Issue 1 2 February 2022
From the Principals Desk
Dear Parents & Carers,
It has been a very unusual start to the school year, with school open for vulnerable children and the children of essential workers. We have been operating with a skeleton staff for weeks 1 and 2, to help maximise health outcomes and limit any spread amongst school staff. We will continue to monitor all QLD Health and Department of Education announcements and rest assured we will always comply fully with all health rules and directives. As Principal of Kingaroy State School my number one priority is the safety and wellbeing of our students, staff and the wider community. I look forward to welcoming all our students back next Monday 7th February.
Welcome New Staff
Please join me in giving a warm Kingaroy SS welcome to the following teachers, who joined our team this year;
Mrs Shannon Cullen – Year 5
Miss Casey Edmistone – Year 5
Miss Megan Bygrave – Year 4
Miss Genevieve West – Year 3
Miss Kate-Lynn Atkinson – Year 2
Miss Emma Unold – Year 1
Mrs Rachael Skipper – Prep
We are very lucky to have so many passionate and skilled teachers move to our school.
Back to School Plan
As announced by the Premier on Sunday 30 January 2022, the Queensland Government has released the COVID-safe back to school plan.
From Monday 7 February, key features of the plan include:
- The suspension of school camps, excursions, assemblies, and large gatherings (please note that school sport will continue as usual)
- limiting visitors on site, with exceptions for parents and carers of students experiencing vulnerability, students attending early childhood development programs, kindergarten, Prep or Year 1
- masks supplied and strongly encouraged for students in Years 3 to 6
- mask wearing for all high school students and all staff
- rapid antigen tests (RATs) available in school for students and staff who develop symptoms while on site
- priority access to RATs for students and staff at Queensland Health testing clinics
- a range of ventilation measures including air purifiers as required
You can access the Back to School plan here, and further information and FAQs on the Department of Education COVID-19 website.
Student Illness
Essential to the success of these measures is that if your child is unwell or displaying any COVID-19 symptoms, they must not attend school. I cannot emphasise this message strongly enough – it is critical to keeping our school community safe.
Limiting access for visitors
At our school, limitations on parent and visitor access are now in place. If you are a parent of an ECDP, Prep or Year 1 student, you may enter the school with your child. For other parents and visitors, please limit your access to the school as much as possible.
Parades
Please be advised that to support the health of students and staff, parades will be cancelled until further notice. We look forward to welcoming everyone back to parades once health rules allow.
Cancellation of Stationery Drop Off/Meet & Greet
I have regretfully made the decision to cancel our annual Stationary Drop Off/Meet and Greet, which was originally scheduled for Friday 21st January. This is due to the Queensland Back to School Plan, which directs schools to limit visitors to “parents and carers of students experiencing vulnerability, and all students attending Early Childhood Development Programs, Kindergarten, Prep or Year 1”.
Students are asked to bring their school resources with them on the first day that they attend school, which for most students will be Monday 7th February. Parents may help children in Prep and Year 1 drop these off to their classroom. For students in Years 2-6 we ask that students bring what they can comfortably carry themselves, which may mean that they bring their booklist resources over the course of a few days. Teachers will be aware of this and there will be no expectation that students have all their stationery at school on Monday 7th February.
We understand that our Stationery Drop Off sessions prior to the start of the school year are very popular with some parents and we look forward to being able to hold these again in the future, once health rules allow.
Mask Wearing
Primary school aged students are not required to wear face masks whilst at schooI in Queensland. The Back to School Plan strongly encourages students in years 3-6 to wear masks whilst at school, and students of any age who choose to wear a mask at school will be able to do so.
Tuckshop
Please be advised that our Tuckshop will open on Wednesday 9th February.
Homework Club
We will once again be offering a Homework Club for students in 2022. This was very popular last year and numbers are limited. Expression of Interest forms will be going home with student next week, please send this back asap if your child would like to be involved in our Homework Club program.
Message from the Guidance Officer Jennifer Davies
Welcome to the 2022 school year! A special welcome for our Prep families, and those who are new to Kingaroy SS. Seeing as we have many new faces around this year, I wanted to briefly outline my role and invite you to get in touch.
Guidance Officers are specialist teachers who deliver a range of support services to schools. I am an ACA registered counsellor and provide a professional counselling service for students. I can also provide mental health and wellbeing support to families and staff, including referrals to external services when needed. My role involves conducting psychometric assessments and educational support planning, which helps identify learning barriers, educational strategies and opportunities for students. I collaborate with a range of people to organise wellbeing supports, including those offered by our Student Welfare Worker, external agencies, and NDIS providers.
In 2022, we will have several evidence-based socio-emotional learning programs available for students. I will provide more information about these in our next newsletter.
This is my sixth year as the GO at Kingaroy SS. I love this school and the amazing community we have here. Previously, I was a secondary English/Humanities teacher and Head of Department and have a background in Human Services. If you would like to get in touch to discuss the additional support options available for your child, please email jhobs35@eq.edu.au or contact the office to arrange a meeting.
Arts 2022
Hello all and welcome to the start of the school year! Something new and exciting happening this year at Kingaroy State School are specialised Arts classes. Students have direct instruction from me once a week for 30-50 minutes. There are some examples below of projects we will be doing throughout the next semester.
The Australian Arts Curriculum involves exploring the role of artists in society and recognising art as a communication tool. Throughout the primary arts experiences we are exploring different age-appropriate methods of becoming artists. Art lessons are highly beneficial to for those students who are visual-spatial and kinaesthetic learners.
Many parents and caregivers ask what they can do at home to support their child. Give them time to create! Drawing, sculpting with clay, building with Lego and other toys, taking photos – all this help support elements of the Art curriculum. Practicing colouring and cutting is also an invaluable tool.
Looking forward to meeting everybody!
Lora Ticehurst - Arts Teacher
Art Projects
Crossing Supervisors - Casual Position
A casual position exists for a School Crossing Supervisor in the Kingaroy area.
The School Crossing Supervisor may be required to work five days per week in all weather conditions. The hours of work for School Crossing Supervisors are normally 1.5 hours a day and usually comprise of one hour in the morning and ½ hour in the afternoon. These times vary between different schools.
The successful applicant is dependent on:
- The favourable outcome of a health assessment carried out by a Government Medical Officer or a duly qualified Medical Practitioner according to the guidelines in the “Notes for Medical Practitioner” on the School Crossing Supervisor Scheme – Health Assessment Form; and
- A Positive Notice Blue Card (This means you do not need to have a blue card to apply for the position)
Applicants are required to advise in writing of any charges that have been laid against them or any offence of which they have been convicted of.
A copy of the Position Description is available at the School Office.
If you are successful in your application for this position, you can only commence employment with Transport and Main Roads if you hold a current Blue Card or are renewing your Blue Card and have submitted either a Blue Card Application form or Authorisation to Confirm Current Blue Card form to the Commission for Children and Young People and Child Guardian by the Department of Transport and Main Roads.
Email application to: craig.h.whittaker@tmr.qld.gov.au
Applications close at 3.00pm on Friday 25th March 2022
For further information please phone Craig Whittaker on 0428340464
