Hello Everyone,

I hope this newsletter finds you well and you are enjoying our recent fantastic weather.

NAIDOC Week

National NAIDOC Week celebrations are held across Australia in the first week of July each year (Sunday to Sunday), to celebrate and recognise the history, culture and achievements of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples. NAIDOC Week is an opportunity for all Australians to learn about First Nations cultures and histories and participate in celebrations of the oldest, continuous living cultures on earth. At Palm Beach SS we celebrated NAIDOC last week with various activities across our school. A big thank you to Mr Hitchins for his ongoing work as our school’s Indigenous Champion.

Eisteddfod

Over the past two weeks our instrumental students have competed in the Gold Coast Eisteddfod. Our ensembles have performed outstandingly and been excellent representatives of Palm Beach SS. Congratulations to our Senior Strings who finished in first place and received a Gold Award, Senior Band who received Silver Awards and third place and Junior Band who placed second and also received a Silver. Thank-you to Ms Kesting and Ms Chandler for their efforts with our ensembles and Mrs Riordan who is always lending a helping hand.

Phones and Smartwatches

This term, we have had several incidences of students not following our school policy in relation to mobile phones and smart watches.

Our school policy clearly states:

It is acceptable for students at Palm Beach State School to:

• bring mobile phones and devices including smart watches to school. These are to be signed into the office prior to school commencing.

Please remember to encourage your child to sign in their phones and smartwatches at the school office upon arrival. This helps maintain a focused learning environment and promotes active engagement during classes. The devices will be securely stored and returned at the end of the day.

Thank you for your support in creating an optimal learning atmosphere.

Class Solver

We are excited to introduce Class Solver, an innovative tool that will revolutionize our school's 2024 class placement process. Class Solver utilizes a sophisticated algorithm, incorporating multiple factors such as student-teacher compatibility, social dynamics, and academic needs. By harnessing the power of data-driven decision-making, Class Solver helps us create well-balanced and effective class configurations for the upcoming school year.

To fully leverage the benefits of Class Solver, we kindly request parents complete a third-party website consent form which will be sent in the coming days. Completing this consent process will help us make the most informed and equitable decisions on your child’s 2024 class placement. A third-party website consent will be emailed to all families.

Public Holiday

Please remember we have a Public Holiday on Friday 1st September for Gold Coast Show Holiday.

Playgrounds

We would like to remind all parents that our school playgrounds are out of bounds before and after school hours. Ensuring the safety of our students is our utmost priority, and having unsupervised play on the playgrounds can pose potential risks. We appreciate your understanding and cooperation in keeping our school environment secure. Thank you for your continued support in maintaining a safe space for all our children.

School Uniform

Thank-you to our parent community who have responded magnificently to ensure our students are wearing all black shoes, there has been a significant improvement in this area of our uniform over the past few weeks.

At Palm Beach State School, we take great pride in our school. The wearing of school uniform promotes this pride and sets the high standards expected of all students.

Please remember our expectations around jewellery. The below is from Dress Code and Appearance Policy.

• JEWELLERY is not appropriate at school and is not permitted. Students may wear a watch.

Students with pierced ears may wear gold or silver studs or sleepers. No other facial piercings are permitted. During sport, for safety, only studs may be worn and watches need to be removed.

• MAKE-UP and coloured finger nail polish are not appropriate at school and are not permitted.

Animals on School Grounds

Please remember that animals (including dogs and puppies) are not allowed on school grounds. While we appreciate the value of interactions with animals, safety and hygiene are our top priorities. If your child wants to share their pet's joy, consider options like show-and-tell. Thank you for ensuring a secure and inclusive environment for everyone. Your cooperation is greatly valued.

Under 8’s Day

On Thursday 14th September we will be hosting our annual U8’s day on the oval for our Prep and Year 1 students. The activities will start at 8.45-10.15am and this year we are inviting parents to attend this fun morning with their child. There will be a sausage sizzle/drink available on the day for morning tea for the Preps, Yr 1 students and parents, for $5.00. We hope you can make it!

Book Week Parade

Tomorrow, Friday 25 August will be our 2023 Book Week Parade and all parents are invited to watch the fun. Parents please join in the fun by lining the path outlined below on the map for the parade.

Each parade will end in the PAC where the awards will be given out.

Prep- Yr 2 students will be at 9:00am and Yr3-6 students will have their parade at 10:00am. Bring your cameras and come and enjoy the costumes and fun!

2024 Prep Enrolments

If you have a child who is eligible for Prep next year time is running out to enrol your child! Please call the office on 5520 8333 to collect the enrolment forms and secure your child’s position for 2024.

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