Beaudesert State School Newsletter

Parents please be aware that Year 3 and Year 5 students will be participating in NAPLAN Testing this Wednesday15th , Thursday16th and Friday 17th March.  Year 3 will also be participating in testing on Monday 20th March .  These tests will be during one session in the day and do not take the whole day.  Students should be attending school as normal on these days as all other activities including classroom instruction will take place as usual.

See you around school,

Angela 

Playgrounds

School playgrounds are out of bounds for all children before and after school this is to ensure children are safe at all times.

When waiting for parents of an afternoon, students should be sitting on the deck or grass areas. They should not be running around or kicking a football as accidents may happen.  Thank you to all those students who are sitting waiting patiently for pick up.

Year 3 students have started the year off right, with plenty of meaningful and engaging learning activities and demonstrating amazing behaviour in and outside of the classroom. As part of the senior school, it has also been wonderful to see our newest members of the senior school striving to be an example for the younger students to follow.

This term, students have been learning about persuasive texts and how to use strong words to convince the reader. They will be consolidating all this learning over the next fortnight as they begin to write their assessment task. This year, we have changed our English assessment topic to incorporate Indigenous perspectives into our curriculum planning which has now included “Saving the Wajin” (platypus). Students have thoroughly enjoyed writing letters to Beaudesert City Council using persuasive language features to try and save our native friends. Students have also been having lots of fun participating in activities within all of our key learning areas.

Year 3 Teachers 

4A and 4B

What a fantastic start to Term 1 2023 it’s been! We have dived headfirst into both our English assessment and the swimming pool with a very busy start to the year. So far in English we have explored various poetry elements, with a focus on Limerick Poems. We have enjoyed creating poems with funny puns, silly spoonerisms and clever rhymes. In maths, we have been learning more about odd and even numbers and what happens when you add, subtract and multiply them. We are now enjoying investigating chance events, (impossible event – Zombies will rise from the dead, wearing pink batman costumes while recreating the song Zombie on top of the Eiffel Tower in the North Pole – Ella 4A) and collecting data in preparation for our last two maths assessments.

We have loved attending swimming lessons this term and have had an absolute blast at the pool. It was great to see the confidence of so many students grow as they listened and practiced with the instructors each week. Using the diving boards and playing the end of lessons game seemed to be a highlight by most.

4B have been amazing at keeping the fun alive in S Block with a Funny Friday joke each week.

4A have taken on the role of Eco Warriors for our school. We are proud to say that we have some very full bins for containers for change and we have done a fantastic job helping clean up across the school.

Miss Wood and Mrs Williams cannot wait to see what other amazing things Year 4 will do this year! Bring it on!

Term 1 has seen Year 5 students start the year with a flourish, both mentally, within classroom lessons and physically, throughout extracurricular activities.  

In terms of learning, 5A, 5B and 5D have been building their knowledge of persuasive texts and working towards writing their feature article, which will be completed over the last weeks of term. 4/5C have been on a slightly different journey, and have enjoyed reading and discussing the narrative text, ‘Charlie and the Chocolate Factory’. They will continue to work on their new chapter for this story as we head towards the Easter break. 

Outside of the classroom, Year 5 students have participated in swimming lessons this term, a welcome relief most weeks with the hot weather that has continued into Autumn. They have also enjoyed participating in Friday afternoon activities, and the Year 5 teachers have been pleased to see improvements in both attendance and behaviour as students strive to be part of these activities. We would also like to thank parents for their assistance in getting students to school, on time, everyday and supporting us as behaviour incidents arise. We look forward to working together throughout the rest of the year.

Finally, the year 5 teachers wish all students the best for their NAPLAN testing this week. We know you will give each test your best effort and are proud of the hard work that we have seen throughout Term 1. 

This term in Year 6 science we have been looking at irreversible and reversible changes to different states of matter.  We love the opportunity to do some hands-on learning and experimenting.  Previously we have looked at the reversible changes that occurred when we mixed sand, sugar and salt in water.  We discussed how the sand would dry out if we tipped the water out but were not sure that we could reverse the changes to the sugar and salt.  We dipped a cotton bud in the salt solution water and drew a picture on a black piece of card.  The next day, to our surprise, we saw that the water had dried out and that there were salt crystals on the paper.  The sugar, we observed, didn’t recrystalise but we did notice that it left a shiny look on the paper.  We discussed how if you applied heat and boiled the water out of it then the sugar would crystallise again and it would also have a reversible change. 

 Last week we looked at the irreversible changes that happen when you make pancakes.  We looked at how the ingredients mixed together and could not be separated and put back into their original form.  We discussed how impossible it would be to put a raw egg back which had been mixed with the sugar and flour, back into the egg shell again.  We further investigated the changes that happened to the batter when we applied heat to it and how the chemical changes that occurred definitely made it so that we could not reverse the changes to each of the individual ingredients.  We couldn’t squeeze the milk out of the pancake so that we could put it back into the milk bottle.  Of course, after all of our observations and notes were written the only responsible thing to do was to eat the pancakes to make sure the changes could not be reversed in any way. Each class has enjoyed participating in these scientific experiments, especially the ones where they get to taste test the food at the end.

BPAY IS NO LONGER A PAYMENT OPTION FOR SCHOOL INVOICES (please delete any saved BPay details from your records)

The preferred payment method is BPOINT which can be done online at https://www.bpoint.com.au/payments/dete , on your QParents app or by phoning the school on 55401111 and selecting option 2.

PARKING AND VEHICLE ACCESS

We are committed to providing a safe environment for students, staff and community members.  A part of this commitment includes a policy to manage vehicle access and parking within the school grounds and areas surrounding the school.

Below is a summary of our vehicle access and parking policy.  This policy outlines who can and who cannot use each of our carparks.  Your adherence to this policy will keep our students safe, and YOUR CO-OPERATION IS APPRECIATED.

PARKING IS AVAILABLE IN TINA, ECOLE AND ARTHUR STREETS (INCLUDING ‘OLD BEN CENTRE’ CARPARK)

• All drivers are asked to observe the parking signs.
• Please take care when merging into and from parks to ensure students are not in danger.
• Observe angle parking signs.
• Do not park in bus pick-up zones.
• Observe crossing rules, and reduce speed when approaching crossings.

Crossing Supervisors are on duty before and after school on William Street and Tina Street.

PLEASE REPORT ANY TRAFFIC CONCERNS TO THE OFFICE; YOUR INFORMATION WILL BE GIVEN TO OUR LOCAL POLICE WHO WILL ADDRESS ISSUES IF NECESSARY.

ECOLE STREET AND EAGLESFIELD STREET CARPARKS: - Please note these carparks are for

o    Government vehicles

o    Staff

o    Visitors – Education Queensland

o    Groundsmen

o    Deliveries

THESE ARE NOT DROP OFF AND PICK UP ZONES - PARKING IN THESE AREAS FOR ANY OTHER REASON MAY ENDANGER THE LIVES OF CHILDREN AND STAFF.

ABSENCES

If your child is going to be absent for a particular reason you can inform the school using one of the following methods:

❖ telephone the school on 55401111,

❖ send an SMS to 0416 905 687 or

❖ send a message through the BSS Skoolbag App,

so the appropriate adjustments can be recorded.

EARLY DEPARTURES

If it is necessary to arrange an early collection of your child/ren, you MUST attend the office FIRST to sign the child out BEFORE collecting the child/ren. All departures require a leave pass printed at the office.

If you are departing to attend an appointment with your child, but plan to return to school, you will need to be signed out and then present back to the office to sign in on your child’s return to school.

LATE PASSES

If your child arrives at school after 8.50am they will need to be signed in at the main office and late slip will be issued for the child to take to the classroom and give to the teacher.

MESSAGES FROM HOME

If parents find it necessary to alter their child’s routine, please notify the class teacher of the change and ensure that the child knows exactly what is required.

If contacting the office to notify your child of a change, you must do so by 12.00pm at the latest so that messages can be passed on to both the teacher and the child concerned. Once the children have been dismissed it is difficult to ensure the message will be received by the child in time. N.B. WE ARE UNABLE TO GUARANTEE THAT MESSAGES RECEIVED AFTER 12.00PM WILL BE PASSED ON TO STUDENTS.

CASH WINDOW

This is open Monday & Tuesday each week between the hours of 8.30am and 3.00pm for both students and parents to pay over the counter and receive a receipt immediately. You can pay either by Cash or EFTPOS and both Debit and Credit cards are accepted. This is staff intensive and we cannot accept payments over the counter outside of these hours. Any questions please feel free to contact us on 5540 1111.

• 15th - 21st March - NAPLAN
• 20TH March - Parent Teacher Interviews Bookings can be made via https://eq.sobs.com.au/pt3/parent.php?schoolid=70250 
• 27th March - Strings Workshops
• 28th March - School Photo Day
• 29th Mar - Year 3 - 6 Cross Country
• 29th March - Prep - Year 2 Easter Bonnet Parade
• 31st March - Last day of term
•  1st - 16th April - Easter Holidays (school resumes Monday 17th April)

*In the event we need to change a date, this will be communicated via our Skoolbag app. 

If you would like your child’s school sporting achievements outlined in the newsletter, please contact the front office on 5540 1111. A reminder that the P&C offer school sporting sponsorships which can be applied for via the front office. The application can also be found on our school website under Support and Resources / Forms and Documents. 

This term in Digital Technologies the year 4-6's have been exploring a range of digital systems. They have examined the main components of digital systems and how they work together. 

The focus for the year 4's has been input, output and storage devices, as well as hardware and software. 

Year 5 and 6 had a special appearance by Mr O'Brien, who led the classes through the internal hardware of a desktop computer. They have also followed the ethernet cables in the lab building to identify part of the school network and how it transmits data.

This year 11 students were invited to join the school's STEM program. The program is for students in year 6 who show consistent results in Science, Digital and Design Technologies and Maths. Mr O'Brien and I (Mrs Wallace) run the program, one day a week after school.

The students have been completing fun challenges that have increased their teamwork and communication skills, which will be of great value when we solve problems.

Their main task this term has been to design a space base in a program called CoSpaces. Once they have their designs completed and coded correctly, they will be able to turn them into virtual reality where they will be able to explore their bases using our VR goggles. They are coming along nicely, and I can't wait to see them in VR.

In week 10 the group will be attending a robotics workshop and competition at Beaudesert High School with students from around our district. 

Our Dance Team is currently busy working on three exhilarating dance performances, which include dances choreographed by some of our talented students. They are all putting in a great deal of effort and commitment each week, and we cannot wait to see our Dance Team perform their amazing routines and showcase their talent to our school community. Stay tuned for upcoming information about performances. 

We are excited to announce that our school choir has grown this year and we are currently working on three new songs. These songs consist of a whole choir song, a junior song, and a senior song. Our choir is looking forward to sharing their enthusiasm and hard work to so stay tuned for more information on when and where you can catch their performances!

To attend our program, you must register your child. You can register an account with us at Camp Australia - Parent Portal or by downloading our Camp Australia smartphone app from the Apple App Store or on Google Play. Once registered, it's easy to make bookings and manage your account.

Each year, South East Region hold an art competition as part of their NAIDOC Week celebrations. The 2023 competition is now currently open for all students attending a state school in this region. Students MUST include the 2023 NAIDOC theme wording, “For our Elders” and both the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander flags within their artwork to be considered for judging. Please see the attached flyer for more information and details regarding how your child can enter the competition.