Glass House Mountains State School - Glass House Mountains ...

Glass House Mountains
 State School
 16th September 2020
 Embracing the Future Together – Caring, Learning and Succeeding

Principal Message – Ms Gaynor Williams
 Dear parents and caregivers,

 Can you believe that it is the end of Term 3 already? The year seems
 to be flying by. That means that after 2 weeks of well-earned rest for
 our staff and students, we will only have ten more weeks of the
 school year remaining. That’s ten weeks of learning at Glass House
 Mountains State School where every day matters and where
 arriving at school on time and staying until 2.30 means students
 have every opportunity to engage in learning and work towards
 achieving their goals. I have included in this newsletter an article
 about The Hidden Benefits of Education. Please read on as it will give
 you the language you may need when your child asks you WHY they
 should come to school every day or WHY they should persist if the work is hard or if it’s not their favourite subject.

 Staffing

 Most families who know Mrs Madeline Richardson, who has been teaching in Prep A and 1C this term, would also
 know that Maddi is expecting a baby soon. Mrs Richardson will be taking leave from the end of this term to prepare
 for the arrival of her new baby. This is a very exciting time for Mrs Richardson and her family as they prepare to
 welcome a new baby into their growing family. We all wish Madeline and her family all the best as they welcome
 their new baby. Mrs Karen Thomas and Ms Martina Houston will now be teaching full time in these two classes.

 Our substantive Principal at Glass House Mountains State School, Mrs Elizabeth Blomkamp has asked me to let you
 know that she will need to extend her leave for the remainder of the 2020 school year. This means I will be
 continuing on as Acting Principal in Term 4. I have attached a letter to families from Elizabeth below and I am sure
 you will join me in wishing her a full and speedy recovery.

 Letter from Mrs Blomkamp

 As the term draws to a close, I just wanted to thank parents and community for working hard to support children and
 the school during these extraordinary circumstances this year. It has certainly put everyone under a great deal of
 pressure to create a stable and continuous learning environment for our children.
 I’m extremely proud of the quality education and service that our staff deliver to our community at Glass House.
 I have finally had the cataract in my right eye extracted and Friday 11 September I had the left eye operated on. It
 has been such a journey to live with limited vision. However, it does make you appreciate what you have.
 In mid-October, I will undergo extensive surgery and recovery and this will not allow me to return in fourth term.
 Again, it’s not quite how I saw this year unfolding. But, in some ways it has been a blessing as certain health issues
 might have remained unchecked with greater consequences.

I know that many of you have had struggles as well and I sincerely hope that things are starting to ease and improve
for you.
I wish you and your children relaxing holiday break. Take care, stay well 
Kind regards,
Elizabeth
Senior Leaders’ Badge Ceremony

Last week 17 year 5 students took a pledge to:

Make worthwhile contributions to school life by Representing their fellow students and their needs; Remaining
involved in a range of school activities; Upholding the schools’ rules and expectations; and Encouraging all students
to follow the schools’ rules and expectations by being Safe, Respectful and Active Learners who wear their school
uniform with pride and work as a team with all student leaders.

I would like to welcome and congratulate our newly appointed Senior Leaders:

  Annabelle J  Jasmine R
  Annabelle L  Lachlan H
  Ava Bella F  Lily S
  Ava S  Mailie G
  Chelsie E  Penny T
  Conner A  Saige C
  Eden F  Savannah W
  Eli P  William W
  Heidi S

Only Senior Leaders are eligible to nominate for 2021 school leadership positions on School Captains, Student
Councilors and House Captains.

Snakes and Magpies

Watch out, watch out, there is active wildlife about!
We are very proud of our beautiful grounds at Glass House
Mountains SS but we are also aware that we all need to live safely
with all of natural inhabitants of our school environment.
Right now, there is a carpet snake that we regularly see around the
grounds. It joined us in the year 4/5 eating area last week. Naturally,
everyone ate inside that day. We also have resident plovers and magpies
which are actively protecting their nests. We have reminded all students
to watch where they walk, to stay out of the garden beds and to wear a
hat at all times when they are out in the school grounds. Please be
assured that if we were aware of a venomous snake that was near our
buildings we would contact snake catchers to relocate it.

Holiday message

Whether your children are staying home with you, attending a
school holiday program or heading off for a family holiday
adventure, I wish them and you a safe and happy 2-week break. We
will look forward to seeing all students back and ready to learn
when school returns on Tuesday, October 6.

Food for thought about the value of education

This week I came across the article below about the value of education, I thought I would share it with you because
it is great to have a way to explain to your child why it is important to work tough, try hard and persist with their
school work. Education encourages us to think for ourselves so that we can become confident – that our thoughts
matter, that we do have talents, that we can do things and that we can live our unique dream.

Students may feel that all too often the value of education is measured by grades or scores, but their education
equips them with important life skills too. Check out the following article that explains some of THE HIDDEN
BENEFITS OF EDUCATION What are the hidden benefits of education? If your child is asking you questions such as,
“What is the meaning of school?”, “Why is school so hard?” and “Why is school so bad?” please be assured that
hiding below the surface of these thoughts there is some magic happening.

These types of thoughts are a sure sign that you’re learning some important skills. Some of them are not obvious
right now, so just to give you some hope, here’s what could be secretly going on:

  Tests are annoying – but they are giving us thinking skills which give us power over our thoughts
  When we do essay drafts, and we receive feedback that we need to do more work, or even worse, go back
 and start again, we are learning how to persist when things don’t go our way
  Persistence lets us feel satisfied – it’s like a reward that you can only get through hard work.
  Growing mentally requires courage, as it opens our minds to new ways of thinking – which feels hard, and
 can sometimes feel weird
  When we do group work we have conversations to get our point across and have to negotiate when we
 don’t agree with what others are saying – we write, speak and question things – we are learning to
 communicate
  We are also learning patience and how to listen to
 different views, and perhaps we are even empathetic – by
 thinking about things from someone else point of view
  Subjects like science, art, math and geography give us skills
 that can help save the planet – we can develop a global
 mindset when we now about what’s going on in the world
You’ve got to have a dream before you can work toward living that
dream, right?

Education matters- at Glass House State School we are committed to providing all students with the educational
opportunities that will give them a life of CHOICE over a life of CHANCE.

Students of the Week:
Week 9
PREP A Ivy for always being an active learning during writing time. You work independently to sound out your
 words. Well done, Ivy!
PREB B Tyler for displaying a 'can do' attitude in using his sounds to write words. Great effort!
1B Blake for being persistent with his work and making great progress with his reading and writing. Blake is
 beginning to add details to his sentence.
1C Taimana for being an active learner and always trying her hardest on all tasks. Great job Taimana!
2B Mia for always demonstrating a never give up attitude in all areas of learning. Mia has improved all areas of
 reading, writing and spelling.
3A Mason for excellent listening, participation and thinking in his spelling group.
4A Rylan for climbing 5 levels in his reading, achieving his reading goal and surpassing his reading target! Great
 job Rylan!
 Jenna for working hard to implement a range of reading strategies to achieve her reading goal and surpass
 her reading target. Well done Jenna! Keep up the wonderful effort!

4B D'yarnah or her persistent and consistent efforts across all learning areas and for the care and kindness you
 bring to our classroom.
5A Lily for her enthusiasm and valuable contributions to all group discussions. Thanks for being a fantastic role
 model 'Superstar'!!
5B Henry for working hard to achieve his reading goal and surpass his reading target.
 Well done Henry-keep up the great work!
6A Jaoxi for making conscious, consistent efforts to improve accuracy and effectiveness of class work and
 assessments this term. Your diligence is commendable Jaoxi, keep up the great work!
6B Neelah for a comprehensive knowledge of Diversity in Australia and the World, demonstrated during tasks
 and discussions in HASS lessons.
 Malakai for a thorough approach to learning all aspects related to writing a 'Letter to the Future' that evoked
 a sense of time and used appropriate formality to inform and entertain his audience.

Week 10
PREP A August for showing enthusiasm towards his sound learning on the carpet. Keep it up!
PREP B Katy for displaying a can do attitude in using her sounds to write words in a sentence. Great effort!
PREP C Cooper for a ‘I can do’ effort with his writing.
1A Bodhi for working hard during writing time to form his letters neatly and write words with more accurate
 spelling choices.
 Zade for taking care to meet all writing task requirements and be able to write a well sequenced and
 detailed retell of a cultural story.
1B Lylah for being an active learner and writer super sentences adding detail to her writing.
1C Harry for always being an active learner and trying his best in all subject areas. Great job, Harry.
2A Mia for being a role model student who has an excellent attitude towards all areas of learning.
 Estella for bringing a positive and motivated attitude towards all areas of learning. A role model student to
 her peers.
2B Judzon for making excellent progress with reading goals and achieving his reading targets.
 Dax for a never give attitude in all areas of learning.
 Quentin for using excellent noun groups to write an information report.
3A Macee for her eagerness to learn and willingness to participate in every aspect of her learning.
3B Sebastiaan for his organisation and persistence in completing learning tasks.
4A Heath for achieving excellent results in his reading. Heath has climbed 5 levels to achieve his reading goal
 and surpass his reading target.
4B Myer for persistent and consistent approach all tasks and activities and for the positive attitude she displays
 every day.
 Luke for the positive energy and can do attitude he brings to our classroom every day.
5A Liam for making valuable contributions to group discussions.
5B Cullen for working persistently on all tasks, and having the confidence to ask questions and seek advice!
 Great job Cullen.
6A Madelyn and Tayla outstanding efforts that go above and beyond with weekly homework tasks all year!
 Truly awesome work!
6B Zachary for giving detailed explanations in Science, of how Natural Disasters affect the Earth and its
 inhabitants.

I am Safe
 I am Respectful
I am an Active Learner

Could this be a new staff uniform?
It’s been a long tiring year and we’ve just about made it through another whole Term! Some of the staff thought
they would celebrate and try to reinvigorate some energy to into the end of the week by sporting some Hawaiian
attire. Everyone is a little tired right now and the team shirts gave everyone a smile. 

QSchools App:

QSCHOOLS – A ‘free’ App to download to keep you up-to-date with information on Glass House Mountains
State School!!

 Do you know about QSCHOOLS a free App the Education Queensland has set up? This is an
 App that you can download for FREE & is linked to our Glass House Mountains State School
 Website. Once you download it on your mobile phone, select Glass House Mountains State
 School as your favourite. All our school news will be at your fingertips.

2021 Prep Enrolment:
If you have a child who will be starting Prep in 2021 or know someone who will be sending their child to Prep at
Glass House Mountains State School next year, please download the enrolment forms from our website:

Enrolment Form

Once we receive your enrolment forms, we will add your child to our class of 2021 Prep list and will be in touch to let
you know more about our enrolment interviews and Prep transition processes.

Around the School:

Our first round of year 5 students have been appointed their leadership badges. This gives
the year 5 students a taste of what it will be like next year as senior leaders.

Below are our Instrumental music students performing for all students on parade.

Library News: Book Club
Please remember no Book club orders or payments will be taken in the office. All orders are to be placed on the
‘Loop’ portal.

https://mybookclubs.scholastic.com.au/Parent/Login.aspx

Dates to Remember:

 Term 3 - 2020 Term 4 - 2020
 th
 24th – 28th Book Week – No 5 October Public Holiday
 August Parents
 6th October Term 4 Starts
 th
 28 August Character Parade

 7th December Yrs. 3-6 Swimming
 st Bookclub Orders Carnival
 31 August
 Close

 3rd Yr. 4 St Helena
 September Island Excursion

 4th Sept Pupil Free Day

 14th Yr.5 Australia Zoo
 September Excursion

 16/17/18th
 Yr.6 Camp
 September

 19th 11th December Last Day of school
 September 2020
 School Holidays
 – 4th
 October

 SCHOOL RESUMES
 TUESDAY 6TH OCTOBER.

 MONDAY 5TH OCTOBER IS A
 PUBLIC HOLIDAY

Community Notices:

Looking for a summer sport?
Come Play Softball!!
Suncoast Hinterland Softball Association invites interested players to sign-on
for the upcoming Summer season.
Sign On: Sunday 13th & 20th September 9am – 12noon
Where: Mooloolah Multi Sports Complex – 129 Mooloolah Connection Rd,
Mooloolah
Who: Males & Females of all ages & abilities – 5yrs to masters
Contact: 0422204661 or secretary@suncoashinterlandsoftball.com
find us on Facebook – Suncoast Hinterland Softball Association