21 April 2021

Newsletter Articles

PRINCIPAL’S REPORT

Welcome to Term 2! It is fantastic to see our students and school team settle quickly into teaching and learning within and beyond our classrooms. Congratulations to all of our parents – students are well rested and happy to be back at school with many great stories of holiday adventures.

In this newsletter, we look back on some of the fantastic results of our school in Term 1. We are an outstanding and proud State School and I thank each and every student, staff member, parent/carer and community member for your contribution to our school.

Positive Partnerships – School Sport Extra-Curricular Offerings

I would like to congratulate our students and staff who participated in the Bill Nettle Cup and NQ Netball Cup on the last day of Term 1. I have had many positive reports from several colleagues around the high level of sportsmanship and team spirit displayed by our teams.

Thank you Mr Madeley, Ms Deuble and Mr Davies for your organization and preparation leading up to these important gala days for our students.

Every Day Counts – Positive Attendance

Attendance at our school continues to maintain above 90% for all students. It is also excellent to see our staff working alongside Deputy Principals to improve a smaller percentage of students attending under 85%. Thank you to all of our parents for ensuring absences are explained and working with our staff to support your child’s attendance at school. An excellent to start to our school year, please continue to reinforce the Every Day Counts.

Positive Behaviour Learning – The Willows Way – Safe, Respectful, Responsible

Each term, a full review of the Annual Implementation Plan is conducted at our school to ensure that the strategies in place are being implemented with fidelity and that our students and whole school approaches are improving and moving forward.

A shout out to all of our PBL Team, teachers and support staff who organized 75 Stars Rewards. Students had a fantastic array of activities across our school and it was excellent to see the vast majority of our students achieving 75 Stars and No Major Rewards in Term 1.

The graph represents the significant majority of students at The Willows State School responding to our Positive Behaviour Learning Framework. This is fantastic and we look forward to the positive behaviour of our Willows learners continuing in Term 2 and beyond.

Positive Partnerships – Parent and Community Engagement

Last term, we provided our parents/carers with opportunity to be part of our 3 Way Conversation Survey. The questions were based on the 5Q Model. The graph represents combined responses from our parents Prep-Year 6 giving us an excellent insight into the high value and appreciation our parents have about our school and the educational offerings.

Thank you to all of our parents for supporting the Teaching and Learning at our school.

Full School Review

In the next couple of weeks, we are preparing for our full school review. Information for parents/carers about the full school review process can be found following the link below:

The Education Improvement Branch will be sending 3 reviewers across 3 days and we are currently devising the schedule allowing for students, teachers, support staff, parents and community partnerships to be involved in the process. The response for involvement from our parents and community to date has been exceptional. Three reviewers will be out and about in the morning and afternoons talking with parents about their child’s learning and our school. The dates for the review are 10-12 May 2021. We look forward to sharing the findings later in the term and forming a school team for consultation into the 4 Year School Strategic Plan (2022-2025).

I look forward to a productive and positive term. Enjoy your weekend and first week back.

Kind regards

Helen

Helen McCullough
Principal

GENERAL NEWS

CHECK IN QLD APP

We’re using the new Check In Qld app to help keep you COVID safe the next time you attend an event at our school.

All you need to do is:

• download the app - www.covid19.qld.gov.au/check-in-qld
• enter your details once
• open the app when you next visit us
• select ‘Check in Now’ and hover your smartphone over our QR code

Done!

Using this digital check-in means your details are stored securely by the Queensland Government for fast COVID-19 contact tracing if needed. #CheckInQld

SCHOOL REVIEW AND PLANNING

We are proud of our school improvement over the last 4 years. Early in Term 2, the Education Improvement Branch reviews our school over 3 days and our team is excited to share the fantastic work that The Willows as a collective team have achieved. Once the review is finalised, our school receives a report which then enables us to work with all stakeholders to develop the 4 year plan (2022-2026). Further information about the review can be found at the link below and in future information through our newsletters.

AUSTRALIAN EARLY DEVELOPMENT CENSUS

Australian Early Development Census
Playing our part to build a national picture of child health

In early 2021, our school, along with thousands of others across the country will begin preparations for the fifth Australian Early Development Census (AEDC).

The AEDC gives us a national picture of the development, health and wellbeing of children in their first year of full-time school. Since 2009, the census results have helped communities, schools and governments plan services and develop better policies to target support for children and families.

Children don’t miss any class time, and parents/carers don’t need to supply schools with any new information for the census. The AEDC gives us data at a school and community level - it isn’t an assessment of individual children.

Some teachers have also noticed that completing the assessments made them more aware of the needs of individual children and the class as a whole and that the census results are useful in planning for transitions to Year 1 and developing class programs.

Participation in the AEDC is voluntary. Parents/carers don’t need to take any action unless they choose not to include their children in the census.

To find out more about the census and how communities are using the data to help children and families visit the AEDC website:

If you have any questions, you can contact Deputy Principal Amanda Souter through our office.

SCHOOL PARKING

We are aware that pick up and drop off times can be difficult due to the size of our school. We are working closely with the Queensland Police and the Townsville City Council in relation to the current parking and pick up issues. To ensure the safety of all who access our school, please note the following:-

• Do not park in no standing zones. Please see the below map
• Please use the pedestrian crossings and encourage your child/children to use the pedestrian crossings as well
• Do not walk through the traffic at the Stop, Drop and Go area
• Staff provide supervision at Stop, Drop and Go until 3:30pm every school day. These staff are responsible for ensuring the safety of your children inside our gates.
• Please be mindful of residential properties that surround our school – please do not park across their driveways
• Do not park on traffic islands or footpaths

Queensland Police have advised that they will be doing regular patrols and issuing infringement notices.

Thank you for your support in this important issue.

GATE SUPERVISION

Gate C (Sandstone Drive) is locked at 3.15pm. Any students remaining at 3.15pm will be escorted to Gate A (Stop, Drop, Go) where supervision is provided until 3.30pm.

WILLOWS WARRIORS

P and C News

April 2021

Benefits of Joining the P&C

• great way to get involved in your school community
• keep up-to-date with what’s happening at the school
• contribute to your child’s education
• make new friends

Next P&C Meeting

Our next P&C meeting will be Tuesday 27 April. We will be meeting at 5:30pm in the new undercover area next to the Knowledge Centre. Helen McCullough will be giving us a tour of works in progress in the school. The general meeting will start at 6pm in the TCBC conference room.

Look forward to seeing you there!

UPCOMING EVENTS

Year Level Parades

Prep – Mondays 8.45am in Junior CPA
Year 1 – Mondays 8.45am in Junior CPA
Year 2 – Tuesdays 8.45am in Junior CPA
Year 3 – Tuesdays 2.40pm in Multi-Purpose Learning Centre
Year 4 – Mondays 2.40pm in Main CPA
Year 5 – Mondays 2.40am in Multi-Purpose Learning Centre
Year 6 – Tuesdays 8.45pm in Multi-Purpose Learning Centre

Parents/Guardians are most welcome to attend.

Defence News

HELLO ALL DEFENCE FAMILIES

WELCOME back to Term 2. Hope everyone had a wonderful school holiday and enjoyed the time with family and friends. Week 10 of Term 1, we celebrated 100 years of the RAAF. It was great to see the students participating in all the activities. A huge congratulations to the students who managed a place in the colouring in competition. The paper planes were a huge hit and it was fun making the different styles and seeing whose plane could fly the furtherest. It was a great way to end the term.

This Friday 23 April we will be holding our Anzac Day Ceremony here at school starting at 9:30am. Parents are welcome to attend. You must check in through the office and are reminded to maintain social distancing. Due to Covid-19 restrictions and dependant on numbers, some adults may be asked to stand outside the hall area.

The Thuringowa Anzac March is going ahead this year. It commences at 9am Sunday 25 April from behind the Weir State School. We will march to the Riverway Cenotaph, where wreaths will be laid. Due to Covd-19 regulations, there is a restriction on the numbers of students, staff and parents that can march. Please see attached note for further information and to register your child’s interest in marching.

Correna Wheeler
Defence School Mentor