23 February 2018

Newsletter Articles

Contact Details

• Have your contact details changed?
• Have you moved address?
• Do we have your current phone number in case of an emergency?
• Are your emergency contacts still current?
• Are you receiving our newsletters by email?
• Do we have your current email address?

PLEASE CONTACT THE OFFICE TO UPDATE YOUR DETAILS

Phone 3826 0333 or Email office@edenslandingss.eq.edu.au

Important Dates to Remember

Visit the ELSS website for all calendar events:

QSchools

The QSchools app is a convenient way to receive up-to-the-minute information from Queensland state schools PLUS save the events directly to your devices!

How do I download the QSchools app? To download the app visit the application store for your device:

iPhone/iPad
Android
Windows phone
Windows PC

Office News

Report Student Absences

In the event that your child will be absent from school please call the student absence line on 3826 0360 to leave a message. Alternatively you may also use the absence email - absences@edenslandingss.eq.edu.au. Please record your child's name, class, date of absence/s and reason for absence.

Late Arrivals

Students who arrive to school after 9:00am must report to the office windows for a late slip prior to going to class.

Excursions

When your student is involved in an excursion or activity at school which requires payment an invoice is issued by our system. Some families currently receive their invoices via email which not only helps to alleviate the amount of paper used but also provides all the required information for our preferred payment method BPoint.

The invoices will be sent directly to parents’ emails, we are asking that you ensure your details are current and that you have active email addresses listed at school on your child’s file. Payment of these invoices is only required if you wish for your child to attend the excursion/activity.

OVERPHONE or ONLINE CARD PAYMENT SYSTEM

PHONE: 1300 631 073

To access the QLD State School Card Payment System. Use the CRN and Invoice number located on your invoice.

Or Visit the link below

Biller Code: 1002534 (Department of Education and Training)

*CRN and Invoice number can be found on your invoice Or by contacting the office on 3826 0333

*Please note: Due to changes in departmental handling of credit card payments we are no longer able to take credit card payments over the phone at school*

Change of Details

Please email the school on office@edenslandingss.eq.edu.au stating your child’s name and class to confirm your email address and if applicable advise of any contact details that may have changed, to ensure we are able to contact you in an emergency.

Thank you for your continued support

Charmaine Johnson
Business Manager

Principal’s News

Good afternoon Edens Landing community

Well we are nearly at hump week for our term - Time is certainly flying! By now I am sure that you are all into the routine of school – dropping off, picking up, making lunches, all those exciting things.

We have so many events to engage and excite your children this term.

Our Year 3 students had a great time recently when Starlab visited with their pop up planetarium, as pictured - how great does it look! They learnt about day, night and shadows, as well as Earth’s Wild Ride, focussing on asteroid impacts and dinosaurs.

Our Year 1’s and 4 both have incursions coming up and training for our school team entering the Kokoda Challenge has already started. Our Year 6 students are also getting very excited about camp, which is just a few short weeks away.

This week I have included part of my annual report to the P and C outlining the work we have done in the teaching and learning space over the course of 2017 and into 2018 and beyond.

P and C Annual General Meeting

What a fantastic P&C meeting we had last Monday night.

It was great to see such a strong representation from our parent community - we appreciate your passion and commitment to our school.

I am very pleased to announce our 2018 P&C executive team :

President: Steven Biddle
Vice President: Stephen Henwood
Vice President /Secretary: Yolander Bonnick
Treasurer: Mark Bonnick

I look forward to a year of collaborative partnerships to enhance our great school.

To our 2017 executive team, Kirsten Hansen, Rachel Maddalena, Vanessa Potter, and Tammy Ah You who are not returning and are onto other adventures, I would like to say a HUGE Thankyou, for the significant and positive contribution you have made this year. You have been a small team who have worked very, very well together. As with all quality P&C teams, you have always operated from a place that has the very best interests of the children, staff and families at the heart of what you do and you worked collaboratively with both the staff and the Leadership team to achieve your goals, with excellent results. You have much to feel proud of and I have personally enjoyed working with you - individually and as a team. Congratulations and thank you.

Enrolments and staffing

We currently have 760 students enrolled. We continue to get a steady stream of new enrolments. Our current model is 32 classes and we will be reviewing this in the near future.

We have had a change in our Regional support with Mr Russell Simpson taking up the role of Assistant Regional Director. Russell has had a wealth of experience working in schools as well as Regional roles in the Darling Downs region.

We have employed a ICT technician Mr Joel Peyton will be working two days a week to assist in maintaining our equipment. This has freed up Mr Wayne Tuckett’s time to work in the STEM space with staff and students.

Teaching and Learning 2017/2018

On our Pupil free days at the beginning of the year, the vision for Edens Landing was rolled out to the staff.

“Providing individual pathways to success”.

Every student at Edens Landing will be able to follow their own pathway to success be it academic, sport, music, Japanese or STEM. To support this vision there have been a number of initiatives implemented in 2017 and 2018.

STEM (Science Technology Engineering and Maths) –

• Our E Block has been upgraded to incorporate an interactive STEM centre as well as the ability to link STEM in with our kitchen garden program.
• We have linked in the University of Queensland to participate in their Wonders of Science program. This will involve the university coming out to work with students at our school as well as selected students being involved in a camp with students from other schools. This will conclude with an Expo in which all schools showcase their research project.

LOTE (Language Other than English)

Our Japanese program has been extended to cover Prep to Year 6. Research shows that learning another language assist greatly with home language literacy as well as developing the brain. Our younger students are very excited about knowing how to speak some Japanese words. This also ties in with our Japanese exchange program.

Music/the Arts

Mr K, our talented music teacher has been employed for an extra day to extend music opportunities for our students. Initially Mr K will be running a “Rock Band” program for interested students in Years 4 and 5.

This year is our Musical Year – Robin Hood – a comedy version. Our students are already excited about this big event and more information about it will be out very soon.

Playgroup

As part of our Early Years strategy to improve student outcomes we are commencing an Early Years Playgroup – Edens Landing Little Learners. Our program will draw upon the Montessori philosophy and include the Koala Joeys language and literacy program. We are very excited about this initiative. This will be commencing this term in G Block. Information regarding this program will be coming out in the very near future so watch this space.

We have developed very close links with our local Early Years providers and are participating in the Neighbourhood Network at Waterford West SS. This network brings together education, health and community agencies to work together to better support the needs of our students.

Finally, a sincere thank you to all Edens Landing families for your ongoing support of children, staff and the Leadership team throughout the year. Family life, as we all know, is busy and at times very demanding, however I hope Edens Landing SS will continue to be a place where you can enjoy good support, quality relationships, and multiple opportunities that support your children to thrive and flourish.

Warmly
Gail Quigley
Principal

Deputy Principal’s News

Before School

It is important that all students arrive at school at 8:30am and go directly to the old hall where they will be supervised by a teacher. If students arrive at school before 8:30am they must go directly to the old hall and be seated. Teachers will collect students from the hall at 8:45. Please note, LEARNING begins at 8:50am, therefore it is essential for students to be on time to begin learning for the day. If students arrive after 9am they are to report to the office and sign in where they will receive a late slip.

Homework

Literacy is one of the most important foundations for success in school and life. At ELSS we believe that the best way to equip children for their future is by helping them build solid language and literacy skills. To support this, Homework at ELSS will consist of reading daily for at least 10 minutes with an adult or older sibling where possible. Please record everything your child reads on the recording sheet.

To encourage and celebrate students reading, the Leadership Team at ELSS reward students who reach the goal of reading EVERY NIGHT with a book prize from the school.

About Year 6 2018

We will be placing a second order this term for students who missed the deadline last year or who are new to the school. Seniors who are awaiting their remaining orders will be receiving their shirts by next term due to a complication with the order.

Camp payment and forms are due Wednesday 7 March. Internet payments close 3 days before Monday the 5 March. If you would like your child to go, full payment must be made by the due date. If you want your child to attend but find the lump sum payment difficult, please contact the office to discuss arrangements.

About Year 5 2018

Once again, year 5 have been offered the chance to attend camp. This camp is part of our program to encourage leadership skills in our students, and is one of the opportunities teachers will use to assess potential leaders for year 6 2018. It is a short camp being held in June, which focusses on the skills good leaders require and on personal resilience and growth. We encourage all students to attend this camp as it covers a great deal of year 5 curriculum. If you want your child to attend but find the lump sum payment difficult, please contact the office to discuss arrangements.

Year 5 will once again participate in our excellence afternoons this year. These activities are aimed to extend students’ personal learning in the area of excellence they select. We will be looking for donations of resources to help support this program. So please respond generously when this letter comes home.

Yours in Education
Cheryl Gibson
cgibs2@eq.edu.au

Curriculum News

From the Head of Curriculum – Casey Moore

Innovative and Creative Maths at Edens Landing State School

This week I spent time in the year 2 and 5 classrooms where I observed students engaging in some very innovative teaching and learning. The year 2 students were practicing ordering and comparing 2 digit numbers. Mrs Webster put 2 digit number cards onto the maths mat and students had to race a friend to put them in the correct place using other numbers as a reference. Mrs Webster asked students “How did you know you were in the right place?” and they had to explain they counted on, counted back, or jumped forwards or backwards by 10.

In year 5 Mrs Wright uses rubber dice and medicine boxes to practice place value to hundreds of thousands. Students translate the dice into digits then compare and order the numbers.

PE News

School Representative Sport

Over the course of the year, students have the opportunity to participate in a range of sporting trials. This is offered to students who are born in 2006, 2007 and 2008 and want to excel in their chosen sport/s and represent at a higher level for example Pacific Rim, South Coast and Queensland School Sport.

It is expected that any child wishing to undertake these trials has experience and demonstrated skills and knowledge in the chosen sport, generally having participated at club level.

All information needed to attend the trial will be handed out closer to the date. Please note that some sports have age and gender restrictions due to safety and number of teams being selected. A nomination note has recently been sent home and this must be returned as soon as possible. If your child hasn’t received one, they will be able to collect one form the office.

Should you have any more questions or queries, please feel free to contact me at kodon30@eq.edu.au

Interschool Sport Training

As our students prepare for interschool sport, training sessions have been scheduled for those involved

Touch football- Tuesday and Thursday mornings 8:00-8:30 (Mr Hopkinson)
Netball- Tuesday and Wednesday mornings 8:00-8:30 (Miss Linsdell, Miss Trudinger)
Rugby League- Tuesday and Friday mornings 8:00-8:30 (Mr O’Donnell)
Soccer- Wednesday mornings 8:00-8:30 (Mrs Cureton)

Representative News

Congratulations to Callum for being selected in the Beenleigh Zone Rugby League Team and to Kayla for being selected in the Pacific Rim Hockey team.

Hats

Over the course of the year, lessons will be held on the oval. It is essential that your child/ren has a suitable school hat for all lessons. A note will be issued to students who fail to bring a hat to lessons. If your child/ren is unable to take part in a lesson due to an injury or medical reason, please provide a note.

School Sport Dates

Cross Country: 26th March
Senior Sports Day (3-6): 21st and 22nd June
Junior Sports Day (P-2): TBC

Contact

I can be contacted at kodon30@eq.edu.au should you want to discuss anything regarding Physical Education at Edens Landing.

Yours in Sport

Ken O’Donnell
PE Teacher
kodon30@eq.edu.au

P&C News

We had our Annual General Meeting on Monday 19th Feb. 2018. A new Executive Committee was elected.

President: Steven Biddle
Vice President: Stephen Henwood
Secretary/ Vice President: Yolander Bonnick
Treasurer: Mark Bonnick

The outgoing executive would like to welcome the incoming executive and wish them well for the coming year!!

Get involved in the School Banking program.

Edens Landing State School is excited to offer the Commonwealth Bank School Banking program to all students.

School Banking is a fun, interactive and engaging way for young Australians to learn about money and develop good savings habits. Children who deposit money into their Youthsaver account through School Banking earn Dollarmites tokens, which they can save up and redeem for exciting rewards.

The rewards available during 2018 are:

• Twister Power Handball
• Secret Scratch Pad
• Sparkle Glitter Pens
• Glow Light
• Mighty Boom Handball
• Heat Reactor Pencils
• Slushie Maker Cup
• Zoom Flying Disc

School Banking is also a great fundraiser for our school. Our school receives a Regular Savers Contribution of $5 for every 10 deposits processed per student as well as an Annual Contribution which is based on the number of students who made at least one School Banking deposit in the prior year.

Getting involved in School Banking is easy!

All you need to get involved in the School Banking program is a Commonwealth Bank Youthsaver account. You can open an account for your child in one of two ways:

1. Online

Visit the link below and click on the link to open a Youthsaver account.

2. In branch

Visit a Commonwealth Bank branch with identification for yourself and your child, like a driver’s licence and birth certificate.

If your child has an existing Commonwealth Bank Youthsaver account they can start banking straight away. They just need to bring their deposit in every week on School Banking day using their Dollarmites deposit wallet.

School Banking day is WEDNESDAY. Each week you need to hand in your bank book to your teacher where it will be brought down to the banking ladies.

If you would like to know more about School Banking, please ask for a 2018 School Banking program information pack from the school office or visit the link below.

TuckshopNews

• Please make sure if you are ordering items, it is from the new 2018 prices from the GREEN menu.
• At the bottom of the menu there is information on how to order tuckshop using the paper bag system. Our preferred method of ordering is our online system called Flexischools. Our Flexischools cut off time is 8am the morning of service, please make sure your orders are completed and confirmed by 8am or they will not be processed on the Flexischools website. If your child is not at school and not needing their Flexischools order on that day, please contact the tuckshop and inform us so I can cancel the order, if you do not contact and cancel the order with me then your order will stand, and no refund will be given. If there is no answer, please leave a clear message including childs name and class. If there are any problems with the Flexischools website and ordering system, please contact them directly.

• Getting online is easy and only takes a few minutes to register. Simply go to www.flexischools.com.au and click “Register Now”. You will be sent an email with further instructions on how to complete the registration. Once registered, you can start placing orders immediately. If you have any questions, Flexischools provide a great help desk on 1300 361 769, or you can contact them via their website.
• Information and volunteer roster is in the fortnightly newsletter and I also post updates on the Edens Landing State School P&C Association facebook page.
• Please feel free to contact me if you have any issues with tuckshop or would like to come and volunteer. There is no need to stay the whole day; a couple of hours at the most are normally only what is needed. The tuckshop can only provide lunches to children if volunteers help. Many hands make light work.

Annette Honnery
Tuckshop Convenor
tuckshop@edenslandingss.eq.edu.au
3805 7999

Uniform News

Uniform Shop Opening hours
Every Thursday 8.15am to 9.15am
OR
Order through Flexi schools

Don’t forget to keep an eye on out P&C Facebook Page for Updates on many things we post about.

Outside School HOURS CARE- OSHC

Messages from the Team:

We have two new educators who will be joining our YMCA Edens Landing OSHC team. Tara and Romany are already part of our YMCA Brisbane OHSC team and we are excited for them to be joining us here at Edens Landing over the coming weeks. Both educators bring with them a wealth of experience in OSHC, childcare and education.

What we’ve been doing:

Over the recent school holidays, we were running our Summer Holiday Club program. This program included an excursion to the Cinemas to see the very funny film Ferdinand. Both the children and educators expressed how much they enjoyed the film as well as the opportunity to be out in the community for a day.

We also had some fantastic themed days here at school, including Water Play Day, where we used water balloons to play a range of fun games. The highlight of the holidays was definitely the inflatable water slide which kept our whole group entertained for an entire day! We always have new and different activities each school holidays so keep an eye out for our Autumn Holiday Club program in the coming weeks!

Join us for:

We are still accepting 2018 enrolment forms! If you haven’t already enrolled into YMCA Edens Landing OSHC come and see us in the Multi-Purpose Hall and complete an enrolment form. We welcome both casual and permanent bookings each day for both before and after school care.