Staffing

As you are aware, Moira Mackenzie has taken leave until December 9, 2024.     

Naomi Hughes will continue to be Acting Principal during this time.   

Sheree Mastromonaco has been successful in the position of Acting Deputy Principal backfilling Naomi Hughes 4 days a week (Monday to Thursday). 

Kayleigh Donald has been successful in the position of Acting Deputy Principal backfilling Naomi Hughes 1 day a week (Friday). 

In Week 3, Kayleigh Donald will be Acting Deputy Principal for the week.   

Ms Raelene Norris has returned from her leave early on Tuesday Week 2 – Thanks to Ms Jade Randall for filling in. 

Ms Jade Bell is now returning to Arts on Tuesday Week 2 – Thank you to Ms Jade Bell for filling in on 4A.

Swimming

Swimming has started! Our very first swimming lessons started in the pool on Tuesday. 
Please ensure you are familiar with the swimming timetable and your child/ren remember their swimming gear for their swimming lesson. 

Year 4 Buraligim Weiber Excursion – Friday 11^th October

Our Year 4 students will be attending Spinnaker Park and STEM Central this Friday for their first Term 4 Buraligim Weiber excursion.

Year 6 Camp – Monday 14^th to Friday 18^th October
Our Year 6 students will be heading off to Brisbane for their camp on Monday.  Mrs Christine Johnston, Mrs Sheree Mastromonaco, Mrs Donnella Smith-Ashton and Ms Becky Drury will be also be attending the camp with the students. 

Day for Daniel – Wednesday 23^rd October

https://danielmorcombe.com.au/day-for-daniel/

Australia’s Largest Child Safety education and awareness day – a day to Wear Red, Educate and Donate. 

We encourage all students to wear red and bring in a gold coin donation towards the Daniel Morcombe Foundation.

World Teacher’s Day – Friday 25^th October

World Teachers' Day is an opportunity to acknowledge and celebrate the immense effort and dedication that teachers put into their work.

We’ve put together some fun ways you and your children can join in the celebrations and make it a day to remember for your teachers.

Swooping Birds

Spring is breeding season for birds, and some species are quite protective parents!

We currently have some resident magpies outside of the school grounds and some plovers in the out-of-bounds area on the back oval.  Students are reminded that they are to stay away from these areas and not to do anything that would provoke a response from these birds. 

Grandparents Morning – Friday 1 November  Grandparents Day is a chance for grandchildren, children and the community to thank grandparents for their love and support. Celebrated annually in Queensland on the last Sunday in October, Grandparents Day recognises the significant contribution that grandparents make to their families and communities. Grandparents Day | Seniors | Queensland Government (www.qld.gov.au) At Calliope State School we will be celebrating Grandparent’s Day on Friday, November 1.  Grandparents are invited to a fun morning with us. 9:10 – 10am - Parade 10:00 – 11:00 - Morning Tea for Grandparents only and then Classroom Visits and Activities 11:00 – 11:30 - Picnic Lunch on the lawn Grandparents are invited to bring their own lunch to share with their grandchildren.

Prep Enrolments 2025

Prep Enrolments for 2025 are now open! 

Enrolment packs are available from the school office.  If you haven’t already booked in a time, please book one as soon as possible through our school office.

Intentions for 2025

If you are intending on leaving Calliope State School in 2025, please let our friendly office staff know, as we are in the planning stages of our classes for next year.  Please email our office staff at admin@calliopess.eq.edu.au

Planning for classes in 2025 begins early in Term 4.  Our first step is to finalise our anticipated enrolments for 2025.  If you know of families considering Calliope State School in 2025, please encourage them to contact Administration as soon as possible.  If your family intends on leaving our school next year, could you please notify Administration so that this planning can be as accurate as possible. 

2025 Class Placement Request Forms

Use this form if you have any issue/s influencing your child’s learning that may impact on class placement decisions for 2025. Teacher requests will not be taken into consideration. The form can either be collected from the office or email admin@calliopess.eq.edu.au to request a form. Please place the form in an envelope marked “CONFIDENTIAL to the Principal.” Forms need to be returned by Friday 25^th October at 3:15pm. Please note that forms received after this date will not be processed.

Coming Events for Term 4 -

11 October - Year 4 BW Excursion 

14 October - Yr 6 Camp to Brisbane 

23 October - Day for Daniel - Wear Red 

25 October - World Teacher's Day and Yr 4 BW Excursion to Barney Point

28 October - Year 6 Leadership Applications close

29 October - Prep-Yr1 Excursion

30 October - Year 4 Leadership Retreat

2025 Class Placement Request Forms

Use this form if you have any issue/s influencing your child’s learning that may impact on class placement decisions for 2025. Teacher requests will not be taken into consideration. The form can either be collected from the office or email admin@calliopess.eq.edu.au to request a form. Please place the form in an envelope marked “CONFIDENTIAL to the Principal.” Forms need to be returned by Friday 25^th October at 3:15pm. Please note that forms received after this date will not be processed.

As we are nearing the end of the school year, police would like to issue a friendly reminder that the areas marked in yellow on the below map are ‘No Stopping’ areas, which means that you can’t pull up and wait an extended period of time for a car to leave a car park or stop to drop your children off. These areas are clearly signed and marked with a yellow line.

Also a reminder that the Stop, Drop and Go area is limited to 2 minutes for the loading and unloading of passengers. Police have and will continue to issue fines for vehicles stopped along the yellow lines or parked in the Stop, Drop and Go area for an extended period of time. The maximum penalty for these offences is 20 penalty units (as of July 1, one penalty unit = $143.75) and can attract 3 demerit points.

To avoid the end of school traffic congestion, consider parking a bit further away and walking to collect your children or delaying pick up for 5 – 10 minutes. Remember school staff will be at Stop, Drop and Go until 3:30pm. 

PBL Lesson this week

We are focusing on staying calm in difficult situations. Students will focus on conflict resolution strategies.  

Gem Chat

This week we are being grateful for our favourite activities we like to do with our friends and family.

Reducing Stress with Breathwork

How often do you notice your breathing?

Taking time each day to focus on our breathing gives our brains valuable time to slow down from the rush of the day, reducing our stresses as we go. It involves paying attention to your breath as it moves in and out of your body, without judgement or distraction.

Five fingers breathing:

1. Simply hold up one hand and spread out your fingers.
2. With the index finger of the opposite hand slowly trace around the outside of your fingers beginning at the base of your thumb and moving upwards.
3. As you move your finger up, take a slow breath in.
4. As you move your finger down, slowly breathe out.
5. Repeat for a couple of minutes or until you feel calm.

 The simplicity of this method is great as you can use it anywhere, whether it’s to start your morning at home, or in between breaks at work when you need a refresh. Five finger breathing can be practised for as little as a few minutes or as long as 20 minutes. It’s an easy yet powerful technique that can be used at any time to relax your mind or bring more focus to the present moment. It can also be a very useful meditation before bed, as it helps to put your mind at ease and fall asleep.

Positive Behaviour Comparison Data

Hi Families,

Welcome to Term 4! We hope everyone had a wonderful school holiday and that you’re feeling recharged for what always seems to feel like the busiest term of the year!

We are having a market stall on the 7th December. We are keen for suggestions for a name for our market.  It would be great to know if anyone has a free 1/2 hour or so to help out on the market stall or at our Election sausage sizzle which is on 26th October. We will post up a roster sheet in the coming weeks for any volunteers to put your name down. Helping out can be a fun way to meet new people.

There is going to be a Pizza day. Forms will be handed out soon. All orders are to be made and paid for on the QKR App.  Forms will need to be returned to the P&C box in the office.

This term the children will participate in the schools swimming program which is being facilitated by our very own and wonderful Mrs Betts! Term 4 swimming is such a great opportunity to provide water awareness and endurance leading into summer. If you have any spare swimming shorts, rashies or towels; please consider donating them to the school so every student has access to this amazing opportunity. Just drop them into the office, thanks so much!!

Uniform Shop

We are urgently seeking volunteers to help pack orders weekly/fortnightly on a Friday for 1 hour (8:30-9am). If you are available and have completed your mandatory training, please email uniformshop.calliope@gmail.com

We would genuinely love to hear from the school community with any thoughts or ideas you have on how we can all work together to keep making progress in these areas. You can contact us on communication.calliopess@gmail.com for our Communication Officer or pandc@calliopess.eq.edu.au for our Executive team.

Warm Regards

Geoff, Jason, Angela & Lisa

QParents

QParents  is a secure, online portal that is free for all Queensland state schools to use and provides parents with quick, easy access to their student information including:

• student and parent contact details
• attendance details
• report cards – all report cards (past & present) are available to view and upload
• invoices and payment history
• Online consent management

The student information displayed in QParents is surfacing information that is already recorded and managed in One School. The benefits of using QParents for schools and parents include:

• a faster, more efficient way to communicate with parents regarding student information
• a secure, convenient and automated process for parents to pay school invoices
• significant time and effort savings for both your school and parent community
• an innovative online communication tool that’s free of charge for both schools and parents to use.

How do I register for QParents?

You will be sent an email inviting you to register for QParents. You will then be able to register via the secure QParents website: qparents.qld.edu.au using the unique invitation code contained in the email. You will require each child’s unique EQ ID and you must verify your identity by providing 100 points of identification. If you cannot verify your identity online, you should contact your child’s school for assistance. The school will review your registration and approve your account. You will then be able to access the QParents app.

Please note: if you have not received the QParents invitation email, please send correspondence through to admin@calliopess.eq.edu.au with your full name, student/s full name & DOB to request your QParents invitation.

Year 7 Transition Info Packs

The Saver Plus flyer is great for emailing out to parents or popping into info packs.

Starting High School is generally an exciting time for young people and their parents/carers and the Saver Plus program is here to support your school community with some of the costs involved. 

Saver Plus is open to eligible parents / carers all year, but we find it’s when these larger costs come up that families start reaching out for support. Families with students in year 5 now could set the goal to save in readiness for Year 7 in 2026.

To join Saver Plus, you need to meet these requirements:

• Be 18 years or older
•  Have a current Health Care or Pensioner Concession Card
•  Have a child in school, starting next year, or be studying 
    yourself
•  Get a regular income (can be you or your partner in paid work or child support / carers payment)
• Agree to join in free online financial education workshops

What are the eligible savings goals?

Eligible savings goals are education related products or services that:​

• Assist a primary / secondary school student’s education.

If families would like to check their eligibility and receive a call back please include our enquiry link -  Our Saver Plus financial literacy program (thesmithfamily.com.au)  or they’re welcome to call our national number 1300 610 355 and a local coordinator will contact them directly.

Thank you for your ongoing support.