91 Gore Street, Murgon QLD 4605 T: (07) 4169 8333 F: (07) 4169 8300 E: principal@murgonss.eq.edu.au Murgon State School www.murgonss.eq.edu.au

Murgon State School acknowledges the Traditional Custodians of the land, the Wakka Wakka people, of the country on which the school is located and pays respect to their Elders past and present.

Principal’s Message

Wunjuada, Welcome! Term 2, Week 2 • 30th April 2021

“Every day in every classroom every student is learning”

At least 12 months growth for one year’s schooling

Welcome back to Term 2! In the first two weeks of this term, we have had some very exciting events occur already; our school captains held their first official event, our ANZAC Day ceremony, ground has been broken on our language, culture and wellbeing garden and we held our first ‘Learner First Alliance’ (Student Council) meeting with a large number of students wanting to influence and shape the direction and representation of our school and community into the future.

ANZAC Day Thank you to Mr Kevin Gill, Mrs Simone Taylor and Mr Paul Taylor for attending our student-led ANZAC Day parade; your time and effort was greatly appreciated. Mr Gill spoke to us about the meaning of ANZAC Day and also presented the school with a number of badges for our students to wear whilst they marched at various services around our community.

On Sunday 25th April, our students represented Murgon State School at the Murgon Community ANZAC Day service. Students and staff marched with pride as we collectively paid respect to the ANZACs past, present and future. Thank you to all of the parents, families and Clontarf staff who ensured students were able to be part of this very important event.

Language, Culture and Wellbeing Garden Uncle Robert, Pop Neil and some of our Year 4-6 students have been busy working on the creation of our new garden and outdoor learning space. This exciting project is beginning to take shape, with the grass being stripped back and the measuring and installation of the garden bed areas being carried out by our students. We had some visitors from the Barambah Educational Centre come and share their knowledge about suitable plants that have strong links to our local area and Wakka Wakka culture. Stay tuned as this exciting project takes shape! If you would like to be part of this

project, please contact the office and ask to speak to me directly or alternatively, chat to Uncle Robert Langton. We would love to involve local community members in the various parts of this construction as we create an engaging cultural learning space for all students and community members.

Aaron Jones, Principal

Diary Dates: Parade will be held on Mondays at 9:00am in the Shed.

TERM 2 Monday 3rd May Labour Day Public Holiday

Tuesday 11th May - Friday 21st May NAPLAN (Year 3 & 5)

Monday 17th May - Sunday 23rd May National Volunteer Week

Wednesday 26th May National Sorry Day

Monday 31st May Prep Vision Screening

Week 9 Athletics Carnival

Friday 25th June Last day of Term 2

Connect with us

Murgon State School

Inclusive ServicesTeacher and parent webinars to support students with autism April is Autism Awareness Month, which brings an opportunity to highlight the strengths of students with autism, and explore opportunities to further improve their educational achievements. The Autism Hub is committed to building the confidence and capability of schools and families to include, engage and retain students with autism. Throughout April, the Principal Advisors Autism are offering a number of webinars for teachers and parents and other members of the community.

To find out what’s available, head to the Autism Hub website: www.autismhub.education.qld.gov.au/professional-learning/workshops-calendar.

NAPLAN is on our doorstep, therefore, parents of Year 3 and 5, make an appointment with your student’s teacher if you want to discuss any concerns regarding these tests or assessments.

Hope to see you all soon on our wonderful campus.

Stay well,

Mr Dale Warren Head of Inclusive Services

Ahhhhhh … Just relaxing or meditating!!! Breathe slowly in

and out and concentrate on your core (stomach muscles).

Deputy Principal’s MessageStudent voice and agency is a powerful change agent in schools and the work we have done around The Learner First placed student voice at the centre. I am very excited that our “Learner First Alliance”, with the assistance of Mrs De Bruyn and Mr Trost, has emerged from this work to shape what success, deeper learning and equity looks like at Murgon State School. What we traditionally know as a Student Representative Council (SRC) or Student Leadership Council (SLC) has morphed into an alliance where learners are the voice and agents of change. They are the Student Change Team and I look forward to working with them as we continue to embed success, deeper learning and equity across the School.

On Change Teams, the Behaviour and Engagement Change Team made of interested teachers had its first meeting on Wednesday, 28 April. The team’s moral purpose is to review behaviour and engagement and to co-create with students and families the ‘Murgon Way’ of managing behaviour and enhancing engagement with learning. The Change Team has been formed to deliver on one of the five key recommendations from the School Review: ‘establish a shared understanding of high expectations for student behaviour and engagement that all staff consistently apply, underpinned by agreed evidence-based practices.’ A key action of this work is to ‘establish processes to collect, analyse and share student behaviour and wellbeing data to inform a consistent school-wide approach to engendering a culture that promotes learning.’ I will share the

outcomes of this work as we journey forward.

Mr John Sarev

Deputy Principal

Year 5/6 Transition Program to High SchoolYear 5 and 6 families would have received information and consent forms for the Health and PE Gala Day at Murgon State High School. We require the consent forms returned to the School by 10 May 2021 so that we can pass them on to the High School. Transitioning to high school does not solely relate to curriculum and assessment. Wellbeing and resilience are two critical components of a successful transition program at both the primary school and high school. This Term, the Year 5 and 6s will focus on wellbeing and resilience strategies that they can potentially employ in Year 7. We will be using Education Queensland’s Student Learning and

Wellbeing Framework, as well as Zones of Regulation and the Locus of Control, to achieve and measure our success. It is important to remember that the World Health Organisation (2014) defines wellbeing as ‘a state in which every individual realises his or her potential, can cope with the normal stresses of life, can work productively and fruitfully and is able to make a contribution to his or her community.’

John Sarev On behalf of the Year 5/6 Transition Team

Be Respectful , Be Safe, Be a LearnerNewsletter Friday 30th April 2021 • Page 2

Murgon State School

Just as important as teaching the literacy aspects of each subject is teaching the numeracy skills that are required for our students to be successful. When we hear the word ‘numeracy’ we tend to think of numbers but it is more than that. Numeracy helps children to understand and use numbers in everyday life. Other examples could include recognising shapes, understanding data and working out the chance of something happening. In everyday situations this relates to daily activities like telling the time, reading a recipe when cooking, planning a trip, reading a map, understanding and making predictions with the weather. In a digital world as adults this could be understanding mobile phone plans, reading and interpreting plane or train timetables. As students progress through year levels the need to develop numeracy skills is just as important as developing literacy skills. We don’t just develop numeracy skills in Mathematics. They are developed in all subjects. It’s more than just numbers!

Tracy Flavel, Head of Learning (Curriculum P - 6)

Student banking services no longer availableSchool banking services will cease to be offered in our school and all Queensland state schools from 31 July 2021. In line with several other states and territories, the Department of Education’s decision is in response to the Australian Securities and Investments Commission’s (ASIC) Review of School Banking Programs report in December 2020. Students will be able to maintain their banking relationship directly with their bank. Consumer and financial literacy will continue to be delivered to students as part of the Prep to Year 10 Australian Curriculum, including Moneysmart and the BuySmart competition.

Engagement OfficerWhat a busy and wonderful start term we have had. It has been such a pleasure seeing Murgon State School students and staff frequently utilising The Zones of Regulation. Across the classrooms I have seen and received feedback that students are using common language when referring to the “get back on track” table set up within the

classrooms. This is a space in the classroom where students can go, take a break and utilise a tool to assist them to regulate their emotions. Don’t forget to take some time each day to focus on some social and emotional learning with your children.

Chantelle Filjak

Meet the Student Teacher: Lauren Higginson

MMyy ffaavvoouurriittee tthhiinnggss……

FFoooodd:: Burritos

CCoolloouurr:: Green

MMuussiicc:: 80’s and 90’s classic hits!

AAnniimmaall:: Dogs

BBooookk:: Harry Potter

MMEEEETT TTHHEE SSTTUUDDEENNTT TTEEAACCHHEERR

Lauren Higginson

I wanted to take this opportunity to introduce myself as a

student teacher who will be working alongside Miss De Bruyn

I am in my final year of Masters of Primary Teaching and excited

to get to know your child over the course of my 4-week

placement.

AA lliittttllee bbiitt aabboouutt mmee……

UUnniivveerrssiittyy:: University of Queensland

HHoobbbbiieess:: Netball, running, hiking, travelling,

playing with my dog.

IInntteerreessttiinngg FFaacctt:: I love trying new things… at

the moment I’m learning how to crochet.

MMyy GGooaallss aanndd AAssppiirraattiioonnss

- Getting to know my students and their individual needs. - Encouraging an active lifestyle amongst my students and highlighting the benefits of

mindfulness - Identifying and working together to develop character strengths amongst students and

the importance of their socio-emotional learning.

MMyy pprraaccttiiccuumm ccoommmmeenncceess oonn MMoonnddaayy 1199tthh AApprriill aanndd ffiinniisshheess oonn FFrriiddaayy 1144tthh MMaayy.. FFeeeell ffrreeee ttoo ppoopp iinn aanndd ssaayy hhii aass II wwoouulldd lloovvee ttoo mmeeeett yyoouu aallll..

Head of Learning (Curriculum P - 6)

Be Respectful , Be Safe, Be a LearnerNewsletter Friday 30th April 2021 • Page 3

Murgon State School

Prep DDear Parents and Carers of Prep/1 D,A big warm welcome back to Term 2. This term our curriculum is as follows: English – We are reading Commotion in the Ocean and responding to rhyme. We will also recite a poem of choice in front of the class. A big focus on sounds and listening for words that sound the same.Maths – • We are learning to explain durations and tell o’clock and half past time. • Number – We are learning to arrange and count beads and skip count in 2s, 5s and 10s. • Statistics and Probability – We are learning to classify outcomes and exploring the concept of chance. Science – We are investigating Chemistry and looking at combining materials for a purpose. The Arts – We are learning about Dance, responding to several dances and choreographing a dance that represents a character. This week homework will commence and it is a little different this year! Students will take their folders home on a

Monday and they are to be returned the following Monday. Homework consists of reading and practicing sight words. Looking forward to a fabulous Term 2 with our amazing Year 1 students.

Miss Nardia de Bruyn

Welcome families to the beginning of Term 2. I hope you all had a relaxing break. The children are so excited to be back ready to learn with their friends. We have started with some amazing work in Reading Groups, where students are starting to become readers.

I would like to thank the parents/carers who met with me last Term, for a 3 Way Interview to discuss your child’s academic and social progress. If our meeting was cancelled due to COVID-19, I am more than happy to rearrange a time for an interview.

I was impressed with the work ethic that all of the children in Prep M brought to school each and every day last term and am looking forward to another great 10 weeks of learning.

Students have been continuing their sight words recognition and letter, number and name formation, and I must say they are getting extremely good. Check out these awesome learners.

Miss Madison Mobbs

Prep M

1/2 CWelcome to Term 2! I have been impressed with how well our students have settled back into school life after the holidays. It is great to see them working hard to improve their knowledge and skills so early in the term. Our English focus text this term is comparing the same character in two similar texts. We have been enjoying our text, The Three Little Pigs, and have had great fun designing houses that the Big Bad Wolf would not be able to blow down. I cannot wait to share some of our work with families.

Congratulations to our Week 1 ABC Award recipient Bentley Burton.

Miss Lauren Coutts

Be Respectful , Be Safe, Be a LearnerNewsletter Friday 30th April 2021 • Page 4

Murgon State School

2/3 KWelcome back everyone!

In English, we have been reading and unpacking our unit text, Giraffe’s Can’t

Dance. It is an important story for teaching children about accepting that everyone is different, embracing their own differences, and building confidence

and self-esteem. We made connections to characters and events in the story, discussing times we felt embarrassed, nervous and brave. We defined what a ‘growth mindset’ is, and discussed the power of ‘yet!’. Individually, we listed 5 things we can’t do ‘yet’, but will try our best to learn!

Miss Teilha Keehn

Welcome back to Term 2! I hope everyone had a safe and enjoyable Easter break. This fortnight we have embarked on our learning journeys in all units of work. In English this Term we are learning about persuasive writing and advertisements. Our goal will be to design and promote a breakfast cereal through targeted packaging and a promotional speech. In Maths, we are learning to tell time and solve time duration problems, describe probability and chance events, and solve number patterns involving addition and subtraction. In Science, we are learning about the properties of materials and how these properties suit the purpose of objects. In HASS, we continue learning about using places sustainably. Our Arts focus for this term is on dance,

and we will be learning how to tell a story using the elements of dance, choreographic devices, and production elements. Students of 3/4B have set personal learning goals that they will work towards throughout the Term. I look forward to helping everyone achieve these goals. As always, if you have any questions or would like to check in, please don’t hesitate to contact me. Miss Sam Bouveng

Welcome back to Term 2. This term we have started some new topics of learning including persuasive language in English and time in Maths. Students have jumped straight into their learning which has be awesome to see. Students have also been very excited about learning dance in The Arts this term and have shown great enthusiasm towards this subject. Finally, we started our homework last week and I was very pleased to see how students went with their home tasks. We will continue with reading and spelling for homework across this Term and move onto some Mathematics next Term. I am looking forward to a great second Term.

Mr Bradley Edwards

3/4 B

3/4 A

Welcome to Term 2! I was glad to hear that you all had a safe and happy Easter break. The students have returned to school well rested and ready to learn. I am excited for the learning journey that lies ahead of 4/5C. Here’s a sneak preview of what’s ahead –In English, students will be creating a multimodal transformation of the well-known narrative poem, Mulga Bill’s Bicycle. Last week, students spent time unpacking the text, Mulga Bill’s Bicycle, and researching the author, A.B. Paterson, in order to understand the social, cultural and historical context of the poem. In Mathematics, students are beginning the term with a Number and Algebra unit where they will be learning to identify and describe counting patterns resulting from addition and subtraction operations. By the end of Term 2, they will also be able to identify unknown quantities in number sentences involving multiplication and division. In Science, the students are investigating what will happen to the physical properties of ochre when different liquids are added. It is going to be another exciting Term in 4/5C. If you have any questions about your child at school, I am always happy to help. Please don’t hesitate to contact me at school. Congratulations to the following ABC Award Recipient: Term 2, Week 2: Demarcus Cumming-Fisher.

Miss Chloe Cremen

4/5 C

Be Respectful , Be Safe, Be a LearnerNewsletter Friday 30th April 2021 • Page 5

Murgon State School

Here are some examples of our mixed media assessment artworks. We referred to it as ‘plastic turtle/pastel turtle’ and hoped to convey a sense of how the overuse of plastics in our lives can be detrimental to the health of the environment. The pastel turtle is supposed to present the purity of nature and the plastic turtle should provoke a negative feeling in you. How does it make you feel? These artworks were inspired by another artist, Mahnah Angela Torenbeek. Her work was a commentary on the use of ghost nets in fishing. Our materials were all very familiar to us – we collected them from home! They don’t belong in the environment and we hope our work inspires you to consider the plastic that has become ubiquitous in our lives.

Mr Adrian Trost

5/6 A

A warm welcome back to all of our families. I hope that everyone had an enjoyable and safe break. It was fantastic to see everyone return with enthusiasm this week. A highlight for students this week was beginning our new Science unit. This term, students are exploring chemical sciences. We began the unit by exploring the effects heating and cooling on reversible and irreversible changes. It was a lot of fun (and tasty!)

It was lovely to meet with so many parents during 3 Way Interviews. It was fantastic to co-develop social and academic goals for your child, and to discuss what success looks like for your child at Murgon State School. We focus on the individual student at Murgon State School to ensure

that every student succeeds.

This week, we welcomed Ruby to Murgon State School and our classroom!

Mrs Sarah Ridder

5/6 B

Welcome back to a new Term! It is a very busy time both in and out of the classroom!

The successful lunch time OzTag competition will recommence in Week 4 – looking forward to another great level of participation and demonstration of sportsmanship as we take to the field.

This competition will be a great way for students to increase their fitness levels ahead of the annual Athletics Carnival which will be held in Week 9. Additional focus on athletics events will occur in our Physical Education lessons leading into this event so I look forward to supporting students to jump, throw and run their best on the day.

A date for the Athletics Carnival is yet to be confirmed and we will keep you posted once this is agreed.

Until next time,

Mr Dean Searles

HPE

Be Respectful , Be Safe, Be a LearnerNewsletter Friday 30th April 2021 • Page 6

Murgon State School

Community Notice

As part of The Root Cause Children’s Health Program running atour school, you are entitled to a FREE 12-month subscription tothe Gold Family Membership, valued at $60 per family.The Gold Family Membership is an online portal created by The Root Cause, which contains ahuge collection of valuable resources designed to help you and your family make better foodchoices, and improve your overall health. It includes:

o Lunchbox Bootcamp – A quick, easy online course designed to help you pack healthylunchboxes in less time each day

o Recipes Archive – including hundreds of healthy recipes for delicious breakfasts,lunches, dinners, snacks and smoothies

o Special Online Events – an inspiring online event every Term to connect you with otherhealth-aware families and continually upgrade your own skills and knowledge

o Video Vault – containing some of our most successful Children’s Health Cook-Alongs, toget your whole family involved in fun, engaging cooking activities

o Tips, Tools & Templates – all designed to help you make better choices for your family’shealth, in a quick, simple and easy way

o eBook Library – a selection of our most popular eBooks to help you with after schooland school holiday snacks, family dinners, and more

REGISTER HERE: therootcause.com.au/goldfmCOUPON CODE: goldfm-murgon

Be Respectful , Be Safe, Be a LearnerNewsletter Friday 30th April 2021 • Page 7

Murgon State School