9 November 2022

Newsletter Articles

Principal’s Report

Yours in education,
Leanne Odorico
Principal

New Students

A special welcome is extended to Arabella (1C) and Maitreya (3E) 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.

Student of the Week

TERM 4 WEEK 4

TERM 4 WEEK 5

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 4 WEEK 4

Top Kurwongbah Kid – Term 4 Week 4

TERM 4 WEEK 5

Top Kurwongbah Kid – Term 4 Week 5

Date Claimers

Due Dates for Payments

Staff Update Term 4

Mrs Torrisi is on long service leave this week and next week replaced by Mrs Mazzer on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday.

Parade Presentations

Congratulations to Mr Denning, Mrs Porter, Mr Hamlin and the Junior and Senior Bands for an entertaining and polished performance on Parade last Friday week. The Senior Band also played the National Anthem on Parade. Well done students.

The Junior and Senior String Ensembles both performed on Parade last Friday. They played two pieces and performed to a high standard in front of an appreciative audience. Thank you to Mrs Rashada for all the work you do with our students each week.

End of Year Night of Music

On Tuesday night we were thoroughly entertained by so many Kurwongbah students at the annual End of Year Night of Music. It was wonderful for the students to be able to perform in front of a large audience after many months of rehearsals. The following groups performed: Junior Singers, Middle Singers, Senior Singers, Performance Group, Kurwongbah Blokes, Percussion Ensemble, Junior and Senior Strings Ensemble, Junior Band and Senior Band.

We are very appreciative of the efforts of our music teachers – Mrs C, Mr Martin (Piano), Mrs Rashada, Mr Denning, Mrs Porter and Mr Hamlin – who prepared the students for their performances. A special thank you is extended to Mrs C for her organisation of the evening and to Mr Waldron for hosting the programme.

The P&C Music Support Group cooked the sausages for the sausage sizzle and served refreshments prior to the concert starting.

All in all, a great team effort led to a wonderful evening of musical entertainment.

Great Achievement

Last Sunday Dylan competed in an Australian Ninja Games competition and finished third in the Under 9’s and has qualified to compete in the national finals that are being held in January. Congratulations Dylan on a wonderful achievement.

School Council

The School Council thanks outgoing members Mrs Judith Dunn, Mrs Kellie Campbell and Dr Laraine Law for their support and time representing the parents and staff throughout 2020/2021/2022. We appreciate your contributions and commitment to the students and Kurwongbah State School community. The school council is now seeking one parent representative and two staff representatives for nomination for 2023/2024.

The role of the School Council is to support the Principal in setting and reviewing the School’s Strategic planning and progress. Recent work focused on Strategic Partnerships including establishing a playgroup, connections with University of Southern Qld to promote learning partnerships and a focus on partnerships supporting sustainable practices within our school community. The current School Council have developed a 2022/23 Action Plan focusing on early years partnerships and sustainability practices within the school community. If you would like to know more about the School Council or may be interested in applying for the 2023/2024 position, please contact the Principal or school office (07) 3481 4333 or download the nomination form and return to the office.

Remembrance Day

As we commemorate Remembrance Day on Friday 11th November our Student Leaders will be selling ribbons, poppies, badges and wristbands before school next week from 8.00am-8.45am each day (while stock lasts). They will be located behind the Administration Building near the ANZAC Garden.

Children Leaving Kurwongbah

We are in the process of forming classes for 2023. Parents whose child or children (other than Year 6 students) will be leaving Kurwongbah at the end of the year are asked to inform the school office.

2023 Enrolments Prep – Year 6

We are continuing to take Prep enrolments for 2023. Children who are born between 1st July 2017 and 30th June 2018 are eligible to commence Prep in 2023.

We also have enrolment opportunities available for new students in Year 1 – 6 for 2023. Parents are invited to contact the school office on 3481 4333 if they are intending to enrol their child at Kurwongbah in 2023.

School Parades

School parades are held each week from 8.55am each Friday except for Weeks 9 and 10 (Thursday) in our school hall. Parents are welcome to attend. A list of parade presentations for Term 4 is below.

2023 Student Leadership

Congratulations to the members of our 2023 Student Leaders Council who were announced on Parade this morning. The Student Leaders Council is made up of Billie, Indi, Nathan, Amber, Asha and Olivia. Well done to Yahirah and Estella who were announced as the 2023 School Captains. We look forward to you demonstrating your strong leadership skills in your roles during the 2023 school year. Music Captain selections occur this week and House Captains next week.

P&C Meeting

The final P&C Meeting for 2022 will be held tonight, Wednesday 9th November at 6.30pm in the school staffroom.

NAPLAN 2023

In March 2022, Education Ministers announced that NAPLAN testing would be moved to Term 1 from 2023. The 2023 NAPLAN testing dates are Wednesday 15th March 2023 to Monday 27th March 2023.

NAPLAN is used by governments, education authorities and schools to determine whether young Australians are meeting important goals in literacy and numeracy.

Students in Years 3, 5, 7 and 9 are expected to sit the NAPLAN tests, which are held in Term 1 each year.

NAPLAN gives a snapshot of how children are performing in reading, writing, spelling, punctuation, grammar, and numeracy. It complements other effective classroom assessment and reporting practices.

School Swimming Carnival Year 3 – 6

Students attending the swimming carnival on the 29th November will be invoiced for bus travel this week. Activity consent forms will also be issued. We have a wide range of events scheduled as part of our carnival and are pleased with high participation of students across Years 3 - 6. Parents are able to attend for the carnival and will be allocated seating under marquees on the grassed side of the pool. It is essential that consent forms and payment is finalised by Friday 18th November.

Semester Two Academic Reports

Semester Two reports will be completed and emailed to parents on Monday 5th December.

Academic awards for students from Year 3 – 6 will be finalised and they will be present on Parade on Thursday 8th December. A copy of the Academic Awards Criteria for Semester Two is below.

Eco-Marines News

This week the Eco-marines went to the Brisbane Convention centre for ‘The Wave’ end of year celebration. At the event the students listened to presentations and were congratulated for their efforts throughout the year. They learned about other schools’ environmental projects and Kurwongbah State School had a photo displayed of our eco-marines standing in front of multi-sort bins which acknowledged our project on the need to reduce waste.

This week the eco-marines continued to promote waste free Wednesday. At first break they went in search across all year levels to present tickets to students who tried to go waste free with their lunches. All the tickets went into a draw and Nicole from Year 3 was pronounced this week’s ‘Waste Free Wednesday Warrior’. Thank-you and well-done Nicole. The Eco-Marines will be out and about again this Wednesday hoping to find even more students who have tried to reduce their waste.

Kurwongbah Kids Playgroup

Kurwongbah Playgroup is starting to grow in numbers as our new 2023 Prep students prepare for "big" school. We may need to implement our booking system each week to ensure your little person is not missing out on their Friday fun. There are a few ways you can indicate your attendance:

• Let the Playgroup Staff know each Friday for the following week
• Make a booking through the Kurwongbah School Office (07) 3481 4333
• Email Mrs Cross directly at mcros119@eq.edu.au

Inclusion News

The Place of Intervention in Schools

Follow on from my article last week about inclusion and the new funding model, I thought looking at Response to Intervention might be timely. Response to Intervention works on the Inclusion Principle of Normalisation and whilst it is about Students being able to access what they need, it is also about not creating a situation where they are reliant upon the support.

In school we talk about three levels of intervention. The first being Quality Differentiated Teaching Practice, which is available to all children in classrooms. It is about providing access points to curriculum and a diverse way for students to show their understandings of what they have learnt. The second layer is still about Australian Curriculum, but it is about additional resources and time for students to build their understandings. This level is called Focussed Intervention. The final layer is called Intensive Intervention, and it is about programs and support beyond the curriculum, designed to overcome barriers that prevent access to the classroom curriculum.

What we don’t want for our students, is working at an intensive level, or Focussed Level, as this means that we are making a judgement on time away from the core curriculum of the classroom. Ultimately the analogy says that in order to fill a gap in learning, we are ultimately creating another gap.

In this way, our school processes in Learning Improvement Team and Student Services, are about using the information we have about students and their learning, monitoring their data, and providing the least intrusive level of intervention required to support at help the child succeed. This allows students to mature and grow in independence, to become self-directed, which when we review research, tells us that this is best for their long-term academic success and outcomes, as well as a very strong factor in their social emotional development and strength of self-worth and esteem.

It is important to recognise that we all learn at differing rates and all of us have struggles in aspects of our learning. Learning is uncomfortable. It is designed to be. If it is too easy and we are not challenged, then we do not reach our potential. If it is too difficult and never attainable, then our self-esteem is adversely affected and our motivation to persevere is decreased. Our school, as an inclusive school, is designed to be representative and transformative of our society and culture that it serves. We have and love our diverse range of learners, as it is the positive experiences that we provide each other that improves our society as we move forward.

Cameron Brown
Head of Special Education Services

Guidance Officer (GO) Greetings

Zzzzzzzz – The Importance of Sleep

Sleep, or lack of it, is probably one of the most commonly discussed topics. New parents realise its vital importance in those first weeks and months!

Sleep is vital for wellbeing and evidence shows students who don’t get enough sleep are more likely to have trouble with learning. Most kids’ sleep requirements fall within a predictable range of hours based on their age, but each child is a unique individual with distinct sleep needs. Ideally, routine contributes to better sleep – for example, going to bed at the same time every night and waking at the same time.

The Sleep Health Foundation says “Children aged 6-13 years should ideally be sleeping for 9-11 hours, although anywhere from 7-12 hours may be appropriate for some children. Teenagers aged 14-17 years should ideally be sleeping for 8-10 hours, although anywhere from 7-11 hours may be appropriate for some teenagers”.

For other helpful advice from the Sleep Health Foundation, please see the attached brochure.

Olivia Devereux
Guidance Officer

STEM & Enrichment Education News

Makerspace Lunchtime Timetable

Buy Smart Competition

Congratulations Emerson, Indi, Stella and Summer, winning a highly commended for their film entry in the Buy Smart competition 2022. Students attended Parliament House in Brisbane for the awards ceremony and received their prize. Fantastic achievement students!

Battle of the Brains – Year 6 Trivia Competition

On Thursday 10th November three teams from Year 6 will compete in the Moreton Regional Council’s Battle of the Brains Tournament at the Strathpine Community Centre against other local schools in a trivia event. Students compete in nine rounds of eleven questions in categories of general knowledge, mathematics, science, sport, spelling, movies and music. There is a prize pool of over $1000 where students have the chance to win money for their school and themselves. Best wishes students for the competition!

Year 4 Solid Pathways

Year 4 Solid Pathways students are following the stages of the design process to create a simple boat. When designing, students will consider materials and the criteria for a successful design solution. They will make and then test their design as they develop an understanding of how forces impact the ability for a boat to stay afloat under different conditions.

Year 3 Enrichment

Students in Year 3 Enrichment are learning to code and create paths using Ozobots whilst learning about fractions. They are reading codes and designing pathways for the robot to travel on designing the game.

Music News

End of Year Night of Music and Awards

Thank you to everyone who came and supported us at the concert last night where the Kurwongbah Music Students put on a great evening of musical entertainment. Thank you to all the families who donated a prize for our raffle and a special thanks to the P & C who organised the BBQ and Canteen.

Instrumental Music Recruitment for 2022

Now that the concert is over, the Instrumental Teachers will be auditioning students for the 2023 program. This process which will take a few weeks. Class teachers have been contacted and the outcomes of tryouts will be advised via letters sent home. We thank you for your patience in this process.

Performance Uniforms

All performance uniforms are due from Monday 14 November. Please ensure the entire uniform has been laundered and ironed (don’t forget to wash the tie, scrunchie and pocket). A replacement tie, scrunchie or pocket can be purchased from the uniform shop if required. The uniform to be returned to the music room in the suite bag with the original coat hanger it was issued with. Please ensure it has a name on it so it can be accounted for. The uniform needs to be returned by Friday, 2 December.

School Instruments, Blue Folders and Music

All school instruments, music and blue folders are due back at the final lesson in week 8. These need to be handed to the instrumental teacher so they can be accounted for. Please DO NOT leave them outside the music room.

Choir News – Prep/One Singers, Junior Singers, Middle Singers, Kurwongbah Blokes and Senior Singers Parade Performance

On Friday, 11 November, all the choirs including the Prep/One Singers will be performing on parade. With a large number of students performing, once your child has performed please move away and allow parents/carers of the next group to move forward and watch their child perform. Students are required to wear their school uniform (not performance uniform) for this presentation with the check uniform being preferable.

Final Rehearsals

As 2023 draws to an end so do our rehearsals. Please check below for the final lesson and rehearsal for the different music groups. If you need to arrange before school care please do so.

Book Club News

With Christmas around the corner, why not check out our Issue 8 catalogue for that special gift for your child. Also, if you would like to keep it a surprise, just choose the gift order option. When it arrives at school the office will contact you for collection.

How Book Club Helps Your Child’s School

Every time you place a Scholastic order, your School is being rewarded! For example, for every Book Club order you place, Scholastic receives 20% of your total order spend to your school as Scholastic Rewards. This allows the school to purchase books and resources for your child’s classroom and the library, helping students reach their highest potential.

How To Order

The Book Club LOOP platform for parents allows you to pay by credit card. Your child’s order is submitted directly to school and the books will be delivered to your child’s class. You can place your child’s order via the link below or using the LOOP app, which can be downloaded from the App Store or Google Play.

Cash orders can be handed into the library. Simply fill out the order form on the back of the catalogue, place the form and the exact cash amount into an envelope or clip seal bag and drop off to the LIBRARY ONLY!

Julie Collins
Book Club Coordinator

YMCA OSHC News

Hello community and welcome to your fortnightly YMCA update. Miss Kara, Miss Channon, Miss Melanie, Miss Caitlin and Miss Tianna had so much fun busting a move at the Kurwongbah State School disco and the OSHC children loved helping decorate the hall with everything spring themed.

We are opening up re-enrolments for next year and all current families will be receiving an email very soon on how to re- enrol their children in YMCA for 2023. For all of our new families who wish to enrol their children into YMCA OSHC for next year, please email us at akb@ymcabrisbane.org.

The YMCA Kurwongbah Team
Phone: 0448 244 060
Email: akb@ymcabrisbane.org

P&C News

Welcome to Our New P&C Admin Officer

The P&C would like to extend a very warm welcome to our new P&C Admin Officer, Michelle Psaltis. We would also like to thank our outgoing P&C Admin Officer Kristi Milligan for her continued support whilst we recruited for the role.

Spring Disco

The P&C were so incredibly humbled to see the support of the Kurwongbah Community for our Spring Disco. The weather was not on our side, and not very spring like, but it didn’t deter our students from turning out in force. A sincere thank you to our Kurwongbah Parents for your resilience and commitment to giving the children a fun social night out. Our Spring Disco raised $5018 which will be used as part of our Hall air conditioning project.

P&C Working Bee

The P&C will be hosting a ‘Demo Day’ Working Bee on Saturday 19th November from 7am to 10am. A cooked breakfast will be available to all attending volunteers. We will be focusing on the removal of wood panels, bag racks, garden features and posts. This will allow for further upgrades and modernisation of the grounds around Kurwongbah over the summer holidays and into 2023. Please register your attendance here:

Tuckshop News

Our meal deals this term are:

• Isaac’s Tender Wrap Meal $8.00
  ½ Chicken Tender Wrap (with lettuce and mayo), Juice Cup and Drink
• Hailey’s Hammy Meal $6.00
  Ham and Cheese Toasted Sandwich, Anzac Slice and Drink
• Mason’s Hotdog Meal $7.70
  Hotdog, Honey Soy Chips and Drink
• Rylan’s Mighty Pie Drive
  Beef Meat Pie, Juice Cup and Drink
• Addilyn’s Chicken Burger Meal $8.00
  Chicken Burger (lettuce and mayo), Fruit Cup and Drink
• Best Friend Meal $9.00
  6 Dino Nuggets, Garlic Bread and Drink
• Master Chef Special $7.50
  Ham and Pineapple Pizza, Chocolate Mousse and Drink
• Noah’s Super Standard Meal $8.20
  Cheeseburger, Chips and Drink
• Mala’s Munchies $7.20
  Pasta Bolognese, Brownie 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.

Slushy’s have now been added to QKR for ordering under Frozen Treats. These items are only available for collection during play time and not in eating time. Our Prep, Year 1 and Year 2 Students will receive a token in their class eskies at Firs Break to be collected at Second Break play time. If you give your child cash for a Slushy, please encourage your child to come to the Tuckshop before school to pay.

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.

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

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, volunteers are urgently needed. We are very busy in Term 4 and any help will be greatly appreciated.

Back to School Appointments

We are now taking back to school appointments in November and January. Please refer to the below attachment for times available. Any emails send after Thursday 8th December 2022 will not be answered until 14th January 2023.

Second-hand Uniforms

We have a very good range of second-hand uniforms, all in excellent condition currently available in the Uniform Shop. If 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 always have parents waiting for second-hand uniforms.

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.

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

The Salvation Army

The phone number for community members to call The Salvation Army for emergency financial relief has been changed. This is now a Queensland based phone number rather than a nation number

Pine Rivers State High School – Uniform Fittings

The Pine Rivers State High School Uniform Shop is taking appointments for December and January for Year 6 students who are joining Pine Rivers High School in 2023. Extended trading hours include:

From 7.00am on Monday 28th November 2022 (Year 7 Orientation Day)
8.00am – 4.00pm on Monday 5th, Tuesday 6th, Wednesday 7th and Thursday 8th December 2022
8.00am – 1.30pm on Saturday 14th January 2023
8.00am – 2.00pm on Tuesday 17th, Wednesday 18th Thursday 19th and Friday 20th January 2023

Please email prshuniformshop@outlook.com or call 3881 4739 to arrange an appointment.

Axis Church North Lakes – Christmas Community Event