9 June 2023 - Term 2, Week 8
News from Mr Johnson
Dear Parents,
ONE WEEK TO GO…….
International Breakfast 2023 – Lord Mayor Adrian Schrinner to attend
This year we are both fortunate and excited to welcome the Lord Mayor of Brisbane to Ironside State School for our International Breakfast.
This is special event which has been held at Ironside SS for many years. It is an opportunity for everyone to share and taste foods representing the many cultural groups across our school community. Stalls are set up by families representing our many nations. It is coordinated by the International Parent Group.
Each stall provides a selection of breakfast or snack type foods. 1 voucher is exchanged for 1 serving of food. Everyone is encouraged to wear cultural dress on the day.
P&Cs Queensland State Conference – 2023
P&C members and parents can now register for the P&Cs Queensland State Conference, 11 and 12 August at the Gold Coast Convention and Exhibition Centre. Activities include practical workshops, keynote speakers, an exhibitor hall and a parental stream.
Fred Hollows’ Junior Ambassador – Nominations Open
Year 6 students can be nominated for the Fred Hollows’ Junior Ambassador Award. The award celebrates children who show compassion, integrity and kindness by helping others or volunteering 🤝❤. The recipient will be recognised at a virtual ceremony in Term 4. Nominations close 21 July.
It’s Flu Season – Stay Safe!
Influenza, COVID-19 and respiratory syncytial viruses, can result in significant disruption to schools. There are things you can do to help protect yourself and your children:
- Get vaccinated is the most effective way to prevent children and adults from getting flu, becoming seriously ill with flu or passing it on to others.
- Stay at home when sick – see the Timeout brochure
- Practice good hand hygiene wash hands regularly with soap and water or use alcohol-based cleanser
- Practice good respiratory hygiene cough or sneeze into a tissue or your arm, throw tissues away and clean hands
- Clean surfaces regularly
- Ensure good ventilation
All the very best for the final two weeks of the semester. Stay safe and well.
Warm regards,
Damian Johnson, Principal.
News from Mr Weston-Murdoch
Dear parents and caregivers,
Bridge Builders – Skill of the week Skill of the week (Week 7): Make an Agreement
We all know that there are differences and disagreements in all relationships. Therefore, it is logical that how you resolve these disagreements will be critical to the on-going success of those relationships.
Sometimes in a conflict there is common ground. This is something that both children want that is the same. An argument can become complicated by continued hurtful behaviours. Asking children “What do you both want that is the same?” can stop the bickering and help them to focus on what the original problem was and lead them to make an agreement.
Try to remain neutral if you can and let your kids sort it out with your help. Remember that conflict is not bad, it’s an everyday part of life and a great opportunity to learn.
Bridge Builders – Skill of the week (Week 8): Apologise
An apology can be one of the most powerful ways to build a bridge in conflict situations. Giving an apology with meaning and at the right time can bridge the problem quickly and allow children to move on from it.
Children need to be encouraged to look at the person they are apologising to. Eye contact is important in communication. Sincerity is key in an apology, so starting by using the other child’s name is good. It not only gains the person’s attention, it also shows respect. Children should be encouraged to say what they are sorry for, because this shows recognition of what they have done that has caused the pain.
Where possible, it is helpful to encourage children to ‘do’ something that restores justice and can repair the obstacles in the relationship caused by conflict. In some situations, children can’t ‘do’ anything to solve the problem, like when someone has called them a name, hit them or blames them for something they didn’t do. In these cases, they could say, “I’ll try not to do it again.”
“Empowered for Life”; Jocelyne Chirnside
Around the classrooms – Prep:
This term in science, the Prep students have been looking at the Weather. We have turned into quite the Weather Detectives! Our students have become very good at using clues all around (sky, tree, people and wet or dry) to work out what the weather is like.
By engaging in making daily observations and solving weather mysteries the students have become familiar with the use of symbols to ‘read’ what the weather is, gained greater understanding in why pilots, builders, fisherman and students need to plan for the weather and have even come to understand how weather affects animals, like our family pets!
Here’s a MYSTERY for ready for Weather Detectives to solve ….
Keya has to meet her dad at the ice-cream truck but when she starts to walk there, she discovers she doesn’t have any shoes on and the concrete is SUPER hot! Freya has a BIG problem it’s too hot for her to follow her dad without burning her feet! How is she going to get to the ice-cream truck? Look at the picture below and see if you can find a path for Keya….
There has even been time to enjoy some Weather jokes…. here’s one for all of our families….
Q: What did the cloud say to the lightning bolt?
A: You're shocking!
Around the classrooms – Year 1:
This term, the children have investigated the Science unit of ‘Light it up.’ Miss Bulowski guided the children in their investigation of ‘Why light is important to us?’.
Children were involved in participating as:
- ‘thinkers,’ where students considered their prior knowledge and how that related to new information posed, and
- ‘communicators’ where students communicated prior understandings with peers and teacher and discussed thoughts, experiences and beliefs about their scientific understandings.
Around the classrooms – Year 2:
Year Two students have enjoyed travelling around Australia this term while exploring the book ‘Are We There Yet?’ in their HASS unit. They have examined each state and territory while completing a fact train and mapping activity.
Students have located capital cities and famous Australian landmarks on a map while also looking at helpful mapping symbols. They loved playing a version of ‘Guess Who?’ by creating clues about a landmark and reading them back to their peers. Producing art works of the landmarks has been a highlight for the students.
Kind regards,
Scott Weston-Murdoch
Deputy Principal P-2
News from Mr Davey
Sydney Canberra Trip
Students attending Canberra trip
Students requiring pre-planned medication while on camp will require a completed ‘Administration of medication’ form which was sent out via email earlier this week. One form is required per medication.
Prior to staff administering medication:
- The above-mentioned form must be completed.
- Medication must be in-date and be in the original pharmacy labelled container.
- For prescription medication, the container/box must have a valid pharmacy label which includes the name of your child and the prescribing health practitioner to confirm that it is prescription medication.
- For single use medication including travel sickness medication, a pharmacy label with the dosage and child’s name is required. A hand-written label does not meet these criteria. Please do not send Nurofen or Panadol, as the school has supplies of these medications.
- The student must have received a dose at home without ill effect.
- All medications must be in original packaging and placed in a clear, named zip-lock bag with the ‘Administration of medication’ form
All medication is to be handed to Mrs Shelley Lee at Brisbane Airport. Mrs Lee will ensure correct documentation has been provided.
If you have indicated that your child suffers from asthma or an anaphylaxis allergy, it is important that there is a current Asthma Plan or Anaphylaxis Plan for your child in the school office. Reliever puffers and EpiPens will be kept with students at all times.
Children’s Panadol and Nurofen will be packed in the school’s medical kits that are being taken to Canberra. Parents do not need to provide Panadol or Nurofen. In the case of a student becoming unwell whilst on camp, Panadol and/or Nurofen will be administered in accordance with parents’ approvals and according to the weight and age guides on the packaging.
Waiting List
Please be advised that numbers are now finalised for the Sydney Canberra Trip. If your child was on the waiting list, please email Mr Perrier regarding their attendance at school during the week.
Students not attending Year 6 Canberra Trip
If your child is not attending school in Week 1 of Term 3 when the Year 6 Cohort is on the Sydney- Canberra trip, please email Brett Perrier bperr18@eq.edu.au with this information by Friday June 9. This will enable us to plan appropriately for those students staying at Ironside. Please do not email Mr Perrier if your child is attending the Canberra Trip.
BRIDGE BUILDER AWARDS
Congratulations and thank you to our wonderful Bridge Builders who volunteer their lunch times to support younger children to resolve conflict in the playground. These students received their Bronze Certificate today – acknowledging 10 lunch time shifts. Special mention to Kristy who received her Silver Certificate for 20 shifts. We appreciate and value your leadership and contribution to making our playgrounds safe and happy places.
Bridge Builders’ Skill of the Week – Apologising
Apologising is one of the most powerful ways to be a BRIDGE BUILDER. A heartfelt apology can show the other person that you understand that what you did hurt them, and it should involve either a response to fix the problem or an acknowledgement that you won’t repeat the behaviour. However, apologies are often delivered poorly or over-used, and they fall short of being effective. It is important to teach children the skills and language that help this strategy be more effective. Remind children to look at the person when they are saying sorry, and to use their name and apologise for what they have done that has caused the hurt. They can then either commit to trying not to do it again or offer to do something to fix it. To really be effective in building bridges the person who received the apology will either say “Thanks for saying sorry.”, “Apology accepted.” or ‘I forgive you.’
Tips to teach this skill at home:
1. Demonstrate this skill to your child as often as you can.
2. Encourage them to practise with you – check their tone of voice and that they are standing bravely.
3. When they have a conflict with a sibling, once they have calmed down, see if they can have a try at the using it.
Before School
Please note that before school supervision does not commence until 8:30am. This means students not in OSHC or participating in a before school activity, should not be on school grounds before 8:30am.
Kind regards,
Peter Davey
Deputy Principal 3-4
News from Mrs Cowan-Dillon
Inquiries in Year 3 and Year 4
Our Year 3 and Year 4 classes are busily working within the Going Further phase of their English, Science and HASS inquiries. During the Going Further phase:
Teachers will be:
- releasing more responsibility to students.
Students may be:
- working on projects/investigations that are more independent
- focused on aspects of the inquiry they need to find out more about or have become most interested in.
- applying some of the skills they have been learning in the shared inquiry to a more personalized context.
What does Going Further look like in Year 3?
As part of their English and Science Inquiry, Year 3 students have been exploring the big question “How do scientists determine whether something is living or non-living?”. This has involved students asking questions and completing lots of research to find their answers. Students have been sharing this information as posters and information reports.
To celebrate a semester-long inquiry into Commemorations and Celebrations in HASS, parents have been invited to visit the Year 3 classrooms after the International Breakfast next week to view the culmination of their learning. Here’s a sneak peek!
What does Going Further look like in Year 4?
In their Science and English Inquiries, Year 4 students have been conducting a great deal of research to help them answer the big question “What is the importance of the roles and interactions between different organisms in a habitat?” They have explored food chains in different habitats as well as threats that can negatively impact the food chain, such as introduced species.
Kind regards,
Alice Cowan-Dillon
Acting Deputy Principal
Advertising
News from Chappy Thu
Dear Families,
Believe it or not, it’s Week 8 & we only have 2 weeks left before holidays! It will be a fun filled fortnight with the Athletics Carnival, Band & Strings Soiree, International Breakfast, NAIDOC celebrations & we will even have a Silly Sock Day to celebrate National Chaplaincy Week & the end of term. It will be a free event, but parental consent will be needed to participate in the Inflatable Obstacle Course. Don’t forget to return your consent forms & wear your silliest socks on Friday, 23rd June 😊
Chappy Squad
Each Chappy Squad Team has now had an opportunity to earn extra stars at activities & we are getting might close to awarding our first ever Chappy Squad badges on assembly! A big thank you to teams Snow Leopards & Top of the World for their outstanding service over the last two weeks!
Squad Members earn stars each time they help & once they reach 50, they will be presented with a badge on assembly. Here is our current leader board as of Friday, Week 7:
😊
The list will be finalised by Wednesday of Week 10 for our Chappy Squad Awards Party. Please remind your student the Party will be on at second break in B Block on the Wednesday of Week 10 (21st June). Awards & prizes will be given to top members & the top team of Term 2.
If you have a student in Chappy Squad & would like more information about the program or if you would like to be added to a mailing list to receive reminders to pass on to your child, please email me at tklet0@eq.edu.au. Thank you!
Chappy Activities
The past fortnight, we have made foxes & ducks in Origami Club; dressed up & danced at Disco Club; explored bubbles of all sizes at Bubble Friday & had drawing competitions & treats at Chappy Lounge.
Special thanks to Amber & Nethuli for their amazing drawings on the touch screen & for kindly encouraging younger students to participate; thank you to Tingran, Anna, Sara & Emma for keeping the outdoor area beautifully neat & being inclusive of everyone; A big thank you to Brian, Heidi, Rosie, Edie, Sienna & Charlize for representing the Squad in the Prep Area for Bubble Friday – your enthusiasm, kindness & patience was a joy to all involved; Ann, Mariah, Rose, Heidi, Tracey & Shyah, thank you for always being so kind, thoughtful & innovative in every role you take on – you are all stars! And lastly, thanks to the ‘Around the World’ team of Emily, Ash, Nadia, Ayat & Ben for making Disco Club extra fun this week 😊
And that’s a wrap for the regular, organised Chappy Activities for the term. For Week 9, we will have a Bop It Tournament during first breaks in the Oasis & Chappy Chat every second break in B Block. Week 10 will be the Chappy Awards Party & Silly Sock Day!
Chaplaincy Committee
The Chaplaincy Committee is a group of dedicated staff & parents who help organise & run events such as Movie Night, Father’s Day Breakfast & Gingerbread Night. The Committee also contributes to Chaplaincy at Ironside by supporting & brainstorming ideas for all the activities & programs that the Chaplain runs through the year. We meet once or twice a term to discuss all things chaplaincy & would love to have new members, especially anyone willing to take on executive roles. Our current president, David Moore, is sadly leaving Ironside next year as his youngest will be off to high school, so in particular, we are looking for a new president. If you are interested in joining the committee or would like more information, please email me at tklet0@eq.edu.au. Thank you!
Supporting Chaplaincy
Thank you to everyone who has donated to Chaplaincy over the past fortnight! Your generosity is much appreciated! If you are interested in donating goods this term, I am especially looking for bubble solution. I usually buy the 2L bottles from Kmart which are around $7 each.
You are also welcomed to donate money directly to chaplaincy, which will go to funding resources, activities & fun days like the upcoming Silly Sock Day. All donations are tax deductible & if you wish to do so, please use this link: https://www.suqld.org.au/donate/ironside-ss-chaplaincy-tax-deductible/
And that’s all from me for now.
Until Next Time,
Chappy Thu
tklet0@eq.edu.au
Wednesday, Thursday & Friday
8am to 4pm
International Parent Group News
International Breakfast 2023 Update
One week to go until 2023 International Breakfast on Friday, 16th June….
This is shaping up to be a wonderful community event for our school. Thank you to so many families and staff who have offered to coordinate and/or assist with stalls. Thank you to the International Parent Group and the P & C for making this event possible this year!
This year we will have a total of 34 stalls. The menus will be featured on our Facebook page over the coming week so you can plan your tasting journey through….
Burma, Japan, China, Turkiye, Australia, Oman, Lebanon, Iran, Chile, Mexico, Iraq, India, Sri Lanka, Bolivia, Colombia/Venezuela, Israel, Russia, Pakistan, Indonesia, Korea, Hungary, Germany, Malaysia, France, Madagascar, Croatia, Romania, Great Britain, Vietnam, Philippines and South Africa/Zimbabwe.
Profits from the International Breakfast are donated to charity. This year we are proudly supporting 3 charities – Turkish Women’s Association towards Earthquake Relief, Asylum Seekers Resource Centre (ASRC) and the Royal Children’s Hospital. Both the Qld Turkish Women’s Association and ASCR will have stalls at the breakfast this year.
What is International Breakfast?
This is a special event which has been held at Ironside SS for many years. It is an opportunity for everyone to share and taste foods representing our many cultural groups across our school community. Stalls are set up by our families representing our many cultural groups and are coordinated by the International Parent Group. Each stall provides a selection of breakfast or snack type foods. 1 voucher is exchanged for 1 serving of food. Everyone is encouraged to wear cultural dress on the day.
Date – Friday, 16th June, 2022 Time – 7:15am until 9:00am
Location – Stalls will be set up in and around the Hall and under the Library basement. Families usually love to sit on the oval sharing food and time together.
We are strongly encouraging everyone to bring their own containers for food. Some drinks and hot items will still be served in recyclable and heat safe containers. A coffee van has been booked!
Vouchers -
- Vouchers are being sold in strips of 4 vouchers and cost $12 per strip. This is a cashless event so vouchers need to be purchased prior to the day. There will be no vouchers sold on the day.
- Vouchers are on sale (cash and Eftpos) in the OASIS/Grassy Patch until Thursday 15th June (before and after school). Vouchers are also available for purchase using QKr! until Wednesday 14th Vouchers are then delivered to your child’s classroom.
- There will be a table at the Breakfast where unclaimed vouchers will be available for collection.
We look forward to seeing everyone together as we celebrate our multicultural community!
Kind regards,
Kylie Sommerfeld
EAL/D and International Breakfast Coordinator
Tuckshop News
Tuckshop Update
Due to operational issues, the tuckshop has put a hold on serving 2nd break Qkr! orders. Students can still order via Qkr! For 1st break by 8am for service the same day or if the 8am cutoff has passed the late menu is open until 10am. We apologise for any inconvenience caused. The tuckshop is still open for over the counter sales for both 1st and 2nd break.
Volunteers needed!
We need 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 with preparing, serving, and cleaning up in the tuckshop. No experience is necessary, just a friendly smile and a willingness to learn. There’s not even any need to commit to a regular roster, just sign up when you can!
Volunteering in the tuckshop is a great way to meet other parents, support our school community, and have some fun. You can sign up here volunteersignup.org/7RXX4
If you cant spare any time and enjoy baking perhaps you could sign up to our Homebake roster, We will release a new one each month , here is the one for June volunteersignup.org/PL489
Thank you Emily for dropping off this delicious homebake this week:
Uniform Shop News
