Dear mums, dads, carers and colleagues

I hope everyone has been keeping well despite the current spike of both COVID and flu cases.  The school is informed of multiple cases each day, and I appreciate these reports from families.  Of course, these viruses are also affecting staff and their children, and all of us are doing our best to manage to keep our learning programs moving.  If your children are displaying COVID symptoms, please test.  If positive, let the school know and then complete the isolation requirements as set out on the Queensland Health website.  If your children are unwell, they should stay home until well again.  But if they are well, come to school.  Every day matters.

Year 4 camp next week

Year 4 camp to Tallebudgerra begins next week.  I am sure that the children are feeling a mix of both excitement and anxiety.  This is very normal.  This is a wonderful opportunity for them to develop their independence - making beds, tidying up, hanging their towels, packing their bags and experiencing new adventures.  Keep encouraging them and teach them how to pack their bags and how to roll their sleeping bag.  This will prove invaluable when they return home.  

We will keep families updated regularly via some generic photos and reports on Facebook.  I can guarantee some tired kids upon their return.  I also encourage families to consider a small gift of appreciation for teachers who led the camp.  This is not at all like a family holiday and the responsibilities on school staff are enormous.  

School calendar

Please check the school calendar each week for changes to routine.  We have a public holiday on 26 August and a Student Free Day on 2 September.

AFLQ finals

Last Monday, our girls AFL team proudly represented us at the AFLQ Schools Regional Finals. The AFLQ Schools Cup Primary Division started with roughly 200 schools, and making the regional finals meant that we were in the top 15 of the competition.  This is a tremendous achievement on its own.

The girls were set to compete against some extremely tough teams however, they were up for the challenge and held their own. We ended the day with a draw, 2 loses and win. We are extremely proud of all the girls for their commitment to AFL over the first three terms. Thank you to all the parents for their ongoing support as well.  And a special thanks to Mr Cope and Mr Burrows for their leadership of the girls.

A busy week in sport continued with:

• Broadwater District athletics on Monday and Tuesday and
• Inter-school sport today

We will provide detailed reports in the next issue of the newsletter but I am delighted with our achievements and very proud of how each student represented our school.

A gallery from some of the inter-school action today

Stranger danger

I was provided a report of suspicious activity that involved a person in a car, trying to entice some children to the car.  This occurred last weekend and the police have been informed.  

Please speak to your children about stranger danger and how to manage in these circumstances.  

Kind regards

Vic