2 September 2016

Newsletter Articles

Principal’s Report

Dear Parents and Caregivers,

It really has been an enormous two weeks with many events taking place and the arrival of beautiful little girl into the Gill family. Mrs Gill is doing well and has settled into motherhood like a duck to water.

The change and roll on effect that has occurred here in the admin has been a smooth one, with Mrs Gabby Raffin taking the reins of the Preps and Year 1’s, Mr Ben Morris coming off class for the remaining four weeks of term to look after our Year 4’s, 5’s and 6’s and the ever reliable Mr Elvis Gegić continuing in his role as Deputy Principal for our Year 2’s and 3’s.

This week we are celebrating national literacy and numeracy week, so as I’m writing this newsletter the school is gearing up for two very large events today (Wednesday 31st) and tomorrow (Thursday 1st) with Real Men Read and the Coomera Springs Mathletics Invitational to be held at Movie World. Stay tuned for lots of facts and photos from both celebrations in next edition of our school newsletter.

National Literacy and Numeracy Week (NLNW) is an annual event promoting the importance of literacy and numeracy to future learning, life participation and work opportunities. This year Digital Literacy is being included as part of the week to raise awareness of the importance of digital literacy as one of the foundation skills for the workforce in the 21st Century.

Taylor Haley/Acting Principal

News from Our Deputy Principals

Coomera Springs Mathletics Invitational

On the first of September teams of 4 students from each Year 1 to Year 6 grade will travel to Movie World for the first Coomera Springs Mathletics Invitational event.

Students will compete against 3 other local schools in a celebration of mental computation skills. Each year level will battle it out in a Live Mathletics challenge until we find an overall winning school.

2017 Prep Enrolments

Prep enrolments for 2017 are now open and numbers are flooding in. We already have over 50 future Coomera Springers. Coomera Springs State School has an exciting transition program so if you have younger siblings, friends or family ready to start Prep please don’t hesitate to enrol your child sooner rather than later.

Kokoda Challenge

COURAGE, ENDURANCE, MATESHIP, SACRIFICE…

The Coomera Springs State School community would like to wish our teachers and students embarking on their Kokoda Challenge this weekend… best of luck for the big day. The group have been training hard for months in the mornings before school and on many weekends. Miss Andrews, Mr Fletcher, Miss Jones and Miss McCreedy are leading our team for a mammoth 15 km trek through the stunning national forests around Brisbane. The event is not for the faint hearted - it's all about supporting each other through to the end, pushing yourself beyond your limits and achieving something you thought could never be possible.

The roots of the event lie in the Kokoda Campaign of World War II and the bravery and sacrifice our Australian Diggers displayed to hold off the Japanese invasion in Papua New Guinea. The part our heroes played almost certainly protected Australia from direct invasion.

Taekwondo

Congratulations to Aikan G in Year 4 for earning the National Taekwondo title for 8 and 9 year olds. Aikan edged out a tough rival to secure 2 Gold Medals and the overall title of National Champion.

Taekwondo is a Korean martial art, characterized by its emphasis on head-height kicks, jumping and spinning kicks, and fast kicking techniques. In Aikan’s age group there is significant safety equipment and no striking to the head. Aikan relied on the speed in his legs to best his competitors outscoring them in some close encounters

QParents

Coomera Springs State School is proud to be one the first schools in Queensland to offer QParents.

Thank you to all those parents who have registered for QParents. This means every registered parent now has the opportunity to access to their children’s student records at their fingertips, anytime, anywhere. Haven’t received an invitation from us yet? There’s still time! Please let us know immediately. Or if you are simply looking for further information, videos and FAQs on QParents, visit

QParents Overview

The QParents web and mobile application provides a more convenient, easier way for parents and legal guardians of Queensland state school students to interact with their child’s school. Parents will have secure, online access to their child’s student information, anytime, anywhere, through a smartphone, tablet or computer.

QParents allows parents to connect instantly with their child’s school to access and manage their child’s student information, including:

• Attendance and absence details, as well as the ability to notify the school of an absence
• Behaviour information
• Academic report cards
• Class timetables
• Viewing unpaid invoice details, payment history, and making payments online
• Viewing and updating student details, including medical conditions and address
• Enrolment details

QParents will assist both staff and parents in sharing and responding to information in an efficient and effective way.

It won’t replace the traditional ways you communicate with our school, but it will provide another way to communicate with us.

The benefits of QParents

Convenience and time savings for parents

• Parents can view or update their child’s details without having to contact the school
• Secure 24/7 online access.
• Available anytime, anywhere — access QParents on your smart phone, tablet or computer.

Greater transparency of information

• Improves accountability between parents and schools by providing parents with timely access to their child’s information online.
• Allows parents to engage more deeply in their child’s schooling

Improved administration efficiencies for schools

• Allows schools to streamline their administrative processes and cut down on printing

What is a QParents Account Owner (QPAO)?

The school will nominate one parent or legal guardian for each student to be the QParents Account Owner (QPAO). The QPAO will be able to register for QParents to access and manage the student’s information online. A student’s QPAO will be able to view the student’s information and submit requests to update some of the student’s details.

The QPAO will also be able to invite other people (such as another parent or family member), to view the student’s information. Once invited, these people can register for QParents as “delegated viewers”. A delegated viewer can see the student’s details, but cannot make updates.

Registering for QParents

Prep parents will receive an invitation email or letter from us containing your unique invitation code in week 3 with all remaining parents receiving an invitation in week 7. Simply follow the instructions in that email or letter to complete the QParents account registration process.

If you do not want to register, you can just ignore the invitation and your child’s student information will not be available to anyone through QParents. Or, if you want another parent to be the QPAO, you can advise us and we will send them an invitation email or letter with their own unique invitation code.

For more information on the online identity verification process, see

Where does the information about my child come from?

All of the information that is presented in QParents comes from the IT system that is used by all Queensland state schools. Schools will continue to manage student information in this system, and the information will be extracted and presented in QParents.

Will my child’s information be secure?

Yes. QParents is a secure portal that meets strict industry standards. Only people with the right to access information about their child will be given an account; no one else.

If you don’t want to register for QParents, your account will not be created and your child’s information will not be made available through QParents.

Help and contact information

For help, visit the link below or call 13 QGOV (13 74 68)

Maths Olympiad

Our Maths Olympiad team represented our school in an exemplary manner during the last day of the Maths Olympiad at Pimpama State Secondary College. Lachlan, Jamie, Sean , Darcy and Corbyn participated in a series of challenges throughout the day starting with a number of warm ups which then lead to themed speed tests. Our team reaped the rewards during the speed tests winning a number of token prizes. The next challenge came in the form of a challenge problem which had to be solved using a thinkboard. Our team also composed an iMovie trailer outlining the problem and the steps they took to complete the challenge. The day culminated with the teams trailers be shared in the lecture theatre.

NAPLAN ONLINE - TRIAL OF THE NEW ONLINE ASSESSMENT PLATFORM

You may have heard that NAPLAN Online is being introduced from 2017, with an aim for all schools to be administering NAPLAN online by 2019.

NAPLAN Online will provide better assessment, more precise results and faster turnaround of information. Your child’s results will be returned to you faster, within a couple of weeks rather than a couple of months.

Our school has been selected to trial the new assessment platform (the computer system the test will be taken on). This trial shouldn’t be seen as a ‘test’ of content; it is a chance for the new platform to be tested in a real-life classroom environment. This trial is called the Platform Trial and Readiness Test (PTRT).

During August 2016, students in Years 3 and 5 will participate in a trial of the assessment platform, by undertaking one online readiness test that includes examples of the new NAPLAN online questions. This test will take approximately 45 minutes to complete.

Participating in this trial is important as it will help us ensure we have adequate internet connectivity, and whether students have access to sufficient number of devices for NAPLAN testing. During the trial, schools will have the opportunity to practice managing the classroom logistics for an online assessment and the new test administration processes.

Feedback from schools participating in the trial will inform transition to the online assessment as well as provide valuable feedback to shape the final development of the NAPLAN Online platform.

The readiness test has not been constructed to assess curriculum knowledge, but rather to provide students an opportunity to experience the types of questions that will be included in the new online assessment.

Participation in this trial is a key step to ensuring a successful NAPLAN online experience.

Ipad 1:1 class 2017

This is a 1:1 iPad expression of interest submission reminder for Prep and Year Three parents who have children entering Years One & Four in 2017. This EOI information helps determine possible staffing/ classroom structures for these year levels in 2017 and is a vital part in the iPad program process.

If you would like another copy of the EOI please make contact with the school.

The purchasing portal is now open and ready for orders. We have had many families accessing the portal and completing purchases. There are multiple payment options, including a 6 months interest free selection. Please select the following link to access the portal.

Elvis Gegić/ Acting Deputy Gabby Raffin/Acting Deputy Ben Morris

News from our HOSES

Community Access Program

On Thursday 25th August we had our very first community access session with invited students from the SEP in grades 3 to 6.

We consider this program to be an integral part of our student’s education as it involves participation in activities within our local community. Every second Thursday our students will be developing and consolidating skills in the following areas:

This Thursday we look forward to cooking delicious chocolate chip cookies with our purchased ingredients!!

From a student’s point of view…

Hi,

Last Thursday we went for a long walk to Woolworths, I was responsible for leading the group and demonstrating safe behaviour.

We tried save money buying ingredients by checking prices seeing what was better value. It is important to save money where you can.

By Sam L

News from our Guidance Officer

Next time your kids are having difficulties expressing their emotions, use this chart to help them label and understand their feelings.

News from our Chaplain

Chappy’s Corner

It has definitely been a cracking term so far and I have loved being able to get the mini men shed started with baby steps. With that in mind if you have any bikes, scooters, parts or old tools you no longer want or need we will gladly take them off your hands for the program. Lastly for the breaky club, we will be launching that off at the beginning of term 4 with year 6 helps and anyone else that would be keen to help out with it. If you are free to help or are interested in helping in other ways like some people have already offered to do, feel free to contact me at benf@chappy.org.au.

Food for thought

One thing I have found this term which has been really helpful is not to create busyness. So often we think that we should be doing something every minute of the day and feel guilty when we have some spare time in our days. I naturally am trying to find something to do because I feel that I should be working 100% every minute of the day. The problem is that we were not made for that. As humans we need to stop and rest, using those down times to recoup and recover. If you are someone that is busy without even trying to be, try taking some 5 minute breaks throughout the day and take some time for yourself. Also make sure you are taking time out to spend with your family too, because children want nothing more than to be able to spend time with their parents and other loved ones.

News from our IT Department

Dear Parents and Carers,

Are you subscribed to our newsletter?

Do you see it off the website, emailed from the school or our Facebook or twitter accounts?

Would you like to get it emailed to you as soon as it is released…?

Please click on the link below to receive it via email as soon as it is released!

Further into the Sign Up process is the option for you to choose your association with the school (e.g. Staff, Parent, and Student)

News from our Music Department

Footsteps to Fame

Footsteps to Fame Round 1 auditions have now been completed with lots of fabulous and talented students coming along to impress us with their auditions. Well done to everyone who auditioned!

The Round 2 Semi-finalists were announced on Tuesday 30th August (the list of students going through to Round 2 is posted on the window of the Music Building). Semi Finals will be held next week (Week 9) at break times and the Grand Finals are happening in Week 2 of Term 4.

The winners from the Grand Final will be performing at the school fete in October!

There are prizes for the Grand Final winners, more details about that to follow soon!

MUSICAL SHOWCASE EVENING

The Musical Showcase Evening will be held on Wednesday the 7th of September at 5:30pm in our hall. This will be a very exciting evening of music and entertainment.

All of our Instrumental Music ensembles will be performing, as well as our Choirs, the Drumline, the Teacher Band and some visiting high school students from Upper Coomera State College.

This is a great opportunity for parents of potential Instrumental Music students to come along and see what the program has to offer.

The event will be catered, Light refreshments will be served before the show and there will be a small entry fee applicable (Gold coin donation for entry).

We also hope to have teacher performances and some visiting high school performers as well.

Our whole school community is invited to come along and enjoy some wonderful entertainment. The date is Wednesday the 7th of September at 5:30pm.

Music Shirts have arrived!

Our performing ensembles are going to look amazing in their new Music Shirts. If your child is in Band, Strings, Choir or Drumline now is the time to order your Music Shirt – available from the uniform shop for $28. We are aiming to have our performing ensembles wearing the new shirts at our Musical Showcase Evening next week, along with the formal uniform bottom half. The students are very excited! Music Shirts can also be worn to school on Thursdays.

Music Centre of Excellence Class

2017 will see another opportunity for our current Year 2s to enter into a Year 3 Music Centre of Excellence class. There will be an information afternoon scheduled at the end of this Term. More details to follow!

News from our PE Department

Parents, sporting enthusiasts and Google experts……have a go at our Sports Quiz question of the week!

Healthy fact

Drinking water is the best way to quench your thirst. Even better, it doesn’t come with all the sugar and energy (kilojoules) found in fruit juice drinks, soft drinks, sports drinks and flavored mineral waters.

Drinking water instead of sweetened drinks also prevents dental problems, while the fluoride found in tap water can help strengthen teeth and bones.

CSSS sporting achievements

• Charlie M, Sean K, Neve V, Kamylie L, Aydin Y, Lilia C, Waimania T, Jacob R, Benjamin R, Riley H, Caoimhe G, Mitchell W and Tania P recently competed in the Broadwater athletics carnival. Coomera Springs came 5th overall out of primary schools in the Broadwater district. All athletes competed well, with Sean, Jacob, Waimania, Kamylie and Neve making it into the Broadwater district athletics team. Great Effort by All!!!
• On Tuesday the 30th of August the year 4 to 6 Coomera Springs students went to the Coomera Sports fields to play touch football against Park Lake SS and Highland Reserve SS. Congratulations to boys and girls for both being the Champion touch football teams for the day. All students gave their best effort and represented the school very well. Awesome job!!!

Year One students enjoying their Gymnastics lessons with Mrs Hodder

News from our Librarian

Dear Parents and Carers,

Book Week

Another Book Week has been and gone with some fabulous costumes.

Thank you for all your support in helping with costumes for your child and coming to our Book Week Parade this year. All the classes looked wonderful with some stand out efforts made. Here are some photos from the day.

Book Club

Book Club has been handed out to students. Please remember to pay online as No cash will be accepted.

Due date for orders will be Wednesday 7th September, 2016.

Happy Reading
Sue Marriott

Upcoming Events

News from our Classrooms and around the School

We love to show you what is going on around our school and in our classrooms.

Under 8’s Day

More Photo’s from our fabulous under 8”s day

Prep

Reading with Year 6 Buddies

Grade 1

Year 1 Science Rotations

Grade 2

Oompa Loompa’s, Willy Wonka, Charlie Bucket, Verruca Salt and even Grandpa Joe all made appearances in 2A and 2C for Book Week!

Grade 3

In Year 3 we had a ball celebrating book week with a fantastic display of costumes!

We are also pleased to announce that Gold Gotcha certificates are being handed out and we have a record number of Year 3 students reaching gold already. 2 weeks until the Gold Gotcha celebrations! Congratulations to those students who have already reached gold.

Grade 4

The students in year 4 enjoyed participating in some science experiments during Science Week. The Year 4 teachers arranged various challenges or experiments to expose the students to the concept of variables, constants, absorption, designing, creating and testing.

The students thoroughly enjoyed the rotating timetable.

REAL MEN READ in Grade 4

The students in 4A and B were lucky to enjoy the presence of two Titan's players for the REAL MEN READ theme at school this week. The Titans players read some 'social stories' to the students. Bullying was one topic covered where the children learned that even some NRL players had been bullied when they were at school. The children were encouraged to report this sort of behaviour to an adult either at school or home to prevent or stop bullying in the future.

News from our P&C President

Fete – Save the Date!

Our fete is fast approaching. In the coming weeks you will start to see things popping up with regards to the fete.

It is being held this year on Friday 21st October 2016 from 4pm – 8pm. There is so much being planned including a fireworks finale. We hope to see everyone there.

Uniform Shop

We are in need of a builder/carpenter to quote for some work we need done at our Uniform shop. If you are/know of a registered ABN business who is able to help with some minor changes please ask them to contact Sharon on coomeraspringspresident@gmail.com.

Please note As of the end of this term all 2nd hand uniforms received at the uniform shop will be donated to the school for use.

We will no longer have a 2nd hand uniform rack with items for sale in the uniform shop. You are still able to use the notice board to advertise 2nd hand uniforms or there is a facebook page that has been created by parents of the school –Coomera Springs State School Pre-loved Uniforms which you are able to advertise/buy from.

If you have any questions please don’t hesitate to speak to Kylie or any of the P&C Executive.

P&C Secretary and Next Meeting

We currently have an opening on our executive team for a P&C Secretary. If you would like to be involved in the P&C and would some more information please contact the P&C for more information.

Our next P&C meeting will be held on Wednesday 12th October 7pm in the staffroom, next to the Resource Centre. We would love to see you there. If you have any questions or would like to assist the P&C in any way, please do not hesitate to contact me at pandcpresident@coomeraspringsss.eq.edu.au

Sharon Sharp
P&C President

Community Notices

Upper Coomera Physio

What is UC Physio?

UC Physio offer physiotherapy services including musculoskeletal, paediatric, women’s health (pre & post-natal), neurological, pre and operative rehabilitation and respiratory conditions. We are able to offer a range of exercise programs that improve and maintain physical strength and function.

Sprains & Strains
Aches & Pains
Sports
Children
Pre & Post Pregnancy
Incontinence
Clinical Pilates
Hydrotherapy
Aqua Bump Classes

Where is UC Physio?

Level 1
21 Coomera Grand Drive
Upper Coomera QLD 4209

We are opposite the trade entrance to Masters in the Coomera Grand Complex

Phone: 55 618 111
Fax: 55 618 344
e-mail: admin@ucphysio.physio

PO Box 327
Upper Coomera QLD 4209

General Physiotherapy

Musculoskeletal problems
Spine (Back/Neck)
Shoulders
Poor posture
Sport Injuries
Pre & Post-Operative Rehab
Respiratory
Osteoporosis (vibrodisc)

Women’s Health

A Women’s Health Physiotherapist will help people with pelvic floor issues (eg. Incontinence, prolapsed), pregnancy discomforts (eg back, pelvic, and leg pain), and post pregnancy issues (eg abdominal separation, mastitis and breastfeeding issues).

Kids Physiotherapy

Babies and children often require specialised assessment and treatment that can’t be effectively assessed unless the clinic is specially set up to look at these i.e. developmental delay, movement disorders and neuromuscular conditions.

Workcover, DVA and Third Party

With appropriate referral from your doctor we are able to assess and treat, and report back to your referring doctor.

Clinical Pilates

Clinical Pilates is an excellent way to manage poor posture and ongoing chronic problems. It is especially effective in the hypermobile and post-operative populations. Specific DMA assessment and treatment is also very effective at treating dysautonomia when there is a spinal contribution.

Aquatic Physiotherapy

Aquatic physiotherapy programs can be used for joint pain, gait re-education, strengthening, postural control, fitness and balance. It is suitable for many conditions including muscular dystrophy, arthritis, chronic pain conditions, rehabilitation post injury and post-surgery.

Phone: 07 5561 8111

Gold Coast Health Oral Health (Dental) Services

Please note the Dental Van is no longer at Coomera Springs. To find your nearest van please call 1300 300 850 and to arrange an appointment for your child call:

The Oral Health Client Service Centre
1300 300 850
Monday – Friday 8.00 am – 4.30 pm
Excluding Public Holidays

Child Dental Benefit Schedule Vouchers are accepted. When your child’s $1000 cap is reached, there will be no out-of-pocket expenses provided your child meets *eligibility criteria.

* Eligibility – All Queensland resident children aged four years or older who have not completed year 10 of secondary school.

Junction Café

Junction Café is located in Coomera Square shopping centre. We are open for breakfast, lunch and Thursday night for dinner.

Open from 7:00 am to 4:00 pm 7 days
Thursday from 7:00 am to 8:00 pm

Plenty of room for mums to come in with pushchairs and enjoy a coffee while the kids plays at their own little table.

We are looking at hosting small cooking demonstrations on a week day morning with our Chef utilising pantry staples with a few simple chef twists. Afterwards there will be a Q&A with the Chef over a coffee or tea for those that are interested please phone 5580 0060.

Our menu has the good ol’ classics for breakfast with some added favourites, like, overnight oats, omelettes, lifestyle choice and the iconic hash stack. This runs all day

Lunch has a street food vibe, which has bagel burgers, soft shell tacos, street wings, Thai salad, BLT and a lot of mouth-watering favourites to offer.

We also offer fresh made to order sandwiches, wraps, Devonshire teas, toasted sandwiches and a few gluten free alternatives, to name a few.

Our Devonshire teas and ham, cheese, tomato toasted sandwiches are on a permanent special at $5.00.

We are a Pay it Forward café. So what does this mean? We collectively pool tips and donations, which are topped up from sales. This is given back to the community by way of tokens. These can be exchanged for a meal or drink for those that are finding it a little tuff.

We also host morning tea and scones for residents of the local aged care facilities with the Pay it Forward programme.

Follow us on Instagram: #junctionatcoomera

Gold Coast Lego Brick event

The Gold Coast Brick Event will be at the new Gold Coast Event Centre at the Racecourse on the 17 & 18 September will be a fantastic event for all ages with over 30 dioramas and LEGO exhibits, LEGO play areas and much more. This is an event not to be missed.

Choose how to add this event to your calendar:

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Other Calendar Google Calendar, Yahoo, etc. - Download .ics file

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