Term 1 Week 2 2021

Welcome Back

What a fantastic start to the 2021 school year! The students have quickly settled into routines and are building positive connections with their teachers and class mates. We have approximately 1490 students enrolled and it is wonderful to see our school values of respect, teamwork, innovation, commitment and excellence on display right from the beginning of the year.

Special thanks to the parents and carers who have done a wonderful job partnering with teachers to settle students. A very special welcome to the many new students and families who have joined our school community. We certainly hope your association with our school is a long and happy one.

I am looking forward to working in partnership with families to achieve great outcomes for all students in 2021.

Parent Information Sessions

We have decided to make a change to the times of the Parent Information sessions planned for next Monday 8 February. To allow parents time to support children at the end of the school day and to allow the carpark to clear, we have decided to offer four Parent Information starting at the following times –

• 4.00pm
• 4.30pm
• 5.00pm
• 5.30pm

Please note there will NOT be sessions at 3.00 or 3.30pm as initially planned.

We encourage only adult attendance where possible. We will have some specialist staff supervision for the 4.00pm and 4.30pm sessions so if you do need to bring your school-aged students, they will be supervised not far from the classroom. They may bring their iPad or a quiet activity to do while waiting.

These Parent Information Sessions will be held in each teacher’s classroom for 25 minutes. You do not need to RSVP. You can simply turn up at whichever session suits you. The same session is repeated four times. Teachers will also include information about the session on Showbie for parents unable to attend.

Any parents wishing to meet staff in the Inclusive Learning Team may pop into the DOCK between 4-5pm to meet the staff.

The P & C AGM starts at 6.30pm in the Hall following these sessions. All parents and carers are invited to attend.

Our teachers are looking forward to providing you with some more information about classroom procedures and your children’s learning in 2021.

Calling for a School Council Representative

As an Independent Public School, we have a School Council made up of the Principal, P&C President and an equal number of parent and staff representatives.

The role of a School Council is to:

• Monitor the school's strategic direction;
• Approve plans and policies of the school of a strategic nature, including the annual estimate of revenue and expenditure for the school;
• Monitor the implementation of the plans, policies and other relevant documents; and
• Advise the Principal about strategic matters.

It is time to elect a new parent rep that can commit to the role for the next two years.  This involves meeting four times a year to monitor the school's strategic direction.  These meetings are usually held before the P&C from 5.15pm – 6.15pm once per term.

If you are interested in nominating please note the following time lines.

Wednesday 3 March 2021- Nominations close

Monday 8 March 2021 - Voting at the P&C Meeting

Please refer below for further information and the nomination form.

Inclusion Reflections

We are very excited to share that our school will be partnering with the North Coast Region of the Department of Education to participate in a reflective process to celebrate and explore ways that we can further strengthen our approach to inclusive education. As you know we are committed to ensuring all students are welcomed in our community and afforded the opportunity to learn alongside their peers, receive the support they need to achieve and to learn in a safe and supportive environment. This process will help us to identify future opportunities to continue to ensure that all of our students are afforded these opportunities moving forward.

A small regional team of four educators will spend two days next week (11 and 12 February) in our school and engage in conversations with our leadership team, teachers, other staff and a small number of students and parents. You will be notified if you child has been identified to participate in a short group conversation with the team and other students. Should you be keen to chat with the team please do not hesitate to contact Deputy Principal- Inclusion Ellaine Warner ewarn23@eq.edu.au

Student Safety

A reminder that we all have a role to play ensuring student safety in the carpark and surrounding streets. I understand it is congested and people can get frustrated but please don’t risk our precious children’s lives for the sake of a few minutes.

Have a wonderful week

Tracy Egan

Principal
tegan4@eq.edu.au 

 Care Class

Care Class, is a critical part of how we support students and care for their learning at Mango Hill State School. This year, Care Class will be held in students' own room. However there will be some opportunities throughout the term to meet with others.  During this time, The Focus of the Week is introduced, and continued throughout the following week, to reinforce and practise how this would “look, feel and sound”.  We display the Focus of the Week on posters in classrooms and throughout the school. At Mango Hill State school we use The Four Cares language of: Care for Self, Care for Others, Care for Learning and Care for the Environment.  Parents will be made aware of the focus of the week through the weekly newsletter.   Be sure to also check out our weekly noticeboard display outside the Admin Block. 

Chess time again!

On Thursday 25^th March (week 9) our wonderful Mango Hill State School chess students will enter the fray to do combat again in a no holds barred chess battle. We will take a team of 24-28 students from years 3 to 6 on a day of competitive and fun chess against other schools in the area at Nundah State School.

A couple of notes about the day:

• We will require assistance with parental transport to Nundah State School on the day.
• Students must have played chess before, we will do some training but they need prior experience to be selected.
• The cost is $18.50 per student.

All interested students that meet the criteria are to attend a meeting in 5S (downstairs in M Block) second break on Monday 8^th February. Otherwise, please forward their details to Ms Stacey dmsta0@eq.edu.au

Yours in chess!

Danielle Stacey

Year 5 teacher

Uniforms

Our community expects that all students wear their school uniform every day including

• Plain white socks
• Plain black shoes
• School hat
• MHSS School bag or plain black/blue bag
• No jewellery (except watch and plain sleepers or studs in the ear)
• No make-up or nail polish

The School Dress Code can be located on our school website.

https://mangohillss.eq.edu.au/Supportandresources/Formsanddocuments/Documents/Policies/mango-hill-state-school-dress-code.pdf

Students should wear their sports uniform on their PE day. They should wear formal school uniform for whole school parades and on special occasions. All other days, students may choose either uniform.

School Banking

School banking will resume from the 9th of February 

Playgroup

Each Friday morning during school terms, we hold a playgroup in our Prep area from 9.00 – 10.00.  All families in our local community are invited to join!  Families with children aged 0 – 5 are welcome to attend.  It’s a great way to get to know others in our local community, as well as to introduce your child to our school, should you reside in our school catchment area.

We have a coffee shop on site, our SOLE Café and every coffee you purchase supports our school and our students!

Ms Livvy is a familiar face with our families and has been our playgroup facilitator for one and a half years to date.  She loves getting to know our families and plans engaging activities each week for parents and carers to share with their children. 

Our playgroup is an inclusive space.  We ask that all attendees sign in and follow our Covid-Normal procedures whilst on school grounds.

We hope to see you there this Friday, February 5 for our first Playgroup for 2021!

What a Wonderful Start!

Welcome Prep 2021 students and families.  What a wonderful start to our school journey!

Positives from our first week…

• Our Prep students have settled well and are beginning to learn the routines of school
• Our Prep parents have settled in well and are listening to and following all of our instructions!  Thank you! 
• Our class groups are building a sense of team through their name badges, colours and animals. They are enjoying exploring each area of the playground, with their class.  It’s helping them to build strong connections within their class group. 
• We have enjoyed our first specialist lessons in Italian, STEM, PE and performing arts.
• We have started our pre-writing activities and our students are loving learning to draw detailed pictures to share their ideas.

Some reminders for all of us…

• Saying goodbye to caregivers each morning can be tricky! Parents and carers can help support their child by following our routines; one kiss, one hug, reassure your child you’ll be back at the end of the day and then leave.  Prolonging the goodbye does not set your child up for a successful start!
• Mondays can be rough.  We’ve just spent two blissful days with our families, doing what we want (within reason).  Be consistent with morning routines in the home.  Be positive.  Be cheerful.
• The carpark continues to be a challenge to navigate.  Well done to those families who have braved our Look Out in the afternoons – our Preppies are so successful with this!  They love crossing the road and waiting for their parents to drive in to collect them.
• How is your child getting home?  We aren’t mind readers!  Please make sure you have communicated this with your teacher each week so we can help your child move to where they need to be.
• If you elected to purchase your own stationery / book list supplies (not through kookaburra), everything should now be at school.  Please ensure your child has everything on the booklist, clearly labelled.
• Wearing our school uniform with pride is something we all value!  Please make sure your child has a hat each day, all black shoes and either the school bag (strongly recommended) or a plain black / plain navy bag.

This week, we will have our first parade.  We film our parades and students watch these in their classrooms with their teacher.  Parents, you can watch from the comfort of your home!  To access our Prep parades, please follow the instructions below.

Instructions to Access the Student Portal – How to View our Prep Parades

1. Please open a web browser on your device (Google Chrome or Safari recommended).
2. Please type or copy/paste the following addres  https://qedu.sharepoint.com/sites/7575/StudentPortal

3. You will be asked for a username and password
   1. Please use the username and password given to you by your class teacher
   2. Please read the conditions of use and privacy statement by clicking on the blue link and click/tap I agree
      1. In the future you can just tick the I agree box and not read it again if you don’t want to
   3. Click/tap on Sign In
   4. You can choose if you want to stay signed in for quicker access later

Have a great week!

Melinda White

Deputy Principal - Prep
mwhit37@eq.edu.au

Welcome back families to another wonderful school year!

It has been lovely seeing everyone return to school and ready to learn. Whilst our first day was all about setting up routines and making connections with our new teacher and peers, it didn't take long till our students were showing their best learning as they dived into their new units of work.

This week families will be starting to receive homework which will include 'Must Do' and 'Could Do' activities. Homework is a great opportunity for students to practise what they are learning at school in particular with reading and number. If you have any questions regarding homework please speak to your classroom teacher, they will be happy to help.

Have a lovely week
Michelle Alcorn

Deputy Principal – Year 1 & 2

malco14@eq.edu.au

Welcome back to school – Year 3 and 4

How wonderful it was to welcome all of our Year 3 and 4 students back to school over the past week. A special welcome to all of our new families! It’s been great to see students getting to know their teachers and building new friendships as they spend time in their new class. I know that our teachers are working really hard to establish routines and build positive relationships in their rooms. I have been thrilled to see so many happy faces and engaged learners as I’ve made my way around classrooms during the week.

This term across our school, classes are aiming to demonstrate kindness every day. I have challenged all of our Year 3 and 4 students to actively seek out opportunities to show kindness to others. Some examples of kindness the students have shared with me this week include helping people who might be hurt in the playground and inviting someone to play with them. Amazing examples of kindness being shared in Year 3 and 4!

As we start the new school year, it is important to remind your children of the before school procedures. We kindly ask that students and parents wait in the piazza where there is supervision until the 8:30am bell, and not in front of classrooms and outside the bag racks. Our teachers are all working hard in this time before school, preparing engaging lessons for the day. We appreciate your support in reinforcing these procedures with your children.

Have a great week
Ben Mills

Deputy Principal – Year 3 & 4

bxmil3@eq.edu.au

Care for Learning in Year 5 and 6

It has been a fantastic start to 2021 in Years 5 and 6 and I have been amazed at the Care for Learning both students and teachers have already demonstrated. I was privileged in week 1, in particular, in observing all classes commence the building of connections within the classrooms. These connections will increase student well-being and engagement in class as the year unfolds. I was also super impressed with the sense of urgency all classrooms demonstrated in getting straight on to our core business, teaching and learning. I observed classes deconstruct student writing samples against scales to begin building their co-constructed bump-it-up walls, classes participating in some formative assessment to gain an idea of what students know, students participating in collaborative learning structures and so much more. Keep up the great work Year 5 and 6.

Student Leadership

Congratulations to all the Year 6 students who successfully completed their Student Leader Passport. This week myself and Ms Egan had the pleasure of interviewing all students who wanted to be considered for School Captain, Performing Arts, Reconciliation Leader and Diversity Leader. All of the students we interviewed did an amazing job and they should all be very proud. On Wednesday we will announce to these students who has been shortlisted for School Captain and they will deliver a speech to our Year 5 and 6 students on Friday the 5^th of February. We will then vote to decide on these roles. On the 8^th of February we will announce School Captain positions and then from there we will decide on the other leadership positions. For more information on this process I emailed all Year 6 families in week 1. We look forward to continuing this process over the coming weeks to ensure our students have an active voice within our school.

Have a great week
Martin Winney

Deputy Principal – Year 5 & 6

Inclusion Scan and Assess: We are very lucky at our school to have an entire staff who deeply value and who are committed to ensuring our school is an inclusive one.  On 11 and 12 February, a team of inclusion specialists from Education Queensland will be visiting our school to observe our strengths in inclusive practices and to give us guidance and inspiration on the next steps for us to take.  We are looking forward to the opportunity to learn!

Ms Crawshaw is back! Welcome back to Emma Crawshaw, our Guidance Officer.  Emma works alongside our ILT and all staff with a strong Student Wellbeing focus.  If you have any concerns about your child’s wellbeing at school, please speak with the class teacher initially.

MHSS Student Code of Conduct In 2020 we finalised our MHSS Student Code of Conduct.  This document sets out key information about Student Wellbeing and behaviour at our school.  You can find this document on our school website. 

Take Care

Ellaine Warner

Deputy Principal - ILT
ewarn23@eq.edu.au

Physical Education News

Hello to those families returning for 2021 and welcome to those who are joining the Mango Hill school community.  Mr Tyson Newell, and I will have an incredibly busy start to the year.  We have many events in Term 1 for our Senior Year 3-6 students so we wanted you to be aware of everything that will be occurring.

Attached is the Term 1 MHSS PE Calendar.  It has all the important dates for all MHSS events, as well as Pine Rivers and Metropolitan North Representative Events.  If you have any questions regarding these events please do not hesitate to contact Mr Newell or myself via phone/email or you are welcome to pop into our office, which is located on the first floor of M Block (closest building to the oval).

Pine Rivers District Sporting Trials

Pine Rivers District School Sport offers 10-12 Year old students the opportunity to compete at Metropolitan North trials and carnivals, with the possibility of selection into teams competing at State events. Students must be nominated by their school in order to attend a district trial or carnival.

Students who express an interest to trial can collect forms from our PE office.  They will be given the Pine Rivers District forms and the relevant trial information.   Completed district forms are to be returned to the PE office by the due date.  Once the forms are collated, students will be nominated for the trial. Forms are then handed back to students and must then be taken to the coach/manager at the District Trials. Students will NOT be allowed to trial if district forms are not handed in completed.  Unless specifically organised by the school, it is the parents’ responsibility to transport students to and from district trials.  Payments for trials must be made through the Pine Rivers District School Shop Online payment process. https://schoolshoponline.net.au/pineriverssports/index.aspx

Most Pine Rivers District trials are limited to students turning 11 or 12 years of age and who are considered at a high level in the sport e.g. Div. 1 or A Grade.  Cross Country, Athletics and Swimming trials however are open for students turning 10, 11 and 12 years of age.   Sports that students are able to trial for include;

• AFL
• Basketball
• Cricket
• Football (Soccer)
• Golf
• Hockey
• Netball
• Rugby League
• Rugby Union
• Softball
• Squash
• Tennis
• Touch
• Triathlon

Mango Hill can nominate up to three students for each district sport trial.  If more than three students wish to be nominated Mango Hill will select the three best candidates for the trial.  The selection of these students may be either based on past performances/current club form or through a selection trial at school.

If you are interested in your child trialling for Pine Rivers District more information can be obtained from the Mango Hill State School newsletter, with regular trial updates listed.  You may also obtain trial information from the Pine Rivers District School Sport Website www.pineriverssport.qld.edu.au , Mr Nick Hills - nhill96@eq.edu.au or Mr Tyson Newell – tnewe20@eq.edu.au.

MHSS Cross Country

All students from Years Prep to 6 will be competing in the 2021 MHSS Cross Country Race. This is completed in the morning session of school with students competing in a long distance race with their age group peers.  More information regarding the Cross Country will be available later in the term. Dates are:

Year 3-6: Friday week 8 - 19 March

Year Prep-2: Tuesday week 9 - 23 March (please note date change)

Gala Day

All Year 5 and 6 students will get the chance to participate in the Pine Rivers District Gala Day Competitions.  Students compete against teams from other schools on Gala Day.  They will vote for which sport they would like to play and can train at school during our lunch clubs. The Gala Day sports for Semester 1 are;

1. Netball
2. Indoor Cricket
3. Rugby League
4. Soccer
5. Basketball
6. Ultimate Frisbee

Sporting Schools

The Sporting Schools program will once again be running in 2021.  Sporting Schools is a national initiative, run by the Australian Sports Commission, which aims to help children foster a lifelong interest in sport, gain a healthier mind and body, have fun and learn sport activities and games skills in a safe environment.  The Sporting Schools program is open to all Mango Hill students from Prep-Year 6.  Each term Mango Hill will host coaching sessions at school for the chosen sports.  At this stage Mango Hill will attempt to host two sports each term, one for students in Prep-Year 2 (up to 20 students) and another for students in Year 3-6 (up to 20 students).  These sessions usually run afterschool from 3.00pm-4.00pm.  More information will be available in the school newsletter shortly.

Pine Rivers District Sport Trials – Term 1

Below is a list of upcoming Pine Rivers District trials.  Most trials are limited to students turning 11 or 12 years of age and who are considered at a high level in the sport eg Div 1 or A Grade.  If you are interested in your child trialling for Pine Rivers District more information can be obtained from the Pine Rivers District School Sport Website www.pineriverssport.qld.edu.au  or Mr Nick Hills - nhill96@eq.edu.au (MHSS PE Teacher).

Please Note:

• Trial information and district forms are not available until 2 weeks prior to trial date.
• District forms must be returned by the due date for students to be nominated
• Trial fees must be paid online by 3pm on the due date

* Due to high student interest in attending the PRD Football trials, MHSS will be conducting internal trials to select the students who will attend the PRD trials.

2021 AFLQ Schools Cup Trial Information

The AFLQ Schools Cup is a statewide AFL competition amongst primary schools, with Mango Hill competing initially in the Brisbane North Regional playoffs.  AFL QLD coordinates the competition with all matches played under the Laws of the game promulgated by the AFL.

In 2021, Mango Hill State School will again be entering a Primary Boys and Primary Girls team in the AFLQ Schools Cup competition.  These teams are open for all students from Year 4-6.  The Brisbane North Regional Playoff date is Thursday 18 March (week 8).

Trials

Trials for these two teams will be conducted via lunchtime AFL Clubs on Friday week 2, at 1^st and 2^nd break.  There will also be an afterschool trial at 3.00pm-3.30pm on Thursday 4 February (week 2).  Attendance at either the Friday AFL Club or afternoon trial will help your child gain selection in our initiall training squad.  A final team to attend the AFLQ Schools Cup day will be selected later in Term 1.

Students interested in trialling can add there name to the sign up sheet which is located on the PE notice board in M Block (in front of Mr Hills and Mr Newell’s office).

Equipment/Uniform

If selected, a Mango Hill State School AFL jersey, shorts and socks will be provided for competition days at no cost.  Students will need to provide their own protective equipment (mouthguard) and will require football boots (no metal tags). 

Training

If selected in the team, there is an expectation that students commit to attending AFL training, which will be held Thursday afternoon 3.00pm-4.00pm and on Friday during lunch break. 

Costs:

There is no initial costs associated with the competition.  If teams progress further in the competition travel and playing costs may apply.

If you have any questions please do not hesitate to contact team manager Nick Hills (nhill96@eq.edu.au).

Have a fantastic week 

Mr Hills & Mr Newell

Physical Education Teachers

nhil96@eq.edu.au
tnewe20@eq.edu.au

Welcome Back to Term 1 2021 

I would like to introduce myself - I am Louise, the managing convenor and my lovely assistant is Kathryn. We have children at Mango Hill and have both worked in the canteen for over 4 years. 

At the end of last year, we ran a competition with Grade 6 entering to suggest a name and logo. The 2020 Grade 6 missed out on many usual MHSS events last year due to COVID, so we wanted to do something to commemorate their time with us and leave a lasting legacy. 

And the winners are..........2020 6B!!!! 

The name of our canteen will be ‘Mango Munchies’!

Mango Munchies is open Monday – Friday 7am – 2pm. Counter service starts at 8am. 

All canteen ordering at MHSS can be done via Flexischools. This system allows us to quickly and efficiently process a large volume of daily orders as well as assisting with inventory and stock controls.

There is an app available been via Apple store (https://apps.apple.com/au/app/flexischools/id1420774608) and Google Play (https://play-lh.googleusercontent.com/60mFIuhxXBGmo3ty2naTzw2ofa8P1pZnT8OIqDsW8yqSYctvoPH3ziIW76K1sjYZTA=s200) or you can use the website - https://flexischools.com.au/

If you would like help using Flexischools, the canteen staff can help where possible and refer you on to the support helpline in need.

Prep students can order daily, including ice creams/ice blocks, which will be taken to the specific class. Prep students cannot order SlushPuppy drinks until Term 4, when they begin to visit the canteen themselves at second break. 

Our menu includes many Halal items as well as gluten-free and vegan options. Sushi Friday is available weekly via Flexischools and must be ordered by 8.30am Thursday prior.

Breakfast - A menu is available each day including hash browns, fruit toast and pikelets (with butter and choice of jam or honey). Hot chocolate is also available every morning. 

Students can pay for over the counter items before school and at break times using cash, Spriggy cards and other Tap&Go cards. 

We also offer special meal deals once a term, eg Ekka Show Day. These events will be announced via the MHSS newsletter and official school Facebook page. All orders must be placed through Flexischools prior to that event cutoff date. 

If you encounter any problems with ordering or your child is sick/absent unexpectedly, please contact us directly at the canteen on 3482 8115 or via email - mhsspccanteen@gmail.com.

We look forward to a great year feeding our school community!

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