Edition 31

Principal's Message

Inaugural Canberra Trip

What an amazing week we had in Canberra! If you were following us on Facebook, you would have seen all of the places we visited and the fun we had. It was a very busy five days and I have no doubt there were 49 students and 4 other staff members who went home on Friday night very tired!

The behaviour of our students when out and about in Canberra was largely exemplary.  There were comments made by passers by on the way we moved around.  The manner in which our students enacted our CARE Code is one to be very proud of.

Thank you to the parents of those students who attended ensuring the majority of our students were in full school uniform when departing on Monday and for our visit to Parliament House. It certainly assisted in located our students at the busy Brisbane and Sydney airports on Monday morning.

Changes to Uniform Policy

As you would be aware, our school Sports House shirts are now available for purchase from UMS. At our last P&C Meeting, the inclusion and wearing of the Sports Shirt was tabled for discussion with the parent body.

As a result of these discussions, it was tabled and agreed to that the Sports House shirts are accepted as part of the Everleigh State School Uniform Policy to be worn on Fridays with the exception of Year 5 and Year 6 students who participate in any Gala Sports Days, formal events such as ANZAC Day or excursions.  In addition to the Sports Shirt being worn on Fridays, it can be worn for our annual cross country and athletics carnivals.

Updates to the Everleigh State School Uniform Policy will be formally presented at the next P&C Meeting and once approved will be published in our school website and Parent Handbook.

Student Departures for 2024

If your child (except for our current Year 6 students) will not be attending Everleigh State School in 2024, can you please advise Administration as soon as possible. We are well and truly into planning 2024 classes and this information is of great assistance with our enrolment numbers.

Deputy Principals' Message

School Leadership 2024

Earlier this week students in Years 4 and 5 were shared information regarding school leadership opportunities for 2024. Our students in Year 5 will be applying for School and Sports Captains roles whilst our Year 4 will be applying for a Vice-Sports Captain role. Students will submit a written application for shortlisting where candidates will then be able to present a speech to students and teachers for election.

School Camp

Last week, 49 students from our Year 5 and 6 Cohorts jumped on a plane and flew to Sydney and Canberra for a jam-packed week of activities. There were some amazing learning experiences for students about our nations history and democratic processes as well as developing a deeper understanding of science.

Questacon and CSIRO

Questacon allowed students to engage in hands on science activities to learn around a range of topics. Our first lab focussed on Artificial Intelligence and how that will continue to impact on society as we continue to progress innovating and improving.  This was followed by demonstrations of earthquakes, lightning bolts and a real-life experience of what zero gravity feels like. CSIRO led students on a scavenger hunt to of some of Australia’s greatest discoveries and the impact that has had on society. 

Old and New Parliament House

Old Parliament House was attended twice by students for the Museum of Democracy and the Australian Electoral Commission. The Museum of Democracy allowed for an interactive investigation of some of the significant political events throughout Australian history and we were lucky enough to witness as voters participated in the referendum which of course is the first to occur in the past 24 years and only the 45^th in Australian history.

When students travelled to New Parliament House we had a guided tour around through the viewing rooms of the House of Representatives and the Senate. Our tour guide made sure to let us know that we can read every word ever spoken in parliament by reading through the records all available online. This led to us learning that the Australian Parliament was opened in May, 1901 in Melbourne by the Duke of York and Cornwall who later became King George V.  Plenty of information was shared about Parliament House including that it was made up of 300000 cubic metres of concrete, 2700 clocks, 4500 rooms and that Bob Hawke laid the foundation stone. However, students were most impressed with the Lego representation that had been made by Ryan McNaught (Brickman) that had hidden elements including Batman, Emperor Palpatine and some skeletons in closets.

The Australian War Memorial

Unfortunately, our visit to the War Memorial was fleeting as the War Memorial is undergoing significant renovations. Our students were able to view the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, the Eternal Flame and the Hall of Memories as well as other exhibits surrounding World War 1. This visit was moving but we could certainly do with far more time for all of the stories and information held within.

Student Council

The student council are holding a free dress day on Friday November 3^rd. Students are asked to bring a pantry item as a donation while wearing free dress. All items will be collected by our student council and raffled off for our End of Year Hampers at our End of Year Concert. Excess items will be donated to Foodbank on behalf of the student council.

Every Day Counts!

Attendance at school every day is critical for long-term success. Our school target for attendance is 95 per cent. This is based on our understanding that illness, injury and personal circumstances sometimes arise. An attendance rate of 95 per cent equates to ten (10) missed days, or two weeks, of learning per year.

Congratulations to this edition’s Attendance Champions – Year 5 and Year 6!

Messages from Executive Services

Attendance Data Collection

Attendance data for Term 3 2023 will be extracted by Central Office on Friday 27^th October. It is important that any outstanding unexplained absences are updated. Each Monday we send home letters to families who have unexplained absences. We kindly ask that you advise the reasons for the absence and return these letters as soon as possible.

We remind parents/carers to ensure absences are notified by 9am on the day of the absence, to avoid creating an unexplained absence.

Student Absence Procedure

If your student will be absent, parents/carers have a legal obligation to notify the school, including advising the reason for the absence. We kindly request you let us know by 9am on the day of the absence. We have two preferred methods for advising absence:

1. Via the Q-Parents App – please see reception if you require information on this.
2. Via our dedicated Student Absence Line – (07) 2899 5160, where you can leave a message any time of the day or night. Please save this number in your phone.

Reminder: You will also need to advise YMCA if your child is booked in and will be absent.

YMCA absences should be advised before 2:15pm via email aev@ymcabrisbane.org or via text or phone call 0459 905 087.

Don’t forget to also cancel your canteen order if you have pre-ordered ahead: (07) 2899 5125

SRS – Student Resource Scheme

Statements have been emailed to families on Wednesday 18 October. Please ensure your accounts are settled by the end of October 2023.

The preferred payment method is via, Bpoint or QParents.  Payments can also be made via  Eftpos between 8am and 3pm at the office.

The Student Resource Scheme SRS2024 invoices will be forwarded in the coming weeks and these are payable by end of Term 1 2024.

Spare change of clothes reminder

Please ensure you have a spare change of clothes in your child’s bag in case of accidents. Please include underwear, black shorts/skort and socks.

Lost property

Name labels make all the difference in helping us to returned lost items to the correct students. We kindly remind parents to name hats, lunch boxes, water bottles, etc. We really appreciate your assistance with this. Please see the attached photos of current treasures waiting for their owners to claim them.

Note: All unclaimed items will be donated or binned at the end of each term.

Q Parents

We invite all parents and carers to set up their Q Parents app. This app is our preferred option and is a one-stop location to check on your account or pay invoices, as well as to report absences. It is quick and easy to use. If you require any assistance to set this up, please contact executive services.

Music Notes with Mrs Chivers

As I write this, I am listening to the school band rehearse with Ms McCullough.

They have been working hard to improve their skills and playing. I am looking forward to hearing play together on assembly.

In music this term, classes are singing, learning some dances and developing their music skills. It’s great to see the students participating in the dancing and improving their motor control and just having fun.

Everleigh State School is preparing for our end of year concert coming up on Thursday the 23^rd of November in week 8. Look out for more information on times as we get closer.

Every class is preparing an item to perform with a buddy class. So there will be two items from Prep and two from Year One. Other year levels will work on one item each.

Our choir is practising 3 songs to perform. It is very important that students in the choir attend ALL rehearsals in the lead up to the concert. We rehearse Monday and Friday at second break.

Congratulations to Chloe Burke for attaining her choir badge recently. We have two more students who will be receiving their badges next week. Badges are awarded for being committed to choir.

Remember: Every day is a great day to make music!

Mrs Chivers