Our school leaders proudly represented the school on Wednesday, leading both the senior and junior ANZAC services with respect and pride. Lieutenant Colonel Denis Gately (ret'd) RFD, ADM, NSM; gave a moving speech at the senior service regarding the spirit of the ANZACs and the values that students and the community can choose to reflect in their everyday lives. He was very impressed with our students - leaders, wreath bearers, and the choir - and also the staff behind the scenes who worked to make the services successful. Denis wrote to the the school afterwards to say,  “I was blown away by the level of detail and commitment shown by those young children. What a credit they are to their parents, their school and community. And I thought your production and direction of service was superb. Gives me great faith when I see this spirit at community level….” 

Dear mums, dads, carers and colleagues

I cannot recall a moment at Coomera Rivers where I have been more proud of the students, staff and community than when I was at the ANZAC service this week.  The discipline and respect shown by everyone at the service was outstanding.  Congratulations to the students who presented the service.  Their practice certainly paid off.  Well done to the choir and audience who sang and listened intently across the entire service.  And thank you to the staff and parents who continue to pass on the significance of ANZAC Day services to the next generation.

The services were the terrific work of Ms Waide, Mrs Ellison and their support teams.  Well done.

Gratitude with coffee

The kindness of others was on clear display this week when an anonymous donor paid for staff coffees at the coffee van.  Staff have shared their gratitude with me, asking me to pass this on to our community.  The impact of this kindness was immediate and significant.  Thank you.

Well-being matters

At Coomera Rivers, we are focused on supporting and developing the well-being of every person.  Well-being affects our daily lives so it is importance that we teach and practise resilience in what, at times, can be a tough world.

Our P&C has invested nearly $30 000 this year to support the teaching of gratitude, empathy and mindfulness in every class across the school.  We are undertaking The Resilience Project and, without their help, this would not be possible.  You will see an ever increasing impact of the project in the newsletter, Seesaw, around the school - but most importantly, in our people and culture.

Have a lovely weekend.

Kind regards

Vic

Congratulations this week to:

Senior gallery:

Celebrating Year 3

The year 3’s have been showed resilience, commitment and hard work with their swimming lessons last week. Two and a half hours each day were spent preparing to go swimming, 1 hour swimming lesson and getting to and from the pool.  

At the pool, students were put into small groups according to their ability level. Some groups practised skills such as floating, how to breathe with your head under water, kicking to move forward and how to use the correct arm stroke for free style. Other groups learned how to use backstroke arms, breaststroke arms and legs, how to fall into the water safely and survive. Other skills included diving into the pool, swimming with a lifejacket and falling backwards safely into the pool. The students had lots of fun and they were certainly tired when returning back to school. Overall, the students learned a lot and had a very successful week of swimming lessons.  

Celebrating Year 4

This term the whole school has implemented The Resilience Project, which is committed to teaching positive mental health strategies. Year Fours were introduced to the concept of emotional literacy. We had an emotion discussion and brainstormed a variety of different emotions. Student then chose an emotion that resonates with them and some students shared their experience with the rest of the class. Students then chose a photo of a scenario where a specific emotion was clearly evident and wrote a diary entry pretending to be the person in the photo.

In Science Year Fours have begun to learn about the water cycle with a discussion of evaporation. Students compared evaporation to boiling. Students then learnt about condensation as something they have observed around them but never fully understood. Students also learnt about precipitation and collection as the final steps in the water cycle. Students then begun to examine why the water cycle is essential to life on this planet.

In HASS we have been learning about the First Fleet, the journey and what life was like aboard the ships, and in English we have been learning about notable, inspirational people of character. Students have been learning how to write a captivating first paragraph for a biography (informative text). So far, we have looked at inspirational people such as Ash Barty, Ian Thorpe, Usain Bolt, Katherine Johnson, Nelson Mandela and Malala Yousafzai.

Celebrating Year 5

5S students were busy this week, considering a provocation which sees them writing from the perspective of a crazy stationery item and how they are being treated by themselves, pencils, paper, etc. Engagement is high as their creative imagination takes over!

Celebrating Year 6

Year 6 students learnt all about the meaning of ANZAC Day this week and 6T students got painting to celebrate this special day.

Click here to access the Parent Hub https://theresilienceproject.com.au/2023-parent-carer-hub-inspire-hugh/

Friday May 3

While Harmony Day traditionally falls on March 21 each year, our busy school calendar sometimes means missing out on the chance to fully celebrate our diverse cultures.  Therefore, we're excited to announce our very own celebration of cultural diversity here at Coomera Rivers, scheduled for Friday 3 May (Term 2 Week 3).

Just like in previous Harmony Day festivities, we're encouraging all students and staff to don their cultural, traditional, or national attire, showcase national colours, or proudly represent their favourite national sports teams. Let's come together to honour the rich tapestry of backgrounds that make our school community so vibrant and unique!

Additionally, we warmly invite parents to join in the celebration by sharing aspects of their culture. Whether it's through dressing up, reading a book in a different language, or visiting the school to speak about their heritage, we believe that involving parents will enrich the experience for everyone involved.

For parents interested in participating or sharing their ideas, we've created a survey to gather feedback and suggestions. You can access the survey here.   

Let's make this day a true reflection of the wonderful diversity that defines Coomera Rivers.

The Annual General Meeting of the Coomera Rivers State School P&C will be held on Monday 28 April at 5.30pm in the Corporate Services building of Coomera Rivers State School.

A general meeting of the association will be held directly after the AGM.

Information sessions