MacGregor State School eNewsletter

From the Principal

The Greame Freeman Memorial Garden has been beautifully refurbished as a useful outdoor learning area featuring native plants and two yarning circles.

Many thanks to the P&C for the generous donation of $50 000 towards revitalizing this unusable area in our school. We have ordered a new memorial sign to replace the old damaged one to ensure that the late Greame Freeman’s (a fondly remembered former teacher at the school) memory remains attached to this space.

Students in the junior school will enjoy using this area for outdoor learning once the weather gets warmer and some classes have also utilized the area already for NAIDOC.

This week I had the privilege of catching up with old friend Corrine McMillan MP, Member for Mansfield and Deputy Education and Youth Justice Minister.

Yours in Equity & Excellence,

Mr. Lee Gerchow
Principal

Prep and Year One

Welcome to Week 2!

Welcome back, everyone. It is wonderful to see our little learners return to school after the school break, recharged and excited about the learning ahead. It was also very exciting to return to work after my extended break, being welcomed by so many greetings, hugs and questions about my trip from our little people. Thank you to all the families who took the time to say Hello and stop for a chat. MacGregor State School is such a wonderful place!

Thank you to Prep A and Prep B for sharing their learning by putting a wonderful display of work near the tuckshop. Please take the time to stop by to celebrate the learning with your children.

Our Prep and Year 1 children surely enjoyed starting the term with the 100^th Day of School celebrations, dressing up and participating in exciting activities in the classrooms. I hope the joy and excitement was also shared at home.

On the same day, Prep learners enjoyed the Street Science incursion, where they participated in scientific experiments and made snow. Thank you to all the families for your support and prompt responses with this activity. We are working closely with Street Science to secure many more opportunities for our children to connect with scientific concepts in the future.

At our school, we believe that every child has the right to reach their potential and succeed, and partnering with the parents and guardians, is crucial in ensuring that this happens. All families will be offered an opportunity to meet with the classroom teacher to discuss the child’s progress and goals for the semester. If you require assistance with the booking process, please reach out to us. We look forward to seeing you at Parent-Teacher Conferences.

Recently, I came across a poster from Australian Primary Principals Association, “Thrive with 5” that highlights the 5 key ways parents and caregivers could support their children in readiness for learning – PLAY, TALK, READ, EAT WELL AND SLEEP. These simple, yet powerful activities nurture and support children’s growth and development, helping them thrive both in and outside of school environments.

You can access the poster by following the link:

https://appa.asn.au/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/Thrive-with-5-final-version-1.pdf

2025 Prep Enrolments

A reminder to all families who reside in the catchment area or already have children at MacGregor State School, to submit enrolment applications for eligible children to commence Prep in 2025. We are in the process of organising Enrolment Interviews and Step into Prep program. Your prompt response will assist the school with staffing and class planning for 2025. If you have questions about the enrolment process, please do not hesitate to contact Marcia Crichton (mcric14@eq.edu.au).

Year Two and Three

Mr Holloway and I have just returned from the 2 day i-Educate Conference at the Brisbane Convention and Exhibition Centre.

The 2024 conference theme, Digital Horizons for Tomorrow’s Learners, is designed to inspire educators and school staff to embrace the transformative power of technology in education and work together to further engage every learner. 

The goal of i-Educate 2024 is to empower schools to think of a horizon that stretches far beyond traditional boundaries, and be inspired by the work showcased and opportunities presented.

Keynote speaker was Dr Kristy Goodwin, a global thought leader and award-winning researcher on digital wellbeing and digital peak performance. As one of Australia’s digital wellbeing and productivity experts, she shares practical brain-based hacks to tame tech habits and the latest brain-based strategies to decode the neurobiology of peak-performance in the technological era.

During the remainder of 2024 and into 2025, digital technologies will be a focus area for Education Queensland and will require each of us to move outside our comfort zones and look at new and innovative ways of engaging with and delivering digital technologies in the classroom.

Stayed tuned for further updates.

YEAR 3 INCURSION

Street Science will be at our school on Tuesday 30^th July to deliver a presentation to the students around their science unit on ‘Heat’.

Payment deadline is 23 July. Please ensure that you have completed the consent management through QParents and made payment by this date. Late payments cannot be accepted.

YEAR 2 INCURSION

Year 2 students will receive a visit from Dr Cameron Stelzer.

Students will be exploring a range of topics including:

- The inspiration
- Creating characters
- Designing a book cover
- A look inside a printing factory
- Question and answer time
- A fun pirate quiz
- Follow-along drawing

Payment deadline is 20 August. Please ensure that you have completed the consent management through QParents and made payment by this date. Late payments cannot be accepted.

Year Four and Five

Welcome back to Term 3! We have started off the term with a very clear message around the use of laptops and the requirements. Each classroom now has a poster outlining the needs for laptop use. Students not following these protocols in both eLearning and non eLearning classes will have follow up actions which may lead to the loss of their laptop. Please continue monitoring the use of devices at home and what apps/programs your children are accessing and ensuring they are age appropriate.

Year 5 recognised Naidoc Week with a Hall of Fame. Students then researched one of these people and created a presentation around them. This also supported their learning in English as this term they are completing a spoken presentation.

Year Six

Welcome back to school to all families. The change in weather is certainly welcomed as we take a breather from the hot Queensland summers and bring out the jumpers and layers to keep us warm

I will take this opportunity to ask parents to ensure all of your child’s items are labelled – we have so many Lost Property items that could easily be returned if they were labelled clearly. Whilst some items do have initials on them, with 1200+ students it can be tricky to identify rightful owners. Thank you for your support in making sure your child’s name is on everything so your items come back home to you.

Year 6 Parent Information Evening

Thank you to families who attending the Year 6 Parent Meeting on Thursday 18^th July in Hall. It was wonderful to see so many families take the time to hear important messages that will impact their Year 6 son or daughter.

Mr Davey and I covered:

The 2025 MacGregor State High School Paula Daveron Bursary;
2024 Year 6 Graduation
2024 Year 6 Canberra Trip

A reminder that Mr Gary Davey is leading the Year 6 Canberra Trip – he is your point of contact for all things Canberra. Myself, Miss Hartley and Mr Grady will be creating a plan/ timetable for Year 6 students not attending Camp and we’ll communicate this to families as soon as possible.

2024 Year 6 Graduation + End of Year Farewell *Date Claimer*

Please note in your calendars the 2024 Year 6 Graduation event will be held on Wednesday 4^th December at Nissan Arena. This will be an evening event again for the whole family (including extended family!). More details will be provided over the ensuing weeks.

The Year 6 End of Primary School Farewell will be held on Thursday 5^th December from 2pm. This will be a whole school event – Year 6 parents welcome to attend.

DID YOU KNOW? MacGregor State School now has the e-Safety Commissioners website on our school website landing page?

And, have you accessed the eSafety website for parents? This is a fantastic and comprehensive resource for parents sitting in one dedicated space on the eSafety Commissioners website reflecting the importance of parents knowing what their child is doing online, with whom and how to stay safe when feeling uncertain, threatened or scared. For important advice in a many different languages, go to: https://www.esafety.gov.au/parents

ICAS Maths at Macgregor State School 2024 *CLOSING SOON*

26^th to 30^th August 2024

MacGregor State School will be offering parents the opportunity for their child from Year 3 to Year 6 to participate in ICAS Mathematics. This will be the only assessment offered on the school site due to the significant logistics involved in administering three assessments across five different year levels.

Payment and registration for Maths will again be facilitated directly with ICAS – parents of students from Year 3 to Year 6 are invited to register their child any time from now.

Follow these simple instructions:

Go to the Parent Portal to sign up to chosen subject areas:

(shop.icasassessments.com/pages/pps)

Enter our school’s access code –FJQ505
Enter your child’s details, select the subject areas your child would like to participate in, then proceed to payment. Please note: we are ONLY offering Maths in 2024.

After payment is made via the Parent Payment System, you will receive an order confirmation email, please keep this for your records. 

Parents of our Year 2 students have been emailed information specific to their year level.

Parents are welcome to access the link below should they wish to liaise directly with ICAS for their child to sit assessments at an ICAS nominated testing centre, one of which is located in Brisbane:

https://www.icasassessments.com/contact-directory/

Please note that places are limited and you are advised to contact ICAS as soon as possible to secure your place.

For any questions relating to ICAS, parents are asked to contact ICAS directly on 1800 931 775

Parents can contact Ms Bailey for any ICAS Maths support – jbail154@eq.edu.au

Paula Davoren Bursary

* APPLICATIONS CLOSE FRIDAY 2ND AUGUST *

https://macgregorss.eq.edu.au/our-community/the-paula-davoren-bursary

In conjunction with MacGregor State High School and the Lion’s Club of Brisbane (MacGregor), one student in Year 6 will be the recipient of the Paula Davoren Bursary. Please visit learn more about the application process – the bursary is open to any student who will be enrolling at MacGregor State High School for Year 7 in 2025.

Parent Teacher Conferences

Parent Teacher conferences begin next week for most classes. Access to PTO cuts off at 3pm today for parents. A reminder that sessions will be held in your child’s classroom, unless advised otherwise by the teacher. As some staff are on leave you may find that they will be running their PTO sessions in alternate weeks.

H.O.D. Update

YEAR 4 INCURSION – BENEATH THE STREETS

On Friday 12th July, Year 4 went Beneath the Streets with Urban Utilities and Street Science.

They were fortunate to have the opportunity to attend a free 30-minute Urban Utilities show. In this interactive show, the Street Science presenters used live science experiments to teach the students how H20 gets processed from our taps and toilets and re-joins the Urban Water Cycle to maintain healthy water sources. They observed an interactive experience demonstrating why our wastewater is so smelly and how bacteria and UV light go hand in hand when it comes to disinfecting our wastewater before it re-enters the environment. Students watched physics in practice with their travelling H20 experiment, showing how methane is used to produce electricity with a Rueben's Tube, and how chemical reactions can cause evaporation with a touchable Nitrogen cloud!

A valuable learning experience for our students. Special thanks to #Urban Utilities for giving us this opportunity.

PARENT LEARNING FORUM

Just a reminder that our next Parent Learning Forum is being held next week, on Tuesday 23rd July. The session is on “Understanding and Responding to Challenging Behaviours “- Presented by Ms Megan Brodie (Guidance Officer) and Mrs Sandi Keating (Year 4/5 DP).

Please review the attached poster for details and scan the QR code to register your interest in attending.

Inclusion Team Update

DEADLY CHOICES TERM THREE

This week has seen the commencement of the school’s Deadly Choices program for term three. This term our indigenous students will be participating in a cooking program highlighting the importance of healthy eating and indigenous cuisine. The recipe of the hour this week was ‘Damper’. All the students loved making and eating this treat and learning about how it was traditionally made in a campfire.

Recipe Link: https://www.yarn.com.au/blogs/yarn-in-the-community/how-to-make-damper-with-wattleseed-and-saltbush

NAIDOC WEEK CELEBRATIONS 2024

Macgregor State School celebrated NAIDOC week from the 7^th – 14^th of July. All classes across the school attended the culminating assembly on Friday the 12^th of July, where our amazing Choral groups performed and the theme ‘Keep the Fire Burning! Blak, loud and proud’ was explained to enlighten students on the importance or hearing our indigenous voices.

Message from The Guidance Officer

Key Dates

Friday, 16th August
National Day Against Bullying and Violence
What to wear: Purple T-shirt

This is Australia’s key bullying prevention initiative. It connects schools and communities to find workable solutions to prevent bullying.

Thursday, 12th September 2024
R U OK? Day
What to wear: Yellow T-shirt

R U OK? is a public health promotion charity that encourages people to stay connected and have conversations that can help others through difficult times in their lives.

Book Recommendation:
I wanted to share this book I’ve read recently. It’s written by Dr Billy Garvey, a senior specialist at one of the world's largest and most prestigious paediatric hospitals. With over twenty years of experience working with families, he wants to reassure parents that there is no such thing as a bad child and that much of what he tells families in clinic is based on the same principles he outlines in this book.

It’s beautifully written in that it combines an evidence-based approach with real-life experiences and his own journey.

Regardless of whether you have a young child or a teen on the brink of adulthood, by understanding the foundations of good mental health, you will be able to help them thrive at any stage of their development.

Finance

The Finance Payment Window is open on Tuesday mornings from 8.00am - 9.45am. Cash and eftpos facilities available.

Payment plans are available. Please contact our Finance Officer to discuss.

Hello from our Chappy Mr T.

Welcome back to Term 3 and I hope everyone is keeping warm from the cold winter blast this week.

As we are now deep into winter, I have donated 2^nd hand winter school uniforms in limited sizes. I have both jumpers and track suit pants in the school colours.

Please reach out to myself with your child's size and I can check my stock. I'm contactable via email bthie14@eq.edu.au

Mac Shack News

Volunteers Needed

The Mac Snack Shack needs your help to keep our tuckshop running smoothly and efficiently. We are looking for volunteers who can spare a few hours a week to assist in the tuckshop. No experience necessary, just a friendly smile and a willingness to learn. Please follow this link to sign up – https://msspc.org.au/tuck-shop/

Online Ordering

Flexischools continues to be the fastest and easiest way to place orders. You can sign up online at https://flexischools.com.au/parents or download the Flexischools app. Orders must be placed before 8.30am for same day orders. Alternatively, you can order up to a month in advance.

Term Two Menu 2024

There is a new menu for term 2 2024. The tuckshop will continue to make our most popular daily specials. New daily specials are available, as well as new items added to our regular menu. Take a look at the new menu here https://msspc.org.au/tuck-shop/

Uniform Shop

Winter stock - we have sold out of Microfibre Jackets sizes 8, 10 & 12. We are waiting on a new delivery, however, this could be later in Term 3 due to issues with overseas shipping.

Legionnaire caps (green) - also sold out. We are expecting a delivery later in Term 3.

Second-hand stock - we are running low on second-hand items. If you have any that you would like to donate, please bring to the Uniform Shop on either Mondays, Wednesdays or Fridays.

MSP Performing Arts Photos

MSP will be at our school on Wednesday 24^th and Thursday 25^th July to take performing arts group photos. Students will be in and out of your classrooms across these two days as their photos are taken.

Please note that we have been advised that several high schools are holding orientation session on these days, which means that some students will miss their group photo. This is unavoidable and we are unable to adjust the timetable to accommodate everyone’s requests.

Student Achievements

Success in Year 4

Last week was the National Table Tennis Championships, held in Perth, where Lin represented Queensland. She remained undefeated and won the U11 team championship, the U11 mixed doubles championship, the U11 singles bronze medal and the U11 double bronze medal.

In April this year she won the Queensland U11 singles champion, the U13 singles champion, the U13 team champion, the U11 doubles champion, the U13 doubles runner-up, the U11 mixed doubles runner-up, and the U13 mixed doubles runner-up. She was also the Queensland Table Tennis Best Player Award as she is the athlete with the most awards in Queensland!

The plaque that she is holding in these photos was awarded to her in Perth for being Australia's Table Tennis Best Player!!!

**Congratulations to Lua in 3D who competed in the Beenleigh Eisteddfod this week.**
**Lua achieved First place in Instrument solo grade 2 and Highly Commended Instrument Solo Age 8&9.**

**Congratulations to Royce (6F) and Yu Shan (6G) who competed in the Queensland Badminton Challenge under 13 and placed second!**

**Congratulations to Emma from 6B. She participated in the 2024 QLD Junior Chess Championships and won the U12 Best girl award (3rd place on the countback).**

P&C News

FUN RUN

The P&C Fun Run will be held on Tuesday 13^th August from 2pm – 3pm. As mentioned on assembly this week, each class can come up with a theme for the students to come dressed up for this event.

This is a great way to help raise funds for our school through the P&C. Students run around the oval and collect sponsorships for each lap that they run.

To date our fundraising efforts have raised $40 000.00 which will go towards enhancing digital technologies in the classrooms.

Road Safety

The Sunnybank Food Trail menu has arrived! Save to your camera roll or click here to download as a PDF - https://www.experiencesunnybank.com.au/2024-sunnybank-food-trail/ 👏🥢

With over 150+ menu items to choose from - now is the time to start planning your trail on Saturday 13 July, 2pm - 8pm! Full event details here - https://fb.me/e/7OHLrFRhm ✨

MacGregor State School Newsletter 2024 - Edition 11