Handbook

Principal
Mr Tony Calabria

Address
1 Wellgate Ave
Kellyville 2155

Phone:
8808 7300

Fax:
8814 5716

Email:
ola@parra.catholic.edu.au

School website
www.olarousehill.catholic.edu.au

Parish website
www.ourladyoftheangels.org.au

Dear Parents,

On behalf of the parish school community, I welcome you to Our Lady of the Angels Primary School. We are blessed to have our beautiful parish church on the same grounds as the school. Fr Warren Edwards, founded the parish in 2007.

Your child is unique and special with his/her own gifts and we are honoured that you have invited us to share the journey with you as these gifts unfold.

Our school motto, “Faith seeking understanding”, stems from the knowledge that the members of our community are united in the same Catholic faith. It is our mission as educators, parents, children, priest and parish – to grow into a deeper understanding of this faith as we live and learn together.

At Our Lady of the Angels, we provide a comprehensive balanced curriculum that engages students in quality learning experiences across the six mandated key learning areas and Religious Education. We endeavour to ensure that each of our students develop a love of learning, a thirst for knowledge, a healthy self-esteem, a respect for others, and a desire to know and follow their God.

At Our Lady of the Angels we believe that:

• Education is a community process
• Education is most effective when there is a strong partnership between school and home
• Education is about believing that each person is made in the image and likeness of God
• Education is the process of releasing and nurturing the true potential within each child
• Education is looking at every child as the hope for the future.

The committed and talented staff at Our Lady of the Angels aim to provide quality learning and teaching to foster in your child academic and human excellence. We aim to provide your child with many opportunities to experience Christ in their lives and develop this life long relationship.

We emphasise:

• Catering for the ‘whole’ person – spiritually, socially, physically, emotionally, culturally and intellectually based on Gospel values
• Providing opportunities for your child to experience and celebrate success and learning at their own individual level
• Helping your child to experience God’s love and nurture his/her personal faith in an environment of prayer, celebration, belonging and community

We look forward to working in partnership with you throughout your child’s schooling with a common vision and high expectations, enabling them to grow and develop in gratitude and respect for all that has been given to them. We offer our support to you in your fundamental role as the first educators of your child.

I encourage you to be an active participant in the life of the school and parish and walk with your child through their precious years at Our Lady of the Angels.

It is in partnership that we can achieve great things for our children.

May each day be filled with Faith, Fun and Learning!

God Bless

Tony Calabria
Principal

Our Lady of the Angels Primary School exists as a Catholic School to proclaim the Word of God, to promote the service of others and to celebrate as a faith-filled community. Our students are provided with many opportunities throughout the school year, to participate in Eucharistic celebrations and whole school prayers which centre on the special events occurring during the calendar year. The students also pray together as a class on a regular basis.

Every day, the teachers and students lead the school community in prayer which focuses on events in the liturgical calendar, world or local events that are relevant to the lives and the growth of the students.

Liturgies are advertised in term calendars and as reminders in the weekly newsletter. Each day, the whole school assembles and prays our Whole school prayer.

Father in Heaven, we thank you for the gift of life.
We thank you for our parents who love and care for us.
We thank you for our friends and teachers who share our days at school.
Please help us, today, to become more like Your Son, Jesus, as we work and play together,
Amen.

Our Lady of the Angels…Pray for Us
St Francis of Assisi… Pray for Us.

Homework is valuable in consolidating work learnt in class. It also provides an opportunity for interaction between parents and children, for parents to see what is being taught at school, and to encourage the students to develop good study habits for the future. Teachers will establish guidelines for each class at the Parent Information Night at the beginning of the year.

A copy of our school’s Homework Policy may be obtained from the school office.

As part of the Homework Policy, readers are often sent home with the children. It is expected that these readers are cared for and returned to school promptly. A library bag is available to keep these books protected. If reading books are lost or damaged, they must be replaced and an invoice will be sent home. Students are not issued with another book until the current book is returned, or payment for a replacement is made.

Staff on the School Leadership Team are provided with release from classroom teaching. The amount of time given varies with the degree of responsibility, from full-time release to one day per fortnight.

All class teachers are entitled to release from face-to-face teaching which is provided on a pro-rata basis. Teachers with over 31 children in their class are also provided with additional release time.

Kindergarten teachers are provided with additional teaching assistance if there are over 27 children in the class.

Our Lady of the Angels Primary School reports on your student’s achievement and progress with Parent/Teacher/Student Conferences in Terms One and Three. Also, each student receives a formal report in the middle and at the end of each year. The written reports are supported by examples of your child’s work done throughout the year.

Students receive a formal report in the mandatory A-E reporting format, with ‘C’ representing the norm for students in the respective grade and at that time of their journey along the stage. However, the A-E format does not apply to the Kindergarten report.

You can ask the school to provide you with written information that clearly shows your child’s achievement in the subjects studied, in comparison to that of other students in the child’s peer group at the school. This information shows the number of students in each of the achievement levels A-E without naming individual students.

Effort: (1- Consistently 2- Usually 3- Rarely) is an overall grading for effort under each KLA on the part of the student over the relevant period of time.

At Our Lady of the Angels, we aim to identify students’ abilities, talents and efforts, and celebrate them appropriately. This is achieved through the following ways:

• Whole School Assemblies run by each grade throughout the year
• Academic Awards
• Showcasing of students work and achievements through foyer displays, noticeboards, back page of newsletter, website, blogs
• Sharing achievements with other classes
• Providing opportunities for students to read at Mass, assembly and other public forums
• Providing an opportunity for students to lead the school community in talent quests, assemblies and similar activities
• At daily assemblies, acknowledging students who have participated in and outside sporting, cultural and academic activities, e.g. Maths competitions etc
• Submitting stories of student achievement or special projects for publication, to the local newspaper, ‘Outlook’ magazine and CEO Staffnet and Oscar news
• Visit to the Principal

When teachers are replaced, qualified relief teachers are employed to teach the children. Where possible, the aim is to provide a degree of continuity. Every effort is made for the relief teacher to follow the program of the classroom teacher.

The Religious Dimension permeates all elements of pastoral care in our school. The focus of pastoral care ensures acceptance, tolerance, peace, hope, respect, dignity, and celebration for all students. We are committed to fostering Gospel values to bring about a world of justice and love. We acknowledge that each of us is created in the image of God and, therefore, each person’s racial and cultural differences are respected and celebrated as gifts from God. All harassment and bullying is unacceptable as it undermines the intrinsic dignity of the individual.

Discrimination of any kind will not be tolerated at our school

The avenue of response to any such behaviour by students will be the same as outlined in the Whole School Behaviour Policy. Any such apparent behaviour demonstrated by any adult – staff member or parent/carer - will be addressed promptly and directly by the Principal or Assistant Principal.

Our Lady of the Angels has a sound discipline policy. With clear parameters, consistency in approach, constant positive reinforcement, encouragement of self-discipline, and appropriate teaching/learning programs and tasks that are age-level appropriate, strength of practice will be maintained.

From time to time incidents occur involving one or more children. The school deals with these matters. If necessary, parents are contacted. At OLA, we are very proactive in this area and aim to always address all matters and follow up appropriately. If any parent has a complaint or a concern about any issues impacting on their child, they need to see either the class teacher or the Assistant Principal/Principal. At no time should an adult approach or reprimand a student at this school (excluding their own child), for any reason or under any circumstances. It is an expectation that any disciplinary action taken by teaching staff will be supported by the relevant parents.

For further details please refer to the following policies available from the school office:

• Pastoral Care Policy
• Behaviour Management Policy
• Bullying Policy

Corporal punishment is prohibited at all schools in NSW

Corporal punishment has been prohibited in Diocesan schools since 1988, by direction of the Executive Director of Schools. Corporal punishment has been illegal in NSW schools since the passage, in 1995, of the Education Reform Amendment (School Discipline) Act.

In addition to this, the school and staff of Our Lady of the Angels does not sanction the administering of corporal punishment by non-school persons, including parents, to enforce the discipline at the school.

The school has written protocols in place to address complaints and grievances. These protocols are in line with the CEO Complaint Handling policy. A copy of this policy is available on the Catholic Schools Parramatta Diocese website.

Parents are reminded that the school buildings and grounds are a ‘drug free and smoke free zone’. Smoking is not permitted anywhere on the site.

The school office is located at the entrance to the school.

Mrs Helen Goldsworthy is our Senior School Officer. For matters concerning the payment of fees, absence from school or any school queries, the secretary may be contacted at the school office.

Please call 8808 7300 during office hours between 8:15 am and 3:30 pm.

Students will spend morning tea and lunchtimes indoors under supervision during wet weather and extreme heat.

If arriving after 8:50 am, parents will need to accompany their child to the office to sign them in. 

Please inform the school secretary if there is any change to your telephone number and/or address. This enables us to maintain accurate records so that parents can be contacted promptly, especially in the case of an emergency.

If your child was to leave the school, it is your obligation to provide us with information regarding the new school that your child will attend. If there is no known destination, the school has the responsibility to inform the local DET School Education Area of the name and last known contact details for your child.

At OLA, we aim to be as ‘paper free’ as possible, with most communication occurring digitally.

However, sometimes notes, forms, etc are distributed and collected. Children place all notes/fees in the class note bag daily. All notes are collected each morning in the classroom and sent to the office.

Forms, letters and fees can be sent this way. Please ensure that on the outside of the envelope you include full details (i.e. child’s name, class etc).

Notes from the office are sent back the same way.

In order to keep parents well-informed about school activities and upcoming events, a school newsletter is produced every Friday. In the interest of saving paper, these will be emailed and posted on the school website. 

Occasionally, other information, class specific permission notes etc, will be communicated as necessary.

If you need to speak to your child’s teacher, it is important that you do not interrupt learning time. It is advised that you ring the office to make an appointment and the teacher will contact you to arrange a suitable meeting time.

Teachers begin supervision at 8:20 am. There are teachers on playground supervision from this time until school starts. Supervision of students is also carried out during morning recess and lunch.

Supervision of students also occurs after school for thirty minutes, after 3:10 pm dismissal until 3:40pm, or until all students have gone. Although teachers may be at school prior to 8:20am or after 3:40pm, they are involved in classroom preparation and are not on supervision duty. The school cannot accept responsibility for any students that arrive prior to supervision at 8:20am or are picked up after 3:40pm. Catholic Out of School Hours Care (COSHC) is available on site. Please refer to this service if needed.

By law, students are expected to attend school each day that the school is open. Regular attendance is essential for progress. If a student is absent from school for any reason, please advise the school via the Skoolbag app, email to ola@parra.catholic.edu.au or with a note on their return to school. If you intend on taking your child out of school for five days or more, please complete the Exemption from Attendance form on the Notes section of the website. If a student is away for more than three consecutive days and no word from home has been received, the school is obliged to contact the parents/carers with regard to the student’s absence.

Please do not send children to school if they are not well. Not only do they become very distressed, they also run the risk of infecting other children. If a student becomes ill while at school, a parent/carer, will be contacted and the child will wait in sick bay until they are collected.

It is not necessary for children to have work sent home over a short period of recuperation. Rest is important at this time and reading is invaluable at any time.

In the morning, students may be dropped off in the ‘kiss-and-drop’ zone from 8:20am. To avoid congestion, this is to be done efficiently with the students moving directly to the supervised area in the playground, and cars exiting promptly.

Please be aware, also, that parking is not allowed along Wellgate Ave or Withers Rd. While we are fortunate to have a parking area on the school grounds, it is limited.

Parents are provided with a large card on which the family name is written and displayed for the teacher on afternoon duty to see. The teacher on duty will call the names of the respective students forward. In the interest of safety for all, especially students, we ask that this system is adhered to and patience exercised.

Afternoon Dismissal Process

• If collecting students from the school ground, please collect students from the gate near the Parish Office. Students will be directed to that area when dismissed.

Kiss and Drop

• 3:00 pm for those collecting KINDER students only.
• If the oldest child is in Year 1/2, please arrive from 3.10 pm
• If your oldest child is in Year 3/4, please come from 3.20 pm
• If your oldest child is in Year 5/6, please come from 3.30 pm

Sometimes, circumstances occur that result in a student being late for school. A student is considered late if he or she arrives after the morning bell, that is 8:50 am. In this case, it is a requirement that parents accompany their child/ren to the office to receive a late pass, before going to class. The class teacher then records this in the class roll. If a student is continually late for school, the parents/carers of that child will be contacted as, collectively, this amounts to a considerable loss of learning time.

Students are brought by their class teacher to the afternoon assembly point and left under the supervision of the teacher on duty. Students may only leave the school grounds when accompanied by an adult (teacher, parent or guardian). Parents who allow students to go home unaccompanied must inform the school in writing.

Any student remaining on the playground after 3:40 pm will be required to sit in the waiting room in the reception area while parents are contacted. They may be required to go to COSHC if the pick-up time is extended.

In the case of a change to how your child is collected from school at the end of the day, the school must be contacted before 2.30pm by phone, or a note given to the teacher if known well ahead of those changes.

For the safety and wellbeing of your children, the school policy requires all visitors to go to the school office before going anywhere else in the school. If the purpose of the visit is relevant, the visitor must sign in, state the time and the purpose of the visit, as well as the anticipated length of stay. They will then be issued with a ‘Visitors Pass’ and are able to continue with the visit. Please remember to sign out when leaving.

The end of the day is an important time of day for children and their teachers. Teachers give out information regarding homework and reminders about things happening the next day. It is important that children do not leave school early unless absolutely necessary. If it is necessary to collect a child during school hours, it is important that the person collecting the child comes to the office to sign them out. Office staff will call the child and request that he/she comes to the office. Parents are NOT to go to their child’s room to collect them during class time. The same applies in the situation that a parent/guardian needs to take a student from the school during school hours. Please inform the child’s teacher previously with this intention, either by note or phone call to the office.

Assemblies are held on the Basketball Court, weather permitting.

Monday Morning Assembly begins the school week with a prayer led by the Religious Education Coordinator (REC), followed by everyone joining in with the School Prayer. After this, is the raising of the flag and the playing of the National Anthem.

Everyone is expected to stand quietly and respectfully during the raising of the flag and join in the singing of the National Anthem.

Each second morning through the week, the students assemble at the morning bell. We say good morning and pray the School Prayer together. The students then follow their teacher into class.

Weekly assembly is held on a Friday afternoon at 2:40 pm, before dismissal. These alternate between infants and primary with one whole school at the end of the term which Principal Awards are presented. At these Assemblies, selected students are presented with awards for their achievements throughout the school week. Students are acknowledged for academic, social and behavioural achievements. Parents are encouraged to attend the Assemblies. 

The school is permitted to have four pupil-free days for Staff Development (SDD). Students do not attend school on these days. For Term 1, the SDD is on the first day of the term. The dates for Term 2 and 3 vary.

These days will be included in the Term Calendar that you will receive (via email and on the school website in the last week of each term for the following term. You will be reminded again in the Newsletter, a few weeks beforehand so that you can make suitable arrangements for your child/children on that day. KTOOSH may sometimes provide care for students on Staff Development Days and during the holidays (Vacation Care), if needed.

Generally, excursions and incursions are planned to support the teaching/learning unit the students are working on in class. Therefore it is important that all students participate in these. The Excursion fee normally covers the cost for these. However, sometimes there is an extra cost incurred.

Parents are often invited to join the students on an excursion. The opportunity of attending excursions is offered to as many parents as possible and if a lot of parents request to go on a particular excursion, a ballot is conducted by the class teacher. Parents attending excursions are given the responsibility of overseeing a group of students. For this reason, younger children cannot accompany parents on excursions.

Only parents who have completed the Child Protection Course can attend excursions. The link for this course can be found under Enrol Now, Parental Involvement.

Teachers are not permitted to give students any medication. If your student requires medication, it must be administered at home before and/or after school. If your student needs to take medication during school hours, it is the responsibility of parents to arrange, with the school secretary, for the administering of the medication.

Parents are required to complete a Medication Administration form before any medication can be administered at school, and the dose needs to be timed to coincide with either recess or lunch. Many doctors agree that medication to be given three times a day does not need to be administered at school. It can be administered: morning – breakfast, after school and before bed at night. Only prescribed medication (with the prescribed date) is acceptable. We are unable to administer Panadol or any other paracetamol.

Asthma – Asthma puffers need to be kept at the school office and not in the child’s school bag. If your child requires their puffer on a regular basis (or on a ‘when needed’ basis), a Medication Administration form must be completed at the beginning of the year or from when they need their puffer.

Anaphylaxis – Anaphylaxis is a severe allergic reaction which can be life threatening. Anaphylaxis is most commonly caused by peanuts, tree nuts, egg, milk, sesame and seafood, as well as medications and insect stings. If a student suffers from Anaphylaxis they will be required to wear a red school hat while in the playground so that they can easily be identified in case of an emergency. Depending of the degree of severity, the student is required to have their epi-pen readily available in the classroom and given to the teacher on duty.

Parents are requested to provide up-to-date information and a small photo of their child if their medical condition is such that it will require special monitoring or urgent first aid e.g. diabetes, epilepsy, anaphylaxis. This information needs to be updated each year.

The school will administer first aid to simple injuries whenever necessary. In cases of serious injury at school, parents, and/or contact person, nominated by the parent, will be notified. It is our practice to give notification of any injury to the head. When urgent medical attention is needed, your child will be taken to the nearest hospital by ambulance. The school will take the necessary steps to ensure the wellbeing of your child at all times.

Students must bring a packed healthy lunch to school. We suggest that fruit for recess and a sandwich with a nutritious filling for lunch, are sufficient. It would help if the fruit is peeled and cut into segments. Teachers encourage students to put back into their lunchboxes what they don’t eat. Please check your child’s lunch boxes when they return from school, as this should help you to gauge the right amount of lunch needed for your child. A packet of chips does not replace a packed lunch.

Because school bags will be kept outside the classroom, the students will be asked to bring their lunches into the classroom where the room is air conditioned. For this reason, it is required that the entire lunch is inside one lunchbox with the child’s name clearly marked on all parts – container, lid and drink bottle.

A water font is located within the learning area so students are able to have a drink of water whenever needed.

Our School is a Nut Aware School Community

At Our Lady of the Angels School, we have children who have severe allergies to nuts. While allergic reactions are common and most are not serious, for these children the reaction can be life-threatening. This is called anaphylaxis and can occur in minutes of an exposure to a trigger, in these children’s case, nuts.

We see prevention as a major part of providing a safe environment for these children. So as to support our community’s effort in this regard, we kindly ask that parents avoid preparing snacks for recess or lunch that include Nutella spread, any peanut butter, nut spreads, snack bars and biscuits that contain nuts. Products having the statement 'may contain traces of nuts’ are suitable to bring to school.

We also ask that you do not include foods that contain nuts when providing food for special events such as cake days or morning teas.

Many parents like to send birthday cakes to school to celebrate their child’s birthday. If you choose to do this, we ask that you send in individual cakes (cupcakes, doughnuts or similar) as they are easier to manage than a large cake, which needs to be cut and shared. If there is a child in that class with an allergy, alternative arrangements must be made for that child.

In the interest of hygiene and keeping down costs, it would be appreciated if each child could bring in one large box of tissues and one pump-pack of hand sanitiser. These will be stored in the classroom for students to use throughout the year.

It would also be appreciated if Kindergarten students could have a spare pair of undies in a plastic bag left in their school bag in case of ‘emergencies’.

We request that parents refrain from allowing the students to bring any expensive toys or computer games to school. The school will not take responsibility for any loss or damage to these items. However, it is often a good idea for a student to bring something from home with which to play, especially for passive play between two children.

Mobile phones: These are discouraged from being brought to school. If for some reason this is deemed necessary, a letter must be sent to the Principal outlining the need. In this case, phones are to be signed in to the office by the student before school and collected at the end of the day. At no time is a child to have a phone in their possession during school hours.

Unfortunately, the school is unable to provide the service of a school canteen at this time. However, with the support of parent helpers, we offer a special lunch day, twice a term. During summer, we also make ice treats (Zooper Doopers, Icy Poles, etc) available for the students to purchase during lunchtime from time to time. Again, this is reliant on the generosity of parent helpers. A roster is available early in the year from the P&F for parents to fill in.

All school uniform items are available for purchase from the school at selected times, as announced. We constantly encourage the students to be neat and tidy in their personal appearance and to wear the correct school uniform at all times. There is a specific uniform for summer, for winter and for sports day. You can support us in our efforts by making sure your child is dressed appropriately each day.

In these times when we are constantly being reminded of the dangers of skin cancer, it is important that parents and children regard the hat as a necessary part of the school uniform. Students must bring their hat to school every day, as there is a school rule that says:

‘No hat, no play’.

Please ensure that all personal belongings and items of clothing are labelled - hats, jumpers, both parts of tracksuit, drink bottles, lunch boxes (lid too), school bags etc. Check regularly to make sure that the label is still legible, as after a few washes the writing often fades. Items that are unmarked are placed in Lost Property. At the end of each term they are placed in Goodwill bins. We ask that any items not belonging to your child that come home, are returned to school.

Paying attention to one’s appearance and personal cleanliness from an early age encourages students to take pride in the way they present themselves, not only at school, but at all times. Hair should be of reasonable length and hairstyles be appropriate for students of primary school age. Girls should have their hair pinned back or tied in plaits or a ponytail. Ribbons and headbands are to be in the school colours or those provided. In the interest of safety, stud earrings only are permitted.

Good health is vital to your child’s progress. The Department of Health recommends that students be immunised before entering school. This is particularly important because your child will be coming into contact with many other students and infection can spread easily.

Immunisation - Enrolment Requirements

Under the Public Health (Amendment) Act 1992, parents must provide the school with an Immunisation Certificate when a student is enrolled at the school. For those parents who chose not to immunise their children, the names of these students are placed on a register.

Disease Notification Requirements

In the event of a vaccine-preventable disease occurring in a school, the school Principal must:

• notify the Medical Officer of Health of the local Public Health Unit.
  Ensure that the Medical Officer of Health has access to the school Immunisation Certificates.
  
  
• follow the Medical Office of Health’s direction and ensure that unimmunised students are excluded for the incubation period of the disease for the duration of the outbreak.
  A notice that the student is to be excluded and the period of exclusion will be sent home with the student.

In the event of a major disease outbreak in a school, advice will be received from the Catholic Education Office regarding appropriate response to be taken.

Medication

For legal reasons the school can no longer accept responsibility for supervising children’s medicines at school, except under strict regulations:

The school proforma entitled “Administration of Medicine” must be completed every time. A new form must be completed every time there is a change in instructions. A doctor’s certificate is required detailing dosage and administration times, when prescription medication is needed to be given to a student.

Note: The medicine is sent in a resealable plastic bag clearly marked with the child’s name and class. At the end of the period specified on the form, the medicine is sent home. Any further instructions require a new form.