies are on Friday starting at 2.20pm.  Parents of the class coordinating the Assembly and Class Award recipients are invited to attend our assembly’s as they are an important part of our school life and is a great insight into what is happening around the school.

Term 1                                                

Week   3          Year 6MI (McKenna / Ida)
Week   5          Year 5JN (Jiranek / Naismith)
Week   7          Year 4KK (Kersten)
Week   9          Year 3MK (Knolder)
Week   11        Year 2/3LB (Bianchini)

Catholic Identity

Our Lady of the Visitation Story

The beginning of the year is often a time of reflection and setting goals.  We invite you to read our scripture story which is at the heart of who we are, what we do and what we believe.

Gospel: A reading from the holy gospel according to Luke (1:39-45)
Mary hurried to a town in the hill country of Judea. She went into Zechariah’s home, where she greeted Elizabeth. When Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting, her baby moved within her. The Holy Spirit came upon Elizabeth. Then in a loud voice she said to Mary: “God has blessed you more than any other woman! He has also blessed the child you will have. Why should the mother of my Lord come to me? As soon as I heard your greeting, my baby became happy and moved within me. The Lord has blessed you because you believed that he will keep his promise.”

Scripture Wonderings

I wonder why Mary hurried to see Elizabeth?
I wonder how Elizabeth’s baby knew?
I wonder what great things God has done in our life?
I wonder how we share the Fruits of the Holy Spirit with ourselves? each other?
I wonder how we share joy with others? What does Joy look like? feel like? sound like at OLV?
What ways can we continue to show service to others?

Project Compassion 2023
THEME: For All Future Generations  

“All generations will call me blessed” Gospel of Luke (1:46–55)

In 2022 our Project Compassion theme was taken from Genesis, God’s promise to Noah through the rainbow. In 2023 the theme is the same with a focus on Mary saying YES! The ‘Yes’ she spoke when the Angel told her she was to become the mother of Jesus. This theme connects with our Visitation Story and reminds us that the good we do today will impact the lives of future generations.

ASH WEDNESDAY MASS : 22 February

9:30am at OLV Church: All Welcome

On Ash Wednesday we begin our Lenten journey. Lent is a season of prayer, fasting and almsgiving. The marking of the ashes on our foreheads on this day is a public expression of our faith and humility. Lent also prepares us for Easter, the most important and sacred time in our Church’s calendar. It is a time when we are reminded of Jesus death and resurrection. It is also a time for us to act with love and hope for all future generations.

This year our Mass will be led by 5/6AM and 6MI.

2023 Project Compassion Boxes will be sent home on this day.

Archdiocesan Events & Liturgy

2023 Lenten Resources

To guide children through the Lenten season, starting with Ash Wednesday on February 22^nd through to Easter Sunday, the Office for Worship have created a simple weekly activity page to use both a school and home.  A digital image and a printable pdf are available on the link below.

Lenten Resources - OFFICE FOR WORSHIP (ofw-adelaide.org.au)

The Australian Dental Foundation (ADF) 'My School Dentist Program'

The Australian Dental Foundation (ADF) ‘My School Dentist’ program will be visiting our school from March 6^th to March 9^th.   Consent forms have already been sent home.

‘My School Dentist’ is a not-for-profit program, dedicated to improving oral health and expanding access to quality dental care for children and teens (2 to 17 years of age) in Australia. They come to us and provide dental treatment onsite at no out of pocket expense to participating families and schools. Launched in 2012, ‘My School Dentist’ is now one of the largest mobile dental programs, actively servicing over 300 kindergartens, primary and secondary schools in metropolitan and regional South Australia and Victoria.

Thank You

St Vinnies Christmas Appeal
In 2022 we celebrated a ‘Colour Door Day’ where our students came to school dressed as their door colour. Our students were invited to bring along a gold coin donation to support the St Vinnies Christmas appeal. Your kind generosity allowed us to raise $650. This donation went to support families in the form of food hampers and gift vouchers. A sincere thank you to our families

Beginning of Year Mass

On Tuesday 7 February we gathered to celebrate our 2023 Beginning of Year Mass. Our school theme this year is:

Together we inspire Truth - Truth with God, Truth with our learning, Truth with ourselves and others and Truth with our environment.

In seeking Truth together, we will be guided by the whisper of the Holy Spirit as we continue to be thriving people, capable learners and leaders for the world God desires. We will respect that we are all made in the image of God and celebrate our own individual and each other’s unique qualities.

We thank our school and house leaders for leading our Mass and Father Roderick for being our celebrant.

Developing Thriving People, Capable Learners and Leaders for the World God Desires

At OLV we are committed to developing thriving people, capable learners and leaders for the world God desires. At the beginning of each year and term we intentionally develop learning programs based on Connecting, Relating and Belonging. We have been learning and sharing about:

Our unique qualities, interests and gifts and those of others
Our families and loved ones
Ourselves as leaners and how to engage with others authentically
Taking care of our learning environment

Sacramental Program

Lotus Black, Harper Cowan, Scarlett Reed and Zamara Turley will be continuing their sacramental journey this semester. The celebration of Confirmation is on Wednesday 24 May, and First Communions on the following Sunday 28 May (including vigil Mass 27 May).

Student Leadership (SRC)

We congratulate our newly appointed SRC ‘s for Semester 1 2023. At OLV we value learner voice and choice. We look forward to working in partnership with our SRC’s and continuing to nurture their leadership skills and confidence by reviewing and developing experiences and structures within our school.

6MI:      Shayda Yousefpour and Adriano Santoro
5/6AM:  Alessia Santoro and Patrick Drummond
5JN:      Elise Oliveira and Parker Schell
4KK:     Madison Bennett and Zavier Riley
3MK:    Callie Brand and Flynn Rowlandson
2/3LB:  Amira Hussein and Lewis Oliveira
2EH:    Mariah Ryan and Jett Messer-Plant
2CJ:     Harper Sniedze and Zach Cosby
1TB:     Eloise Sims and Ethan Bennett
1JI:       Noah Speer and Sophie Bevan
RMJ:    Archer Maggs and Sophie Foureur
RJW:   Harrison Rooney and Indianna MacMillan
RCJ:    Hugo Puletama and Evie Farrimond-Austin

SHROVE TUESDAY: 21 February

Shrove Tuesday, well known as Pancake Tuesday is the last day before the season of Lent begins with Ash Wednesday. Lent brings Project Compassion, a time when we are called to give to each other and vulnerable communities. Students will be provided with a pancake with a choice of topping. We kindly ask for a gold coin donation which will go towards Project Compassion.

If you are available to volunteer your time by baking pancakes on Tuesday 21 from 9am-11am please email Jhovana Fenu by no later than Friday 17 February. Your time will be greatly appreciated by our school community.  jfenu@olv.catholic.edu.au

Nude Food Tuesdays

Nude Food Tuesdays are back for 2023!  Children can join in by coming to school with zero packaging in their lunchbox. That means no squeeze yoghurts, alfoil, glad wrap, chip packets, etc. Last year Nude Food was very successful, with nearly 50% of our school participating. This year our goal is to reach 80% participation!

Soft Plastic Recycling

Supermarkets have temporarily paused all soft plastic recycling. If you’re a soft plastic recycler, you’ll need to put your soft plastics in your blue lid bin while the issue is being resolved. If you live in the suburb of Alberton, you may be able to participate in a soft plastic recycling trial. Find out more at the link https://www.cityofpae.sa.gov.au/live/waste/soft-plastics-trial.

Carnevale

This term in Italian we are learning about the famous Carnevale in Venice.  Carnevale is a time to celebrate, dress up in costumes, wear masks, play games and eat traditional foods like lasagna and fritelle (donuts) before the season of Lent begins.

To celebrate Carnevale at OLV, every year level will have the opportunity to parade in an Italian-themed costume as well as wear a mask they have been designing and creating during their Italian lessons. We can’t wait to show them off at our CARNEVALE PARADE in Week 5 on Friday 3 March at 2.20pm in the Veritas Centre.

The children are encouraged to dress up in an Italian themed costume which reflects an aspect of the Italian culture. Some examples are a famous Italian, a traditional/national costume, a Carnevale character such as Arlecchino, a gondolier or simply dress in the Italian colours (green, white and red). Students can be as creative as they like.

As an added treat the students will have the opportunity to try some delicious gelati (ice-cream), enjoy an Italian cultural performance and learn to dance a traditional folk dance called the Tarantella (The dance of the spider). The children are very excited, and we can’t wait to celebrate and have fun with you all!

Thank you for your support.

Signora Alvaro
(Italian Teacher)