Barkly Highway State School - Term 2 Week 6

Principal's Welcome

P&C DAY - MAY 24

From fundraising initiatives that breathe life into innovative projects to volunteering efforts that foster a welcoming environment, our P&C's impact permeates every facet of our school life. Their dedication has seen the realization of numerous enhancements, ranging from the beautification of our school grounds to the provision of essential resources that enhance teaching and learning experiences.

The P&C often operates under the radar, their efforts going unnoticed by many. It is therefore imperative that we take a moment to extend our sincerest appreciation and acknowledgment for their invaluable contributions.

To the members of the Barkly Highway State School P&C, we extend our heartfelt thanks.

Important Information - School Photographer

I wish to inform you of recent developments regarding our school photographer, Academy Photography Australia Pty Ltd.

Unfortunately, we have been notified that the photography company we have been working with for our school photos has gone into liquidation. We understand that this news may be concerning, especially for those who have prepaid for photo packages. Rest assured; we are committed to ensuring that we have as positive an outcome as possible for everyone. We know that school photos form a valuable part of the memories of school lives, as well as a historical record of the school.

The information from the Liquidator for schools involved with the photographer is very general and as there are varying situations that schools could be in, the information for our situation we received is limited.

We will keep you updated through various communication channels which includes updates in our fortnightly newsletters, as well as through class Dojo and our school FaceBook page.

We sincerely apologise for any inconvenience this may cause and thank you for your understanding and patience during this time. Our priority remains the satisfaction and well-being of our school community, and we are committed to resolving this matter as quickly as possible. Thank you for your continued support.

Kind regards,

Fiona Kropp

Mrs Roberts Report

The Australian Curriculum

In 2008, all governments agreed a national curriculum was needed to deliver an equitable, quality education for all young Australians and the national curriculum was then developed over a number of years. The national curriculum is reviewed every 6 years and the 2020– 2021 review resulted in the Australian Curriculum, Version 9.0.

During the transition period over the next few years, both Version 8.4 and Version 9.0 will be available.

Come January 2025, Barkly Highway State School will be using Australian Curriculum V9.0 for English and Mathematics only, remaining subjects will still follow V8.4.

The review has made improvements to the Foundation to Year 10 curriculum by refining, realigning and decluttering the content. There is a better alignment between the achievement standards and content descriptions, and improved links between learning areas and the general capabilities and cross-curriculum priorities.

BEFORE AND AFTER SCHOOL EXPECTATIONS

As outlined in our Parent Guidelines, students at Barkly Highway State School are instructed after release from classrooms, to make their way home, leaving the school grounds immediately if they are going home independently OR moving to the gate where they are being collected, sitting quietly as no play is to occur in the school grounds at this time. (School play areas, Prep and the front fort have signs stating that they are out of bounds before and after school and parents are asked to support the school expectations in monitoring your children and how they move out of the school grounds).

We also encourage all students to head straight to school after leaving home in the morning.  While the pump track is a great recreational area for families, it continues to create issues for unsupervised children  on school mornings which then impacts the start of day. Parents and caregivers, we ask for your support with keeping our children safe while travelling to and from school.

SCHOOL ZONE PARKING AND PICK-UP

Schools are busy areas, where there are often lots of children—who do not always understand the danger of roads and vehicles. Make sure to take extra care when parking and driving on the roads and streets around the school. Please follow the signed parking rules at all times.

Safe entry and exit of the school grounds

We are teaching our students through our Positive Behaviours for Learning approach to be responsible when entering and exiting the school grounds by walking safely to pick up areas. Our students can leave or enter the school grounds by walking in or out of the pedestrian gates located at the Stop Drop N Go area on Urquhart Street, on Buka Street near the pedestrian crossing and on Bougainville Street.

Thank you for supporting the school expectations by:

• driving and parking safely near schools,
• monitoring your children as they enter and exit the school, and speaking with them about walking in and out of the school grounds safely.

School security

Over the past week we have had many trespassers on the grounds after school hours. If you see anyone in the school grounds after hours, please phone School Watch 13 17 88 to report any sightings.

Buka Street - School Crossing Supervisor

As of Monday, we will no longer have a School Crossing Supervisor on the Buka Street pedestrian. Please wish Miss Linda all the best for her future endeavours. Be safe when crossing the road. 

THANK YOU, PARENTS AND CITIZENS

Thank you to our P&C and their families who came together on Sunday afternoon to assist with installing the bollards around the school. These will form the framework of our future QR Code Outdoor Adventure Classroom.

This project has been made possible from a successful grant from @HealthAndWellbeingQld.

STEM Projects

Over the past weeks, as well as during the remaining weeks of this term many of our year 4, 5 and 6 students have been undertaking extra STEM opportunities delivered online as an extension of the curriculum.

The courses have had students engaging in simple coding and design programs to create space objects and computer functions. They have explored scientific principles of heat transfer, reactions from combined materials and the properties of various substances in different experiments.

A group of year 5 students have this week begun their STEM course about forces, in which they will explore how different forces are created and applied to one another. Barkly Highway is thrilled to have such opportunities to extend and challenge our student’s thinking in support of their classroom learning.

FANFARE

Congratulations to our band and strings ensembles who participated in FanFare last week. Barkly Highway came away with a silver award for both band and strings. It’s always a joy to see students pursuing a passion in music and getting to perform in front of a crowd.

Library News

Book Fair is coming to our school next week! We will be holding our Book Fair May 27-29. Our students are always excited to browse through the pop-up store in the Library. On offer are a variety of books suitable for all ages, as well as some stationary, diaries, kits and posters. Each class will have a thirty-minute slot during the week to browse the Book Fair. Students may bring a wish list home with titles and cost recorded of an item they are interested in. Please note, there is no obligation to purchase.

We will be open before and after school (further information coming), and we look forward to seeing many of our Barkly Highway families during the Book Fair enjoying time together browsing and maybe finding a new book to purchase.

The annual National Simultaneous Storytime was on Wednesday, 22 May. This year’s chosen book was Bowerbird Blues by Aura Parker and students had the opportunity to read this book with their class.

As always, please contact us with any queries you may have.

Kind regards,

Svenja Spitzner-Lewis

Events & Flyers

Want to know what's happening within the school? Check out our School Calendar to keep up to date.

https://barklyhighwayss.schoolzineplus.com/calendar/1

Follow us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/barklyhighwaystateschool