BEFORE SCHOOL PROCESSES – Some Key Reminders

• Parents of Prep and Year One are not expected to remain with their children before school. You are more than welcome to drop them under D Block where they will be supervised by staff.
• If Prep parents choose to wait with their child, they are asked to wait with their own child only under C Block before school. Students should be sitting with their parents at this time – not running around.
• Any Prep students and other students without parents must be seated under D Block.
• Year One parents are encouraged to now drop their children off to under D Block supervision area. If Year One parents choose to
   remain with their children, they must be seated under A Block. 
• Prep and Year One students under their parent supervision are to remain seated and not play in these areas.
• We kindly ask that parents do not wait under E Block as this is the thoroughfare to the boys’ toilets and a handball area, and easier to monitor with no parents and students waiting in this area.
• Parents are asked not to go upstairs with the students as it causes congestion on the stairs and on the veranda which is unsafe.
• When the bell rings at 8:45am, Prep and Year 1 parents are asked to move to the side to allow students to line up independently and without obstruction.
• All students without parent supervision are to sit and wait under D Block.
• From 8:30 these students are permitted to play handball or skip on the AstroTurf if they choose, except on Tuesday when there is breakfast club. There are no running games permitted before school.
• Playgrounds are out of bounds to all children before school even if under supervision of their parents.

Facebook

Our school has a very active Facebook page with frequent posts to keep our school community informed of what is happening in our school.  Our events are posted throughout the term to allow parents time to be prepared for the term ahead Click on the more tab and then the events tab in the dropdown menu to go to our events. 

If you have a Facebook page, we encourage all of our parents to follow our school page so you can enjoy the wonderful experiences our school has to offer.  The more you interact with the page by liking and commenting on posts, the more our page will appear in your newsfeed.  A reminder that Facebook is not the best platform to ask questions that you need immediate or urgent replies to, as we don’t always see questions in the comment sections of a post.   This is best done by emailing the teacher/admin or calling the office.  Facebook is also not a site for posting complaints or negative comments about staff or school processes.  If you have some constructive feedback for the school or an issue that you would like to raise, we would respectfully ask that you make an appointment to speak with the Principal to discuss your concerns.   Any inappropriate comments will be removed from the platform.  Please remember to never make comments on the page referencing a child’s name for privacy reasons.

Pillar Practice

Our three school pillars including Safety (Be Safe); Relationships (Be Respectful); and Learning (Be a Responsible Learner).  Each fortnight at Assembly, a Pillar Practice is shared with staff and students that becomes our focus behaviour improvement.  This fortnight, our Pillar Practice focusses on good manners and greetings.

IN particular we are focussing:

• Please and thank-you
• May I
• Excuse Me

To positively reinforce this Pillar Practice, we have a 2-week Special Gotcha that teachers will be handing out across the school and drawn at assembly in Week 8.  

All class teachers are provided with a poster for their classroom and will explicitly teach our school expectations around the relevant pillar and behaviour.   Students are reminded daily about our focus behaviour with the goal of improving this behaviour across the school.  The Student Engagement and Behaviour committee reviews behaviour data across the school at their meetings to discuss future focus areas for identified behaviours of concern.   This process is documented in our Student Code of Conduct and is part of our explicit teaching of behaviour in our school.  You can support us by being aware of the current Pillar Practice and discussing the expectations with your children at home.

Student Council

Class meetings have been going very well, and the reps are coming to meetings with lots of great ideas and suggestions.  Our wellbeing event of the Kindness Hearts raised $140 for the Student Council.  Thanks to everyone who bought hearts to support us. 

We have booked our first Subway Meal Deal for the year and you can order your subway and drink now.  These will be delivered on Monday 18^th March in Week 9 of this term.  There will be posters around the school and flyers will be sent home this week.

One of the suggestions from the class reps was to have more colouring in competitions.  So, each fortnight, there will be a junior school and senior school colouring in template available that you can enter in the competition.   The winners will be announced on assembly each fortnight and will win a set of felt pens or crayons. Colouring in competition sheets will be available from the library or the office.  You are allowed to take these home to work on them.  Your finished sheet must have your name and class written on the back and be dropped in the box in the office by Monday morning before assembly.

There was also some discussion about behaviour in the toilets.  The student 

council would like to remind everyone to respect each other’s privacy in the toilets by not looking over or under the stalls.  If this happens to you, please report this to the teachers on duty

The student council is also concerned about some student swearing that is being heard around the school.  Our goal is for our school to be a place where we only use kind words – not swearing or using bad words.  So please think before you speak and be polite and respectful of others.

Finally, the Student Council would like to introduce House Mascots to Enoggera State School.  A team mascot is a person, animal or object adopted by a team as a symbolic figure, especially to bring their team good luck.  The Student Council will be running a competition for students to design a mascot for their house….Waratah and Banksia.  You can design and draw your idea for your house mascot! Entry sheets will be available from class teachers and are due in to the office by the end of the term.

Brainstorm Productions

On Monday, students from Prep – Year 6 had the opportunity to attend the Brainstorm Production “Being Brave”. 

“When children experience change, bullying, loss and other stressful life events, it can have a huge impact on their behaviour and wellbeing. They may worry about themselves, their families and the world. Being Brave is a live show that gives students positive strategies to cope with emotions and adapt to change at school, at home and online. Fly is a young boy whose parents have separated. He misses his dad and tries to be brave by keeping his emotions ’bottled up’. He meets Isha, who has been forced to come to a new country. Tim is being bullied and Billie is learning to face her fears. Mrs Russo want to connect safely with her family online and Clia is coming to terms with loss in her family. By connecting with the people in his community, Fly discovers the true meaning of being brave: sharing stories, showing feelings, keeping good memories and living life. Researched and developed in consultation with teachers and psychologists, this live theatre in education program uses song, dance and storytelling to provide students with positive coping strategies and empowers children to seek help and face life’s challenges with confidence and compassion. “

Our students thoroughly enjoyed the performance and the messages contained within the show.

Ms Tina Burrows

Deputy Principal

Head of Department - Curriculum

Hello Parents and Caregivers,

Happy Week 6!

Senior Shirt Orders

Just a reminder that Senior Shirt orders closed last week, if you were unable to get your student/s order in last week, please ensure you send this through urgently to administration to process. Senior shirt invoices will be sent out by the end of this week. Full payment must be made in order to obtain your student/s senior shirt. We are hoping to receive these senior shirts by the start of Term 2. 

Year 5/6 Camp

Camp invoices for 2024 will be sent out in the coming weeks – please keep an eye out for this. This year we will be invoicing for the full amount for each student. You will be able to make partial payments via BPOINT online, instead of one whole amount. To do this open your invoice. Roll to the bottom of your invoice and click on the BPOINT link. From there it will bring up a new screen and you will be able to insert the invoice number, student name and amount you would like to pay. Partial payments cannot be completed through QParents, only BPOINT or in the office via EFTPOS.

QParents

We are still awaiting on a few families to complete their online consents through QParents, these consents went live at the end of 2023. The State School Consent and Online Consents due dates have been extended for parents who haven’t completed this yet. If you are new at Enoggera State School this year, you would have received an invitation link to sign up. Please ensure you complete these online consents to help administration in 2024. If you haven’t already set up a QParents accounts please refer to the following link;

If you are having trouble, please feel free to contact administration and we can try and assist.

Yearbooks 2023

We still have a bunch of 2023 yearbooks! If you are interested in purchasing a 2023 yearbook, please send through an order form or email and we can provide you with the copy straight away.

If you have any other financial inquiries, please contact me directly on 07 3550 1333 or email me on bsm@enoggerass.eq.edu.au

Ellie Mastrapostolos

Business Services Manager

Class Swimming

Thank you to all of our parents in the lower years who are coming along and helping out with their classes. We really appreciate your help as we can work in smaller groups.

The change rooms are getting a little noisy and that is impacting on our time in the pool. Students are encouraged to focus on their tasks while remaining quiet in the change rooms. The quicker the class is, the more swimming time we have together.

Our program is part of the curriculum, not an added extra so it is really important they are participating in every lesson. If they are unable to swim for any reason, send a note or email to aawoo0@eq.edu.au

Reminders of when your students are swimming.

· Monday – 2C

· Wednesdays – 4B, 1C, 1A, 5/6B, Prep C

· Thursdays – 3A, A, 2A, 5/6A, Prep B

· Fridays – 1B, 3B, Prep A, 5/6C, 2B

Kilometre Club

Year 3-6 students are welcome to join us for running practice prior to school on Monday, Tuesday and Thursday mornings between 8.30am and 8.45am. Students need to wait in the undercover and a teacher aide will bring you down to the oval.

It is great to see so many students join in. The focus at the moment is finding the right pace, sprinting the whole cross country is not an option, so jogging at an even pace is better.

Andrew Woodrick

HPE Teacher

P&C Meeting & AGM -Tuesday 26 March 6.15pm

Are you looking to be part of the P&C. We are looking for parents and carers to be part of the Executive team in whatever capacity you may have. The roles can be split over various members to help with workload.

Nomination forms for all the Executive Positions can be emailed to you directly or found in the office. Please submit completed nomination forms by 12pm on the day of the meeting to: pcsecretary@esspandc.com.au

All existing members who wish to continue their membership, will need to submit a new application for membership and sign the code of conduct.

We encourage you to complete your membership forms and submit them to the email above prior to the meeting, regardless of whether you can attend the meeting. These forms can be found in the office.

We look forward to seeing as many of you as possible.

 Frozen Fridays

Every Friday from 3pm-3.15pm we will be selling $1 ice-blocks from the tuckshop for the rest of Term 1 to celebrate the start of the weekend and cool us down in this hot weather.  Cash only. See our flyer above. See you all there.

Parents, please note that all children must be supervised while enjoying Frozen Fridays, they mustn’t be running through the gardens or on scooters.

Thank you to our volunteers who have already signed up, If you would like to volunteer to be one of our Frozen Friday Friends or have any questions, please get in touch via email vicepresident@esspandc.com.au or sign up via the link

volunteersignup.org/48R9L

Musical News

Congratulations to all of our Grade 4 - 6 students who were offered a lead role in our Giants in the Sky Musical. If you haven't handed in your forms these forms are now overdue. Please hand these in ASAP.

Expression of Interest Backstage/Tech Crew 

Students in Grade 4 - 6 who are interested in being a part of the backstage/tech crew for the Musical please email the Performing Arts team -  Mrs Rees rmree1@eq.edu.au & Miss Dunstan gldun0@eq.edu.au or come to the EPAC staffroom to express your interest.

Ensemble 

Now that we have assigned our lead roles for our first musical, we are now looking at our stage 1 of our ensemble/chorus positions. This information will be out to families and students over the next couple of weeks. Please keep an eye out for your emails and the newsletter for more information.

Dance News

Over the past 2 weeks we've had over 100 students audition for our Dance Ensemble program across Grades 3 - 6 which is incredible. As our program continues to grow, we need to adapt to provide the best experiences for students at ESS. Therefore, we are making some changes to the layout of the program. We appreciate your patience as we organise this. 

More information regarding this will be out soon and the corresponding invitation letters to students will be handed out shortly. 

Georgia Dunstan

Primary Dance and Drama Specialist Teacher

Andrea Moeser, Jason Taylour

Computer Club

Students in years 3-6 are invited to join Bebras Computational Thinking Challenge using this expression of interest form in Qlearn. Note that Bebras is free and is a fun way of developing problem solving skills using computers.

The quiz will be held during lunchtimes at school. Students are asked to practice questions in their own time. I am looking forward to lots of online nominations by the 5^th March if possible.

Robot Club 

Robo Cup Teams  should have their script, costumes and props organised by the end of term 1. We are beginning to build and program the robots on Tuesday and Thursday lunchtimes. Minecraft students will have to wait until after Robo Cup in September, to use the lab on Tuesdays and Thursdays.

CSIRO “Young Future Shapers"

CSIRO “Young Future Shapers” nominations are now open for students in Years 5 and 6. Follow this link to the website.

Please email Mr Harris if your child keen to participate in this brand new and amazing Program!

Premiers Coding Challenge

Premier’s Coding Challenge is for students in Years 3-6. This is a great challenge for individuals or pairs of friends who enjoy coding and inventing. Great prizes are on offer along with a morning tea with the Minister for Education. It is free to join.  Please email Mr Harris for more details.

Michael Harris

Digital Technologies Teacher

Student of the week awards for Monday 26 February 2024

School zone safety – advice for motorists, parents and carers

With school back for 2024, we need to keep safety top-of-mind when travelling through active school zones and around our school community.

School zone times have been standardised in Queensland to help motorists remember when to slow down. The standard operating times for most school zones in Queensland are 7–9am and 2–4pm, with some operating all day between 7am–4pm.

Speeding remains a significant concern, contributing to fatalities and injuries, and police will be on the lookout for speeding motorists. Keeping below the signed speed limit in school zones helps keep everyone safe. This simple adjustment may have minimal impact on travel time but has the potential to significantly contribute to saving lives.

Children's crossings are identified by children's crossing flags, displayed near crossings before and after school hours. 

When the crossing is supervised, you, as a motorist, must:

• Wait until all pedestrians, bicycle riders, or personal mobility device riders have crossed the road and the crossing supervisor has returned to the footpath.
• Abide by the direction given by the School Crossing Supervisor.

Please keep our children safe by staying alert, slowing down and obeying our school crossing supervisors who are there to help kids cross the road safely.  

You can also help children become more road safety aware by:

• Showing them how to look for vehicles coming in and out of driveways and discourage them from playing behind parked cars, or with toys or balls when walking to school. 
• Ensuring your child knows the safest route to and from school. This is usually the way with the least traffic and the fewest roads to cross and teach your child to always walk on footpaths. 
• Showing your child how to cross at traffic lights when the green 'walk' sign is showing at pedestrian crossings when vehicles have stopped and at supervised school crossings when the supervisor has signalled it is safe to do so. 
• Accompanying children when walking or riding to school until they are old enough to understand road safety (usually around 10 years or older). 
• Teaching your child if they catch the bus to never cross in front of or behind a bus; wait until the bus goes before crossing the road. 
• Making sure wheeled devices (bicycle, scooter, skateboard, or rollerblades) used to travel to school are well maintained and that the appropriate protective and safety gear (for example, helmet, visible clothing, knee and elbow pads) are used. 

Visit the Street Smarts website for more information about what to do at pedestrian and children crossings.

We are looking for School Crossing Supervisors at Enoggera State School to help get our kids safely to and from school.

School Crossing Supervisors must be available for work in both morning and afternoon shifts on a rostered basis (in all weather conditions).

In return we offer the following:

• Casual pay-rate starting at $35.35 per hour
• Relief opportunities on your days off
• Long service leave entitlements

Commencement of employment for the successful applicant is dependent on:

• The favourable outcome of a pre-employment health assessment
• A Positive Notice Blue Card (you do not need to have a blue card to apply for the position)

If this sounds like something you would be interested in, give us a call on (07) 3863 9871 to speak with your local Road Safety Officer or email zillmere_road_safety@tmr.qld.gov.au for more information.

Queensland’s Reading Commitment

We know that learning to read is life-changing, with almost everything we do involves reading and writing. At each stage of schooling, families and carers play an important role in supporting children to read and learn about the world around them.

The Department of Education and P&Cs Queensland are holding community twilights to provide information on Queensland’s Reading Commitment and supporting reading at home.

• Topic: Supporting children’s reading at home
• Dates: 21 February and 13 March 2024
• Time: 6:30pm – 7:15pm
• Audience: Parents and Carers of Prep to Year 2 students
• Registration: https://www.ivvy.com.au/event/KLCA5Y/

When registering, parents will be provided with the opportunity to submit questions they would like answered.

For more information, please contact Reading.Curriculum@qed.qld.gov.au