OLOG eNewsletter Term 2 Week 2

Dear Parents and Caregivers, 

Welcome back to Term 2! I hope the holiday break, especially Easter, was a time when you could stop, relax and enjoy some time with family and friends. As we know, the Easter celebrations concluded with the sad announcement of Pope Francis’ death, aged 88.  

Congratulations to all students who have made such a positive start to Term 2. Thank you to Year 6EB for leading the Resurrection and Easter liturgy with the whole school on our return for Term 2.

Farewell to Pope Francis (1936–2025)

The world farewelled Pope Francis, who passed away peacefully on Easter Monday at the age of 88. His funeral at St Peter’s Basilica drew hundreds of thousands of people from all corners of the globe – a real sign of how deeply he touched lives.

Pope Francis was the first Pope from the Americas and the first Jesuit to lead our Church. Throughout his time as Pope, he reminded us of the power of compassion, kindness, care for creation, and love for those on the margins of our communities.

The world farewelled Pope Francis, who passed away peacefully on Easter Monday at the age of 88. His funeral at St Peter’s Basilica drew hundreds of thousands of people from all corners of the globe – a real sign of how deeply he touched lives.

Pope Francis was the first Jesuit to lead our Church. Throughout his time as Pope, he reminded us of the power of compassion, kindness, care for creation, and love for those on the margins of our communities.

He taught us that real leadership is humble and brave. His message of mercy, peace, and welcome changed the lives of millions.

True to his humble nature, Pope Francis chose to be buried at the Basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore, close to the people he loved.

On returning to school the staff and students continued to pray for Pope Francis, to give thanks for his life, and to ask the Holy Spirit to guide the Church as we await a new Pope. The Conclave have now gathered in Rome to elect a new Pope.

Mother’s Day Celebration at OLOG on Friday

This weekend, we celebrate Mother’s Day, and I wish all our mothers and grandmothers a very Happy Mother’s Day. I hope you take a moment to feel special and have the opportunity to connect with your family. Connection and relationships are incredibly important, and this is a message we continue to promote within our school community.

We are hosting a Mother’s Day Breakfast on Friday, May 9th, at 8:00 a.m. Mothers and grandmothers are welcome to join us 

for a croissant and a chat with staff and parents. Last year’s event was a resounding success, so please RSVP for catering purposes—details are in the newsletter flyer.

The Coffee Van from DejaVu Brewing will be onsite from 8:00 a.m.

Following the Mother’s Day breakfast, Reception students will lead a Mother’s Day Liturgy in the Church. All parents are invited to attend the Liturgy. Liturgy will commence at 9:00am.

OLOG Hounds Basketball Academy

Last week, OLOG announced the OLOG Hounds Basketball Academy in partnership with South Adelaide Basketball Club. This partnership will provide our students with specialist training and opportunities to further their basketball skills. This places OLOG as a Basketball Specialist school. We look forward to this exciting development throughout 2025.

New OLOG Sports Court

After over 15 years of wonderful use by OLOG students, we bid farewell to the old court and welcomed our new one. The new court has been enthusiastically embraced by all students, and next week, we will host our first netball game of the season. 

Looking Ahead: Establishing Strong Learning Routines- Term 2

As we begin a new term, we encourage families to reinforce productive learning habits at home. Addressing any barriers to academic success will help students achieve their best. Ensuring they are organised and equipped with the necessary materials, reading daily, completing homework, and setting goals leading into Term 2 reports will pave the way for a successful term ahead.

Peace and Blessings,

Josette Charles
School Principal

Wellbeing at OLOG: a strengths-based approach- Parent Switch Program

At OLOG we have adopted a strengths-based approach to assist students to build a positive sense of self and, in turn, build their capacity to learn and problem solve. As humans, we are wired to look for the negative; we often look at things through a deficit lens, fixating on flaws in a situation or person rather than identifying strengths and opportunities.

A strengths-based approach focuses on developing our young people by highlighting their strengths and encouraging them to draw upon their strengths in order to reach their full potential. Research shows that such an approach leads to higher self-confidence, higher levels of optimism, higher levels of life satisfaction, lower levels of anxiety and lower levels of depression. It also enhances the quality of relationships, thus contributing to higher levels of wellbeing. As our children become more aware of their own strengths, they start to notice them in others. In the school setting, we refer to this as ‘strength spotting’.

Whilst strength development occurs throughout life, it is especially rapid in childhood. The more a strength is practised, the stronger the neural pathway becomes. This means that if we want to build the brain areas that support our children’s strengths, educators and parents need to create environments and experiences where they frequently use their strengths.

There are two broad categories of strengths – talent strengths and character strengths. Talent strengths are generally skill based and performance based. They are very much observable. An example of a talent strength is someone being particularly talented at playing an instrument or playing a certain sport. Character strengths are more personality based and are derived from thoughts, feelings and actions. Examples of character strengths include kindness, fairness, courage, leadership and self-control.

A strength is something a child does well, gets energy from and is self-motivated to do. Both talent strengths and character strengths are important.

Parents can support us by helping our children learn what strengths they possess and encouraging them to utilise them. If, for example, you notice your child exhibiting cooperation draw their attention to it and articulate why that character strength is important. At a later time, when perhaps they are not demonstrating that strength, call it forward. For example, if you are driving and your children are engaging in ‘back-seat fighting’ or getting too noisy, rather than saying “stop fighting” or “stop yelling” say something along the lines of “I’d really like a bit of cooperation right now. Can we keep the voices to a moderate level?”. This approach not only stops the unwanted behaviour, but it also communicates what you want from them and reinforces a pre-existing character strength.

If you would like to know more about the strength-based approach, from a parenting perspective, I highly recommend Dr Lea Waters book ‘The Strength Switch: How the New Science of Strength Based Parenting Can help your Child and Teen to Flourish’. Alternatively you are welcome to register for the Switch Parenting Course which will be held on Monday 12th May with the final session Monday 19th May.

Term 2 Masses and Liturgies

Friday 9^th May @ 9:00am Mother’s Day Liturgy

Thursday 22^nd May @ 9:15am Our Lady Help of Christians Mass: Year 5

Thursday 29^th May @ 9:15am St Paul V1Mass: Year 3/4

Thursday 12^th June @ 9:15am The Trinity Mass: Year 6

Wednesday 25^th June @ 9:15am The Sacred Heart of Jesus: Whole School Mass

Resurrection Liturgy

On Tuesday in Week 1, our school community came together to celebrate the joy of Easter through our Resurrection Liturgy presented by the Year 6’s. The students reflected on the story of Jesus resurrection and the hope it brings to our lives. It was a beautiful and meaningful way to continue our Easter journey together.

Project Compassion

We extend our heartfelt thanks to all the families who contributed to Project Compassion 2025. Through your generosity, we raised a total of $1308.43! Your support will make a real difference in the lives of those in need. Thank you for helping us live out the spirit of compassion and community. A special thanks to the Social Justice Leaders who helped raised awareness and helped with this social justice initiative.

Pope Francis

We were saddened to hear the news that Pope Francis, our kind and caring Holy Father, has passed away. Pope Francis was a much-loved leader of the Catholic Church who taught us about love, mercy and caring for the poor and the planet. He showed us what it means to live like Jesus, with kindness and hope in our hearts.

The cardinals from around the world Church are gathering in Rome to elect a new pope.

Let us pray for the soul of Pope Francis and give thanks for all he has done. We also pray for our newly elected pope, asking God to bless him with wisdom, courage and love when he begins his important mission.

“Let us keep walking forward together, as pilgrims of hope.”- Pope Francis

ANZAC Day

On ANZAC Day, we pause to remember the brave men and women who served and continue to serve our country in times of war and peace keeping. At our school Community Prayer in Week 1, students, staff and parents gathered in prayer and reflection, honouring the ANZAC spirit of courage, sacrifice, and mateship.

We remembered especially those who gave their lives so that we may live in peace.

Through prayer, poetry, and laying of wreaths, our community paid heartfelt tribute to the sacrifices of the past and our hope for a peaceful future.

Lest we forget.

Art Competition

The Glenelg Parish is hosting an Art Competition on Sunday 18^th May from 3:00pm-4:45pm in the St Dominic’s Hall off High St Glenelg.

The competition is for 5-15 Year olds.

Art Competition

Inclusive Education

As part of our commitment to our mission and values, to working in partnership to enable each learner to thrive, and to ensuring the health and safety of all people on grounds, our school is implementing a new process for requests for families for Privately Engaged Service Provision in Schools, including National Disability Scheme (NDIS) service.

Privately engaged Service Provision in school can only occur, if all the following criteria have been met;

• A request has been submitted by the parent/guardian to the Principal/APRIM using

the new Parent/Guardian Request Form.

• All required paperwork has been received by the Privately Engaged Service Provider.

• A current Privately Engaged Service Provision in Schools: Agreement is in

place, which has been fully completed, approved and signed by the Principal

or authorised delegate.

• A letter of approval has been received by the parents for the provision of service to proceed (This will also be subject to room availability).

Thank you for your continued support in working in partnership with the school.

Joy and Blessings

Debbie Scuteri
APRIM/Inclusive Education Coordinator

OLOG Fee Statements have been published to the Community Portal, please review your statement for accuracy and to ensure all planned instalments are correct.

Thank you to those families that have established 2025 payment plans. If you have not yet established your payment plan kindly contact Finance Manager Kerri Rowell to discuss (forms are attached).

FINANCIAL SUPPORT

Low income fees are provided to families/caregivers who are eligible for School Card.  Applications are available online via https://www.sa.gov.au/topics/education-and-learning/financial-help-scholarships-and-grants/school-card-scheme

COMMUNITY PORTAL

The Community Portal can be accessed via the following link https://cesa-portal.civicaed.com.au/

Registration to the Portal is via emailed invitation from noreply@civicacloud.com.au
(please check your junk or spam Inbox).

for those not yet registered to the Portal, invitations have been reissued today.

If you are experiencing difficulty managing your fees or if you have any queries regarding your account or payment plan, please contact Kerri Rowell on 8177 9100 or finance@olog.catholic.edu.au  

SAPSASA Netball Carnival - Tuesday 6th May

On Tuesday 6th May, our students took part in the School Sport Netball Carnival at the Mile End Netball Stadium. Blessed with beautiful weather and a fantastic venue, the day provided a wonderful opportunity for our teams to compete against a wide variety of schools—some from our local area, and others from further afield.

Our Boys team showed tremendous grit and determination throughout the day, playing five hard-fought matches. They secured two impressive wins and were narrowly defeated in three games—each loss by fewer than three goals. The results reflected how competitive the team was, with just a touch more finishing polish around the goals needed to turn the close matches into victories.

Meanwhile, our Girls team had a spectacular day, going undefeated through the minor rounds and finishing it off with a convincing win in the final. Their teamwork, skill, and consistency were on full display, and their reward is the chance to progress to the State Championship Day in Term 3—once again held at Mile End.

A heartfelt thank you goes out to all the parents who came along to support both teams. Your encouragement, enthusiasm, and help on the day were greatly appreciated by students and staff.

Welcome back to Term 2 at Our Lady of Grace School! We hope everyone had a restful break—and that we can look forward to some much-needed wet weather in the weeks ahead.

It’s already shaping up to be a busy and exciting term in sport. We’ve kicked things off with two fantastic events: the District Netball Day and the Year 5 Camp, both of which were huge successes and great experiences for our students.

Coming up, we have the South West District Cross Country Day in Week 3, followed by our own OLOG Cross Country event later in the term. In addition, our Year 5/6 students will have the opportunity to participate in the Sofcrosse SACPPSA Day at West Beach on either Monday 19 or Tuesday 20 May. More details will be sent out to Year 5/6 parents very soon.

Our co-curricular sports program is also in full swing. Basketball begins this week, with Netball, AFL, and Soccer kicking off next week. Fixture details are still coming in, and we’ll share them with families as soon as they are confirmed.

A special congratulations goes to Darcy Thur, who has been selected to represent South Australia at the National Basketball School Sport Championships. This is a fantastic achievement and one we are incredibly proud of—well done, Darcy!

We’re looking forward to a fun, active, and successful Term 2!

For any inquiries or to express your interest in coaching or managing, please contact sports@olog.catholic.edu.au

See you at the court or ground
Mr Mylonas

Hi Families, 

Library Open Hours and Borrowing Times

Our OLOG library is open for families to read, return, or borrow books from 8:30am every morning. It’s also open for fun activities during Monday, Thursday and Friday lunch times. Class borrowing times are posted on the library door for your convenience. Please remind your child to bring their library bag - no bag, no borrowing!

A few dates upcoming in the library for you to write in your calendars.

Orders Due 16^th of May - Scholastic Book Club

Book Club Issue 3 has been delivered and given out to families. Issue 3 orders are due to close on the 16^th of May. Order before this date so you don’t miss out! Every order made on this issue will receive a $5 promo code to be used toward Issue 4. Purchases can be made through the LOOP app, available on the App Store or Google Play. If you have any questions, feel free to email me or catch me in the library before school!

Wednesday 21^st of May – National Simultaneous Storytime.

National Simultaneous Storytime is just around the corner — happening on Wednesday of Week 4 at 11:30 am! This year’s story is ‘The Truck Cat’ by Deborah Niland, a heartwarming tale full of adventure, friendship, belonging, and a few surprises along the way.

We’ve got copies of ‘The Truck Cat’ waiting for you in the library, plus some fun activities to help get everyone excited.

Runs Until 7^th of September – Premier's Reading Challenge

We’re so proud of the students who have already completed the Premier’s Reading Challenge and handed in their forms - what an outstanding effort!
We have a running tally in the library to celebrate those who finish, and it’s growing every week. If your child has completed their challenge, please make sure they return their form to the library so we can officially record their achievement. Just a reminder that students should be reading books at their appropriate reading level to make the most of the challenge. Spare forms are available in the library or can be downloaded from the Premiers Reading Challenge website if needed.

Let’s keep the momentum going and celebrate all our wonderful readers!

MOTHER'S DAY STALL:  Thankyou to our P&F Helpers for packing the Mother's Day Gift Bags and assiting with students choosing one (or two) for the special person in their lives.

We have a limited number left over which can be purhcaed at our Mother's Day Breakfast tomorrow morning. 

 SATURDAY 28TH JUNE - GOOD SAMARITAN CENTRE: SACRED HEART COLLEGE (CHAMPAGNAT CAMPUS)

Bookings are now open via QKR!.  Book for a full table of 10 people $120.00 / table or you can purchase single tickets for $15.00 / person.

HELP !!!!

If you are a business or know of a business who would like to donate prizes / gift vouchers / any type of prize we would love to hear from you. Prizes will be awarded to best dressed table and we are hoping to have a wine wall, plus plenty of prizes to be won on the night. 

Plesae contact Sara Cox scox@olog.catholic.edu.au if you are able to assist. 

Our Mission:

To support the school by organizing events and activities that enhance the school experience for students and families.
To raise funds for additional resources and opportunities that benefit the school community.
To provide a platform for parents and caregivers to engage with the school in a meaningful way.

How Can You Get Involved?

Attend our meetings and share your ideas
Volunteer at our events
Help with fundraising activities
Support other parents and families by being part of a welcoming community

We always welcome new members to join and contribute in any way they can. Every parent’s involvement, no matter how big or small, makes a significant difference!

Meetings:
Please check the school’s newsletter or our P&F social media for the upcoming dates (To be advised in our following newsletter). 

How to Join: If you're interested in being a part of the committee or would like more information, please contact us via scox@olog.catholic.edu.au. We would love to have you involved!

Informing the school of absences

If your child is not going to be at school due to illness, or will be late due to an appointment, it is imperative that you inform the school by:

• Phoning the 24 hour student absentee phone number: 8177 9191 before 8.55am; or
• Completing the absentee form in the Audiri app; or
• By emailing the class teacher or olog@olog.catholic.edu.au

Advance Notice of Absence / absence of more than five (5) days

Please complete the Application for Exemption from School Enrolment/Attendance Form, which is available from the Front Office.

If your child is late

If your child arrives after 8:55am, they will need to enter through the Front Office and be signed in manually by a parents/caregiver.

Early Departure

Should any child need to leave the school grounds during school hours, students must be signed out at the Front Office by their parent/caregiver before leaving the school.