Newsletter No. 10 - 14 June 2023
From the Principal
Hi everyone,
Congratulations to all of our Budgie Cup teams on their performance at the Budgie Cup Touch almost a fortnight ago. Our Senior Maroon team made the minor final. Our Junior Maroon team won the Junior Major final- so we have the cup for another term!! Well done everyone. Thanks to all of our staff who participated in training and coaching. Congratulations to our Best and Fairest Players pictured too.
The last day of term 2 is Friday 23 June and first day back for term 3 is Monday 10 July.
This week is National School Support Staff Recognition Week. SSSRW is about celebrating the important work that School Support Staff do every day to ensure our schools run well and staff are supported to help students get the most out of their time at school. My sincere thanks to all of our support staff in administration/business, grounds/facilities, IT and therapy. We salute you all this week.
The Winter solstice is primed to be another fantastic school community event this Saturday. Mr Bryant will be at the radiant epicentre of it all this year. Thank you to everyone involved in planning the event and special thanks to Laura Klein for spruiking with our students at assembly the past month.
Sports day is next Friday 23 June- parents and families are welcome as spectators throughout the day. Please see further information with his newsletter.
Mrs Blanchfield will be on long service leave next semester, Mrs Hunt will be her replacement in year 6 BW. Mrs Alexion will also be on leave next term on Fridays (replaced by Mrs Hunt in 6 BW).
Mrs Tracy Allan will return from long service leave after the holidays. We thank Rebecca Abbott for covering for Tracy this term.
I am on long service leave next week. Dr Scholl will be the officer in charge during my absence, supported by Mrs Austin. I thank them in advance.
I look forward to seeing you all next term.
Kind regards
Simon Vaseo
From the Head of Curriculum
Academic Reporting 2023
Student report cards will be emailed to parents this Friday afternoon after school.
Please ensure that the school has your most up to date email address.
If you don’t receive your child/ren’s report by about 6pm please check your spam folder.
If it is not there, please email Admin@burandass.eq.edu.au and ask for your child/ren’s report to be forwarded to you. We will do so on Monday morning.
Please remember previous advice about reporting. You will see fewer comments on these and future reports.
This semester you will notice some changes to academic reporting. The next four years are a time of staged transition to Version 9 of the Australian Curriculum. We will report with a focus on English, Mathematics and behaviour and an overall comment for parents/carers during this transition.
You will see:
Grades for achievement and effort for:
- Each learning area:
- English
- Mathematics
- Science
- Technologies
- Health and Physical Education
- Languages (German)
- The Arts
- Humanities and Social Sciences (HASS)
Comments for:
- English
- Mathematics
- Value Added Programs (VAP)
- Philosophy
- Instrumental Music
- Behaviour and Homework
- An Overall Comment.
Parent Teacher Interviews
Positive parent/teacher relationships can improve children's outcomes (academic, social, and emotional). When teachers and parents can collaborate, children tend to do better both at school and at home. Parent teacher interviews are an opportunity foremost for you to learn how your child is achieving academically, participating socially, and coping emotionally with school.
The time teachers have during these interviews is limited but this interview can be a springboard to future meetings or information sharing between parents and teachers, for the benefit of your child/ren. Constructive, ongoing partnerships between parents and teachers will support children's short and long-term outcomes (academic, social, and emotional).
Parent teacher interviews remain the same, for all students in semester 1, and by expression of interest from the teacher or parent/s or carers in semester 2. At this parent teacher interview your child/ren’s teacher/s will have work samples and assessment available for all curriculum areas they teach.
This is a busy time of year for teachers meeting with all of you and teaching all day. Please let the office or your child/ren’s teacher know if you are not going to be able to make the appointment on the day, so that alternative arrangements can be made. Thank you.
Kind regards
Rosie Scholl
Excursion reminders
- Junior Band: only year 4 students that have registered - Balmoral Beginner Band Workshop: Tuesday 20 June (Balmoral State High School hall, Thynne Road, Balmoral)
- Philosothon: Tuesday 20 June – selected students only – arrive at school no later than 8am and returning to school at 3.15pm
- Year 5/6 Camp: (Maroon Outdoor Education Centre) Tuesday 22 August – Friday 25 August – consent forms are due back now.
Lost Property
Now that the cooler weather has arrived, the lost property box is getting quite full. Please make sure you label your child's clothing, water bottles and lunch boxes. If you can, try visit the lost property box on a regular basis if you are in the school. Sports day might be a good day to have a look!!
The lost property box is located under A block near the groundsman's room.
Parent/Teacher interviews
Reminder: The portal for the parent/teacher interviews will close Friday 16 June.
From Inclusion
Becoming Allies – Part 3
All students, particularly those who are neurodiverse, need to be given take-up time.
Being put on the spot to answer a question can be daunting for anyone. Revisit those times when you were attending professional development, sitting in a tutorial, or participating in a group discussion, and someone pointed to you for a response. Even if you were confident in your knowledge of the topic, or had done the work to facilitate a response, this lack of time and warning may have triggered anxiety. Imagine if you were a student whose anxiety levels were already high due to coping with being neurodiverse.
Giving students take up time, time to process your questions, helps mitigate the anxiety associated with being put on the spot. It can take students up to a minute to formulate the answer in the correct sequence. If you rush them, they often stop engaging by giving the ‘I forgot’ response, or the ‘I don’t know’ response. Waiting after asking a question so that children are able to gather their thoughts before responding is proven to expand participation and improve the quality of their responses.
Remember, the amount of time you wait is always going to feel longer than it actually is. The key, as teachers and parents, is to simply say less. Resist the temptation to fill dead air with a rephrased version of your question or to answer an unanswered question yourself.
Patience is a Virtue
Katherine Austin - Inclusion teacher
Finance News
Monthly Debtor Invoice Statements
Receive a statement with a negative amount as the total?
If you have received a statement with a negative amount as the total (a minus before the amount), this means that you have a student account in credit and no payment is due. Please do not pay the negative amount on your statement. Any credits will be applied to future invoices; please only pay the balance of the statement or invoice.
Payment
If you are experiencing difficulties in paying your student account when you receive these reminders, please contact Doreen Holland on bsm@burandass.eq.edu.au to arrange a payment plan. All discussions are held in the strictest confidence.
DET Preferred Payment Method - BPoint
Please use the CRN (Customer Reference Number) located on the bottom left-hand side of your invoice. Payment can be made through the Payment Portal: https://www.bpoint.com.au/payments/dete
This is a secure site and receipts are issued immediately. Our records are updated within 24 hours.
Payment Plan Via eDDR (Electronic Direct Debit Registration)
Contact bsm@burandass.eq.edu.au or phone 07-3435—1222 to speak to our Business Manager, Doreen Holland to discuss a payment plan.
Website Update
We have added a parent resources page to our website Parent resources (eq.edu.au) and on this page we will publish information for parents ,for example school photo links. This page is a work in progress, and we will post updates in future newsletters.
School Photos
Haven’t purchased your students school photos' yet. Photos' can still be purchased by using the details on this link.
Student Resource Scheme
Buranda State School will be introducing a student resource scheme in 2023 and annually every year after.
The student resource scheme is a user charging scheme that is operated by the school to provide parents with a mechanism to access individual student resources not funded by the government and are required to be funded or supplied by parents.
Schools develop student resource schemes based on resources needed by students and the programs offered at school. For example, software licences and/or resources used by students. There are strict guidelines that align with legislation in relation to the running of an SRS and it’s inclusions. Prior years saw separate invoices for these resources, which did not follow departmental guidelines.
Fees are to represent a cost benefit to parents and can be determined as a flat fee or as individual costs. Buranda State School will be charging a Student Resource Scheme flat fee in 2023. Parents will be provided with information regarding fees and inclusions. Fees and inclusions are endorsed annually by Buranda Parents and Citizens. 2023 fees and inclusions have been endorsed by the P & C at the June 7, meeting.
Participation forms will be provided for parents to opt in or out of the scheme. Participation forms are valid for the life of the student enrolment and parents will be contacted in Term 3 with forms to submit and sign, as well as the information we are required to provide to parents. The SRS information will be published on the Buranda State School website. Invoices will be sent to parents once forms are returned, and parents have opted into the scheme.
Parental participation in the SRS is optional. Resources may not be provided by the school automatically to students if parents choose not to participate. Resources listed on the inclusion lists must be able to be sourced by a parent who chooses not to participate and need to be supplied by parents for their students if they opt out of the SRS.
2023 resources have been provided to all students while the school gathered the information necessary to submit to the P & C for endorsement. There is no allowance scheme for primary students – no subsidy. Resources may not be provided to students in 2024 if parents decide to opt out of the scheme.
Instrumental Music is a separate SRS and will be presented to the P & C in Term 3 for 2024. Instrumental Music will have a separate SRS fee as an addition to the resource SRS.
Refund Policy
At Buranda State School, we are committed to providing a safe and supportive learning environment for students, staff and volunteers. This commitment includes the health and safety of staff and students when conducting curriculum activities in the school or in other locations.
School excursions and camps enhance a student’s learning by providing opportunities for the student to participate in activities, both curriculum-related and recreational, outside the normal school routine. All planned school excursions are approved by the Principal and endorsed by the Parents and Citizens Association.
State schools are able to charge a fee for:
- an educational service including materials and consumables not defined as instruction, administration and facilities for the education of the student,
- an education service purchased from a provider other than the school where the provider charges the school and,
- a specialised educational program
A school fee is directed to the purpose for which it is charged.
School fees for extra-curricular activities are calculated on a cost recovery only basis, according to the number of students who have indicated their attendance.
Participation of students in an extra-curricular activity is indicated through payment of the fee and provision of a permission form completed by the parent.
As the school budget cannot meet any shortfalls in funding for an extra-curricular activity due to the subsequent non-participation of a student who had previously indicated attendance of the activity, fees already paid for an extra-curricular activity will only be refunded with the support of a medical certificate. Change of mind, or absence from school for other reasons is not a valid reason for a refund.
If a parent wishes to apply for a refund due to their child’s non-participation in an extra-curricular activity, they may do so by completing a Request for Refund form available from the school website.
A credit will be placed on the student’s account, and used to offset any future charges.
This information is also published on our website on this link.
Doreen Holland - Business Manager
Sports Day - Friday 23 June
Our Annual Sports Day will be held on Friday 23 June 2023 for Prep – 6 children. The program attached will provide a rough idea of when your child will be competing. All children are required to wear their school shorts and encouraged to wear a shirt the colour of their house:
Aristotle – blue
Plato – green
Socrates – yellow
Students should also bring a towel to sit on, a hat, sunscreen and a water bottle. Please make sure all items are clearly labelled.
If your child is late to school on Sports day, please collect a late slip from the office. Lunch times will run as usual and the P&C will update us with lunch on offer. All parents are welcome to attend Sports Day.
Our field events will be held on Thursday 22 June for all children born 2014 – 2011. (Students and staff only)
Julie Wain – PE teacher
Time: | Event: |
9.00 | Students report to classrooms for rolls etc. |
9.15 | March Past – Points awarded for best house. Children assemble in house teams at start of running tracks for March Past. Welcome and Traditional Owners Acknowledgement |
9.30 | Sprints (heats and finals are necessary in some age groups) Ribbons given to all competitors |
10.25 | Longer distance race – Prep 1 lap, Yr 1 – track plus 1 lap, Yr 2-6 track plus 2 laps. |
10.45 | 800m serious runners only (2013, 2012, 2011) |
Tug-o-war will be run by Zali behind the tents when children have completed their sprints. | |
11.00 | First lunch |
Time: | Event: |
11.45 | 200m (2013, 2012, 2011 only) |
12.30 | Relays Baton relay – Prep – Year 6 |
12.30 | Tug-o-war |
1.15 | Second lunch |
1.45 | Tabloid Events |
2.40 | Tug-o-war (yr. 6’s V teachers & parents) |
2.50 | Clean up area and announce champion team. Presentation of Shield to winning House. |
From the Instrumental Music Room
WINTER SOLSTICE PERFORMANCE
This Saturday our band students will be performing at the Winter Solstice Celebration at school.
Here are the details:
Date: Saturday 17th June
Arrival Time: All band students are to meet at the school music room at 3:15pm. We will have a quick warm-up of our instruments and then we will need to carry all of the equipment down to the Amphitheatre to set up.
Performance Time: Senior Band will perform at 4pm. They will perform three songs. The choir will then perform while the Junior Band set up. Junior Band students are to sit together and watch the Senior Band so they are ready to set up while the choir perform.
Senior Band are to wait and watch the Junior Band perform and then all band students are to help take the chairs, stands and band equipment back to the music room following the Junior Band performance.
BEGINNER BAND WORKSHOP
REMINDER: Next week is the Beginner Band Workshop. Our Year 4 Junior Band students will be attending on Tuesday 20th June. Students are to meet at the hall at Balmoral High School at 8am. There will be a concert for parents at 2pm and the day will conclude at 2:15pm. Please remember to bring your instruments, music, stands, lunch, hat and wear your school uniform. It promises to be a fantastic day.
There will be no band rehearsals or lessons on Wednesday 21st June as I will be teaching at the Beginner Band Workshop for my other schools.
If you have any questions concerning the performance, please do not hesitate to contact me via email (awils246@eq.edu.au) or leave a message with the administration staff at school.
Kind regards
Alicia Wilson - Instrumental Music Teacher
From the Garden
Well Holy Smokes! It’s nearly the Winter Solstice! Can you believe it? Only a few days to go until one of the best nights of the year! I’m nearly wetting my plants!
The scene is set, and after a wonderful term of hard work by all, every corner of the school is looking grand. If you would like to, please come and join us for an hour or two of gardening before the festivities begin. Mostly mulching, so bring a bucket if you can, and probably write your name on it somewhere. We have a dozen or so if you can’t. Maybe a little weeding too, so gloves if you want.
Please meet me up in our beautiful Outdoor Leaning Area from 2pm. Should be a hoot! Many thanks and Happy Solstice!
Andrew Bryant - Environmental Education teacher
P&C Update
Winter Solstice
We’re looking forward to warming up around the bonfire at our Winter Solstice this Saturday, 17 June 2023. We’ll have music, food, drink, sweets, face painting, hip hop display, school choir, band and more.
Remember to bring picnic rugs and camping chairs. Cups and plates are a good idea too to reduce waste.
The program for the Winter Solstice is:
- 2-4pm – working bee in the garden
- 4-4.30pm – Junior and Senior Band and choir will be performing
- 30pm – whole school winter song and dance
- 01pm – lighting the bonfire at sunset
- 30-7pm – live rock band
All students will be performing, so bring along family and friends.
We hope to see you and your family there. Feel free to invite extended family members and others who aren’t attending school at Buranda.
If you haven’t already volunteered to help but would like to, please email me (email below).
Sports Day
Sports Day will be held next week on the last day of school for the term, Friday 23 June.
The P&C will run a sausage sizzle and homebake for first lunch.
You can pre-order sausages on Qkr!
We’ll make sure we have at least enough sausages cooked for pre-orders. Sausages also be purchased for cash on the day if there are extra.
Homebake goods can purchased on the day until they run out for $1 each, so send along some coins.
We’d love help in cooking the homebaked goods (please don’t send store-bought goods). If you can help, please cook something healthy and without nuts please. The Queensland Association of School Tuckshops (QAST) has some good recipes available at this link.
Ludivine will be in the tuckshop from 8am on 23 June to receive baked goods. Please name all containers or they will be gobbled up by our tupperware black hole.
Warm regards
Chris McGrath - P&C President
E: president@burandasspandc.org.au
P&C website: https://www.burandasspandc.org.au/
P&C on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BurandaPandC
From the Community
Brisbane City Council Libraries Little Stars Reading Club
Young children (aged 0-5 years) and their carers will discover the joys of sharing books and stories when Brisbane City Council libraries’ Little Stars Reading Club program kicks off on Thursday 1 June 2023. The Little Stars Reading Club aims to create opportunities for young children and their parent or carer to connect and bond while developing valuable early literacy skills.
There are four great reasons for children and their parent or carer to get involved in the 2023 Little Stars Reading Club.
- Membership to the Little Stars Reading Club is FREE!
- The Little Stars Reading Club can help young children develop their early literacy skills.
- Record your book sharing with your child to earn a medallion and certificate of achievement for their reading efforts.
- Not only is sharing stories and rhymes, singing, talking and playing with your child fun, but it is good for little brains too.
To register your child for the Little Stars Reading Club, simply visit brisbane.qld.gov.au/libraries or your local library to complete a registration form from 1 June 2023. Your child can be a library member from birth and must be a library member to join the Little Stars Reading Club.
For more information about the Little Stars Reading Club, visit your local library or call Council on (07) 3403 8888.
First 5 Forever is an initiative of the Queensland Government, coordinated by State Library of Queensland and delivered in partnership with local government.
