From the Principal...

Term 2 - Week 7

Dear Parents and Caregivers,

Thank you! The last 9 days have been great here at Central. It has been fantastic to have all the students back at school and being engaged in learning. This fortnight students have had opportunities to catch up with each other on the last 8 weeks, participate in a range of activities including classroom and outdoor activities. A big thank you also to our wonderful staff for all they have done in ensuring every family has been welcomed back into our school community.

National Reconciliation Week

National Reconciliation Week, held each year from 27 May to 3 June, is a time for all Australians to learn about our shared histories, cultures and achievements, and to explore how each of us can join the national reconciliation effort. These two dates commemorate two significant milestones in the reconciliation journey.

• 27 May 1967: the successful 1967 referendum, when Australians voted to remove clauses in the Australian Constitution that discriminated against Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.
• 3 June 1992: the High Court Mabo decision, which recognised native title and the acknowledgement that Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples’ rights over their lands did survive British colonisation.

Together, we must create a nation strengthened by respectful relationships between the wider Australian community and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.

I firmly believe that our school’s values of be a LEARNER and be RESPECTFUL – highlight what reconciliation is truly about for us all – to continue to take responsibility to learn about and respect the history, the culture and the achievements of Indigenous Australians. The students at Gympie Central all contributed to the sea of hands which was on display at the base of our flagpole. Thank you to Mrs Vacher for coordinating this activity - it looked fantastic.

The future is ours to shape – we must all make reconciliation part of our story, and our future. Together, we must ensure that we learn from the past to ensure a more respectful and more responsible future, a more fair and a more just future, for all Australians. National Reconciliation Week provides the opportunity for us all to be a part of the next big steps in our nation’s reconciliation journey. 

The P&C ran a successful uniform sale last Friday and it’s been pleasing to see the increase in students wearing school jumpers. The students look great wearing them and it shows pride in our school. Sales were so strong that unfortunately, some sizes have sold out and the P&C will not be ordering new stock due to the long lead in time. As a result, the most recent P&C meeting passed a motion supporting students being able to wear plain navy jumpers. We still have some plain second hand navy jumpers (without school logo) available for sale for a gold coin donation. Plain navy jumpers purchased from retail stores are suitable to wear.

COVID-19 Update

Queensland has done an amazing job managing the COVID-19 virus. The school is still following safe practices and following these three tips can help keep everyone safe:

1. Don’t send children to school if they are sick
2. Wash hands regularly
3. Adults should continue to maintain social distancing

As restrictions are relaxed, the school will communicate with families as events are rescheduled.

Positive Behaviour for Learning (PBL)

Our focus areas this week are:

1. Use our manners
2. Play fairly.

Car Parking at 3pm

The end of the school day, cars and school pick-up are a terrible trifecta. We all have to use extra patience around these times.

Parents using and parking in school staff car parks can be unsafe as the additional cars mean students are more likely to be in the same place as moving cars. While we acknowledge the limited space around the school, families are not to use the school staff car parks at pick up or drop off.   The school will be limiting access to these car parks in the next fortnight.

Buses

Parents are reminded the bus parking area on Lawrence Street is exclusively for the use of buses between 3:00pm- 3:30pm.  O’Connell Street is also a busy pick-up area but please refrain from double parking here. The buses that drive up O’Connell Street are finding the street challenging to navigate while cars are stationary in non-parking areas.

Prep Enrolments

We are inviting all current Gympie Central State School families and community members with a child or children starting Prep in 2021 to contact the school and add your child’s name to our waiting list for 2021.

Children are eligible for Prep next year if they are born between 1 July 2015 and 30 June 2016.  Although the new school year is more than six months away, it is important that we have as much information as possible to manage our enrolments. We hope to have Prep information sessions some time in Term 3. Families will be notified of these as soon as we are able to set dates.

Warm regards,
Glenn Cafferky