Any alternative arrangement for students to go home with another adult besides their parent or for a have

11/02/2020

BE SAFE BE RESPECTFUL BE RESPONSIBLE

UPCOMING EVENTS

DATE

13/2 Fassifern Student and Principal Leadership Conference Day – Maroon Outdoor Education Centre

14/2 Year 4 – 6 Swimming commences for a 6 week block

17/2 Qld Times Prep Photo

17/2 P&C AGM @ 6.00 pm Staffroom

2/3 Student leader Badge Ceremony

20/3 Say No To Bullying Day

20/3 School Interhouse Swimming Carnival Yrs. 4-6

21/03 Harmony Day

24/3 -28/3 Year 6 Camp – Maroon Outdoor Education Centre

2/4 Fassifern Cluster Interschool Swimming Carnival

3/4 Easter Hat Parade

3/4 Last Day Term 1

FROM THE PRINCIPAL It always takes time to get back into the rhythm of school routines and procedures. Staff work hard to establish and reinforce our school rules and expectations with students, and they help students learn strategies for building and maintaining friendships. During this time of year, staff are busy getting to know students individual strengths and learning styles, and preparing early assessment to inform the teaching and learning cycle. Parents and Carers get back into the swing of organising school uniforms, lunch boxes, supporting school start and finish times, and homework routines etc. Working together to form positive partnerships between home and school is paramount in helping to achieve successful outcomes for your child, our students. This week, teachers will send home their ‘What’s Learning at Peak Crossing State School’, classroom newsletter. Within each individual classroom newsletter, you will be offered a ‘Meet and Greet’ time to come and meet your child’s teacher and look around the classroom environment. We hope that by providing these opportunities it will provide a great platform to keep you informed of what your child will be learning about each term. At the end of this term, we will provide an opportunity for a ‘face to face’ formal parent/carer teacher interview. Every Day Counts and before and after school procedures Please remember that ‘Every School Day Counts’. It is important that students attend school every day, unless of course they are unwell. If your child is unwell, please ensure that you contact our school office staff to inform of your child’s absence. Same day absence notification is a Department of Education requirement. School commences at 9am each day and concludes at 3pm. It is important that students are at school on time for the start of the school day, as this is where teachers establish daily routines. Students should not be at school before 8.30am.

Teachers are not rostered on for duty before school, however we do have two Teacher-Aides who are rostered on each morning to monitor students in the undercover area from 8.30am. Students waiting in the undercover area before school are encouraged to engage in an activity from our before school activity box. Alternatively, students may like to read a book or complete their homework. Students should also be picked up after school on time. Students left waiting too long to be picked up after school may become anxious. Students can be collected from our school undercover area, however we ask parent/s and carer/s of our younger students, e.g., Prep, to be collected from outside their classroom. If students in the school grounds are not collected by approximately 3.10pm, teachers will send students to the office where we will make contact with you and have them wait at the Office until you collect them. Students who use either of the Fassifern or Limestone Ridges bus services must ensure that the bus company is aware they are travelling on the bus and our school must also be aware as we have a staff member on bus duty who marks the bus roll. If your child is not getting on the bus, if you could also please inform our school office staff. For children who need to access Outside School Hours Care, before the hours of 8.30am and after 3pm, or over the school holiday period, please contact our provider, YMCA OSHC on 0436855751 who can inform of any vacancies and organise your child’s enrolment in their services. YMCA staff bring students from their care over to our undercover area at 8.45am. They also collect students from after school to attend their service, including collecting Prep students from their classroom. Students crossing the road to access the carpark at Peak Mountain View Park, MUST use the supervised crossing which is manned from 8.30am of a morning and from 3pm until 3.30pm of an afternoon. Please note: Car parking is available across the road from the school, with a few spots available outside the school. Parent’s and carers are not to park in the bus zone or park in the staff carpark. In the event parents need to collect children throughout the day due to injury or illness, our office staff will call you or the listed emergency contact person, and permission to pull up and use the staff carpark for this reason is permitted. Students riding their bikes to school, should walk their bike both across the road, and along the pathway outside the school from just before the staff carpark entrance to the school gate entrance. Helmets should be worn at all times. From time to time Police monitor and engage in road safety processes as part of Road Safety Week. Failure to comply with road safety procedures naturally may result in a police generated consequence. Any students departing school early must be signed out at the office by an adult. Children are not permitted to leave the school grounds with any other adult, unless our school office or the class teacher has been informed of an alternative approved parent/carer arrangement. These procedures help to keep our students safe. The safety and wellbeing of students, staff, parent/s and carer/s is of the utmost importance to our school community. Updating Important Information If you have changed any family information, including your address, phone or email, could you please

inform the Office so that we can make this change in our system. If your emergency contact person and/or

details have changed, we also require this vital information.

If your child has any medical condition, including medication that needs to be administered, could you

please ensure that we have this important information. It is a Department of Education requirement that all

medication requiring administration to a child is stored at the office. It must be in the original packaging and

contain the child’s name and dosage. A letter from your child’s doctor is also required for staff to be able to

administer medication and this should correlate with the label on the medication. If your child has a medical

condition, such as, but not limited to Anaphylaxis, Epilepsy, and Asthma etc.… it is a Departmental

requirement that we have a medical management plan with detailed information from the treating medical

doctor or specialist that supports the management of your child/ren. This should be signed by the doctor

and include a supporting letter to inform of the medical condition that is to be monitored and treated.

If your family has a court order of any type that we need to be aware of, providing a copy of this order so

that we can help support the court requirements and any recommendations is vital.

From time to time information may change, and in order to ensure that we are providing the best care, we

would appreciate you providing and updating all of this important information, as is relevant to your child

and/or family situation.

P & C AGM

The Peak Crossing State School P&C Annual General Meeting (AGM) will take place in the staffroom at

6.00pm on Monday 17th February. All parents, caregivers and community members are most welcome to

attend. Nominations will be sought for the Executive Positions of the P&C committee for 2020 and we invite

those of you who are interested to nominate. We also invite any school community members who would

like to become a member of the P & C or simply would like to obtain further information on volunteering at

our school, e.g., Tuckshop and Fundraising, please come along next Monday evening. If you are unable to

attend our AGM, but would like to become a member, please collect a P & C membership form from our

school office after our AGM. At our AGM, the Principal will discuss our school priority areas and our

investing for success initiatives. We look forward to seeing as many school community members next

Monday evening and we look forward to another successful year of collaboration to support every student

succeeding.

Special Message for Contractors, Volunteers and Visitors

It is now a Department of Education requirement that contractors, volunteers and visitors to the school, read the Mandatory Training booklet and sign the included declaration verifying that they understand their responsibilities with reference to the Department of Education ‘Code of Conduct’ and ‘Student Protection’ procedures. These booklets are kept on file by school administration. For any parents and carers who have previously signed the declaration in 2019, please note, that it is a Department of Education requirement that this is updated annually, therefore it is a requirement that this is read and signed in 2020. Please see staff in the office to obtain a copy of the booklet. The school will also offer an induction session this term, with the date to be confirmed.

Car Park Courtesy “Look out! Look out! There are children about!”

The first term of the 2020 school year is well and truly underway,

and the school carparks are busy with students being dropped

off and collected each day. The safety of our students, staff and

community is always paramount at Peak Crossing State School,

but particularly so at these busier times of day. It is timely to

remind those transporting children to and from school to be

mindful of the School Zone speed limits and to be vigilant when

parking or reversing from a park. Children can appear so quickly in an unexpected place, and do not

possess the same spatial awareness or life experience of adults. Please also treat other car park users with

respect and patience when the car parking area is busy. This sets a great example for your children of our

‘Be Respectful’ expectation in action. Thank you for your co-operation in keeping our school community

safe.

YMCA Outside School Hours Care

Our OSHC provider YMCA are reporting a great start to 2020 with the number of families utilizing their

service steadily growing. Student feedback has been very positive with students particularly enjoying the

student centred activities and the variety in the menu offered by the service. The students have been trying

their hand at baking and our staff thoroughly enjoyed a yummy treat of chocolate chip muffins baked by the

students under YMCA staff guidance and supervision. Thank you YMCA OSHC staff and students for this

very kind gesture! If any parents/caregivers would like to avail themselves of the OSHC service please

contact the service direct. A flyer with contact details is attached for your convenience.

Year 6 Leadership Day MOEC Year Six School Captains, Music Captain, Sports Captains, and Student Council are invited to attend a Fassifern Leadership Conference, on Thursday February 13th, 2020 at Maroon Outdoor Education Centre. The school will fund the cost of the bus travel and lunch on this day. This, we believe, is an excellent opportunity to enhance the capability of our student leaders’ and provide students with an opportunity to collaborate with other student leaders across the Scenic Rim. Students will be transported by volunteer parent transport departing school at 8.15am and returning by 3.00pm. Year 4-6 Swimming Year 4-6 swimming commences on Friday 14th February. Swimming instructions will take place over a six week block. To assist with sun smart procedures, students should have sunscreen applied before attending school. Sunscreen will be provided for students to reapply before their lesson. Students will also need to ensure that they wear a sunsafe shirt for swimming lessons. Appropriate footwear to and from school to the pool is also required. Swim caps and goggles are optional. Of course, a towel and extra bag to place wet clothing in will also be required. We hope that students enjoy their swimming block and that it prepares them well our Peak Crossing State School Interhouse Swimming Carnival, which will be held on March 20th 2020. Queensland Times “My First Year 2020” Photos Each new school year photographers from the Queensland Times newspaper visit schools to photograph Prep students for a special keepsake lift out. Our photos will be taken on Monday 17th February. The lift out will be included in the March 25th edition of the Queensland Times. All Prep students will receive a complimentary copy of the newspaper from Peak Crossing State School. C Block Refurbishment Recently, our school was successful in receiving a Department of Education funded project to refurbish one whole classroom block, consisting of four classrooms and a flexible learning space. The makeover looks fantastic with learning opportunities for students maximised. Special thanks to Glenn Zimmerle from the Department of Education Infrastructure team for supporting this project. Thanks to Project Manager Charlotte Batterham from Ranbury Project Support, and Darren Schulz, Building Services Manager from Midson Constructions, along with the Midson Constructions onsite Project Managers Beau Best and Kerian Downes and all their team. We are very grateful for all of their efforts and hard work in creating such an improved learning space for all. Thank you! Behaviour Focus Our School is a registered Positive Behaviour Learning School which is an evidence based whole-school approach to creating a safe and supportive school environment. Our schoolwide expectations (rules) are for students: ‘Be Safe’, ‘Be Respectful’, and ‘Be Responsible’. What it looks like to be safe, respectful and responsible across all areas of the school are taught explicitly to students. We hope the high expectations we set will assist students in demonstrating the expected behaviours at home and in all community ach fortnight our school has a targeted behaviour focus that is explicitly taught, practised and reinforced.

Our behaviour focus this fortnight is:

Week 3 & 4: ‘I am safe when I enter and exit the school grounds.’

Assembly and School Newsletter Assembly is held each Monday, commencing at 9.15am. All parent/s and carer/s are welcome to attend and have an opportunity to hear key school messages, event updates, and join in celebrating students receive student of the week certificates or behaviour certificates. Please know that we understand how special it is to capture a photo of your child receiving an award, however please be mindful that photographing other students’ without the permission of the student’s parent or carer is not permissible. Some students cannot be photographed for specific family or cultural reasons. In addition, ensuring that any posts on Social Media follow the same procedures is departmental requirement. Our School Newsletter is released each fortnight which you can download via the Schools App, or directly from the School Website. Alternatively, you can request the Newsletter be emailed directly to your Email address, and for those who have limited or intermittent access to the Internet, you can request a hard copy be sent home with your child. Please ensure you have informed us of your preferred way to receive our School Newsletter. Providing these options helps to provide a personalised and differentiated service in receiving our Newsletter communication. In the immediate future, we would like to look at creating a new Newsletter template. If you are someone who has a creative flair, or you have a recommendation for school Newsletter marketing, please feel free to let our school office know. Visitors Just a reminder that all visitors, spending time at the school to assist with any school-based activity, must sign in and out using the Visitors Book kept at the Office. This is an Education Queensland requirement to ascertain who is on the school premises at all times. Your assistance with this is greatly appreciated. School Grounds and School Watch Just a reminder, that unless prior permission has been sought, nobody should be entering the school grounds outside of school hours. Anybody entering the school grounds outside the normal scheduled school hours is risking being prosecuted for trespassing. If you see anything, or anybody acting suspiciously outside of normal school hours, please contact School Watch on: 131 788; or Policelink on: 131 444. Alternatively, in the event of an emergency, contact 000. Feedback If you ever have any feedback you would like to provide, or any ideas or suggestions for our school, I would love to hear from you. I have an open door policy, so please don’t hesitate to contact me for a chat, or alternatively one of our school staff. Kind Regards,

Jennifer Fenwick (Principal ~ Peak Crossing State School)

Sports Information

DATE EVENT

20/3 Interhouse swimming carnival @ Boonah Swimming Pool

2/4 Fassifern Interschool Swimming Carnival

CLASSROOM AWARDS Congratulations to the following students who have received awards: Lucas G, Alyssa C, Jakeb W, Sophie W, Imogen M, Seinna B, Lucy W, Tom R, Zac C, Harrison S, Kyson H, Lily F, Lachlan P, Trinadee F, Vinnie, J, Charleigh S, Laycie M, Ryker S, Reuben G, Rachel C, Charlie E, Miranda M, Lauren P, Riley C, Hayden C, Chloe H, Lachlan McD, Daisy T, Casey B, Xander B, Landon D, Jade G, Felicia K, Jake D, James L & Rihanna K. Uniform Shop News The Uniform Shop is open every Tuesday morning from 8:30am to 9:00am. If you are ordering and paying online can you please provide your receipt as proof of payment on pick up. If you require any further information, please contact Trish on email trishanddoug@live.com.au. Tuckshop News The Tuckshop will now be operating every Thursday and commences next week, 6th February. The menu is the same as it was in Term 4, with odd and even weeks and will start on the even week. If you would be interested in becoming a volunteer in our Tuckshop, please contact our Tuckshop Convenor Irene Hounslow on 0403 022 380 for further information. iPods,iPads & Telephones Any student who brings and iPod, iPad or mobile phone to school must sign it in before school where it is stored in a secure location. Students must then sign out and pick up at 3:00pm. Newsletter Preference Thank you to those who have returned your Newsletter preference, please be advised that they have not all been recorded as yet so apologies if you do not receive a copy this fortnight via your preference. We will have this up and running by the next Newsletter

NEXT P & C Meeting –AGM- Monday February 17, 2020 @ 6pm in

the Staffroom