Newsletter Term 1 Week 5
From the Principal
2024 will be an exciting year at Runcorn. As a team we set high expectations and develop an understanding of each child. I look forward to seeing all students at school every day and encourage parents/caregivers to connect with your child’s teacher so that your child can see a strong partnership between home and school. The strength in this partnership can only result in positive learning outcomes for your child
Some simple guidelines to remember when using the parking areas around our school
- Be patient – Afternoons are the busiest periods, be patient & allow students to cross safely.
- Be courteous – Choose to be courteous and kind. We’re impressed many afternoons each week when we see courteous behaviour from one driver to another.
- Park legally – Brisbane City Council regularly patrols the parking areas around our school and from time-to-time issues parking infringements for illegally parked vehicles. Please park legally and adhere to any relevant signage respecting our neighbours and their driveways.
- Remember - the staff car park is for staff only. It should not be used for parking or for dropping off or picking up students.
After school use of amenities
For the convenience of our families, we leave our Junior amenities open until well after the end of school. Unfortunately, someone has been leaving food on the floor in a female student toilet cubicle every day. This is definitely occurring after school hours. The food being left appears to be a complete child’s lunch - unopened packages that have included whole burgers, toasted sandwiches, mini pies, chicken/fish nuggets and multiple fruit items. Please be respectful of our cleaners. If this continues, we will have to lock the facilities when school ends.
Meg McClure
From the Deputy Principal
3 Way Reporting 2024 Term 1 Week 7
This session provides teachers, students and their parents/carers with the opportunity to meet and discuss student goals for this Semester and the start of the school year.
Please make your bookings for three way reporting via the link below. If you have any questions please contact the office.
https://runcornss.schoolzineplus.com/3WayRep2024T1
NAPLAN Practice test Term 1 Week 6
The 2024 practice test will take place in the training environment at Runcorn State School in Week 6. Students in Year 5 will complete online narrative and persuasive writing tests and an omnibus test which is a combination of reading, conventions of language and numeracy questions. Students in Year 3 will complete paper based persuasive and narrative writing tests and the omnibus test.
Practice testing is an opportunity for:
- students to familiarise themselves with the types of questions in NAPLAN and the online test design in a simulated test environment
- staff to familiarise themselves with the online platform and logistics involved in managing online assessment
- schools to verify that their technical infrastructure (i.e. devices, bandwidth, local networks, etc.) can support online testing and to assess the effectiveness of their preparation ahead of the NAPLAN test window
- Schools will be supplied with de-identified student slips and no real names will be used for the practice tests.
- Practice tests are not marked and therefore results are not available.
Roberta Matlock
From the Head of Department - Inclusion
Reading in Prep
At Runcorn, all Prep children are explicitly being taught Phonological and Phonemic Awareness (PPA) Skills during reading groups. As a parent, it is a good idea to familiarise yourself with these skills and the terminology so you can talk to your children about them and use the correct terms when reading with your child.
What is PPA?
PPA is an acronym for Phonemic and Phonological Awareness.
Phonemic and Phonological Awareness are a set of essential skills required for reading.
Phonological awareness allows the children to think about, discriminate, remember, and manipulate language at the sentence, word, syllable and phoneme (individual sound) level. E.g. how many words in a sentence, what words rhyme, how many syllables in a word, what are the sounds in words.
Phonemic awareness is more advanced level of phonological awareness. It is the ability to notice, think about, and work with the individual sounds in words. (Phonemes)
Jillian Chittenden
Social Worker News
Tips to help at morning drop-off
Whether your child is just starting in prep, changing schools, or not a fan of school in general, the morning drop-off can be challenging for children and their parents/caregivers. Emotions brought on by anxiety or separation can make the morning routine difficult to navigate.
Some tips to try and make drop-off easier may include:
- Create a consistent drop-off routine to provide your child with clear expectations and establish a sense of security.
- Reminding your child of your return at the end of the day.
- Make the drop-off short, sharp, and swift. Lingering within the child’s sight may increase their emotional response to your departure.
- Allow teachers to engage and assist with distracting the child from experiencing distress at your departure if needed.
- Try to remain calm yourself, as children may pick up on their own parent's anxiety and stress.
- Talk with your child’s teacher about any challenges impacting school drop-off and work collaboratively to create a drop-off routine.
The morning rush and drop off can sometimes be hard for parents and caregivers too. If you were wanting to touch base with someone, our Social Worker, Sheena Cranwell is available on Tuesdays and Wednesday for a chat 😊 Take Care.
Sheena Cranwell
Norman's News
This fortnight I have been pawsitively impressed with many of the students that I have observed during Quiet Play at lunch time and during some of my visits to classrooms. In these settings, I have been looking out for and praising good turn-taking, encouraging fairness and, with Mrs Schooth’s help, explaining about sharing. Sometimes our little people find sharing a little tricky, but I can really see that Runcorn students understand that other people have feelings too and this, in turn allows many students to be able to take turns and to be patient while waiting for their part in a game or to play with a particular toy, or even in waiting their turn to pat me!
As always, should you have any comments or questions for me, please do not hesitate to contact me via Mrs Schooth at jscho128@eq.edu.au
Until next time,
Big licks and tail wags,
Norman
Music Matters
Save the date:
Anzac Day Ceremony Term 2 Week 2 24 April – Band and Choir
Karawatha Music Program Term 2 Week 5- 13-16 May – All Band and Strings students
Instrumental Music- Karawatha Music Workshop
Notes for the Karawatha Music Workshop week will be going out soon. Please keep an eye out for these when they come home and return paperwork ASAP. The dates are as follows:
16 May- Junior Band and Junior Strings
13 and 14 May- Intermediate Band
13, 14, 15 May- Intermediate Strings and Celtic Strings
There will be an evening concert on Thursday 16th where everyone will be required to attend.
Choir and IM- Formal Uniform
For all Music performances, students in Band, Strings and Choir are required to wear their Formal uniform. Band and Choir have their first performance for Anzac Day on April 24. Please ensure that students involved in these groups have the correct uniform to perform in. These are available from the uniform shop.
The Benefits of Singing
No matter the quality of your voice, singing can have some remarkably positive effects. When we sing, large parts of our brain “light up” with activity, says Sarah Wilson, a clinical neuropsychologist and head of the School of Psychological Sciences at the University of Melbourne. She led a study which looked at how the brain reacts when we sing by giving volunteers of varying vocal ability MRI scans as they warbled.
“There is a singing network in the brain which is quite broadly distributed,” Wilson says. When we speak, the hemisphere of the brain dealing with language lights up, as we might expect. When we sing, however, both sides of the brain spark into life.
“We also see involvement of the emotion networks of the brain,” adds Wilson. Regions that control the movements we need to produce sounds and articulation also light up.
We make sure we sing together in each Music lesson to activate these brain networks and all of the ‘feel good’ that goes along with that. When’s the last time you sang together in your home – give it a go…doesn’t matter what song it is, ask your child what song they like or teach them one you like. It’s not only during lock-down that we need to feel these positive emotions from singing.
Prep Music
The Preps have been singing and playing instruments in Music. They have been playing games and learning to cooperate and self-regulate all while having fun! Music is very powerful for these skills
Instrumental Music - Band
The Years 5 & 6 Senior Band students from started their lessons this week, and it was wonderful to hear their music again. Band rehearsals will start on Monday 12 February at 7:35am – please don’t send your students to school earlier than this as supervision cannot be guaranteed. Year 6 students on the following instruments now require Standard of Excellence Book 2 (Blue): Flute, Clarinet, Bass Clarinet, Tenor Saxophone, Trumpet, Euphonium.
The Year 4 Junior Band students will start their lessons on Monday 12 February, and I am sure they are all very excited to get their hands on their instruments and start making some noise. Please make sure that they arrive to their lesson on time and with the necessary equipment ready to go. Parents can go to the Vivace Music website and search “Runcorn” and your child’s instrument to find a ready-made pack to purchase for your convenience, or use that list to buy the items individually from any music store.
Everyone keep practicing and making steady progress – this is your year to be awesome!
Ms Mariel Hopper (mxhop2@eq.edu.au)
Sports News
What an fast paced start to the year we have had at Runcorn!
We started the school year with our senior school swimming carnival and once again I was impressed with the resilience and persistence displayed by all the competitors and the supportive environment the students created with their cheers for all of our swimmers. I was very proud to present the top 3 competitors in each age champion stroke with their 1st to 3rd ribbons last week on parade.
From the carnival, 6 swimmers were selected to represent Runcorn at the Eastern Taipans District Swimming Carnival. The students displayed the Runcorn ‘you can do it’ attitude at the carnival and one of our students managed to break some district records in her races – an amazing effort! These incredible efforts displayed by our 6 competitors resulted in 4 of our students being selected in the Eastern Taipans District Swimming Team which competed at the Metropolitan West Regional Swimming Trials this week. It is too early to know how they went as I am awaiting to see the overall results but the personal growth these 4 students displayed competing against some of the fastest swimmers in their age group in Queensland, made this PE teacher very proud!
I can’t wait to see how good our runners are at next Friday’s Runcorn cross country competition!
Health Happenings
Health Happenings…
Our assembly awards focus this fortnight are the You Can Do It Persistence Key and the Researcher Learning Asset.
Persistence at Runcorn State School looks like:
- Students trying their best when completing challenging tasks
- Students finishing their work on time
- Students avoiding distractions when completing learning activities
Effective Researchers at Runcorn State School are:
- Curious
- Courageous
- Resourceful
At the beginning of Week 5, two tickets from each year level were randomly selected. Our Principal, Mrs McClure, celebrated with those students at a special afternoon tea. The next afternoon tea with Mrs McClure will be held at the end of Week 10.
Sheridan Stirling
Year 4
This term in English, Year 4 have been learning all about the persuasive techniques of advertising. They have demonstrated lots of amazing thinking. 4R collaborated on this insightful response to a certain famous ad that you may remember from way back in 1997! Watch it here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EaoBibAEHgM
The sentence starters in pink are from Ms Ryan, and the rest are all 4R’s ideas.
The ad is about McCain’s “super juicy” yummy corn to convince adults to buy it.
The target audience is kids or people who love juicy corn because in the video, kids are eating corn. Kids like super sweet stuff, and fun stuff like pranking their parent or carer. After the kids watch it, they’ll tell their adults so the adults can buy it for them.
There is an exaggeration when the kids bite the corn and it starts bursting out the juice. There is no way it would make that much juice from just two kids!
So, newsletter readers, would this advertisement convince you to buy this corn? Why or why not?
School Council
The School Council is currently seeking a representative from our Parent Community.
At Runcorn State School, the School Council is responsible for the strategic direction of our
school, ensuring that the policies and procedures involved in this planning are discussed and
reviewed by both members of staff and the parent community.
The School Council objective is to improve student learning outcomes. Each member is
committed to understanding the School Council constitution, complying with the Code of
Conduct, understanding and accepting the School’s values, working co-operatively and engaging
in constructive conversations and actively portraying a positive image of the School Council.
The code of conduct is intended to promote and maintain a high standard of ethical behaviour by
members at all times with a focus on integrity and impartiality, promoting the public good,
accountability and transparency.
The School Council differs from the P&C in that it does not discuss Operational or fundraising
matters, however both groups work closely with each other and with the Principal. The School
Council is not responsible for making operational decisions or discussing management matters.
Our School Council meets once per term, on a Monday at 3:15pm.
If your would like any further information regarding this role, please email Jasmin Stewart
(jstew445@eq.edu.au).
Environment Club News
Dear Runcorn Community,
Welcome back to school in 2024 and thankyou to all the families that have supported the Environment Club in the past. We are hoping to continue the enthusiasm throughout the year. We will start with some old favourites – paper recycling and Containers for Change. Throughout the year we will also have some other collections to try and make a difference. If there are any families who could support the Environment Club in any way, it would be greatly appreciated. Please contact Jenni McNamara on the email below.
PAPER RECYCLING
The Environment Club has resumed paper and cardboard recycling last week. Somewhere in your child’s classroom, there will be paper recycling bin like the ones pictured below. To support the HASS curriculum, Year 4 students will quietly collect these bins and recycle the paper and cardboard in the appropriate yellow bins. This will usually happen on a Thursday or Friday. Please talk to your child about ONLY paper and cardboard going into these bins. In 2023, some classes found placing this bin separate to the general waste bin helped students to remember.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7IP0Ch1Va44&t=20s
Above is a cute video for Prep to Year 2 families that is about paper recycling. It could be a discussion starter to help your child to understand why the bin is in the classroom. There are plenty of other types of videos available for upper school students that are worth a look as well. Just head to Youtube.
CONTAINERS FOR CHANGE
Collection of plastic bottles, poppers etc for the Containers for Change program will also resume. Year 5/6M students will place clear containers in both junior and senior eating areas each day. We raised much need funds for the school in 2023 and hoping to raise more in 2024. We still have the Wave of Change wheely bins in the school (pictured), and hoping all Runcorn State School families will access the green bins appropriately as well. We have also left the Runcorn State School Scheme ID if that is easier for families to use. There is also a picture of the type of containers that are accepted in the green bins.
Please remember NO STRAWS, LIQUID and LIDS can be put in the recycle bins.
Looking forward to working alongside everyone to make a difference to the thinking around the Environment and Sustainability within Runcorn State School.
The Environment Club and Mrs Jenni McNamara
From the Administration Office
Student Resource Scheme
We would like to thank all of our families for supporting our Student Resource Scheme. The monies raised helps purchase learning materials used in each of our classrooms and specialist lessons. Your assistance enhances our student's learning outcomes.
Attendance
Runcorn State School's Admin team are available between 8.00am and 3.30pm each school day. You can contact us on 3323 8777 if you have any queries. Student absence texts can be sent to 0429 928 611 or a voice message can be left on 3323 8777 and press option 1.
If students arrive to school from 9.00 am onwards they are to present to the office to collect a late slip. This ensures that our rolls are marked correctly and prevents parents from receiving incorrect absence texts.
First Aid Processes
If children are injured or become ill at school they will receive treatment within the classroom or in the Health Room. Parents/Carers will be contacted if necessary. Please note that staff must give Parents and Carers a courtesy contact home for all head related injuries (no matter how minor).
When a student is considered too unwell to remain at school, parents will be contacted to collect in a timely manner. If a student's condition deteriorates while waiting to be collected an ambulance may be called if deemed necessary.
If a student presents to the health room with a suspected allergic reaction, parents/carers will be contacted. As per Education Queensland policy, if a student requires an EpiPen to be administered parents will be notified. An ambulance must be called and student will be transported to hospital for further treatment. Children with known allergies will have their own school based EpiPen. We also hold a school EpiPen for any unforseen emergencies.
Medication must be prescribed by a doctor or dentist and may only be administered to students by school staff. The medication must be taken to the school office in its prescription container and administered according to the doctor’s instructions.
Non prescribed oral medication such as Panadol and cough mixtures can only be administered by school staff with a pharmacy label and medical aurthorisation. Education Queensland prohibits students from carrying their own medication to school and requires Parents/Carers to deliver the prescribed medication to the office and collect after school or before weekends as needed. A school register of all medicines administered is kept.
Incursion/Excursion/Camp Payments
Runcorn State School is now a cashless school. Thank you for continuing to pay for your children's incursions/excursions/camp payments via our preferred methods:- BPoint and EFTPOS. If you require any assistance paying via BPoint, please contact the school office. Unfortunately we are unable to accept payments over the phone.
DID YOU KNOW?..... that using BPoint is a convenient and secure way to pay for your child's school invoices. BPoint is a user-friendly online payment platform that enables you to pay your school invoices quickly and easily, without having to worry about sending cash or cheques through the mail or visiting the school in person. It can also be done by phoning the school on 3323 8777, choosing Option 2 which will redirect you to the BPoint payment platform.
By using BPoint, you can make payments from the comfort of your home or office at any time, day or night. You can also track your payment history and receive email receipts for each transaction, making it easier to keep track of your expenses.
BPoint offers a secure and reliable payment system, ensuring that your personal and financial information is protected. It also helps reduce administrative costs for the school, which ultimately benefits the entire school community.
We strongly recommend giving BPoint a try for your next school invoice payment. It's an efficient and hassle-free way to pay your school fees.
We have also included some easy to follow instructions. If you still require further assistance with the process please contact our friendly Admin team!
Newsletters
Don't forget that you can always collect a hard copy of the current newsletter from the office. You can also view/download it from our website: https://runcornss.schoolzineplus.com/enews?nid=23 You can also download the Schoolzine App from your App Store. Once downloaded, search for Runcorn State School and use password 4109, when prompted. Happy reading.
P&C News
P&C AGM MEETING
Do you suddenly find yourself with some spare time now your youngest is off to big school?
Do you have new, fresh fundraising ideas?
Do you want to make a difference to your child’s school experience?
Is 2024 the year YOU make a difference?
If you answered YES to any of these questions, we would LOVE to chat to you about the upcoming P&C Executive Committee positions.
Our next P&C meeting is the Annual General Meeting (AGM) which will be held on Monday 4th March at 6:30pm, followed by a general meeting afterwards.
The AGM is the meeting in which all positions including the Executives, will be vacated, and nominations and voting will be done for this year.
If you are keen to get on board and make a difference to our school, please think about becoming a member, or nominating and taking up a position. Some positions only require a few hours of effort per month, whilst others are a little more involved. Some of our Executive Committee have been in their positions for several years and would be happy to discuss what’s involved.
Please remember that without a P&C committee we cannot run the tuck shop, Uniform Shop or hold events and fundraisers to raise much needed funds for improved facilities and resources.
If you have any questions about any of the roles involved, please contact rsspcsecretary@outlook.com
P&C Meeting Highlights
Some highlights from our first P&C meeting for the year last week include:
- Exciting events coming up including the free NAPLAN Breakfast for all Year 3 and 5 students, and the Election BBQ which will be a fundraiser for Norman’s insurance expenses
- The P&C will be donating whiteboard markers, erasers, and playdoh for the students starting Prep in 2025
- The P&C will be generously subsidising every student to attend a science program incursion or excursion this year
Election Day BBQ & Fundraiser for Norman
To help raise funds for Norman’s therapy dog insurance expenses, we are hosting an Election BBQ on Saturday, 16th March at which we will sell hot food, baked goods, and snacks. If you can donate any baked goods to sell for this fundraiser, that would be greatly appreciated. Further details about what is required and when donations of baked goods will be accepted will be provided closer to the date.
Norman’s 3rd Birthday & Community Picnic
To celebrate Norman’s 3rd birthday, a community picnic will be held in his honour on Wednesday, 27th March 3pm. Bring your picnic rugs, afternoon tea, and money to spend as a coffee van will be organised for this event.
P&C MEMBERSHIPS
P&C memberships for 2024 are now open, and it is FREE to join. You can pick up a form from the school office, or request a copy of the form by contacting Nadera (Secretary) at rsspcsecretary@outlook.com, who can also answer any further questions you may have about becoming a member of the P&C.
Benefits of joining the P&C include:
- Getting to know your school community better, including meeting more people and making new friends
- Feeling a stronger sense of belonging to the school community
- Being informed of what happens at school, including any changes
- Keeping up-to-date with the various school-related events and activities
- Voting at P&C meetings about school-related decisions (including spending of P&C funds)
- Receiving the minutes/notes after each P&C meeting
- Receiving the reports and reminders before each meeting
- Sharing your talents, skills, ideas, and expertise to help achieve positive outcomes for your school
- Getting involved as little or as much as you like – being a member does not automatically mean you have to volunteer or have extra jobs to do
- Seeing our students benefit from our efforts
There is no obligation for P&C members to attend meetings, volunteer time, or participate in activities, but membership is essential if you want to be involved in any P&C decisions during the year, including how the money we all raise is spent.
Volunteers Needed in the Tuckshop
You can help in one or more of the following ways:
- Putting labels on bags
- Filling drink orders
- Preparing food
- Baking
- Washing up
- Placing orders into bags, and allocating to class tuckshop delivery boxes
It’s easy to volunteer in the tuckshop!
- Volunteer under the guidance of the Tuckshop Convenor (Wednesdays to Fridays from 8:30am) - no experience is necessary
- All volunteers who work a two-hour shift receive a complimentary lunch from the menu
It's an excellent way to help out in your community by providing an important service to students and staff
How to sign up to volunteer : AEmail tuckshop@runcornss.eq.edu.au with your preferred days and times that you can assist.
UNIFORM AND STATIONERY SHOP
Contact: rssuniform@outlook.com
Operating Hours: Monday (8.15am–8.45am) & Tuesday (2.45pm–3.30pm)
Stationery
The Uniform Shop has a small amount of stationery for sale.
Volunteers Needed in the Uniform Shop!
You can help in one or more of the following ways:
- Making sales
- Cash handling (not necessarily expected)
- Assisting families to select and/or try on appropriate sizes
- Retrieving stock from the shelves
If you are able to assist, please contact Zoee (Uniform Shop Coordinator) at rssuniform@outlook.com.
P&C WISHLIST 2024
Community News
Jabiru offers before and after school care and vacation care at Runcorn State School. Our team includes a range of friendly people who are into craft, sport and outdoor exploration, so there’s something for everyone at Jabiru Runcorn.
