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Parent Teacher Interview
Parent Teacher interviews were held yesterday. We value your involvement in your child’s education and believe that strong partnerships between school and home lead to improved student outcomes. Whether your child is thriving or facing challenges, your insights and questions are an important part of the conversation. Thank you to all parents/caregivers that participated in these, ensuring great links between home and school.
Help Shape our School – complete the School Opinion Survey
This year’s School Opinion Survey runs from 28 July to 22 August. Parents, carers, students in selected year levels, and staff have been emailed a link to participate. Your feedback will help us understand our school’s strengths and areas for improvement. Survey responses are confidential. Find out more on the School Opinion Survey webpage or contact school administration.
As a school we use the School Opinion Survey Data to shape our Annual Implementation Plan. We need to know what we are doing well and what we need to work more on, so that our focus is on the right work to create the best learning environment for your children. Please take the time to complete this survey. In 2024 only 20.3% of our parents and Caregivers participated in the survey. Only 70 parents/caregiver's opinions contributed towards the work we are focussed on.
Invitations commenced being sent out to Parents/Caregivers from 21 – 25 July. Please watch out for this email. The actual survey opens on 28 July and closes on 22 August. However, you will be able to complete the survey from when you receive the email invitation.
Kagan Structures
For the last two years, our school has been investing in developing strategies in engaging students in their learning and in preparing them for their futures through using Kagan Cooperative Structures in our classrooms. Trainer, Sally Wolfenden has been working with our teachers today and tomorrow on how to incorporate Kagan Structures into the daily planning of classroom learning.
This term, 4C are looking forward to: Twisting “The Twits” narrative to suit themselves in English; Building skills with Fantastic Fractions, Dazzling Decimals and Magnificent Measurements in Maths; Exploring Erosion in Science; Designing Divine Digital Systems in Technologies; and Uniting with University of Central Qld, through the “Buraligim Weiber” program, which is a sensational HASS and STEM program that runs for the full semester. The students of 4C are already keen as beans to get stuck into their learning and fun, in Term Three! I am looking forward to catching up with as many parents and carers, as I can at the parent/teacher meeting in Week Two. Until then, be on the lookout for the books that your child will be bringing home from our Library sessions on Wednesday afternoons!
Leonie Newton
In 2025, our school priority is connected to reading. Over this term we will be including information about reading each week in the newsletter.
Definition of Reading
Reading is to decode and process words, symbols or actions to derive or construct meaning.
It includes interpreting, critically analysing and reflecting on the meaning of written and visual, print and non-print texts.
Reading includes two vital components:
- Being able to decode letters on a page or screen into words
- Being able to understand and build meaning from the text
Learning to read is life-changing, with almost everything we do in society involving reading and writing.
In Queensland state schools, we teach students the vital components of reading (word reading and language comprehension) in a sequential order. This occurs across all learning areas and year levels, through the Australian Curriculum.
Learning to read is a complex process. As reading is not a naturally developing skill, such as walking or talking, all students need to be taught to read words and understand the language of written texts.
It takes years of learning and practice to become a skilled reader. Texts we read also become more complex as we get older. This is why we teach reading from Prep to Year 10.
At Calliope State School we teach reading every day, in every classroom. This occurs in English and other learning areas as students read and engage with a variety of texts. In 2025, we have introduced Decodables Australia into our Prep-Year 2 classrooms and have texts available online for home reading.
Our evidence-informed approach to reading includes systematic synthetic phonics and word study to strengthen students’ word reading skills.
We build students’ language comprehension by reading and discussing texts, as well as teaching background knowledge, vocabulary and other important skills.
- ARTICLES FOR OUR SCHOOL NEWSLETTER: If you wish to publish a NOT FOR PROFIT COMMUNITY article in our school newsletter you can do this by sending an email to admin@calliopess@eq.edu.au with all the relevant details. This will then go through our approval process prior to publishing.
- REMINDER TO PARENTS: Reminder to parents and visitors to the school to drive carefully when accessing the front entrance of the school. Please drive slowly, abide by the speed limit, normal road rules and be mindful of your surrounds. We appreciate your attention and understanding.
- COLLECTING YOUR STUDENT EARLY FROM SCHOOL: We realise that, on occasion, students may arrive late for school, or need to leave early; it is hoped that these occasions can be kept to a minimum so that the learning of the student, the class and the routine of the school is not unduly disrupted. In the event that your child is late or leaves early, please ensure that the correct procedure is followed to sign in/out by going to the Administration building signing out on the iPad, collect a slip and present it to the classroom teacher.
These processes are in place so that the teachers and school staff are aware of the movement of students at school. This is for the protection and welfare of all staff and students. It is important to look at the impact that late arrival and early departure have on a student/s education and those around them. It is not only disruptive to learning that is occurring in the classrooms at the time of arrival and departure, it is all time that accumulates to missed opportunities for learning. A student who is arriving late or leaving early by 15 minutes twice a week will miss, in total, the equivalent of 4 days of school across the year.
- RETURNING CALLS TO THE SCHOOL: We ask parents to assist us by checking their message bank before returning calls to the school, to establish which staff member has phoned. Due to the high volume of staff within our school it is not possible for us to identify who may have called you. Please call the member on their direct number if they have provided this as this will free up the office phone lines.
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MESSAGE TO STUDENTS: As you know, schools and classrooms are very busy places!
To ensure our students are fully engaged in their learning, and our office staff are able to complete their multitude of daily required tasks, we ask that parents communicate clearly with their child at the beginning of each day where you will be picking them up from in the afternoon.
As you can imagine it is extremely difficult for our office staff to field scores of phone calls asking for messages to be passed on to children regarding pick-up information.
Should you need to contact your children throughout the day, please do this via the office. These should be emergency situations only. Messages received after 1.45pm may not be acknowledged by the class in time, so please ensure children know their pick-up arrangements.
2026 Prep Information Sessions
We will be holding an information session for parents wishing to enrol their child at Calliope State School for Prep in 2026 on Thursday 7 August. There will be a session at 9.15am and it will be repeated again at 4.30pm. A school tour is be available at 4.15pm that afternoon.
Enrolment packs will be available from 7 August as well as bookings for an enrolment interview. Inquires can be made by contacting the office on 4975 8333 or email admin@calliopess.eq.edu.au
Port to Park
Are you ready to join in the fun of Port to Park this year? Registrations are now open and each person participating and nominates our school, we will receive a donation for the school.
See information below to register!
RotaKids
We welcome a new group of RotaKids for Semester Two. They will be presented with their certificates at parade in Week 3, Friday August 1. Their first activity will be Jeans for Genes Day on Thursday 7 August. Students will be able to wear jeans to school for a gold coin donation.
Welcome back to Term 3. This is our favourite term in the library because Book Week is just around the corner!
The theme for this year’s Book Week is Book an Adventure. We will have a dress up parade on Friday of Week 6. Students are invited to dress up as their favourite story book character. Please remember that costumes must be sun safe and practical to wear for the day.
We will be sharing the shortlisted books and voting for our favourites during our library lessons.
P&C Meeting – Have Your Say!
Our next P&C Meeting will be held on Tuesday 12 August at 4:30pm in the Administration Building. We warmly invite all parents and carers to come along, get involved, and have a voice in the future of our school community.
If you have any items you’d like added to the agenda, please email them through to secretary.calliopess@gmail.com before the meeting.
Your input matters — we’d love to see you there!
Uniform Shop
The uniform shop operates on Fridays before the parade. Orders placed via the QKR app can be collected during this time. For any inquiries regarding the uniform shop, please email uniformshop.calliopess@gmail.com.
*Please Note:* EFTPOS is currently unavailable, so orders must be placed via the QKR app.
* QKR closes for tuckshop orders at 9 AM daily.
* If your child is sick, orders can be canceled on QKR before 9 AM.
