2024 Term 2, Week 3 Newsletter
Principal's News
SCAN the QR Code and BOOK your tickets today!
"Cool Nights Big Band". Buy your tickets today!
Only 8 days until the "Cool Nights Big Band" is here! We are very excited for this event that will raise funds for both Pittsworth State School & Pittsworth State High School P&Cs: a great example of our two schools and P&Cs working together for a common cause. Also a fantastic opportunity for PSHS music students (....who started their musical journey at OUR school ....) to perform with a professional big band on stage!
This is NOT a night to sit quietly in rows and politely clap after a song - NO WAY - get a group together, grab a table, snack / drink / chat / laugh / dance and ENJOY a night out!! Celebrate Mother's Day early!
There are AWESOME raffle prizes to be won thanks to the MANY businesses who have contributed.
Purchase tickets and submit them for a chance to win the prize of YOUR choice.....not a multi-draw, YOU CHOOSE your preferred prize & buy a ticket!
Our School Captains Ari & Haylee, along with Vice Captains Romily & Addison, were privileged to attend the "Mayoral Morning Tea" and meet with Mayor Geoff Macdonald, and Toowoomba Regional Councillors Edwina Farquhar, Trevor Manteufel and Carol Taylor.
School Review Results
Our whole school review will be held from Tuesday 11 June to Thursday 13 June.
Keeping Our Kids Healthy
If your child is unwell, please keep them at home until they are well enough to return. Even if the illness is not contagious, please keep them at home until they are well.
Some medical conditions require exclusion from schoool, childcare centres and other settings to prevent the spread of infectious diseases among staff and children. See flyer below for more details.
Carbal Hearing Tests
To give our children the best start in life, it is important that they have good hearing and healthy ears!
Carbal Medical Services offers hearing health checks for students at PSS. Doing so is your best chance of preventing Ear Disease; which can lead to loss of hearing forever if left unchecked.
Register your child today to receive a hearing test in early Term 3. Phone 1300 379 558.
Please advise the office of any change in circumstances and personal details including change of: name, address, parent contact details, emergency contacts, legal orders, email addresses, medical history.
Report Student Absences
QParents
P: 4619 8366
SMS: 0429 320 360
E: admin@pittsworthss.eq.edu.au
Curriculum
Yr 6 Mt Kent Observatory Excursion
On Tuesday 30 April, the Year 6 cohort travelled to the Mt. Kent Observatory. Hidden away at the top of Mt Kent, overlooking the beautiful farms of Greenmount, is the Institute for Advanced Engineering and Space Sciences, Research and Innovation; part of the University of Southern Queensland. As it was a gorgeous, sunny autumn day, some of us were doubtful that we would see too much of anything to do with astronomy but we saw and learnt plenty!
We looked at the sun through a very powerful telescope (with a filter to protect our eyes) and it looked just like a giant red sphere. Some of us saw black and white lines across the sun which were actually solar flares.
We did a tour of the observation domes which contained huge telescopes used for finding previously undiscovered planets and other matter in space. It seemed that whatever curly question we threw at the astrophysicists, they were able to answer!
We finished the day with an interesting powerpoint detailing the history of our planet within the Milky Way within the Universe and another question and answer session.
A really different, interesting day out for the Year 6s. Thanks very much to Mrs Stevens, Mrs Murphy, Miss Casey and Mrs Coonan for organising this excursion.
Premier's Reading Challenge 2024
The Premier’s Reading Challenge is not a competition but a way to encourage students to develop a love of reading for life. Students are encouraged to select a range of fiction and non-fiction books suited to their reading ability and record books read during the reading period, between the 7th May to the 23rd August. The reading record and consent form is attached and can also be collected from class teachers if required.
To complete the challenge:
- Prep to Year 2 must read or experience at least 20 books
- Years 3 and 4 must read at least 20 books
- Years 5 to 9 must read at least 15 books.
The following activities can be counted towards the challenge:
- reading independently
- shared reading
- being read to (Prep – Year 2 for books written in English; and all year levels for additional languages).
The following literature forms can be counted towards the challenge:
- printed books
- e-books, virtual books and digital publications
- graphic novels and comic books
- audio and braille books
- newspapers, magazines and recipe books
- books in additional languages (other than English).
If they have time, students are welcome to read more books than the challenge requirements. These additional books will just need to be recorded on a separate reader record form. All books read will go towards Queensland’s total PRC tally, so the more the better!
The aim for the 2024 challenge is to engage more students to read than ever before! Last year more than 2.39 million books were read by Queensland students throughout the Premier’s Reading Challenge period.
We would love to see as many Pittsworth State School students participate as possible!
Upcoming Year 6 Excursions
PSHS School Musical "Grease" Matinee: Show: Friday 24 May. Consent due by 17 May. No cost.
PCYC Cycle Safety Courses for Years 3 & 4 classes
3/4A – Wednesday, 8 & Thursday, 9 May 2024
3/4BR – Wednesday, 15 & Thursday, 16 May 2024
3/4PD – Wednesday, 22 & Thursday, 23 May 2024
Consent has been sent home via QParents and emailed to non-QParents.
Consent and $20 payment is due by 1 May 2024
Term 2 Important Dates
| Labour Day Public Holiday | Monday 6 May |
| PCYC Cycle Safety Courses | see above for dates |
| Instrumental Music Fanfare Regional Heats | Wednesday 15 May (for selected band students) |
| Singfest Millmerran | Friday 17 May |
| Under 8's Day | Wednesday 22 May |
| Yr 6 attending PSHS Musical Matinee | Friday 24 May |
| For Sporting events see Sporting News |
Sporting News
Cross Country Dates
Inner Downs Cross Country: Friday 3 May at Highfields State School, Top Oval, Borghardt's Rd, Highfields
FUTSAL Clinics, Years 3-6 students
Friday 17 May and Friday 24 May. Bottle Tree Hall.
Track and Field Carnival Dates
- Senior Carnival: Friday 7 June (9 – 12 yrs born 2012-2015)
- Gore Highway Athletics: Wednesday 12 June
- Inner Downs Athletics: Thursday 18 June
- Junior Carnival: Thursday 29 August (5 -8 yrs born 2016-2019)
200m and 800m heats for Seniors will be run prior to carnival. Dates to be confirmed.
Inner Downs Football (Soccer) Trials
- Boys Tuesday 30 April
- Girls Wednesday 1 May
Please contact Ms Will if you are interested in trialling.
Inner Downs Trial Fees
As the IDZ Trials are currently underway, we would like to bring to your attention a matter of utmost importance regarding the nomination fee. The IDZ Sports Contact has advised some students are attending trials without having paid their nomination fee. They wish to emphasize the critical nature of timely payment to ensure the smooth conduct of the trials and maintain fairness in the process.
To facilitate the payment process, we kindly request all participants to utilize the Qkr! app. It is imperative that the nomination fee is settled by the designated date. Failure to adhere to this deadline will regrettably render students ineligible to partake in the trials. It is the parent's responsibility to ensure payment is made by the due date.
Please see the Guide below for detailed instructions on utilizing the Qkr! app.
NO fee paid by due date = No trial for students
2024 Darling Downs School Sport
Parents/Carers please contact Ms Will for further information regarding these events. These events will be open to students that are interested and have experience in these sporting events. Nominations come out a few weeks prior to events so please let Ms Will know closer to the event if your child is interested.
Students will only be nominated for Cross Country and Track & Field if they have made qualifying times.
Ms Will’s email: bwill641@eq.edu.au or phone 4619 8333.
Sport | IDZ Trial | DD Trial |
Cricket – Girls | TBC | 26 July |
Cross Country | 3 May | 14 May |
Football – Boys | 30 April | 27 May |
Football – Girls | 1 May | 28 May |
Rugby League - Boys | 19 March | 29 April |
Rugby League - Girls | 12 June | 19 July |
Rugby Union | School Based Nominations | 20 May |
Tennis | School Based Nominations | 23 April |
Touch – Boys & Girls | 18 March | 24 April |
Track and Field | 18 July | 20 August |
The Arts
SRC News/Eco Club News
Student Support Services
Join us in celebrating the wonderful work of our Guidance Officer, Charmaine Gubbins, during Guidance Officer Week, 24 April to 3 May. Charmaine is an expert in her field with years of experience in the role of GO and we all benefit from her advice and support.
eSafety
Many young people are exposed to content that they are not ready for developmentally.
Inappropriate content may be an image, video or written words that can be upsetting, disturbing or offensive. Young people may encounter inappropriate content accidentally or deliberately. It is normal to be curious, but young people may be faced with concepts they are not ready for developmentally.
According to eSafety research: A high proportion of young people aged 12 to 17 in Australia have encountered inappropriate or hateful content online.
You can take measure to help to protect your student online. To find out more you can go online to https://www.esafety.gov.au/
Free Webinars for Parents and Carers
(through the eSafety Commissioner website)
The eSafety Commissioner Website has free webinars for parents and carers. These live webinars give parents and carers the knowledge, skills and tools to support their children to have safe online experiences.
The webinars include a broad range of topics delivered by an expert education and training team for children in both primary and secondary school. Check out the topics for Term 2 and register your interest via the link :
https://www.esafety.gov.au/parents/webinars
There is more than one date for each webinar to enable greater choice in choosing a suitable date to participate in a webinar.
P&C Patch
TUCKSHOP
Thank you to all of the amazing people that have already volunteered to help in the Tuckshop this term. Unfortunately, we are still short and looking to fill a few spots.
If you think you could possibly spare a few hours on a Friday morning (even just once a term), please contact Karla in the Tuckshop or email psssecretary@outlook.com
What volunteering in the tuckshop looks like…
2.5 hrs of your time. 9:00 – 11:30am (or longer if you wish).
- Counting money to make sure it matches the order/ printing and sticking on labels for online orders
- Burger/sandwich/wrap prep
- Pack orders with pre-prepared food items (muffins, milo balls, sumo cookies)
- Pack hot foods/drinks into order bags
- Wash and clean up
- Serve ice cream and ice blocks
It is that easy and the time will fly!
FUNDRAISING
Mother’s Day Stall 2024
Our annual Mother’s Day Stall will be held on Friday 10 May. The P&C are currently seeking donations. The P&C purchase gifts for the stall but also rely on donations so that each child has the opportunity to buy a gift for the special lady in their lives. A great way to think about donating is to give the equivalent number of gifts as you have children at the school. You also have the option of donating money rather than an item through the Qkr App. Simply choose the “P&C Fundraising” option from the menu, followed by the value and quantity you wish to donate.
We also need a few helpers to assist with the stall on Friday 10 May. If you are able to help, please contact Jess Briggs, Louise Boyes or psssecretary@outlook.com
ANZAC Day
It was wonderful to see so many students representing Pittsworth State School at the Pittsworth ANZAC Day March. Thank you to our school leaders for laying a book for Southbrook Central SS on behalf of the Pittsworth SS P&C.
VOLUNTEERS – MANDATORY TRAINING
There is a small amount of mandatory training that must be completed in order to volunteer at school. It is quite quick to complete (10-15 minutes)
NEXT P&C MEETING
Next General Meeting will be held Thursday 9 May at the Pittsworth Function Centre, commencing at 6.30pm.
Mandatory Volunteers Training
P&C Bank Account Details
P&C Forms and Tuckshop Menu
Have you downloaded the Qkr! App to order tuckshop?
Quick, easy, no more looking for cash!
Tuckshop open Wednesdays and Fridays
School Management
Headlice
We have had multiple cases of Headlice at the school recently. Please check your entire household for headlice TODAY & commence treatment if required to help prevent spreading. Please see below information.
Join QParents
QParents will make your life so much easier, no more paper work! All your needs at the click of a button!
Excursion Consent Forms
Time Out Poster - Keeping Our Kids Healthy
Transport Forms
Medication at School
Birthday Celebrations at School
School Dress Code
Mandatory Volunteers Training
Health Food and Drinks at School
Payment Methods
Office Hours
The school office is open daily from 8.30am - 3.30pm with the exception of Visitors who are required to sign in upon arrival.
Visitors to our School
All Visitors to our school, including Volunteers and Parent Helpers, are required to electronically Sign In at the office and obtain a Visitors Lanyard which is to be worn at all times whilst on school grounds. You are then required to Sign Out at the office prior to leaving the school grounds.
Late Arrivals
Parents/Carers, if your student is late to school, please escort your student to the office to sign your child in and to obtain a Late Slip for them to give their teacher.
Communication with Parents/Carers
All letters and consent forms are emailed to parents.
Information is also available to parents online:
- Pittsworth State School Website
- Our School Newsletter (emailed)
- SMS
Email: admin@pittsworthss.eq.edu.au
Community News
