16 November 2018

Newsletter Articles

Message from the Principal

With 4 weeks remaining in the Term, Gumdale State School has been a busy but productive place. Students have been working hard in the classroom and our focus continues to be on reading. Our swimming program is in full swing and this morning our Prep to Year 2 students have been at Wynnum State School competing in the Junior Swimming Carnival.

I would like to commend students in our music program who performed their very best at Gumdale’s Night of Music on Monday evening. Thank you to Lauren Slater and Vivienne Thomas, our Music Department staff, for your dedication and hard work.

2018 School Opinion Survey

Data from this year’s survey has been released and I am pleased to share that our results reflect a consistently high level of regard for our school from parents, students and staff. Results from this survey will be part of our Annual School Report and I have shared further information with our School Council and P&C at their respective meetings this month. A snapshot of the results:

Students

100% of the 119 students surveyed said “my school encourages me to participate in school activities” and “I am getting a good education at my school”. 100% also said “I like being at school.”

Parents/carers

Of the 205 parents and carers who participated in the survey, 99% said “teachers at this school expect my child to do his or her best” and 98.5% agreed that their child “feels safe at this school”. 94% believe that “student behaviour is well managed at this school”, which is up 6.4% from 2017.

Staff

84 staff participated in the survey. 98.8% agree that “this school is well maintained” and 97.6% believe “students are encouraged to do their best at this school.” 98.8% said they “can access necessary information and communication technologies to do their job at school” which is an increase of 2.3% from 2017.

Parking and Traffic Movement

In recent days we have had feedback from parents regarding drivers’ behaviour in the school carpark, in particular drivers performing illegal right turns out of the carpark onto Tilley Road. Our student safety as well as your own is a high priority at Gumdale State School. A reminder that the speed limit through our carparks is 10km/hr and that adhering to the road rules and street signage is imperative in keeping our whole community safe.

School Camp

Next week our Year 5 cohort will spend 3 days at Emu Gully Camp at Helidon. They will participate in adventure activities with a focus on teamwork and leadership. We wish all students a great time and know they will represent Gumdale State School and their families with pride.

Always our Best,

Phil Savill, Principal
Gumdale State School

Important Dates

Always our Best

Reminders from the School

2019 Enrolments

To assist us in planning for next year, we would like to know your plans for 2019. If your child will transition to another school for the start of 2019, please assist us by completing the form below. Completed forms are to be returned to Marissa Bowen at School Administration or via email: mbowe79@eq.edu.au

A reminder to existing Gumdale State School families or prospective families in our catchment area looking to join in 2019: Please submit your enrolment applications now. All enrolment paperwork can be downloaded from our school website. If you have a question regarding how to enrol, please contact the school office on 3902 8333.

Messages from the Deputies

Book Lists

Book Lists for 2019 will be sent home shortly. Our preferred supplier is School Stuff; you can visit their site below.

Assessment and Reporting

Teachers are currently working with students to complete their final English assessment tasks for this year. Students are supported during the writing process to implement the feedback given by teachers to improve the final draft of their writing. It is wonderful to visit classrooms to see the development of student writing across the year. Student results will be reported to parents via a report card emailed on Wednesday 12 December after 5pm.

iPad Classes 2019

Offers of placements in iPad classes for 2019 went home with students today. All students who are currently in an iPad class will remain in an iPad class next year unless otherwise requested by parents. Further information for students new to iPad classes in 2019 will be held on Thursday 29th November from 6pm in the hall.

Prep & Year 1 News

Our preps and year one teachers are currently updating student reading levels through our benchmarking system. We are celebrating the gains that so many students have made across the year.

Thank you to all the parent and community volunteers who assist with reading groups in classrooms. The work you do to support our teachers and students is crucial to this success.

Year 2 & 3 News

Maths in 3M

Children were given the challenge of constructing a triangular prism and a cube using a variety of materials. I interviewed the two winning teams and here’s what they had to say…

Winners of the Triangular Prism challenge – Lachlan C, Zac P, Ethan J and Brock H

Zac: We were given a range of materials including, clay, straws, icy-pole sticks, marshmallows and dry spaghetti.

Ethan: We decided that it would be best to use the dry spaghetti, marshmallows and the clay.

Brock: First we had to make sure that the spaghetti lengths were the right size. If they were too long, it wouldn’t stand up by itself. Then we made the two triangle sides and the rectangles.

Lachlan: The first time we tried to make it stand up, it fell over. We added some more clay and it stood up. We were successful because we worked together as a team.

Winners of the Cube challenge – Ella B, Ace P, Milo V and Amelie D

Milo: We were given a range of materials including, clay, straws, icy-pole sticks, marshmallows and dry spaghetti.

Ace: We used icy-pole sticks, clay and dry spaghetti.

Ella: We used the icy-pole sticks for the base and the sides and the spaghetti on the top of the cube because it is lighter.

Ace: We were successful because it stood up by itself and we had worked well together as a team.

Year 2 Poetry

In English, the Year 2 students are currently delving into a Poetry unit, where they are working towards the final product of creating and presenting an imaginative reconstruction of a known poem. I thought we would share some of the wonderful examples of how much fun you can have with poetry.

Creek Cats

Ginger cat
White cat
Stripy cat
Black
How many cats in the creek cat pack?
Fluffy cat
Furry cat
Lazy and crazy cat
Running up and down
In the creek cat pack

Written by Annabelle K 2F

Year 4 - 6 News

WMSea Young Writers 2018

A number of our students in Year 5 were selected to participate in the WMsea Young Writers program this year. As part of the program run by the Moreton Bay Environmental Centre, students worked with local author Samantha Wheeler to plan, write and publish a short story. The student’s stories were compiled and published in a book titled, ‘Inspirational 2018’. The book was officially launched on Tuesday evening and copies of the book will soon be available for loan from the school library. Congratulations to our Year 5 published writers!

Debating Competition

Twelve students from Gumdale State School were invited to participate in the Osprey Aces Debating Competition at Wellington Point State High School last Wednesday. The competition involved a debating skills workshop followed by a debating competition in the afternoon. Students had the opportunity to put their new skills to use when competing against other local schools in a debating challenge.

Digital Technologies

Online Awareness: Information for Parents and Caregivers

The internet is having an increasing influence on the social development of children and how they interact with each other. Social media, smart phones and other technologies provide children with wonderful opportunities to learn, be creative and socialise. However, just as with face-to-face interactions, sometimes bullying and harassment can occur online

Being online is more often than not a positive and fulfilling experience for children. Content can be posted instantaneously, but the downfall is that children can potentially post messages without thinking about future ramifications. Once it’s online, it is there forever.

Importantly, just like in the real world, not everyone is a friend. While people can use apps, websites, chat rooms and other online tools to send positive messages, compliments and

congratulatory messages, others can use the technology to send nasty and inappropriate messages to each other.

To help keep your child safe when they are online, you can:

• put computers in open spaces within your home
• remind your child that content can be posted instantaneously, the downfall is that they can potentially post something without thinking about the ramifications.
• educate your child about appropriate online behaviour and the need for respectful communication with other internet users
• keep an eye on what your child is doing online (both in the home and on any mobile devices they may have access to e.g. phones, music devices and tablets)
• set clear rules about what sites and activities they are allowed to access
• install software to limit their use and monitor/restrict the sites they visit
• discuss a plan with your child about how to address any cybersafety issues that may arise (make sure they know you will be supportive if they mention anything and that they will not get in trouble)
• encourage them to find someone they feel safe talking to, such as yourself, a relative, a teacher or a trusted adult.

News from the Payment Desk

Statements have been emailed this week, please ensure you check these and make payments as your earliest convenience.

Office Procedure for Payment of Excursions

Three weeks after an excursion has taken place, One School will produce a Credit Adjustment for those students who have not paid. This is a system generated document which will clear your students account for this excursion. If your student attended and payment has not been received, you will be emailed a new invoice for this particular excursion.

Please ensure you advise the office and teacher if your child will not be attending the excursion, this will save you receiving another invoice. You may also receive a general Schoolzine reminder regarding excursions. If you have submitted forms and completed payment, please disregard.

Prompt payment is of invoices will also ensure that additional invoices are not emailed to you, payment due dates are stated on the excursion letter which you receive the day before you are invoiced.

As a reminder, here is a list of upcoming events / payments that might be relevant to your family:

Paying your school invoices

All excursions and events require payment and a permission form to be returned by the due date or your child will not be permitted to attend.

Please note that payments can be made one of four ways:

1. Online using the BPOINT Payment Gateway https://www.bpoint.com.au/payments/dete or from the invoice using the BPOINT link
2. Phone banking via BPOINT IVR (1300 631 073)
3. Online using the QParent App or
4. In person at our Administration Office during office hours (8.00am-3.30pm)

STEAM News

Sustainability @ Gumdale

Students are doing a great job of choosing the correct bin to put their lunch waste in! A special mention to 3M for consistently looking after the Organics bin in their eating area!

Tip – Chip packets and muesli wrappers are considered soft plastics and have to go in the red landfill bin. They may be silver in colour but they are not aluminium and cannot be recycled.

Let’s work together in making Gumdale State School more sustainable!

STEAM Clubs

Kitchen Garden

Club members have been busy weeding and watering to beat the recent heat. They made newspaper hats to protect the sunflower seeds until they were ready to harvest, and, more trellises for our climbing beans. Our Spring crops are growing beautifully ready for our Week 10 Feast!

Donations of plastic lids (not metal), mulch, and soil for the garden are appreciated and can be dropped to the STEAM Centre.

Year 1 & 2 Coding

We meet every Thursday 11.15-11.40 in the STEAM room for coding fun!

New members are always welcome!

STEM Horizons

A team of Year 5 students have visited Brisbane Bayside State College, Wynnum State High School and the Moreton Bay Environmental Education Centre to investigate light, water turbidity and sea grass in preparation for their field trip to Waterloo Bay aboard ‘Inspiration’.

STEAM Signature Program

Students have addressed the problem of transporting fresh produce from high up in fertile mountain regions to markets in the valleys below. Many farmers around the world have no other option but to make this long, dangerous trek by foot taking them away from their farms for days at a time. Teams have designed, built and tested a model that can transport as many cherry tomatoes as possible without squashing them.

Sports News

All Schools Touch Football

Congratulations to our boys and girls touch football teams who recently competed at the Qld All Schools Championships. After three pool games on the Saturday teams are then split into one of four divisions for the final day of competition. Both GSS teams competed in the highest division on the final day of competition.

Boys Game Results:

Girls Game Results:

A magnificent effort by all students in what was the first time Gumdale State School has entered the competition.

Swimming Lessons

Students have settled in well to their swimming lessons conducted by Aquatic Achievers. All students have now been assessed and placed into an appropriate group. Groups are continually adjusted throughout the program as students develop and improve their swimming technique.

2018 Camps

This year there will be a change to our Year 4-6 Camp structure. This will allow three different settings and experiences for students in our Senior School. The camps will be as follows:

Year 4 – Sunshine Coast Recreation Centre, Currimundi (5-7 December 2018)
Year 5 – Emu Gully Leadership Camp, Helidon (21-23 November 2018)
Year 6 – Sydney and Canberra (21-25 July 2019)

Any questions - James Doherty jpdoh0@eq.edu.au

Sailing Donations Needed

We require donations of reef shoes, sun shirts, wide brimmed hats and board shorts for our Sailing program. New or good condition items can be left in the labelled box which is located in the hallway outside the PE room in Hollis Hall. Thank you in advance!

Keep moving!

Community Support

Gumdale Gives

Thank you to everyone in our community for giving generously to the Micah Food Hamper Appeal. The goods donated will be packed into food hampers and given to those in need so that they can enjoy the festive season.

Don’t forget, on Friday 30 November we will be collecting brand new, unwrapped toys for children living in care as part of GIVIT's Christmas Toy Appeal. The collection will take place from 8:00am - 9:00am in the Hollis Hall foyer. Please see Flyer below for more information.

2019 Japanese Study Tour

Next year, Gumdale State School will again be hosting a Study Tour group from Japan. From 22 February to 5 March, we will have 18 students from Tama Uni Meguro JHS in Tokyo visiting our school. Students will have a Year 6 buddy and will participate in English lessons, as well as experience classroom life here at Gumdale. The tour organisers are looking for Host Families for students. Please see information below if you are interested. Application forms are available at the office.

Music Notes

Upcoming Events

Gumdale’s Night of Music

On Monday night all the Gumdale Choirs and Bands came together for a wonderful Night of Music! It was truly a great night to celebrate all the hard work our students have put in to their music at rehearsals and practise at home. Well done to all our Gumdale musicians!

Thank you to all the staff and parents who helped on the night with special thanks to Natalie Williams, Katrice Purcell and Aruni Abeysinghe for all their work behind the scenes.

Thank you to our wonderful accompanists Elizabeth Moore and Fotini Panagopoulos for giving us their time to support the choirs.

Music Awards

Congratulations to all our music award recipients! They received their awards at the Night of Music this week for their outstanding contributions to the bands and choirs.

Don’t Stop the Music

Sunday 18 November, 7:30pm (Part 2)

We hope you watched the first installment of Don’t Stop the Music on Sunday night. Be sure to tune in for Part 2 this week.

Band Rehearsals and Lessons

Band rehearsals and group instrumental lessons will continue until Week 8 (Monday 26 November to Friday 30 November) when all instruments will be collected for maintenance and cleaning.

From the Music Department,

OSHC

Messages from the Team

2019 Enrolments are new OPEN! Please enrol or re-enrol your children as soon as possible to guarantee a place at YMCA Gumdale OSHC. We have big plans in store for next year and hope to have your children on board. If you have any enquiries, please do not hesitate to contact us!

What is New at YMCA Gumdale OSHC?

We have had a few Kindy groups visit over the last couple of weeks. Groups of 12 – 20 Kindy kids have attended our service during the day to participate in some OSHC activities like art and crafts, home corner, playdough making, construction and outdoor games. We have kick started this program to help transition the Kindy kids into Prep next year. We hope that this will help them better transition into OSHC by getting to know the service and our educators.

Activities and Projects

We have been learning about sustainability the past fortnight. The children have been learning the importance of putting our rubbish in the correct bin and saving our planet. We have been providing the families with homegrown goods from our garden such as tomatoes and beans.

We have been starting to prepare the Preps for Year 1 next year. Each afternoon a group of preps have been joining the year 1’s for afternoon tea to experience what they do.

We have been getting the preps involved in pretend play, really making sure they are utilising their imagination to the fullest. They have been turning into all different characters like doctors, superheroes and royalty.

The service is getting a fresh new look, as we give the veranda a new coat of paint. This is being completed over the duration of Term 4 and we are excited to see the completed looked.

Contact YMCA OSHC Gumdale
Phone: 07 3890 2675
Mobile: 0428 333 317
agd@ymca.org.au

Community Business Network

Gumdale State School is pleased to have the support of businesses in our local and nearby community by way of sponsorship. Each year, our school resources are enriched courtesy of members in our Community Business Network.

More details regarding our program and the packages available can be found on our school website or by contacting Marissa Bowen, Executive Assistant.

Phone: 3902 8333 Mail: mbowe79@eq.edu.au

In 2018, our Platinum and Gold Sponsors are:

Platinum Sponsors

Todd Gerhardt Realty goes above and beyond for his clients. Todd has broken countless street records, priding himself on getting the best possible price for his vendors. Todd Gerhardt is considered a real sellers agent, but he is equally devoted to his buyers and he knows how to close the deal leaving both parties more than satisfied (which in today's market cannot always be the case).

Todd leaves no stone unturned in the search for the right buyer for your home. It is Todd's mission to offer the best real estate experience you can get.

The YMCA provide services to more than 700,000 participants annually. Such services include youth programs, Long Day Child Care, Family Day Care, In Home Care, Outside School Hours Care, Vacation Care, Limited Hours Care, a large range of sport and recreational activities, health and fitness, outdoor education and camping, vocational education and accredited training, hospitality, restaurants and hotel accommodation.

Gold Sponsors

Ian lives in Wakerley and brings his background as a marketing consultant to achieve the best result for his clients. Ian has achieved numerous property records in the Bayside area. As a great supporter of Gumdale State School Ian currently serves as a community representative on the School Council.

In a climate such as Brisbane, air conditioning is a must. Whether you are air conditioning a room or a whole home, the team at NYE Industries are experts in our Trade. We can install split systems, ducted or multi-head air conditioning systems that will enhance your lifestyle whilst adding value to your home. We are a family owned and operated company operating in the Redlands area for over 10 years. Our expert technician will walk you through the process of air conditioning your home and inform you of the calculations required and the reasons behind our recommendations for your needs. Our exacting Quality Assurance processes ensure your project is completed to our high standards. Call today for an obligation free quote and discover the difference of a professional, specialised air conditioning company! We pride ourselves on total client satisfaction. Many of our happy customers cannot be wrong!

P&C News

P&C December General Meeting

The P&C will be hosting a year end wrap up on Tuesday 4 December at 7:00pm at the Royal Queensland Yacht Squadron located on Royal Esplanade in Manly. This meeting will be a wrap up of 2018 and a celebration of the achievements. New and existing P&C members are welcome.

Volunteers of the Month

Thank you to our wonderful volunteer Rachel Murphy who is the October P&C Volunteer of the Month. Rachel is the recipient of a $40.00 voucher from the Gumdale Tavern. Thanks Rachel for volunteering for the P&C.

Congratulations to Linda Reid who is the October recipient of the P&C Fundraising Volunteer of the Month awards. Thank you Linda for volunteering at the Fun Run, please enjoy the $40 voucher you will receive to spend at the Wynnum Manly Workers Sports Club bistro.

Tuckshop Volunteers

The Tuckshop Convenors of our newly-named Gumtree Eatery do a great job each week providing a wide variety of healthy, nutritious food to our students. They are in need of some extra hands on an ongoing basis, particularly on Thursdays and Fridays.

By having regular volunteers in the Tuckshop we are able to continue our wide offering and also keep the menu pricing and operating costs low.

If you have some time available to help out, even as little as an hour, your help would be gratefully appreciated by our Tuckshop team. Volunteer slots begin at 8.45am each day and duties include labelling bags, preparing food, serving and cleaning.

Click HERE to view the slots on Signup. We thank you for your assistance.

Online Ordering

The Tuckshop and Uniform Shop offer an online ordering service called Flexischools. Online ordering is convenient, provides you with 24/7 payment and ordering system that can be accessed from home, work or on a mobile device. You won't be fumbling around for coins in the morning or looking for a brown paper bag. You can also purchase uniform items when the shop's not open and our volunteers will deliver the items to your child's classroom. Flexischools registration is free and only takes a few minutes so get online via the link below.

Shaunesy Pegg
P&C President
pandc@gumdaless.eq.edu.au

Gumdale Eatery News

Don’t forget all meal orders for the Tuckshop for first and second breaks must be ordered through Flexischools by 8:30am each day. Only snacks, drinks and slushies are sold over the counter for cash (except for Prep students) during first and second breaks.

Students who have made an order to purchase something frozen, or a plain milk cup or something with custard or yoghurt, will need to come to the Tuckshop to collect the item. A green smiley face or a red star on your bag means you must bring the bag to the Tuckshop to collect the item which can’t be sent to your classroom.

If you need to contact the tuckshop for any reason, please stop by and see us or contact us on the details below.

Phone: 3902 8304
Email: tuckshop@gumdalesspc.org.au

Carol Matheson & Helen Vine
Tuckshop Convenors

Uniform Shop News

Prep 2019

2019 Prep Starter packs will be available for collection or delivery to siblings’ classrooms from Wednesday 21 November. Siblings are allocated into the same sports house otherwise your child will be allocated a sports house of either Moreton, Bribie, Fraser or Stradbroke by School Administration. Collection of the Prep Packs will be from the old Uniform Shop opposite the Tuckshop under B Block.

The Uniform Shop will be open during the Prep Orientation morning on Wednesday 21 November from 9:00am – 12:00 for families to bring their 2019 Prep students in for uniform fittings, uniform purchases and collection of Prep Packs ordered online.

Preferred purchasing of Prep Packs is through Flexischools. Register your child via the link below and follow these steps: Select Add a Student > Enter Gumdale State School > Enter name > Enter Year Level ‘New Starter’ > Enter ‘New Starter Prep 2019'.

The P&C has recently changed school hat providers and the new prep hats for students in 2019 are a different design from our current school hat. Prep school hats have been ordered, but will not be available for collection with the Prep Packs until early next year. You can still order and purchase the Prep Pack and collect a new school hat next year. The current or old style school hats can still be worn and are still available for purchase from the Uniform Shop until sold out.

Samples of the new school hat will be available to view in the Uniform Shop next week.

Extended Trading Hours

The Uniform Shop will be open for extended trading hours in January to assist parents with their back to school uniform purchases.

We are looking for some more fantastic volunteer staff to help us out in the Uniform Shop. If you have time on Mondays and Thursdays from 8:30am – 9:15am or are able to help handing out Prep Packs during the extended trading hours in January we would love to hear from you. Contact us on the details below.

Contact

Phone: 3902 8335
Email: uniform@gumdalesspc.org.au
Orders: Online through Flexischools
Payment: Cash and EFTPOS facilities

Michelle Moffatt
Volunteer Uniform Shop Manager

Update from the Fundraising Team!

Tonight the P&C are holding the final event for 2018, the ‘My favourite colour’ school disco.

Tickets will be available for pre-purchased from Trybooking until 11am today Friday 16 November.

If you have missed out, your child is still able to take part in the fun. Tickets will be on sale this evening, for $5 entry or $10 for Entry + Food (sausage or kebab) + a drink. Cash only.

Snacks, drinks and glow items will be available for sale on the evening.

If you are able to volunteer an hour of your time to help out at the Disco tonight, please sign up via the link below.

Volunteering

The year may nearly be drawing to a close but it is not too late to volunteer your time. We are always looking for volunteers for the Tuckshop and Uniform Shop so if you can offer assistance, please email fundraising@gumdalesspc.org.au

Fundraising Programs

A reminder to support the following organisations if the need arises. For every purchase made, they kindly give back to our school.

To stay up to date with all the Fundraising Events, follow us on social media:

• Facebook at Gumdale State School Parents & Citizens
• Instagram at gumdale_ss_pandc
• Twitter at gumdaless_pandc
• Or contact us on fundraising@gumdalesspc.org.au

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