25 October 2017

Newsletter Articles

From the Principal

Full School Review

Three officers appointed by the School Improvement Unit visited our school between 4 and 6 September 2017 to conduct a Full School Review. The report that was provided represented our school’s performance against the nine domains of the National School Improvement Tool. It also recommends improvement strategies for the school to consider in consultation with its regional office and school community. The report’s executive summary has been uploaded to the school’s website. This report outlines key findings from the review and key improvement strategies that prioritise future directions for improvement.

At the completion of this review it was decided that our school would benefit from obtaining additional support. This additional support will be closely aligned to our school’s sharp and narrow focus on improving our student’s reading skills. The officers recommended that our school over the next 12 months moves through a Priority Support Review process.

Priority support reviews are conducted in the same way as all other SIU (School Improvement Unti) reviews except for two distinctions:

• the School Improvement Unit assigns its more experienced reviewers to the reviews
• the School Improvement Unit continues to monitor and check back in with the school for 12 months after the review to ensure the school receives the support it needs.

At the end of the review, the review team presents its findings and improvement strategies to the principal, school leadership team and Assistant Regional Director. A written report follows for the school to consider with the support of the region. The principal works with their supervisor to develop an action plan that outlines the key improvement strategies the school will implement, and the support it will receive from the region, over the next 12 months.

The School Improvement Unit has assigned a senior reviewer to case manage the school during this period, checking in every three months. At 12 months, the case manager and another reviewer from the School Improvement Unit visit the school to gauge how effectively the school has implemented the strategies contained in the action plan.

After the 12-month visit, the SIU makes one of the following determinations:

1. Finalise its support of the school if positive gains are being made (with regional support)
2. Identify additional regional support needed for the school to make the necessary gains
3. Recommend the school for a second priority support review and 12 months of support.

A final report detailing the decision is provided to the principal and their supervisor. The school’s regional director also receives a copy of the final report.

Over the next few weeks, I will be leading our teachers and school leaders to draft this action plan. This plan will be shared with the school’s P and C Association and wider community once it is finalised. Parents wishing to obtain any additional information about this plan or the consultative process are encouraged to contact the school and arrange an appointment.

2017 Speaking Out Competition Success

On Wednesday 11 October, Nerang High School hosted the 14th Nerang Alliance of State Schools’ Speaking Out Public Speaking Competition. This event showcased the oratory talents of students from Years 4 – 10 from Nerang Alliance schools (William Duncan State School, Worongary State School, Nerang State School, Gilston State School, Canungra State School, Beechmont State School and Nerang High School).

This enjoyable evening was, once again, sponsored by Nerang First National Real Estate, who generously provided beautiful trophies and vouchers for each of the Year Level Winners and the Speaker of the Night.

The Year Level Finals winners were:

Year 4 – Dimitri Roussos – Worongary State School
Year 5 - Phoebe Anderson – Worongary State School
Year 6 - Zoe Smythe – William Duncan State School
Year 7 – Amy Lett – Nerang State High School
Year 8 – Charlie Bob Lord-Browning – Nerang State High School
Year 9 - Emily Hutchinson – Nerang State High School
Year 10 – Kimberley Randall – Nerang State High School

Champion Overall Winner – Emily Hutchinson – Nerang State High School

On behalf of our entire Worongary State School community I wish to acknowledge Dimitri, Phoebe and Stavros for the way they all represented our school. Each one of our students performed extremely well. Congratulations Dimitri, Phoebe and Stavros – your presentations were simply amazing. A few of our ex-students also won awards, including the Champion Overall Winner.

2018 Class Parent Requests

I wish to invite parents to write to me regarding your child’s attendance at Worongary State School for 2018. Over the next four weeks, our staff will be working hard to ensure we commence the implementation of a plan that will support a smooth and efficient transition into the 2018 school year. To support this plan, I seek your assistance to notify the school office if:

• Your child is not going to be attending our school in 2018
• You know other children who will be attending our school in 2018
• You have not enrolled your child in prep for 2018.

This information is vital as it may save our school from re-structuring classes and teachers at the beginning of the school year. In addition, I am now seeking feedback from you regarding whom your child works well with and whom they do not. I invite parents to write a letter to me outlining any concerns that you may wish us to consider in this decision making process. I sincerely thank all of the parents who have already taken the opportunity to provide me with feedback about your child’s 2018 class placement.

All parental requests must be received by the school by no later than Friday 10 November. To ensure confidentiality all correspondence of this nature should be addressed to the Principal and forwarded to the office in a sealed envelope marked ‘Private and Confidential’.

Get Set for Prep

We had our first Get Set for Prep sessions last Thursday. It was wonderful to see so many parents taking advantage of our information sessions while their children participated in fun “Prep” activities. This coming Thursday, Lyndel Chambers, the Nerang Alliance Early Years Coach, will be speaking to parents about Developmental Milestones. This will be a very informative talk and one not to miss.

A reminder if you, or someone you know, is intending to enrol a child in the Worongary State School 2018 Prep Program, please contact the office on 5502 4444.

Prep Incursion

On Friday 3 November, students in Prep will be taking part in a special presentation by Gold Coast City Council called “Be Pet Smart”. In this presentation, the children will be learning about how to care for pets. The shows will be taking place in the Prep classrooms and there is no cost for this presentation.

Prep Swimming

Swimming lessons for our Prep students will take place Mon – Thurs in the weeks starting November 27 and December 4. Students will be travelling by bus to Swim Fit Nerang with the total cost of $68 due by Friday 17 November.

Behaviour

Term Four Focus:

Being a Good Friend
Respecting other people’s feelings
Respecting other people’s property
Play fairly

Positive Behaviour for Learning Weeks 4 and 5

Second Step Weeks 4 and 5

Interschool Sport – Contract

In order to participate in Interschool Sport, all parents and students were required to sign a contract in order to participate. It is important that all students and parents are reminded that if a participating student receives two RTC’s within the sporting season (between the dates of trials to the last game) they will miss a week of sport. If a participating student receives a third RTC they will be removed from the Interschool Sport Team. No refund will be given for behaviour exclusion.

Upcoming Year 5 Camp – Behaviour Contract

As you would already be aware the Year 5 Tyalgum trip to Camp Goodenough is fast approaching, and will be held from Monday 6 through to Wednesday 8 November. It is requested that in preparation for camp, that you discuss with your child the importance of demonstrating positive and appropriate behaviour at school and in school activities (such as Interschool Sport and Excursions) in the lead up to camp and whilst they are away participating in this activity. A requirement of attending Camp Goodenough is to consistently demonstrate safe, compliant and respectful behaviour. As in all out of school activities a risk assessment has been completed and it is imperative that all students attending the camp demonstrate behaviour in line with the Worongary State School Responsible Behaviour Plan.

All Year 5 students will be placed on a behaviour contract in the weeks prior to the camp and their opportunity to attend this activity will be reliant upon them demonstrating positive behaviour choices. If your child’s behaviour is inappropriate in the lead up to camp they will not be offered a place at the camp. In addition if your child’s behaviour is inappropriate at camp, Parent/Guardians will be contacted to collect their child from the camp venue. If you have concerns regarding your child attending the camp please see their classroom teacher.

End of Year Concert

We are excited to be able to give you information regarding our upcoming Worongary State School Concerts. There will be two concerts for each of the sectors of the school (junior and senior school). Junior school’s concerts will be held on Thursday 23 November at 6:00pm and a matinee concert on Friday 24 November at 1:30pm. Senior school’s concerts will be a matinee concert on Thursday 23 November at 1:30pm and an evening concert at 6:00pm on Friday 24 November. Students will be performing at both matinee and evening shows.

Tickets will cost $8.00 plus booking fee per person and will be available for purchase from Monday 23 October at 9.00am to Monday 6 November from an online booking system via the following links:

Due to Health and Safety restrictions on the number of people allowed in the hall, we have had to limit sales of tickets to three tickets per family. If you have children in both junior and senior school you will be entitled to three tickets to one of the junior concerts and three tickets to one of the senior concerts. The online booking system allows people to register on a waiting list if they would like to purchase additional tickets.

Year 6 Leaving Ceremony

Some important information about the Year 6 Leaving Ceremony:

When: Tuesday 5 December 2017 6:30pm
Where: School Hall
Dress: Full School Uniform (All students)

Ticketing: There will be no cost for tickets for the evening; however the seats will be allocated through an online booking site. At this stage, based on the capacity for seating in the hall, there will be 3 tickets per family available. Year 6 students DO NOT require a ticket. Please note that children over 2 years of age will require their own allocated seat.

Click on the following link to book tickets which will open up on Monday 23 October at 12.00pm and will close on Friday 17 November 2017. If you are interested in acquiring additional seating, please fill in the return slip below to assist us.

Year 6 Leaving Ceremony – Parent Committee Update

As is the tradition at Worongary State School, we will be once again asking for parent volunteers to become part of the committee that helps with the decoration of the School Hall, Foyer and celebration cakes for our Year 6 students Leaving Ceremony. On Wednesday October 18, the Year 6 Leaving Ceremony Parent Committee held their first meeting. It was fantastic to have a team who demonstrate such enthusiasm for ensuring that the 2017 Year 6 students will have an amazing send off at the end of this year. This year the Year 6 Leaving Ceremony will be held on Tuesday 5 December. Next meeting Wednesday 1 November at 2.15pm in the staffroom.

Upcoming Excursion - Year 6 Big Day Out

Our end of year celebration for Year 6 Students, Big Day Out will be held on Wednesday 6 December. Big Day Out is an exciting day, where Year 6 Students spend the day at Wet & Wild with their Teachers and Support Staff. It is requested that in preparation and in the lead up for this event, that you discuss with your child the importance of demonstrating positive and appropriate behaviour at school and in school activities (such as Interschool Sport and Excursions). All Year 6 students will be placed on a behaviour contract in the weeks prior to Big Day Out and their opportunity to attend this activity will be reliant upon them demonstrating positive behaviour choices.

2018 Student Leaders

Worongary State School is dedicated to developing leadership opportunities for students. A leadership framework currently exists within the school that caters for all levels of leadership from Year 3 onwards. In the coming weeks we will be calling for leadership appointments for the following positions in 2018;

• School Captain & Vice Captain
• House Captains
• Music Captain
• LOTE Captain and
• Playground Leader

Year 5 students will begin having information sessions about these roles this week and further information regarding the Student Leader selection process will be emailed home to all Parents and Guardians of Year 5 students this week.

Regards Landon Dare, Principal

Learning Vine Awards

Finance

NEW PAYMENT METHOD

Education Queensland schools will no longer be able to accept Credit Card payments over the phone or take card details for processing on the next payment day as this is not Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard compliant.

To make credit card payments for school invoices, please use either QParents or BPoint.

If you have not already joined QParents, please accept the invitation that has been emailed to you. The turnaround time for approval is approx. 24 hours, after which time you will be able to view information pertaining to your child including invoices awaiting payment and details about invoices previously paid.

The option to pay invoices over the phone using BPoint IVR (Interactive Voice Response) is also available, however invoice details will be required. Parents call 1300 631 073 and enter their CRN, amount and credit card details to complete payment. At the end of the call you will be provided with a unique payment receipt number.

Please remember that late payments will not be accepted. Invoices not paid by 10am on the due date will be deleted and not available for payment.

STUDENT RESOURCE SCHEME 2018

At this time each year we prepare the Student Resource Scheme (SRS) documents for the next year.

Invoice for the 2018 SRS have been generated. Families who have students in high school with email as the preferred option for contact received their invoice/s by email. All invoices are available on the QParents website. Full information about the SRS is available on the school website including cost break-downs for all year Levels.

All returning students will require their WSS pencil case and WSS green utility bag for the 2018 school year. New items can be purchased from the office if required.

A Participation Agreement Form for each family has been sent home with the eldest child. Extra copies are be available from the student foyer in Administration or can be downloaded from the school website. Please return the completed form for your family to the office by Tuesday, 31 October.

If wishing to pay via Centrepay please make an appointment with the Business Manager via the school office.

STUDENT RESOURCE SCHEME 2017

The due date for SRS payments this year was Friday 16 June. Thank you to those families who have paid the SRS in full for their children. We have a number of parents who have not adhered to their commitment as per the signed SRS Participation Agreement. For the remainder of this year any student with outstanding SRS fees will not be eligible to attend excursions, camps and payable school activities including Inter-School Sport.

On Monday 14 August students with unpaid SRS fees will have their access to the scheme suspended until full payment has been made as per Section 29 of the Participation Agreement.

Students will be ineligible for SRS 2018 if there are any outstanding fees for 2017.

Regards, Charmaine Johnson, Business Manager

From the Music Room

Any students wanting to learn a Band instrument - Flute, Clarinet, Saxophone, Bass Clarinet, Trumpet, Trombone, Euphonium, Percussion or Bass Guitar please either return the music forms that were handed out last week at the recruitment concert or email casht28@eq.edu.au for a new form. Testing for 2018 will commence very soon.

Being a part of the Instrumental Music Program is rewarding and fun. Many studies have linked those children who learn an instrument to improving communication, language, social skills and executive functions. Learning to play an instrument is a skill that can last a life time. If you have any questions please feel free to email me.

Fay for Daniel Day

On Friday 27 October our school will participate in the Australia wide Day for Daniel Memorial Service. Working with our staff our students also have a variety of child safe activities and work sheets to encourage awareness of ‘The Right to Be Safe’.

We please ask that on Friday October 27 that our students wear red as a symbol of unity and make a gold coin donation which will be collected at school and sent to the Daniel Morcombe Foundation.

Kind Regards, Kaia Clarke, Behaviour

Cool School End of Year Concert Raffle

We are seeking donations for our end of year concert raffle to support air conditioning at Worongary. If you or anyone you know can donate items for the raffle please contact Heather deWatteville Doe. We would love some big ticket items like accommodation vouchers/ meal vouchers or tickets for sporting and leisure events.

From the Year 3 Students

Year 3 Students Excited to Learn!

In Geography, the Year 3 students have been busy researching a state of Australia. With the information gathered, the children have had fun participating in an inquiry based learning experience to create a poster and then present this information to their peers. The students have expressed enthusiasm towards this complex process, which has involved the individuals converting information and data into useful knowledge. "Tell me and I forget, show me and I remember, involve me and I understand.”

SPORTS RESULTS

13 & 20 October 2017

STUDENT SPORTING ACHIEVEMENTS

At the end of September in the school holidays Jasmine H from 6 Red represented Gold Coast with her level 6 team from Gold Coast Gymnastics to compete in the National Clubs competition in Bendigo, Vic. Her team won 2nd place on bars and on vault, 4th on beam and 6th on floor - coming in 3rd place in Australia! We think this is an amazing achievement for an eleven year old girl who trains 14 hours a week for a sport she just adores.

Excursions

P&C News

Ladies Movie Night

Attention all ladies! Have you got your tickets to our ADVANCED SCREENING of ‘A Bad Mom’s Christmas?’

Date: Wednesday 1 November 2017
Venue: Harbour Town Reading Cinemas
Time: Doors open at 6:00pm, Movie starts at 7:00pm
Tickets: $25.00per ticket www.trybooking.com/SNDI tickets are available for purchase until Sunday October 29 2017 at 5:00pm. Buy your tickets today, so you don’t miss out.
Ticket includes- Movie, Gift bag and choice of small lolly bag or popcorn

On the night there will be lucky door prizes, raffles and lots of girly fun. So, get your friends together and make a night of it. All funds raised on the night will be going towards making our school a “Cool School.’

Budget Meeting

Our Annual P&C Budget meeting will be held on Monday 30 October in the Staffroom at 2:00pm. We encourage parents/ carers to attend as we welcome feedback and ideas for up and coming fundraisers in 2018. We hope to see you there.

Student Banking

Ann the Commonwealth Bank School Banking Co-Ordinator will be attending the Get Set for Prep day for anyone wishing to open a youth saver’s account. She will be set up in the hall from 9:00am on Thursday 26 October 2017.

Regards P&C

Tuckshop & Uniform

Tuckshop News

Opening Hours

Monday-Friday: 8:30am-2:00pm
Closed: Entire last day of each Term

Halloween Meal Deals

Our Halloween themed Meal Deals kicked off today. Well done to the brave souls who dared to order first. Remember that the Meal Deals are available at both first and second break and can be ordered either manually or online (select the date required and a separate meal session will appear in the drop down box). Please note that the last day to take advantage of these deals is Tuesday 31 October. See the attached link for details…Trick or Treat!

Uniform Shop News

Opening Hours

Monday: 8:00am-9:00am
Wednesday: 2:15pm-3:15pm
Friday: 8:00am-9:00am
Direct Dial number: 5502 4409

Seniors Shirts for Year 6

Year 6 Seniors Shirts for 2018 are now available for ordering. This shirt is included as part of the everyday uniform for Year 6 students only. Hard copies of the order form have already been sent home with current Year 5 students. If you did not receive an order form, you can download the attachment here or collect a new form from the Uniform Shop or Admin Office.

The final date for ordering and paying for these special shirts is Monday 5 February, 2018. All other important details are on the order form.

How to Order Uniforms for Prep 2018

Option 1: Purchase at the Uniform Shop

The Uniform Shop is located upstairs from Central games in Modular F. Uniforms can be purchased here during opening hours listed above.

Please note that for your convenience, the Uniform Shop will be open at the following times on the last Get Set For Prep day, Thursday 16 November:

For those attending the 8:45-9:15 session: 8:45am – 9:15am
For those attending the 8:45-9:15 session: 10:00am – 10:30am
For those attending the 8:45-9:15 session: 12:45pm – 1:15pm

These times are either before or after the Get Set For Prep sessions, to allow you to bring your child along for sizing.

Option 2: Purchase Online

Online purchasing is available for future Preps. Go to the school website and follow the link to Uniforms Online where you can set up an account. If you choose to purchase online, the following collection options are available:

• Order online and have the uniforms collected by a sibling already at the school.
  The nominated sibling will receive a note in their class tuckshop basket to advise when the order is ready for collection.
• Order online and collect from the admin office at your convenience.
  We will call you when the order has been processed and is ready for collection.
• Order online and collect at the Get Set for Prep program.
  We will call you when the order has been processed and is ready for collection.

Please add a note in the comments section to let us know your preference.

If you have any queries please call the Uniform Shop during the opening hours outlined above.

Regards Michelle Lee, Canteen and Uniform Convenor

Community Notices

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