3 August 2022

Newsletter Articles

Principal’s Report

Yours in education,
Leanne Odorico
Principal

New Students

A special welcome is extended to Charlotte (2B), Sapheira (4B) & Kayden (4A) who joined the Kurwongbah School community recently. We hope you enjoy your time at Kurwongbah and we look forward to parent support with P&C and class activities.

Academic Awards – Semester One

Our Academic Awards are based on Semester One achievement results and are aimed to recognise excellence in these results for students in Years 3 – 6.

We would like to acknowledge all of our Academic Award winners from Semester One which were presented to students on Parade in Week 2:

Pentathlon Results 2022

Congratulations to Wyalla House for winning the 2022 Pentathlon. Well done to all students for your team spirit, great effort and behaviour during our two days of athletics action.

Well done and congratulations to our Pentathlon Age Champions, what a remarkable achievement:

Metropolitan North School Sport

Congratulations to the follow students who have been selected to represent Metropolitan North School Sport at their respective Queensland School Sport State Championships:

Dustin – Touch Football
Yahira – Netball
Hope – Tennis
Isabella – Softball

Well done on this wonderful achievement!

Student of the Week

TERM 3 WEEK 2

TERM 3 WEEK 3

Top Kurwongbah Staff

Top Kurwongbah Kids

Congratulations to the following students who have recently received Top Kurwongbah Kids Awards by showing our School Values:

TERM 3 WEEK 2

Top Kurwongbah Kid – Term 3 Week 2

TERM 3 WEEK 3

Top Kurwongbah Kid – Term 3 Week 3

Date Claimers

Due Dates for Payments

Show Holiday

A reminder that Monday 8th August is the Brisbane Exhibition Show Holiday for the Moreton Bay Region and the school is closed on this day.

Staff Update

Mrs Massie has extender her leave until the 25th of August. We welcome Mrs Shirley who worked at Kurwongbah in 2021 and will be the 2B teacher during this time.

Parade Presentation

Well done to students of 2C and 2D, Mrs Campbell and Mrs Richards who presented an informative and entertaining parade presentation on Maths concepts relating to Australian coins and using directions of left and right. The students spoke very confidently and showed a clear understanding of the work they have been learning about in class.

2023 Prep Enrolments

We are now taking names of Prep students for 2023. Children who are born between 1st July 2017 and 30th June 2018 are eligible to commence Prep in 2023. Parents are invited to contact the school office on 3481 4333 if they are intending to enrol their child at Kurwongbah for Prep in 2023. Enrolments interviews commence this week and continue through until Week 8. Please contact the school for further information.

School Opinion Survey

The School Opinion Survey is open until Friday 12th August. The annual suite of School Opinion Surveys is now available online. All families, school staff and students in target year levels (5 and 6) are invited to participate. We encourage you to take this opportunity to have your say about what our school does well, and how we can improve. An invitation to complete the Parent/Caregiver Survey has now been emailed to one parent/caregiver per family. The invitation was sent from the Department of Education, not the school, and it will have the subject line School Opinion Survey for Parents and Caregivers 2022. Check your junk email folders if you can’t find it. The survey can be completed as soon as the invitation is received and will take approximately 5 minutes using a computer, tablet or smart phone.

Newsletter Permissions

Schoolzine is the school’s primary means of communicating to the school community in the form of the school newsletter, as well as year level, class level and whole school level messages.

Parents only receive this communication if they have provided “Schoolzine” permission for their child. Forms were recently distributed to all students who are currently without permission, including those that expired at the end of Year 2 (permission is given for the period Prep-Year 2 and Year 3-Year 6).

If we do not receive this permission by the end of this term, you will no longer receive Schoolzine communications. Complete and return the permission form as soon as possible so this access can be continued. It is a requirement of the Department of Education to regularly review permissions for access to online services.

Lost Property

We have a large of jumper and jackets in the lost property box that we would like to see reunited with their owners. If you are missing a jumper or jacket, please come and have a look in the Lost Property box located outside the First Aid room.

School Parking Patrol Program – Moreton Bay Regional Council

Moreton Bay Regional Council (MBRC) Local Laws Unit undertakes a School Parking Patrol Program where officers complete scheduled school patrols, both in the morning and afternoon, to ensure that vehicles are parked in a safe and lawful manner. The primary aim of the program is to ensure that students and family members/caregivers are able to safely move around the school area as part of dropping off or picking up students from the school.

The Moreton Bay Regional Council Local Law No.5 (Parking) 2011 and Transport Operations (Road Use Management) Act 1999 control parking or stopping of vehicles on footpaths, bicycle paths, marked yellow lines, shared paths, dividing strips and nature strips, along with vehicles parking across residents driveways and within ‘No Stopping’, ‘No Parking’, and ‘Bus Zones’ and Pick-up / Drop -off zones. Council is legally required to enforce these areas and the School Parking Patrol Program forms part of this process. Drivers are reminded that footpaths and nature strips are in place to promote pedestrian movement in a safe manner along roadsides and that drivers and residents must not stop on a bicycle path, shared path, dividing strip or nature strip. Please also note those vehicles that are parked with two wheels up and two wheels down is not considered as a lawful parking practice.

Local Laws officers conduct enforcement through the issuance of Penalty Infringement Notices as part of each School Parking Patrol. Please be aware that Council officers may take photographic evidence of vehicles stopping or parking illegally with Penalty Infringement Notices to be issued via mail at a later date to the offending vehicle’s owner.

For further information, members of the school community are welcome to contact Moreton Bay Regional Council on 3205 0555 or visit the link below for further guidance on parking restrictions.

Swooping Birds

Spring is rapidly approaching and along with the warmer weather it also means the beginnings of the breeding season for many of our feathered friends. Some native bird species including magpies, plovers, butcherbirds and crows, are well known to swoop as a defensive behaviour to protect their young. Swooping is typically most common during the spring breeding season, but if weather conditions are favourable some species may start breeding from late winter and continue into summer.

Children may encounter swooping birds on their way to and from school, or while inside school grounds. While being swooped on can be unpleasant, there are simple steps that can be taken to reduce safety risks to individuals and the community.

Not all birds of these species swoop. In fact, it is estimated that only 9% of magpies show this aggressive behaviour. Birds usually swoop for six to eight weeks, until their eggs have hatched and their young are grown.

Native birds are protected under the Nature Conservation Act 1992, it is therefore illegal to harm them or interfere with their nests and eggs.

If there is a swooping bird in your area:

• Take an alternative route - the best way to avoid being swooped is to avoid the bird’s territory

• Wear a hat and sunglasses or carry an umbrella to protect your face and eyes

• Dismount from your bicycle and walk through the area

• Don’t wave your arms, yell or throw objects at the bird - this will likely make the bird more aggressive
• Remain calm and walk quickly through the area, but don’t’ run - injuries often occur when people panic and run from a swooping bird

If you are concerned about a swooping bird on council land you can report it to council on (07) 3205 0555. Council may install temporary signage around the territory of a swooping bird to alert residents of its presence.

Covid Restrictions Update

As you may be aware, the Premier has announced the amendment of the COVID-19 Vaccination Requirements for Workers in a high-risk setting Direction effective from 1am, 30 June 2022.

This means that after this date, workers will no longer be required to be vaccinated for COVID-19 in order to attend schools or early childhood education and care settings in Queensland. This applies to all workers at our school, including contractors, volunteers and service providers.

While the Chief Health Officer has repealed this direction and deemed that schools are no longer a high-risk setting, the vast majority of staff in our school are fully vaccinated for COVID-19.

Our school continues to have a range of COVID-safe measures in place, including:

• Maintaining good hygiene practices, including regular hand washing and use of hand sanitiser
• Continuing enhanced cleaning, including sick rooms and student or child service areas
• Encouraging all staff and students to stay home when sick, get tested if they have COVID-19 symptoms, and follow Queensland Health advice for positive cases and close contacts
• Providing rapid antigen tests (RATs) to students and staff who develop symptoms while at school, as well as priority access to RATs at Queensland Health testing clinics and provision of RATs for close contacts where available

Requirements for Close Contacts Unchanged

From 6pm on Thursday 28 April 2022, close contacts that do not have COVID-19 symptoms no longer need to quarantine.

Students who are close contacts must notify their school that they are a close contact. For 7 days after becoming a close contact, students over the age of 12 must wear a face mask while outside of their home, including at school, and when outdoors if unable to physically distance. Queensland Health also recommends that children under the age of 12 wear a face mask when it is safe to do so.

It is recommended that students undertake a rapid antigen test (RAT) on the first day they leave home, and every second day (e.g. days 2, 4, and 6) until they are no longer a close contact. Close contacts that develop COVID-19 symptoms must not attend school and should isolate until their symptoms resolve.

Rapid Antigen Tests (RATs)

Schools are now providing RATs to staff or students who are close contacts. Our school is continuing to provide RATs to staff and students who develop COVID-19 symptoms while at school. Please contact the First Aid should you require a RAT.

If You or Your Child Tests Positive to COVID-19

Queensland Health requirements for people who test positive to COVID-19 remain unchanged. You must follow the Queensland Health guidelines outlined in the first steps to take if you have COVID-19.

Face Masks

As a gentle reminder, masks continue to be required in certain settings for anyone aged 12 years or older, such as when travelling on public transport. They are also recommended whenever you can't physically distance. Anyone who chooses to wear a mask at school will be supported to do so.

We will continue to keep you informed of any changes to our response to COVID-19.

Eco-Marines News

This term the Eco-Marines are keen to promote 'Waste Free Wednesday' with the Year 5 cohort and create a friendly competition between classes to see which class can dispose of the least amount of rubbish. We are hoping the competition creates interest in other year levels. The Eco-Marines are also interested in educating students on parade regarding environmental initiatives such as:

• The benefits of reducing the use of electricity
• The importance of conserving water
• Why we need to reduce litter
• The benefits of composting and recycling

The Eco-Marines continue to do a great job in making Kurwongbah State School a cleaner and more environmentally friendly school.

Kurwongbah Kids Playgroup

It is not too late to volunteer your time to help the Kurwongbah Playgroup. Our learning is continuing over the next two weeks, with the themes of Police and Army community workers. We would like to extend an invitation to any interested community members who would like to join us on these Fridays. Please contact our Kurwongbah School office or you can send an email to Melody Cross – mcros119@eq.edu.au, Playgroup Co-ordinator, if you would like more information about these sessions.

STEM & Enrichment Education News

Makerspace Lunchtime Timetable

DAF Hermitage Research Facility – Plant Science Competition

The results are in for the 2022 ‘Native Foods’ DAF Hermitage Research Facility Schools Plant Science Competition. Kurwongbah State School’s Year 6 Science Team received highly commended in the Year 3-6 division. Over 130 schools from across Australia registered to participate and over 3600 students from years P-12 engaged in the competition project. Students, Poppy, Riley, Harrison, Finlay, Hayden, Zachary, Connor and Zebulon created a science report of their findings on native foods and produced a recipe using native mint in an iced tea. Congratulations on the fantastic results students!

Year 6 Digital Technology Curriculum

Students in Year 6 are studying the components of digital systems and explaining how digital systems connect together to form a network as part of their Technology Curriculum. They have looked inside a computer to view the working components and are learning about hardware and software as well as input and output devices. They will explore a virtual reality Merge Cube and its holographic features to see the Solar System to link their learning of how input and output interacts with software. Later in the semester, they will create and program a EV3 sumo wrestling robot with sensors to compete against their peers.

Techgirls Competition

Best wishes to the year 6 students in the KSS Girls Tech and KSS Superheroes who worked hard to complete their competiton entry of a business plan and a working app prototype for the 2022 Techgirls competition. Special thanks to their mentors, Sophie Krantz at ExO Works in Victoria and Clare Dlugosz group director of Technology and Transformation at MediaCom in Brisbane for their support and gudiance in the program.

Telling Stories Writing Competition

The ‘Telling Stories’ Writing Competition is organised by Mooloolaba Rotary in partnership with the Creative Writing Program from the University of the Sunshine Coast and Voices on the Coast. This competition is on again and opens for students from Year 4-6. Students are to write their own story with the title being – ‘I wonder why?’

Entries are due on 12th September and there are great cash prizes to be won. Please see the Library for an entry form. Details of word count and prizes are below:

Grade 4: 300 – 500 words
Grade 5: 400 – 600 words
Grade 6: 600 – 800 words

Prizes sponsored by FireFly Education:

Overall winner - Professor Gary Crew Trophy and Cash Prize of $150.
Grade/Category Winners - $50 cash and medal.
2nd Place - $30 cash and medal
3rd Place - $20 cash and medal
4th & 5th - $10 cash and certificate

Premier’s 2022 Coding Challenge

The 2022 Premier’s Coding Challenge is on again! This challenge offers great prizes and an excellent opportunity for students to create some interactive and innovative coding to raise awareness of the importance of digital technologies for 21st century citizens and to predict digital skills and environments of the future.

Entrants from Year 3- 6 can develop an app, game or animation, and they must submit a short video showcase with their entry. For more information visit the website below.

Resource Centre News

Book Week Term 3

The theme for Book Week this year is Dreaming with Eyes Open. The possibilities are endless! Children could dress as a book character that they dream of being! Class teachers may encourage their class to celebrate a particular book or theme. Please liaise with your child’s class teacher for more details. There are a few challenges again the year with clashes with Year 2 swimming and school sport in Year 5 and 6. We are doing our best to ensure that everyone is able to experience and take part in our exciting Book Week Parade!

Book Week Competition

Make a Dream Catcher with a book theme. Add embellishments to your dream catcher that gives clues to the book you are dreaming about.

For an easy idea to make a dream-catcher, click on the link below:

Or use a paper plate:

ENTRIES DUE by Friday 19th August 2022 (I would like to display entries for Book Week which begins on Monday 22nd August)

Book Week Author

This year we are inviting celebrated Author Louise Park to Kurwongbah State School. She writes under three different pseudonyms!

She will be visiting Tuesday 30th August (Prep – Year 2 and Wednesday 31st August (Year 3 – Year 6) There will be no charge for this event.

Premiers Reading Challenge

The Premier's Reading Challenge is not a competition but a way to encourage students to develop a love of reading for life. Through the challenge children and students are given an opportunity to develop their appreciation of the English language, and additional languages, and are encouraged to explore and enjoy a wide range of literary texts.

Please encourage your children to complete the challenge. Students in prep to year 4 must read or experience 20 books and students in years 4 to 6 must read 15 books to receive a certificate from the Premier. Please note that Prep to year 2 students will all be entered and will all receive a certificate. However, if you would like to encourage your child to complete the challenge from home, that is perfectly fine!

It’s not too late to enter! The reading period began on the 9th May and you may backdate books that you have read! Ask Mrs Turner for a loan history if that helps! Completed forms are due back to Mrs Turner in the library by Friday 26th August.

Entry forms are available from the library, your class teacher or the PRC website (PRC website)

Many thanks and Happy Reading,
Your friendly Library Crew

Tuckshop News

Every time you order a meal deal this term until the end of week 4, you receive and instant entry into the draw to create your own Meal Deal.

Our meal deals this term are:

• Lexi’s Nugget Meal $6.90
  4 Dino Nuggets, Brownie and Drink
• Ebony’s Chicken Nugget Meal $6.90
  6 Chicken Nuggets
• Hayden’s Football Food $8.30
  Taco Boat, Moosie and Drink
  (Moosie needs to be collected from Tuckshop)
• Harry’s Perfect Pizza Pack $7.50
  Ham and Pineapple Pizza, Fruit Cup and Drink
• Cooper’s Cowboy Kick Off $7.70
  Hotdog, Honey Soy Chips and Drink
• Zac’s Mid Centre Meal $7.50
  Hotdog, Chocolate Mousse and Drink

The following Meal Deals will continue until Week 5:

• Ivy’s Mighty Pizza Box $7.00
  Supreme Pizza, Brownie and Drink
• Luca’s Sliding Pack $6.50
  Sausage Roll, Brownie and Drink
• Hayden’s KFC Burger $7.80
  Chicken Burger (with lettuce and mayo), Moosie and Drink
  (Moosie must be collected from the Tuckshop)
• Nate’s Super Cool Meal $6.50
  Cheeseburger (pickles optional), Brownie and Drink
• Isla’s Super Soccer Meal $7.00
  Ham and Pineapple Pizza, Piklets and Drink

All meals come with a popper however this can be upgraded to a flavoured milk for an additional $0.55. Sauce can also be added for an additional $0.40.

Volunteers

A huge thank you to all of our amazing volunteers whose contribution makes the Tuckshop run smoothly every week. If you like to volunteer in the Tuckshop, please email me at tuckshop@ksspca.qld.edu.au.

Ordering

The preferred method of ordering is online via the QKR app, as all details of in stock items are available. We also accept over the phone orders and cash orders over the counter. When ordering through the QKR App, please be mindful of the date which you are selecting for your order and for second break selection you must go back out and into the second break menu.

Cash

Tuckshop is once again accepting cash sales via the bag system and for over the counter items in break times.

Phone Orders

Parents can place a phone order, by phoning the tuckshop directly on 3481 4337 and paying by credit card. Cut off for phone orders is 9:00am.

Online Ordering

Parents can order via the online QKR app. Cut off for online ordering is 8:00am. Please ensure you have your child’s correct class, so your child’s meal is prepared and ready in the correct collection place.

Allergies

We currently cater for many students with allergies. If you have any concerns, please feel free to contact our team and we will be able to give you up to date information regarding our products.

Tuckshop Hours

Monday – Tuesday CLOSED
Wednesday – Friday 8:15 - 2:10 pm

Sandra and Carol
Tuckshop Convenors
3481 4337
tuckshop@ksspca.qld.edu.au

Uniform Shop

Parents are welcome to the Uniform Shop during opening hours with no appointment necessary. If you have an hour to spare and would like to volunteer in the Uniform Shop please email or call me.

Second-hand Uniforms

Don’t forget that you can sell your second-hand uniforms through the Uniform Shop with 50% from the sale going to the P&C, which is spent providing better facilities for your children.  We have a large range of second-hand uniforms in most sizes available including check shirts, blouses, winter jumpers and jackets.

School Backpacks

School backpacks are available for $50. These backpacks are chiropractic approved and have a guarantee for the full time your child is at school.

House Shirts

At last our house shirts have arrived and all of the outstanding orders should have been delivered. If you have paid for a shirt and have not yet received it place call me at the Uniform Shop on 3481 4323 during opening hours. As the house shirts are now being made in Australia the cost of supplying these shirts has increased to $33.00 and will come into effect from 1st August.

Winter Uniforms

Winter uniforms are now in stock.

Ordering Through Uniform Shop

The following options are available:

1. Email Orders
   Email your order through to uniformshop@ksspca.qld.edu.au. This will be processed next time the Uniform Shop is open.
2. Phone Orders
   You can phone the Uniform Shop during open hours and pay by Credit Card.
3. Qkr! Online Orders
   Download the Qkr! App, or use the web-based version of Qkr at https://qkr-store.qkrschool.com/store

The preferred payment options are by Eftpos either by email order or over the phone by credit card or direct deposit.

Uniform Shop Hours

Delivery days are Monday and Thursday.

Thank you
Kay Mitchell
3481 4323
uniformshop@ksspca.qld.edu.au

Containers for Change

Community Notices

Young Engineers – Kurwongbah Program

Strathpine Little Athletics

Chess Mates Program