27 April 2018

Newsletter Articles

FROM THE PRINCIPAL’S DESK

Welcome back to what I am sure will be the best term of the year! Term 1 is all about establishing routines, expectations and ensuring we have clear plans for the rest of the year. It is also about working to settle into a rhythm within the classroom. Term 2 is about digging in and building on the rhythm established in Term 1 while focusing and working hard towards our academic goals by the end of the semester. So I look forward to what this term has to offer.

It is my hope that everyone had an enjoyable and relaxing the Easter break and our students had a chance to recharge their batteries. If it was anything like mine, it included a lot of chocolate and some inspiring and motivating moments from the Gold Coast Commonwealth Games. I think the two moments that really resonated with me was Kurt Fearnley’s gold in the Marathon and Bronte Campbell clinching the 100m Freestyle gold.

I think both these athletes epitomize the 4 values we convey and we embed into our everyday school life but they also showed us that anything is possible with hard work, commitment and a strong belief.

ANZAC Day Assembly

Words cannot express how grateful I am to Mrs Pearce, Miss Kelsey and 5 Aqua for the outstanding job they did to ensure such a special occasion was phenomenally organised and a true reflection of the ANZAC spirit. It was a truly moving ceremony and it is always wonderful to have all our students in the one place, respectfully paying tribute to an event that holds so much significance in Australian history. I received many positive comments about how wonderful our ceremony was and how well behaved our students were throughout the entire service. Special thanks need to be given to Miss Wagg and our talented dance group for their performance and for allowing the true spirit of the ANZAC’s to shine through.

NAPLAN

Term 2 is always an important term as our Years 3 and 5 students take part in the National Assessment Program, Literacy And Numeracy (NAPLAN) testing. These tests are designed to give a point in time snapshot of a child’s progress and to compare this progress with peers within the school, across the State and also across Australia. The NAPLAN tests will be held on May 15th through to May 17th. The end of Term 2 will also see formal written school report cards emailed home for all students outlining their broader achievements across all subjects for the first semester. We will endeavour to make these tests as stress free and supportive for all students as possible. I am extremely proud of the positive way they have been approaching their learning and I know they will do their very best.

3 Way Interviews

Each year in Term 2 we run our “3 Way Interviews” from Year 1 through to Year 6. This is an initiative that has been operating in our school for many years now and has proven to be a very successful way for students to take ownership and pride in their achievements. The interviews involve your child explaining and sharing data they have collected and recorded throughout the term and it also allows time for you to re-connect with the class teacher with any pressing concerns or issues.

Our normal timeline for the “3 Way Interviews” is in week 4 Term 2 but this year we are moving them back to week 10 to allow the sole focus at the start of this term to be about the student’s learning, NAPLAN and their upcoming assessments.

More information regarding how to book an interview and the dates will be given later in the term so please be sure to look out for this.

Black Shoe Policy

As a school, we have spent the last 12 to 18 months ensuring parents and the wider community are well informed about the expectations surrounding our black shoe policy. It was a conscious decision to take that much time as we did not want to cause any additional stress to families nor to financially disadvantage anyone.

The process of changing shoes that do not align with the Musgrave Hill State School Dress Code Policy has come into effect this term. We are using week 1 and week 2 as a reminder to students and to assure them that we will work with families to ensure all students are wearing the correct shoes.

I want to thank the majority of families that have ensured their child/ren have started Term 2 in the correct shoes and I would also like to thank the parents who have made contact with me regarding their individual circumstances and together we have been able to source a positive solution.

Please do not hesitate to contact me or one of my Deputies if you need or require any support regarding black shoes.

Julie-Anne McGuinness – Principal

WHAT’S HAPPENING

Spell-Off 2018

In the last week of Term 1 we ran the Spell-Off Competition. A big congratulations to all of the students who participated.

Well Done Alice ….

On Saturday Alice F (6 Gold/School Captain) attended a certificate ceremony for being part of a group of Year 6 girls from around the South East Region, that successfully completed a 6 week online STEM program with a focus on Chemistry.

The program was run by current Year 11 Queensland Academies student, Sarah Linning. The students connected with Sarah once a week via online conferencing and were able to communicate and work together to investigate the salinity and turbidity of water samples, amongst other exciting topics. The students also had the opportunity to engage in experiments at home using materials that were provided by the course.

Alice had the pleasure to meet the South East Region STEM Champion, Jane McLaren in addition to participating in a Wind Turbine Workshop along with other Queensland Academies students. Alice thoroughly enjoyed taking part in this program and is now more confident than ever to tackle further STEM projects in the future. Well done Alice.

ASSEMBLY AWARDS

SPORTS TALK

Commonwealth Games Baton Bearer, Shaylah!

As the Commonwealth Games have come to a close, I would like to congratulate Shaylah on the way in which she represented us here at Musgrave. It was a very memorable day for her and all involved. I would like to thank all of the staff, students and parents that made the effort to come down on the holidays to cheer on one of our own. Support like that makes me extremely proud to be part of “The Hill” and all that we represent here.

Cross Country and our CUA Fundraising

A wrap up of all of today’s results will be posted in the very next newsletter. Those students progressing on to District Cross Country will be informed in week 3. District Cross Country will be held Thursday 10th May (week 4).

A reminder that our CUA fundraising still has an extra week to go! There will be a hover board given away to one of our students once fundraising has been finalised. To be eligible, you need to go to the website, create a personal profile and raise at least $10. It’s as easy as that!! Ordinarily, you would need to raise over $1000 to receive a hover board – so please jump on and start your profile ticking over!! If you do not have a fundraising pamphlet, please go to Sally in the tuckshop – there is still time!!

Upcoming Broadwater Trials

• 12yrs Boys Rugby Union
• 10 – 18yrs Golf
• 12yrs Tennis

Please have your son/daughter come and see me first week back to collect and fill out the appropriate paperwork.

Katie Halsall – P.E. Teacher

TUCKSHOP NEWS

Welcome back everyone and I hope you had a great Easter break.

Over the next few weeks you may notice a few changes with our menu. I would love to hear your feedback so come and say hello or just give me a call. All orders are to be placed on Flexischools if you have any questions please ring the school and ask for me or come up for a visit.

Uniform News

We are having a Green and Gold Sale. The following items have reduced prices.

Please note that these items can be worn until December 2019. Also please be advised there are limited numbers in each sizes.

We have our new navy jacket available for purchase at the tuckshop or online for $49.00, this jacket is light weight as well as quick dry. We have also brought in girls navy tights for $8.00 a pair, these tights are Red Robin brand which is a very good manufacturer and have great wearability.

Sally McWilliams - Tuckshop and Uniform Convenor

P & C NEWS

Fun Run

Welcome back everyone and hope you all had a great holiday and got to see some of the Commonwealth Games while they were on. As you may know we currently have our Fun Run Fundraiser happening, Brandon from the CUA School Fun Run came to visit the kids last week and offered an amazing prize just for our school. If your child goes online, creates a profile and raises a minimum of $10 they will go into the draw to win their very own hover board. This is truly amazing and I personally wanted to open my own page to be in the running. Due to the Easter holidays we have decided to extend the time frame to give everybody a chance to raise some money and be in the running for that amazing prize. All booklets and cash money raised needs to be returned to the Tuckshop by the 18th May 2018. I look forward to seeing what everyone has raised. Please remember we are raising money to upgrade our playgrounds so every little bit helps. For a little added bonus the tuckshop has a number of prizes on display to have a look at so make sure you let your children know.

Mother’s Day Stall

Our Mother’s Day stall will be held on the 10th, 11th & 12th May at the Tuckshop. All items will be $5 and under so come on down and spoil that special women in your life with a great gift.

P & C Meeting

Our next P&C Meeting will be held on 10th May in the Admin Staff Room at 5pm, I look forward to seeing you there.

Melissa Holland - P&C President

MUSGRAVE HILL SS – P & C BUILDING FUND

Our project for 2018-2019 is to install new playgrounds for the school.

We are asking each family for a voluntary contribution of between $50 to $100 to assist us in replacing our playground equipment, this would be a tax deductible donation.

Payment can be made at the tuckshop via cash, EFTPOS, credit card or through Flexischools.

Payment can also be made directly into the bank account, details are as follows:

Reference should be your child’s last name, initial and class.

Any help would be most appreciated.

CLASSROOM CAPERS – 1 GREEN

1 Green has had a wonderful start to term 2. We have started to learn about how to write an information report and have talked about the difference between fact and opinion. 1 Green is looking forward to learning about Australian Animals and writing facts about them. Our ‘Big Talk’ topic this term is all about mystery creatures. Can you figure out these mystery creatures?

Mrs Benson/Mrs Swan – Classroom Teachers

A WORD FROM OUR GUIDANCE OFFICER

Resilience

Everybody’s life has ups and downs

Adults sometimes look back on their childhood as a time when they were always happy, but life’s ups and downs are a part of childhood too. Children need to build resilience skills to be able to both enjoy good times and deal with hard times. Helping children learn how to manage life’s ups and downs and build their coping skills supports their mental health and wellbeing now and into the future. Feeling good protects mental health and wellbeing.

Did you know that experiencing positive emotions such as joy, pleasure and having fun are essential experiences for building and maintaining a healthy mind across our whole lives?

Skills and qualities that help children cope with life’s ups and downs

• Trust - that the world is safe and that there are caring people to help them.
• Belief - in their ability to do things for themselves and achieve their goals.
• Feeling good - about themselves and feeling valued for who they are by their parents and carers.
• Optimism - that things generally turn out well.
• Regulation - Ability to manage their feelings, thoughts and behaviours.

Children develop these skills and qualities and learn to keep a balance over time, initially through their experiences in coping with small stresses with help from supportive adults. When bigger stresses come along, even though at first they might feel quite distressed, children can draw on what they have learned about helping themselves to cope and feel better. Looking to others for support continues to be an effective way of coping.

How are your child’s resilience skills developing?

Resilience is the ability to cope with life’s ups and downs. Children’s resilience is enhanced when they:

• are loved by someone unconditionally
• have an older person outside the home they can talk to about problems and feelings
• are praised for doing things on their own and striving to achieve
• can count on their family being there when needed
• know someone they want to be like
• believe things will turn out all right
• have a sense of a power greater than themselves
• are willing to try new things
• feel that what they do makes a difference in how things turn out
• like themselves
• can focus on a task and stay with it
• have a sense of humour
• make goals and plans, both short and longer term.

Feeling optimistic and hopeful are key parts of mental health and wellbeing.

This information has been adapted from the International Resilience Project and KidsMatter.

Joy Wheeler – Guidance Officer

12 TOP TIPS FOR MAKING A SCHOOL UNIFORM LAST

1. Name everything

All the jumpers, jackets and hats look the same at school. As much as we believe our children will take care and be responsible for uniform pieces removed during the day, it is often not the case. A named article of clothing will make its way to a lost property basket, front office and eventually back home. Unnamed pieces are often lost to other homes, bottomless lost property baskets and rarely come back to the original owner. Iron on name tags are great these days, but if you want to be extra vigilant take the time to stitch the tag on as well.

2. Allow for growth

This one seems fairly obvious, but allow for growth. If you buy a summer school uniform at the return of school in February allow for the fact that this uniform piece may be put away for winter terms 2 & 3 then ready to come out 6 months later for term 4. We are all used to seeing out children in oversized items at times, it’s okay. A quick turn up of a sleeve or tacked up hem line will assist in prolonging the life of a garment.

3. Change when you get home

Encourage the children to change out of their school uniform as soon as they get home. Less chance of adding more stains, more time for soaking, less wear and tear on clothing. If it is something that does not require laundering after one wear hang it up straight away to keep its shape.

4. Washing and drying

Sort the wash loads by whites and colours, and use the detergent designed for colours to help prevent uniform fading. If hanging dark colours in direct sunlight turn the clothing inside out to prevent fading. Many shirts are wash and wear these days so hang shirts on coat hangers right after the machine finishes to reduce the need for ironing.

5. Ironing

Iron, shorts, trousers and skirts using a damp clean cloth to prevent shine. Or alternatively iron these garments inside out. Pleated shirts can be difficult to iron, but pleats are designed to stay in, so wash and hang right away for best results.

6. Damp sports gear

Don’t leave damp sports gear in a bag for any longer than necessary as mildew can develop and odours can be difficult to remove. Too late, sports kit already in a bit of a state? Depending on the type of fabric and the colours soak in a solution of white vinegar and water for an hour, then wash as per instructions. To help deodorise the wash add a spoon of bicarbonate soda to the machine washing detergent section. Then add some white vinegar to the section where you are supposed to add fabric softener (no need to add fabric softener) as this will go through in the rinse part of the cycle and give that final clean.

7. Avoid loose buttons

Dab a small amount of clear nail polish over shirt buttons to keep the threads from fraying and getting loose.

8. Remove glue stains

PVA glue is water based, so soak clothing in cold water overnight, then wash as normal.

9. DIY shoe cleaner

Keep leather looking fresh by removing marks with a mixture of cold water and vinegar. Run out of polish, buff with moisturiser or Vaseline to keep the leather subtle.

10. Ink and paint stains

Make-up wipes or baby wipes can take out ink or paint marks out of any fabric.

11. Grass stains

Use white (not gel) toothpaste, rub on the stain gently with a soft toothbrush. Leave to sit overnight, then put through a normal wash cycle.

12. Remove ink stains

Soak ink stained white shirts in milk overnight to loosen the ink before washing. Put through a normal wash as usual.

Y.M.C.A. MUSGRAVE HILL

Welcome back to another school term, from all the staff at YMCA Musgrave Hill we hope you all had a safe and exciting holiday break. For those families who are new to the school the YMCA is located in D block just up from the school office. We are open from 6:30am-9:00am and from 2:00pm-6:00pm during the school term, and from 6:30am-6:00pm during Vacation Care. During the school term we provide breakfast and afternoon tea for the children, during Vacation Care we provide breakfast, morning tea and afternoon tea. Please come in and visit our friendly staff for more information and an estimate on fees.

If you need help with your child’s homework, please let us know as we are able to continue this in the mornings before school.

A reminder to all families that due to legislation requirements, we must have a copy of your immunisation records so please send through a copy or drop one into the service.

If you are new to the school or would like some further information on how to enrol your child into the service, please drop by in D Block which is where we are located and we would love to assist you.

Looking forward to seeing you soon.

YMCA Team

A WORD FROM OUR CHAPLAIN

COMMUNITY NEWS

“This is a service provided when space permits. The school acts solely as a messenger and is not actually recommending any activities advertised”

Titans Down Syndrome Opportunity

Every year the Titans reserve one of their home games for the Down syndrome Association of Queensland to be the match day charity. This year it’s Saturday 19 May against the Newcastle Knights.

The team gives children under 15 with DS the opportunity to run out onto the pitch with the players. There are 26 places available, on a first come, first served basis. Applications close on Friday.

There are a limited number of on-the-pitch roles available to those over 14, in holding flags and forming an honour guard as the Titans take to the field.

All footy fans, DS families and the general public are also welcome to attend and support the DS community.

Tickets are $22 which includes a souvenir cap. Families will all be seated together in a block and have the opportunity to meet others and enjoy a great afternoon out.

To sign up and join the fun for the day, click on the link below.

For more information, please contact DSAQ on 3356 6655 or office@dsaq.org.au.

Centacare Programs

UPCOMING EVENTS