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Loving God,

Bless our minds with wisdom, our hearts with kindness, and our hands with the readiness to serve. Guide our teachers, friends, and families, so that this school year may be filled with learning, joy, and Your light.

Through Christ our Lord.

Amen

Dear Parents and Caregivers

Thank you to everyone who has made me feel so welcome at Our Lady Star of the Sea Catholic Primary School. It has been lovely seeing so many happy children interacting with each other so positively, and it was wonderful to walk around the classes over the first few weeks and hear the hum of learning underway. This doesn’t occur without hours of preparation and dedication from the many impressive staff at our school.

The school is looking forward to a productive partnership with you to ensure your children can achieve their full potential. We recognise that, to be successful in school, all children need support from both the home and the school, and Pope Leo, along with his predecessors, maintains that parents are the first, primary, and most important educators of their children.

Ash Wednesday Mass & Liturgy

This week, Years Three to Six participated in the Ash Wednesday Mass. Ash Wednesday marks the beginning of Lent, which is a holy 40-day period leading up to Easter. Our Kindy to Year Two students participated in a special Liturgy for Ash Wednesday. They created Lenten promises to hang on our Lenten Tree.

Student Leadership

Our School Captains, Faction Captains, and Ministers were presented with their badges (which were blessed by Fr Tadeusz) on Monday of last week. OLSOTS has a distributive leadership structure, with those Year Six students who are not elected to formal leadership positions (School Captain/Faction Captain) having the opportunity to nominate for involvement in our Making Jesus Real (MJR) or Wellbeing Ministry Groups, which also include Year Five students.

Wellbeing 

Staff began the new school year on Friday 30 January with a professional development session focusing on wellbeing, led by Mia Bennison from the Catholic Education Office (CEOWA). Over the course of the day Mia led staff through a range of wellbeing strategies which can be applied both in and out of the classroom to support educators and students alike. In collaboration with CEOWA and with Erin Tyrrell (school wellbeing leader), staff will continue to build on their understanding and application of wellbeing strategies and character strengths throughout the year. 

Uniform

Thank you to all parents for sending your children to school in the correct uniform. Our uniform shop is open Wednesdays from 8.30-9.00am & 2.30-3.30pm if you require any uniforms throughout the year.

School Procedures

As we begin the new school year, it is timely to remind you of the following school procedures:

School Hours: Classroom doors open at 8:30am, with formal instruction beginning at 8:40am. It is important that students arrive at 8:30am, as this allows students to settle in, engage in morning activities, and be ready for the day. Students are to be on school grounds no earlier than 8:25am and no later than 3:15pm.

Communication: Direct communication with teachers is to be via email rather than Seesaw. Your child’s teacher’s email address is firstname.surname@cewa.edu.au (e.g. Jo.Smith@cewa.edu.au). However, it is important to note that staff do not usually check their emails during teaching time, as their focus is on the students. Please contact the office directly if your matter is of an urgent nature.

Absences: Explanations regarding absenteeism are to be submitted via our online Absentee Form.

Concerns: The first person to speak to regarding any concerns about your child is always their class teacher. If further discussion is required, please make an appointment to see Lorna Russell (Assistant Principal) or myself.

Medical: If your child requires prescription medication during school hours, please ensure that the school is provided with written documentation from the doctor outlining dosage and administration requirements. As the school is responsible for students during the school day, a written note from parents does not suffice. If circumstances change, the medical advice from the doctor must be updated. Please ensure that medication is provided in the original packaging.

Enrolments

We take enrolments for any year group at any point throughout the school year. Our Pre-Kindy program for 2026 currently has a waitlist, and we have already received interest for the next few years.

School Fee Accounts

The school will be sending out school fee accounts shortly. Please note, however, that the school’s Health Care Card Discount Scheme provides an automatic fee concession for holders of eligible means-tested family concession cards (Kindergarten to Year Six). If you are eligible, please ensure our Finance Officer (Tammie) is provided with a copy of your current Health Care Card.

Pupil-Free Day

Please note that the date of our pupil-free day this term is Tuesday 3 March, with our staff engaged in professional learning. Other student dates for the year are as follows:

Term One: Concludes Thursday 2 April

Term Two: Tuesday 21 April – Friday 3 July

Pupil Free – Monday 27 April (Anzac Day)

Pupil Free – Monday 1 June (WA Day)

Pupil Free – Tuesday 2 June (Staff Development Day)

Term Three: Tuesday 21 July – Friday 25 September

Pupil Free – Monday 20 July (Staff Development Day)

Pupil Free – Monday 24 August (Catholic Day)

Term Four: Tuesday 13 October – Thursday 10 December

Pupil Free – Friday 16 October (Esperance Show)

Newsletters

In 2026, newsletters will continue to be issued in Weeks 3, 6, and 9 of each term. As the newsletter is one of our primary forms of communication, please ensure you read it carefully. They will continue to be released on Seesaw on Fridays, with the next newsletter available on Friday 13 March.

LENT

Following in the footsteps of Christ during Lent  

From our Jewish ancestors we learn the importance of caring for the poor. We teach the importance of giving to those in need and sharing resources. 

Jesus also teaches us about the importance of prayer. Jesus prays many times in the Gospels; he models prayer for us today. In the gospels Jesus prays frequently, in the morning and at night. He prays during critical events in his life, and he prays before ministering to people in need. Lent calls us to follow in the footsteps of Jesus. 

During Lent we are also encouraged to fast or give up something during this time. By fasting we make a sacrifice: the thing we choose to give up might be something we really like.  This can also remind us of Jesus’ sacrifice when he died on the cross for us. 

Pope Francis on Lent 2017 

1. Fast from Hurting Words and say Kind words. 
2. Fast from Sadness and be filled with Gratitude. 
3. Fast from Anger and be filled with Patience. 
4. Fast from Pessimism and be filled with Hope. 
5. Fast from Worries and Trust in God. 
6. Fast from Complaints and contemplate Simplicity. 
7. Fast from Pressures and be Prayerful. 
8. Fast from Bitterness and fill your heart with Joy. 
9. Fast from Selfishness and be Compassionate to others. 
10. Fast from Grudges and be Reconciled. 
11. Fast from Words and be Silent so you can listen. 

https://www.catholicgallery.org/article/pope-francis-lent-2017/ 

PROJECT COMPASSION – Supporting Caritas

This year you can use the QR code to donate online – just scan the QR code on the box and it will be added to our school’s fundraising total! 

MJR Ministry: These student leaders handed out project compassion boxes to each class on Ash Wednesday. They have also displayed posters around the school, highlighting this important fundraising initiative.   

Project Compassion will be launched online on Tuesday 17 Feb in schools and communities. Project Compassion is Caritas Australia’s annual Lenten Appeal which funds the continuing work of Caritas Australia in Africa, Asia, the Pacific, Latin America and Australian Indigenous communities. This year, Project Compassion focuses on ‘Unite Against Poverty’. It throws a spotlight on global food issues and how Caritas Australia is empowering the world’s poorest people to establish sustainable food sources. Project Compassion is an opportunity to share what we have with those who have less. Please return the Project Compassion boxes at the end of term. 

More information: https://fundraise.projectcompassion.org.au/ 

SACRAMENTAL ENROLMENT MASS

The Sacramental Enrolment Mass will be held later in Term One for children who are receiving a Sacrament this year. Catholic children in Year Three can receive First Reconciliation, children in Year Four receive First Holy Communion and children in Year Six Confirmation. Sacramental Enrolment forms will be sent home next week. Please contact your class teacher if you have any questions.   

2026 Sacramental Dates 

• Sunday 22 February – Staff Commissioning Mass @9am 
• Sunday 29 March –Sacramental Enrolment Mass @9am 
• Tuesday 18 August – Sacramental Workshop with Mildred Rego 
  • Holy Communion – 2:30pm 
  • Confirmation – 4:00pm 
• Saturday 19 September @ 2pm – Sacrament of Reconciliation
• Sunday 25 October – First Holy Communion @9am 
• Sunday 29 November – Confirmation @9am

NAPLAN TESTING  

Year Three and Five Students 

Students in Years Three and Five will be sitting the National Assessment Program – Literacy and Numeracy tests (NAPLAN) which will be conducted from Wednesday 11 March to Monday 23 March 2026. Please put these dates in your calendar.  A flyer explaining NAPLAN testing has already been sent to relevant families. Please be sure to have a look at the information contained there. Further information about NAPLAN in WA can be accessed on the School Curriculum and Standards Authority website at https://k10outline.scsa.wa.edu.au/home/assessment/testing/naplan/parents 

Please ensure all Book Club orders have been submitted before 23 February. Book Club Issue 1 

How Parents can order from Book Club online: 

1. Log in, or create a new account at LOOP
2. New parents can follow the Wizard to set up a child’s profile  
3. Click the Order tab, and select the child’s school and Issue of Book Club  
4. Select your child’s name  
5. Enter the product item number from the Book Club catalogue  
6. Apply promotional codes that children may have earned from previous issues  
7. Make a payment via credit card  
8. Feel great about the Scholastic Rewards that have been earned for the school 

Our Kindy students are settling in beautifully, and it has been wonderful to see so many happy smiles as they make new friends and feel confident in their new environment. Curious minds are buzzing as children explore a range of hands-on activities, with lots of imaginative play happening in the home corner while practising oral language skills. The ocean table has created loads of excitement, sparking curiosity and interest as students eagerly explore and talk about ocean life. Shared reading time has been a favourite, along with fun brain breaks using tapping sticks to get our bodies moving and brains refreshed. Outdoor play has also been a big hit, with students enthusiastically exploring the playground and building their physical skills. We are absolutely loving being part of their learning journey, and we’re off to a fantastic start to Term One!

We have had a busy first two weeks back at school working hard on our literacy skills. We have explored words, rhyming and syllables through lots of fun activities. We hunted for words in magazines, matched rhyming pictures, banged the syllables in words on a drum and developed our fine motor skills building tong towers. We were lucky enough to have a visit from Michelle from the Esperance Library. She read us a story, sang a song and sent us all home with Better Beginnings book bags to share with our families. We are so excited to learn more about reading and writing in Pre-Primary!

Art is off to a fun and exciting start. We have begun our year talking about lines, one of the elements of art. We have looked at artworks, by various artists and are now creating our own artworks highlighting different styles and weights of lines. Our first projects are still works in progress, but we look forward to sharing our finished pieces with you soon. 

URSTRONG’s whole-school friendship strategy has improved the social climate in schools around the world, connecting over a million kids, parents, and teachers with a common language of friendship. We are proud to be a URSTRONG School and are committed to empowering your children with friendship skills.

You are invited to take advantage of a FREE Parent Membership to access hundreds of resources – including an 8 session video series. This will allow you to learn the same language & strategies being taught in the classroom through the Friendology 101 curriculum. We hope that, as a URSTRONG Family, you will reinforce the important messages of empowerment, self-compassion, & kindness at home.

As a next step, we would recommend:

• Click here to view an overview of URSTRONG.
• Activate your FREE Parent Membership and explore all the resources available to your family.
• Explore the hundreds of resources available to you!

We believe that empowering our students with these skills will create a culture of kindness at our school and we hope that, together, we can support your children to have healthy, feel-good friendships.

Welcome to 2026 – A Message from the P & F

A very warm welcome to all OLSOTS families — both new and returning — as we begin the 2026 school year. We also extend a special welcome to the new members of staff joining our community this year.

OLSOTS is such a happy and friendly place, and we hope everyone is settling back into the school routine well after the long holidays. The start of a new year always brings fresh energy, and it’s wonderful to see our students reconnecting, learning and thriving.

We head into 2026 with a refreshed P & F Committee, and I’m genuinely excited to work alongside this dynamic group to make great things happen for our school and students. We look forward to building strong connections across our community and creating opportunities for families to be involved throughout the year.

Class Representatives – 2026

Our Class Representatives play an important role in supporting communication within each class and helping families stay connected to school life. They assist with sharing key information from the classroom, P & F and school leadership, and help foster a strong sense of community among parents and caregivers.

We are currently seeking Class Representatives for 2026. This role provides a supportive communication pathway for families, whether or not they are able to attend P & F meetings, and is a great way to be involved in your child’s school experience.

If you are interested in becoming a Class Representative, please email olsotspnf@gmail.com with your name, phone number and the class you would like to represent.

Please keep an eye on your class WhatsApp groups and the school newsletter for updates and information throughout the year.

If you have any suggestions for events or fundraisers, we would love to hear from you. Please email 8269.pnfchair@cewa.edu.au.

Here’s to a wonderful year ahead at OLSOTS!

Tash McCarthy

P & F Chair

🏑 Esperance Hockey Association – 2026 Season Registrations Now Open! 🏑

We’re excited to welcome all new and returning players to the 2026 hockey season! Whether you’re picking up a stick for the first time or returning for another great year, we’d love to see you involved.

Junior registrations close on 6th March to allow us time to finalise teams and prepare fixtures for the season ahead. If your child is planning to play, please make sure you register before this date so we can place everyone into teams.

Senior registrations will remain open a little longer, however we encourage all players to register as early as possible to assist with planning — especially with our turf development underway this year.

We accept KidSport vouchers for eligible players.

To register, simply follow the link below and complete the process via Revolutionise — it’s quick and easy:

🔗 https://www.revolutionise.com.au/esperancehockey/registration

If you have any questions:

📧 Registration enquiries – Kayla McDonald: esperanceregistrar.hockey@gmail.com

📧 Junior competition enquiries – Matt Ryan: esperance.junior.hockey@gmail.com

We’re looking forward to a fantastic 2026 season! 🏑