Thursday's Tidings - 20 October 2022

Term 4 - Week 3

Dear families, 

The last weeks of the school year are our opportunity to consolidate our learnings for the year and prepare ourselves for 2023. This term is always a very full term and I am looking forward to another wonderful term of teaching, learning and celebrations here at Gympie Central SS.  

Term 4 Curriculum Overviews were emailed to families earlier this week. These overviews provide parents with the key learning areas and what will be covered across this term. Please keep an eye out for these in your inboxes. 

Prep 2023 - Is your child turning 5 before June 30? 

We are inviting all current Gympie Central State School families and community members with a child or children starting Prep in 2023 to complete and submit an ‘Application for Student Enrolment’ form. The form is available via our website or from our office. Children are eligible for Prep next year if they are born between 1 July 2017 and 30 June 2018. While the new school year is a little less than a term away, it is important that we have as much information as possible to manage our enrolments. 

New and returning families are now invited to book their 2023 prep interviews. These are scheduled for Thursday 17 November, but can be scheduled at alternative times in order meet the needs of our families.

Grandparents morning for Prep/1R - Wednesday 2 November 

Grandma, Nonna, Ma Ma, Nana, MawMaw, Nain, Grammie, Gran, Yaya, Oma, Bibi, Babushka, Lola 

Lolo, G-Pa, Grandpa, Gramps, Pa, Saba, Opa, Pop, Taid, Grandad, Pawpaw, Pappous, Vovo, Jiichan 

Whatever you call your grandparents, they can play such an important part in our children’s lives. The second prep transition this term will be an opportunity for Grandparents of the P/1R children and the incoming preps to join their grandchildren for the morning.

World Teachers' Day - Friday 28 October 

The teachers here at Gympie Central are outstanding! The positive relationships they foster with their students and the dedication they show towards their students is worthy of recognition and helps our students succeed every day. World Teachers' Day is an opportunity to celebrate and thank Queensland teachers for their important role in our communities and for the positive impact they have on the lives of students. Next Friday, 28 October, we’ll be celebrating at school with a morning tea for our teachers and of course, all the staff are invited!  

Day for Daniel - Friday 28 October

Friday 28 October is also Day for Daniel. Students are invited to wear something red on this day - it can be a red shirt, red socks or just something small and red to help raise awareness abot how to make Australia a safer place for children. More information is available at https://danielmorcombe.com.au/  

Book Fair is here! 

Students will have received their Book Fair catalogues, and the actual Book Fair is right here in our library. It runs from Monday 24 October to Wednesday 2 November and is open each morning between 8:15am to 8:45am and in the afternoons from 3:00pm to 3:30pm.  

Do you need a large table?  

The school has a surplus rectangular table to give away. It’s approximately 1200 x 1700 with white laminate top, steel legs and is very solid. There are also a small number of extra school tables no longer needed. Please contact the school at admin@gympiecentralss.eq.edu.au or by phone on 5480 2111 if these could be used around your home or in the shed. 

Administration of Medication at School 

All medications you provide for the school to administer to your child must be prescribed by a qualified health professional who is authorised to prescribe medications under the Health (Drugs and Poisons) Regulation 1996 (Qld) e.g. doctor, dentist, optometrist. 

For medication to be administered during school hours and/or during school-related events, parents are required to provide the school with: 

• a completed Consent to administer medication form - available from the office. 

Ensure all medication (including over the counter medication) 

• is medically authorised (e.g. has been prescribed by a doctor, dentist, optometrist or nurse practitioner) 
• is in the original dispensed container with intact packaging 
• has the student’s and doctor’s names on the pharmacy label 
• is current/in-date 

COVID protocols 

While there is no longer a public health direction in relation to isolation, the guidelines recommend that staff or students stay at home and isolate after testing positive to COVID-19, or if they have any symptoms of an acute respiratory infection.

It is recommended that students should not return to school until symptoms have substantially reduced, and the student has gone for at least 24 hours without a fever requiring the use of fever-reducing medications such as paracetamol or ibuprofen.

It is also recommended that adults wear a face mask when in an indoor setting (when outside your home), for at least 7 days after testing positive to COVID-19.

Remember, we are here to help 

Like always, if there is something that you want our support with, or if your child is struggling, please do not hesitate to contact your child’s teacher for support.  If it is not a matter for the teacher please call the front office and arrange to meet with a member of the leadership team, so we can work through things together.  It takes a village to raise a child, so let’s work together. 

Warm regards,
Glenn Cafferky

Voluntary Contribution - $20 per student

4D News

4D have started the term with lots of enthusiasm.  In HASS, we are looking at sustainability and we are preparing a proposal for Mr Cafferky on some sustainability ideas we could use in our school.  We are hoping to go on an excursion to the Hervey Bay Material Recovery Facility. This is where Gympie’s recycling is taken to and sorted.  In class we are aiming to reduce the amount of rubbish in our lunch boxes.  On average we have 4 pieces of rubbish each per day, so our class alone has 440 bits of rubbish for the school week. To reduce this we are investigating buying in bulk, litter free lunch boxes and using containers rather than single use items.

In Science we are looking at erosion and the causes of erosion.  We want to take a look locally at the impact the floods have on our local environment.

Last term we started making an ‘ology’ book.  ‘Ology’ is the study of something, for example ‘Spaceology’ is the study of space.  The kids could pick their own topic and they are looking so good!  They are doing a fantastic job and I look forward to seeing the end results.

Volunteers Needed