IT’S the end of an era at Immaculate Heart Catholic Primary School on Ipswich’s southside. And no, we don’t mean the Viking era!
The fearsome marauder in the sea raider getup is Mark Osborne, and he’s retiring as a teacher today.
The dressup pictured is just one of the costumes he donned for book week at the school. Another time he entertained the kids as Moses! And entertainment was the name of the game for this character.
Reading time often involved Mark slipping into character, particularly fun when he read The Twits. Kids remember fondly the great stories he would tell of the time he leapt from a bus only to collide with the sign or of his great love for his beard, admirably luxurious. He would comb it during classes to his students’ fascination.
Mark turned everything into a joke, helping his students learn by making his lessons fun. Except for the cricket.
That was deadly serious. The bin would go up on a Friday and Mr Osborne would take his mark. It became a tradition, and one that went for many years. In fact, Mark served at the school for 35 years – an incredible display of loyalty to the youngsters of Leichhardt and One Mile. .
