8 August 2019

Principal

Zoe Smith

Hello,

Did you know we are on Instagram? Due to popular demand from the parent body, we are trying to find ways to keep people informed about what is going on at the school. The school is trialling the use of Instagram and hope it will provide parents with knowledge about what is happening at school. If you would like to follow us on Instagram you can sign up at graceville_state_school. We will try to post regularly so you can see some of the great things our students and teachers are up to! Each photo posted is scrutinized to ensure only children with permission for their face to be shown are included in a post. The school can post photos which show the backs of childrens’ heads without permission and we can also blur parts of an image if we perceive there are any other recognisable features that may identify a child (whose parents have not provided permission). We welcome feedback on this initiative as we progress through the trial so please follow us on Instagram!

As you may know, 2019 is a review year for the school. On Wednesday afternoon, we held our Review Celebration assembly which completes Phase 1 of the review, celebrating our success from the past four years. We were lucky to have Dr Ryan Dunn from the Melbourne University, who wrote the report which informed our Strategic Plan 2016-2019, come and share in our successes. Dr Dunn was thrilled to see the progress of the school over the past four years. The assembly was great fun as well as quite heart-warming. The students warned me to bring tissues and I am glad I did as tears of pride and happiness rolled down my face! I would like to thank all of the families, students and teachers who provided feedback as part of Phase 1 of the review. I would also like to thank the review team who worked tirelessly to collate the information to be used as part of the review and turn it into a child friendly and fun celebration.

On Friday last week, a small plastic bag containing a suspected illicit substance, was found in the school grounds. The local police are aware and have taken the substance for finger printing and testing. The police have committed to nightly patrols and doing school checks over the coming weeks to deter people from entering our school grounds. If you see anyone on the school grounds, outside hours, acting in a suspicious manner, please call School Watch on 131788. As a community we need to band together to make sure our school site and most importantly, our students are treated with respect both in and outside school hours.

On Saturday, our Taiwanese students head back home to Taiwan. I would like to thank Ms Hass and the families who hosted the students. We are very lucky to be one of the few QLD primary schools who both host students from overseas and can travel internationally. It really is a great opportunity and one that we cannot continue to do with staff and community support.

Finally, don’t forget we have a big event in the school on Friday. We welcome Dr Linda Kaser and Dr Judy Halbert and 120 guests from across QLD and Australia who are coming to learn from and with us as part of the Networks of Inquiry, Innovation and Indigenous Education Symposium. The event will continue on Saturday and our guests will park on the oval due to limited parking from Netball.

P.S. Don’t forget the countdown to the Fete is on! Hold the date for Saturday 24 August.

Have a great week,

Zoe Smith

Newsletter Articles

Deputy Principal

Maree Hass

Remember we are now on Instagram, please join us at graceville_state_school to keep informed on what are the latest happenings in and around the school.

Inbound Study Tour 2019 – Wenhua School

The Wenhua Study Tour group will leave on Saturday morning to return to Taiwan. We are having a great time of sharing of our cultures and languages. An huge thank you to 11 school families who have opened their homes and hearts to welcome one or two of the students during these two weeks. I will post some photos next week. The farewell assembly will be held on Thursday afternoon in the hall at 2:10, everyone is welcome to come and join us.

Outbound Study Tour

We met on Tuesday this week together for the first time and Teacher Susan from Wenhua gave us an introduction to Taiwan and the school. We will now meet every Tuesday at first break to prepare for our exciting adventure to Taiwan in just 6 weeks’ time!

Cybersafety – more information for parents from our recent EQ presenters:

How state schools manage online issues and cyberbullying

Bullying and violence are not acceptable at any time. You should report any inappropriate online behaviour to your school principal if it involves bullying between students from the school, or involves the use of school ICT resources.

While some online content may be upsetting for you and your child, if the content does not affect the good order and management of a school, it is unlikely that it will constitute grounds for a school to get involved.

If online behaviours negatively impact the good order and management of your school, your principal can take steps under their Responsible Behaviour Plan for Students.

For further information please go to the following websites:

Prep 2020

Exciting times ahead, please see important dates below about upcoming events to help provide a smooth transition to school for our future young students. If you haven’t done so, now is the time to book a meeting with me to discuss your child and complete the enrolment part of the process. The office staff have available times to choose from, please get in touch with them.

Date Claimers:

Get Set for Prep session 1: Tuesday October 22, 9 – 10:30am. Focus on Fine Motor Skills
Get Set for Prep session 2: Monday October 28, 9 – 10:30am. Introduction to Speech and Language Development by School Speech Language Pathologist
Get Set for Prep session 3: Tuesday November 12, 9 - 10:30am, Focus on Reading
Prep Orientation meetings: Thursday November 28
Prep uniform selling morning: Thursday November 28, 8:15 – 12:00 and Wednesday January 22nd 2020 3-6pm

The waiting list for 2020 for out of catchment enrolments is now open. Please let any interested people know that forms and information can be obtained from our school office. Families from within our catchment area we also invite you to obtain enrolment forms to begin the process. For in catchment families a birth certificate and proof of residency in our catchment is required along with the completed enrolment form. In catchment families you may now contact the office to arrange an interview time for this term.

Graceville State School recognises as its prime obligation the provision of access to an appropriate educational service for students resident within this community as defined by its local catchment area.

Please visit the following link which details our school enrolment management plan and also provides a link to the catchment area for Graceville State School:

This site also outlines the process for placing your child’s name on our waiting list if you reside outside of our catchment area.

Below is the calendar for Junior Assemblies in Term 3. Everyone welcome, we are on from 2.15pm on these Tuesdays in the hall.

Deputy Principal

Lisa McKeaten

School Opinion Survey

The School Opinion Survey is undertaken each year at this time, to obtain the opinions of parents, staff and students about important aspects of schooling. The survey is designed to help schools identify what they do well and what they can improve.

The Parent survey will be distributed to all families in the school. These will come home to the eldest in each family in the next few days. The eldest should receive a blue online access letter. Please complete the online survey for us. Your feedback is important.

University of New South Wales ICAS assessments for Maths and Science

Students whose parents have entered them in the Maths and Science assessments last term will be involved – Thursday 5th September (Science) & Tuesday 17th September (Maths). There will be no more applications taken as we have already enrolled for the assessments for a specific number and we will not be putting in any late entries.

This year the testing is online so they will only be given one opportunity on those days to complete the assessments. In the coming weeks I will develop a schedule for the groups involved. Some year levels may need to be before school as there is a limit to the number of devices we have to use for these assessments.

For the students who will sit these assessments in September, I will be running a practice session to introduce the students to the new online format and processes. I will be releasing the participating students from classes on Tuesday 27th August to do some practice questions and show them what the process will involve and what they will need to do on the actual days of the assessments.

Students will need to bring their own headphones with them for the practice sessions as well.

Life Education – this term

This term all classes will participate in Life Education sessions. These sessions are different for each year level and they cover certain aspects of the Australian Curriculum, specifically in Health. The Life Education Van will arrive later in the term and classes will be scheduled to attend lessons during the last couple of weeks of this term (6/9/19-20/9/19). A permission slip and invoice will be sent home in the coming weeks.

Business Manager

Anne Nixon

Student Resource Schemes (SRS) for 2019 are:

• Prep Requirements ($70)
• Reading Eggs for Prep ($25)
• Instrumental Music Programs – Instrument Hire ($100), Percussion Maintenance ($50), Music Participation ($80) & Choir ($30)
• Religious Education Program ($10)
• Mathletics On-line registration (Years 1 - 6) ($12)
• Origo Maths (years 2, 3 and 4) ($6)
• Year 4/5 maths levy ($17.50)
• ESmart Digital Licence Yr 5 ($10)

All excursions and events require payment and a permission form to be returned by the due date or your child will not be permitted to attend.

If you have a credit on your account and would like to apply it to any outstanding invoices please contact the office. We cannot automatically apply any credits to invoices without parent authorisation.

Request for Refund form for an excursion paid and not attended is available from the front office. Prepaid ticketed excursions are non-refundable.

Payment of account days:

8am-3.00pm - Monday to Wednesday
8am-12pm - Thursday and Friday

BPoint is the preferred method of payment; Eftpos, Debit Cards: Visa/Mastercard, cheque or cash payments are accepted.

BPOINT User Information

For payment of multiple items on your statement/invoice, you will need to do a separate entry for each item, entering the invoice number and the corresponding payment amount for that item only e.g.

Separate Entries for each line must be done to ensure the payment is allocated to the correct Excursion/Resource Fee.

BPOINT payments must be processed in time to clear (usually 2-3 business days) before the Due Date for payment.

Music News

Naomi Lindh

Thank you to all of our instrumental music teachers and students who attended the IM West Cent camps last week. We hope you had a fabulous week of music making!

This week on Friday 9 August our Junior Choir and students who have joined our rehearsals are performing at the symposium. They will be singing straight after the Welcome to Country. Students involved including as many Junior Choir students as possible, are requested to meet me at 7:45am on that day in the hall, leaving their bags in a tidy manner under D block (near the hall). Students in the Junior Choir, Senior Choir and the students who have been involved in the Inquiry have been invited to sing at this event. Both of these songs include Yuggera language. Parents are welcome to attend the performance, at the back of the hall and are requested to be in the hall prior to the 8am start. They and are able to stay until the end of the presentation regarding the school Inquiry to develop an acknowledgement.

This year at the fete we have the Senior Band, Junior Choir and Senior Choir performing. Performances will start at 11:50am with the Senior Band, then 12:20pm for the Junior Choir and 12:30 for the Senior Choir. Please note that all of our instrumental ensembles will be performing at the workshop concert later this term. The workshop is an instrumental performance only (no choir performances). Senior Band students are requested to meet Mr Stiller in the music room at 11:15am. Senior Choir students need to meet Ms West in the Oxley room between 12:00 - 12:15pm, then can go to the hall once they have the props/direction they need. Junior Choir students are requested to meet Mrs Lindh in the hall at 12:00pm and sit on the floor near the stage.

The instrumental music workshop will be held at school on 28/29 August. During these two days all of our students who learn an instrument at school will alternate between full ensemble rehearsals and working in small groups with a tutor. This is a fabulous way for them to build and develop their music skills. It culminates with a concert in the hall at 2pm on Thursday 29 August. Please note that instrumental music students are able to wear free dress to the 2 workshop days. They will need to bring their instrument, music folder, music stand if they have one, lunch and snack for second break, water bottle and a pencil. Please find a link to the note regarding the workshop. No permission slip is required as it is an incursion and part of the school music program.

Please contact your child's instrumental or choral conductor if they are not able to attend a rehearsal (email contacts are listed below) or if they are experiencing any issues with their lessons.

2019 Rehearsals Venue - Music Room

Monday 7:45am - 8:30am Senior Choir (year 4,5 and 6 students) Ms West Tuesday 7:30 - 8:30am - Junior Band - Mr Kukulies Wednesday 7:45am - 8:30am - Junior Choir (year 2 and 3 students) Mrs Lindh Wednesday 10:45am - 11:25am - Beginner/Junior Strings (starting in term 2 with junior string students only on 1 May, then beginner strings will join these rehearsals later in the term) - Mrs Prout Wednesday 2:50pm - 4:00pm - Senior Band - Mr Stiller Thursday 7:45am - 8:30am Senior Strings - Mrs Prout

Music teacher contact details...

Alex Grodecki - agrod3@eq.edu.au (at Graceville Thursdays)
Ruth Prout - rprou5@eq.edu.au (at Graceville Wednesdays and Thursdays)
James Kukulies - jkuku2@eq.edu.au (at Graceville Tuesdays)
Steve Stiller - sstil2@eq.edu.au (at Graceville Wednesdays)
Julie West - jwest269@eq.edu.au (at Graceville Monday/Tuesday)
Naomi Lindh - nclos1@eq.edu.au (at Graceville Wednesday/Thursday/Friday)

Important dates to note...

9 August - Symposium performance for students in the Junior Choir, Senior Choir or Inquiry to create a school Acknowledgement who have been attending choir rehearsals on Wednesday mornings this term (students to meet in the student services room at 7:45am - performance at 8:15am in the hall)

24 August - Fete performances - Senior Band 11:50am, Junior Choir 12:20pm and Senior Choir 12:30pm

28/29 August - Instrumental Music Workshop - all instrumental students

29 August - Instrumental music concert at 2pm involving all IM students (no choir performances at this concert but all students who learn an instrument at school will perform at this concert with their ensemble)

13 November - Annual Music Concert 6pm - all choral and instrumental music students will be performing at his concert

27 November - Grandparents' Concert - students in the Junior Choir, Senior Choir and Senior Strings will perform at this concert for their grandparents'/special guests Thank you for supporting our music program!

Naomi Lindh
Music Teacher and IM Coordinator (Wednesday - Friday)

Library News

Melanie Hutchinson

BOOK WEEK CELEBRATION DRESS UP DAY

Our annual Book Week Dress Up Day will take place in the LAST WEEK of this term - THURSDAY 19TH SEPTEMBER. The theme this year is ‘Reading is my Secret Power’. More details around the dress up day will be heading your way after the Fete.

PREMIER’S READING CHALLENGE 2019

The Premier’s Reading Challenge concludes shortly on Friday 23 August 2019. If you are participating please make sure that you have your reading record sheet returned to the Library before August 23. If you are interested in getting involved, there are still reading record sheets available for collection in the library. More information can be found at this web address:

SCHOLASTIC BOOK CLUB : TERM 3

Scholastic Book Club is up and running again this term. This term’s issue’s flyer (Issue 3) has been handed out to the classes – to order, just look over the flyer with your child, select the books you want and mark them on the order form on the back of the flyer.

Then ORDER ONLINE WITH THE CORRECT PAYMENT, by the closing date FRIDAY 9th AUGUST.

Preferred method of payment:

CREDIT CARD payments online, or through the LOOP APP [LOOP : Linked Online Ordering and Payment available at the link below, or download the LOOP Apple or Android app]. The order forms do not need to be returned to school.

If paying by credit card on the phone or with a cheque made to Scholastic Australia, return the order form to the school library by Friday 17th of May.

NO CASH ORDERS PLEASE – GRACEVILLE STATE SCHOOL IS RUNNING A CASHLESS BOOK CLUB.

SCHOLASTIC BOOK CLUB 2019 PROMOTION:

Scholastic is offering a FREE BAG and a PRINTABLE PERSONALISED CERTIFICATE via email to each child on their second order for the year, regardless of the Issue. On their third order for the year (regardless of the Issue) each child will receive a FREE POSTER and BOOKMARK with their order. On their fourth order for the year (regardless of the Issue) each child will have the OPTION TO SELECT A FREE BOOK. There is no minimum spend on this promotion program.

Melanie Hutchinson
Teacher Librarian

AUSKICK

Active School Travel

Fete competitions

The Fete Committee has generously donated one ride band per grade and free “tosses” for one lucky class…..want to know how you can be in the running to win these fantastic prizes?

To win the lob o choc free toss:

• Actively travel to school on the 9th and 16th of August (walk, ride, roll, public transport, or park and stride)
• Your Teacher will collect stats each Friday
• We will work out the class with the highest average percentage of active travellers for these three weeks – this class will be the winner!

To win the ride bands (one per grade):

• Individuals who have ACTIVELY TRAVELLED will need to collect stamps and paper slips from the stamping stations on the 9th and 16th of August.
• Entry Slips must be put into the box at the office

Your teacher will receive further information about the competition. You have to be active to win it! So get out your bikes, scooters and walking shoes and get the whole class involved.

Tuckshop News

Tuckshop Roster for week ending 16th of August 2019

Thank you to all our wonderful volunteers.

We hope you are finding S24 easy to use for your fete purchases. If you haven’t yet made your fete purchases, please remember that the Fete sales system is now totally separate from the Tuckshop system.

Please do not top up your Tuckshop account to make Fete purchases.

All Fete purchases can only be paid for with credit card at check out. By keeping the 2 systems separate we take a huge administrative load off our volunteer P&C and Fete treasurers.

Our sushi and rice paper roll supplier, Cilantro Fresh, is shutting down for 2 weeks to have their kitchen remodelled.

There will be no sushi and rice paper rolls orders taken for the next 2 weeks.

Cilantro Fresh are hopeful that they will be ready to take our orders again on Monday, 26 August for lunch on Wednesday, 28 August. However, as we all know, renovations seldom go to plan. We will keep you posted.

Should you have any questions pertaining to any of the above or anything Tuckhop related, please don’t hesitate to contact us at tuckshop.gss@gmail.com

Thanks.

Uniform Shop

Fiona Fryer

Opening Hours: Monday, Tuesday and Friday 8.15am - 9.00am.

Uniform Store Roster

Prep Selling Days

Thursday November 28th 2019 8.15-11.30am
Wednesday January 22nd 2020 3-6pm

Stock Update

We have new girls long pants in royal blue in stock for $30 and a new lightweight microfibre jacket in royal blue and gold for $33.

Size 8 dresses are out of stock until the end of the year.

All sizes of the polar fleece jackets are in stock.

School colour hair accessories are available, there are headbands, hair ties, bows and clips.

As of 1st July 2018, stores stopped providing free single use bags therefore the uniform store will no longer provide plastic bags so please make sure you bring your own if required.

Donations of 2nd hand uniforms are always appreciated, please keep them coming in but can you please make sure that all items are washed and in a good and saleable condition.

Please be advised that refunds will ONLY be given if you have the original receipt and items should not have been washed or worn.

Order forms are available on the school website and can be emailed to the uniform shop at the below address, the items will be sent to the classroom via the teachers pigeon hole in the main office.

Email address for school uniform store is:

uniformstore@gracevilss.eq.edu.au

School Plus

Week 3 at School Plus resulted in some very sweet moments from the program, which focused on friendship inspired by International Friendship Day on the 30th of July. The children have been creating their own cards, making friendship bracelets, writing letters and picking some school grown flowers to give to their friends. The children also further developed their cooperation skills this week with some teamwork games such as Shoe Lace Races and making their own boats out of recycled cardboard to have boat races in. Hip-hop also kicked off this week and the children loved learning and showing off their new moves! There’s plenty for everyone to look forward to next week including some quirky tooth brush paintings, which will surely inspire some conversations with children around dental hygiene for Dental Health Week QLD and of course, much more!

Community Notices

Holiday Cricket Clinic

Boys and girls, aged 6 to 17, are welcome to attend Holiday Cricket Clinics conducted by Henschell Cricket Academy Pty Ltd.

These Clinics concentrate on skills and activities for the beginner to the representative player whilst having fun.