Hambledon State School

77-83 Stokes Street Edmonton QLD 4868 P: (07) 4040 8666 F: (07) 4040 8600 E: admin@hambledonss.eq.edu.au W: www.hambledonss.eq.edu.au www.facebook.com/HambledonStateSchool

22 June 2020

Dear Parents and Caregivers,

Well, another term has flown by and this term has been like no other. The activities we normally would have done were on hold while we addressed many new activities. Some of these were: NAPLAN, discos,

sports days, and cross-country. While we can’t lament what we didn’t do, we can continue to celebrate the things we did and continue to look forward to other events in the future. As we move into our last week of the term, can I again thank all school staff for your tireless work in enabling such a successful transition back to school for students. I recognise the countless hours of additional work everyone has devoted to ensuring such a great outcome for our Hamble-don children and community. Thank you once again to all our families who were with us on this journey, who supported the online learn-ing, who transitioned the students back with ease, who responded positively to the social distancing and who have stayed outside the gate while we await further direction. Consistent with the Roadmap to easing Queensland’s restrictions, we are now permitted to recommence a staged reintroduction of school sport from Term 3 2020. From 10 July 2020, in line with the Queensland Gov-ernment’s Stage 3 easing of restrictions, schools will be able to conduct inter-school and representative school sport for both indoor and outdoor sports. Selected Queensland state championships will also take place in Term 3 and Term 4 2020. Keep tuned for further information about this next term I hope you all have a wonderful holiday. Please travel safely if you are visiting out of town, celebrate Cairns and the surrounds if you are choosing not to travel, stay safe and enjoy a peaceful time together. School Opinion Survey (SOS) Traditionally the SOS has occurred during term 3 for students, staff and parents. For 2020 only, the SOS will

be replaced with a shorter pulse survey that will take place in weeks 9 (last week) and this week (week 10) of

this term. The pulse survey will provide an opportunity for reflection on schools’ and the department’s re-

sponse to COVID-19 and an opportunity for us to reflect and provide feedback to the system to inform future

policy.

The survey form has been designed so that it can easily be completed on a smartphone.

Parents and Caregivers are invited to participate in this year’s School Opinion Survey and have a say about

schooling during the COVID-19 lockdown. You are also given the opportunity to provide feedback about our

school more generally.

Participation in the survey is anonymous and you are encouraged to take this opportunity to have your

say. The survey form has been designed so that it can easily be completed on a computer or smartphone.

The online survey will be available until Friday, 17 July 2020, and should take less than five minutes to com-

plete. To access the survey, please click on the link below or copy and paste it into your web browser:

Parent survey – https://survey.qed.qld.gov.au/form/Parents-HaveYourSay

School Newsletter

Reporting

As you will be aware, the disruption to school routines as a result of the Queensland government’s response to the Corona-virus (COVID-19) pandemic, has resulted in changes to the teaching, learning, assessment, and reporting at Hambledon State School. The Department of Education has modified the requirements for reporting student academic achievement for Semester 1, 2020. Schools will provide a report using the information that they have available from Term 1 and Term 2, 2020. This in-formation will be modified from the planned assessment program as many students did not attend school for the last week of Term 1, and they participated in a home based learning program for three to five weeks in Term 2. The Semester 1 student reports from Hambledon State School will be available from 3:00pm Friday, 31st July. At Hamble-don State School, students will be provided with a level of achievement for English, Mathematics, Science, Humanities and Social Sciences, and Health and Physical Education. This level of achievement has been determined using the available in-formation about student learning and achievement from Term 1 and Term 2. Students in Prep will not receive a level of achievement rating on their report but will have comments on their learning progress provided. Please do not hesitate to contact me or your student’s teachers if you require further information.

Changing the roadway configuration To improve safety for all road users, Council will be re-line marking Hambledon Drive, from Mill Road to Isabella Road,

from two traffic lanes in each direction to one lane on both sides of the road.

Changing the roadway configuration will provide the following benefits:

improved safety for all road users with dedicated cycle lanes provided on both sides of the road;

increased median width and a safer environment for Council workers when undertaking maintenance works;

traffic lanes further away from housing (and associated reduction in noise); enough room for car parking on the road shoulder and/or vehicle break-downs.

Bicycle Awareness Zones (BAZ) will also be undertaken on the roundabouts. This includes:

Reducing the speed limit on the approaches to the roundabout to 30km/hr;

On-road stencilling of bicycle symbols to advise all road-users that cyclists are encouraged to ‘take the lane’ and use the traffic lane to travel through the roundabout; Painting of chevrons around the roundabout to clearly define the traffic lanes – for use by vehicles and bicycles. Please visit Council’s website to view the concept plan.

The existing signalised intersection at Walker Road will remain the same and traffic movements will not be affected by these changes. Council has examined traffic volumes and has determined that a one-lane traffic arrangement will be suitable for this road. Changing a road’s configuration from two lanes to one lane does not reduce traffic capacity or cause congestion. Capacity is affected more by the number of lanes provided at the intersection approaches, rather than the number of lanes mid-block. Traffic surveys undertaken in streets that are one-lane indicate that there are no significant delays during peak traffic times. Works are expected to be undertaken late June 2020. During works, please observe and obey traffic controllers and signs advising the changes to normal traffic conditions. Council appreciates your patience and cooperation during this time.

END OF SEMESTER BREAK This week is the last week of our first semester. School finishes for Semester one this Fri-day. Remember that EVERY DAY COUNTS and therefore we expect all students to attend until Friday (unless they are unwell). There is NO PUPIL FREE DAY on the first Monday back – 13th July. I hope you have an enjoyable and safe break with your children.

Do I need to let the school know if my child has been away from school?Yes. You must let the school know the reason why your child is absent from school – either beforehand, on the day of the absence, or as soon as practicable after your child’s return to school.

What’s the easiest way to explain my child’s absence?

Absence phone line Email or letter to class teacher

How lucky are we? Ms Newberry entered a competition with Literacy Planet and won a 6 month free subscription for the whole school! This is worth in excess of $6000! “Congratulations! You recently completed LiteracyPlanet’s online survey and also entered a competition for a chance to win a free subscription for your school. We have some fantastic news - you are one of our selected winners! Thank you for enter-ing and providing your survey responses. We are pleased to award you and your school a no-obligation, WHOLE-SCHOOL LiteracyPlanet subscription until 31 Dec 2020! Your prize includes:

· Full access for all staff and students at your school until 31 Dec 2020 · One free training session for staff (up to 60 minutes) · Access to exclusive 2021 'early bird' subscription promotions”

In order to provide your child access to this subscription we require a signed approval form from you. A letter was sent out last Tuesday and needs to be returned before the end of this term so all that access can be provided to your child next term. If you have lost you letter or require another copy, please do not hesitate to contact us.

School Watch At all times, and especially during these upcoming holidays, we ask you to look out for after-hours crime in our school. If you see anything suspicious, please remember to call the School Watch number 13 17 88. The School Watch Program is a partnership between Department of Education and Training, the Queensland Police Service and the State Government Protective Security Service. It aims to reduce vandalism, theft and arson in Queens-land schools. If you do see something suspicious, please don’t attempt to intervene. Call the School Watch number and let the local police or State Government Protective Security Service deal with the matter. Keep the number handy – 13 17 88 – and let’s work together to help create a safer school community. Alternatively you can contact POLICE LINK 131 444

“Watch Out – Cane Trains About” The commencement of the 2020 cane crushing season has begun and as part of the MSF Sugar Limited Safety Pro-gram, the Company would like to take this opportunity to remind parents and children as to the danger of playing on or near cane trains and railway tracks. It is of concern that children don’t realise the danger they put themselves in when they jump on to bins of moving cane trains, play around railway tracks, or riding trail bikes along the cane railway and even fish from cane railway bridges. Cane railways are no different from any other rail system (eg. QR) and children should not play on or near railways. While cane trains are well marked and safety systems are in place, they carry large loads and have limited ability to brake suddenly. Risk of injury does not only involve children but also applies to locomotive crews and other members of the public. Occasionally children are seen playing with the track points that guide the train from one track to another or placing objects on the line. This is extremely dangerous as it can cause the train to derail and result in serious injury to our lo-comotive crews. MSF Sugar Limited has an extensive cane railway network and cane trains will be operating 24 hours a day during the crushing season. Please stay safe and remember: Stay away from locomotives and cane bins. Don’t play around railway lines. Never walk between cane bins. Never go on to a cane railway bridge. Never walk behind a train – the driver will not see you. If you have to cross the railway tracks, STOP and look both ways, LISTEN and only cross when it is safe. OBEY Flashing Lights signals and Give Way signage at road crossings

Unwell students Unwell students are not to attend the school site and the school will require parents/carers to collect the student from school if they present with any signs of illness. While I appreciate that we want all students at school learning, until the directive changes, we must continue this response. Please let the school know if you are keeping your child home and follow the usual process that we have to ensure we have your child’s absence explained.

P&C Secretary Last week we elected a new P&C secretary. A warm welcome to Vicki Smith for accepting this position. The next meeting of the P&C is scheduled for Tuesday 20th July. This is the second Tuesday back after the holidays.

Domestic and family violence services Challenging times can unfortunately result in relationship strain and abuse. Families and young people are encouraged to reach out for support. Domestic and family violence services are continuing to operate. In an emergency, always call the Police on triple zero (000). DVConnect provides crisis support for domestic and family violence issues. 1800RESPECT is available for 24/7 web and telephone counselling. Kids Helpline is available 24/7 for children and young people seeking counselling and support. The Queensland Government’s Domestic and Family Violence portal provides useful information on local domestic and family violence services.

We are taking Prep enrolments for 2021 On our website you will find expressions of interest forms for enrolling into Prep next year. Do you have a younger child born between 1st July 2015 and the 30th June 2016? Then he or she is eligible to be part of our wonderful school.

Social Distancing Rules and Parking Thank you once again to the parents who have been observing our social distancing rules and staying out of the grounds until further notice. I encourage all of you to continue practicing patience as we support the safety for all. To comply with continued social distancing and hygiene protocols, the following measures are in still in operation as of Monday the 25th May Teachers will be reminding and supervising students to wash their hands frequently throughout the day. Large gatherings, excursions and school visitors are not permitted. Additional cleaning of high-touch points will continue throughout each day. Any children or staff showing signs of illness will be sent home promptly. Parents and carers must not enter school grounds for drop off or collection.

JANE’S JOTTINGS Problem solving strategies for Parents & Teachers If your child is having problems in school – academic, social or behavioural – one of the most important things you can do is to form a strong working alliance with your child’s teacher. Here are some ideas to get you started. General tips: Let teachers know from the outset that you respect them as professionals who have your child’s best interests

at heart. Even if you find that you and a teacher disagree, be sure not to criticise the teacher within earshot of your

child. When you sit down with a teacher to discuss a problem, it’s important to stay focused on your goal: finding a

solution. Don’t get side tracked by looking for someone to blame – the teacher, yourself, your child or even another

student. Try to understand the situation in as much detail as time permits. Reading is FUN Parents can engage in a range of activities at home to help develop their child’s reading skills. Play with language by making up rhyming words

Nurture a love of reading with your child. Eg. Make regular trips to your local library to borrow books. Ask oth-ers to give books as gifts to your child. Always make reading time an enjoyable time for you both.

Read and chant nursery rhymes

Play ‘I Spy’. I spy, with my little little eye, something beginning with ‘r’. Say the sound rather than the letter name. For younger children, use colour names rather than sounds. Read aloud to your child to provide an example of how fluent reading sounds. At times, have your child match your voice. Discuss the meanings of unknown words that your child hears and reads.

Ask your child questions about what he or she has read.

Reading includes looking at pictures for younger children.

Point to a letter on a sign or in other reading material and ask your child to name it and/or provide the sound.

Help your child make connections between what he or she reads and similar experiences he or she has felt, seen in a movie read in another book.

Kids Helpline is Australia's only free, private and confidential, telephone and online counselling service specifically for young people aged between 5 and 25. A useful telephone number for all children. 1800 55 1800 Parentline QLD. Ph: 1300 30 1300 (cost of a local call) 8am to 10pm, 7 days a week. Kids Helpline is Australia's only free, private and confidential, telephone and online counselling service specifically for young people aged between 5 and 25. A useful telephone number for all children. 1800 55 1800 Parentline QLD. Ph: 1300 30 1300 (cost of a local call) 8am to 10pm, 7 days a week

Easter Raffle Our Easter raffle has now been drawn and winners have been contacted, congratulations to all of the lucky people who received a prize. On behalf of the P&C we would like to thank you all for your participation and patience.

Our little ‘school of fish’

ICAS Is your child sitting ICAS this year? Payment is now easier with the new online Parent Payment System. Visit https://

shop.unswglobal.com.au/pages/pps and enter our unique school code POO939 to pay online and confirm your child’s participa-

tion. If you have any question regarding payment, don’t hesitate to contact our office.

Online payment closes Friday, 17 July 2020. Please note the change to writing – no longer available in 2020.

Subject Sitting date

ICAS Science (Year 2-6) Monday 17th August 2020 12pm

ICAS Writing No longer available in 2020

ICAS Digital Technologies (Year 3-6) Monday 24th August 2020 12pm

ICAS English (Year 2-6) Monday 24th August 2020 9:30am

ICAS Mathematics (Year 2-6) Monday 31st August 2020 9:30am

ICAS Spelling Bee (Year 2-6) Monday 31st August 2020 12pm

Parking Congratulations to the family of Kesha 2B in Week 8 and Leah 6D in Week 9 who were the lucky winners. If it wasn’t you, don’t be concerned. Simply park correctly, collect your positive par-ent parking ticket and go into the draw this coming Friday. Thank you for keeping our students, families and staff safe by following the road rules. Next term the tick-ets will continue but the rewards will change – stay tuned!

Cairns Show The first week in term 3 will be a four day week as the Cairns Show was scheduled for this date. The Show has been cancelled for this year. However, we are still gifted the Public Holiday on Friday the 17th.