Dear Parents and Carers,

School Council

Earlier this week, we had our last School Council meeting for the year. The School Council provides the school with strategic advice and feedback around school strategic planning and policy. For three years we have had parent representatives participate on our school council who were elected by our school community. These are: Elizabeth Lynch (P and C President) Sonja March, Teresa Muirhead, Brian Stumer and our staff representatives over this period (Bec Daconceicao, Sue Joyce, Anthony Kleidon and Lyndon Todd.) The P and C President receives an automatic seat on the School Council but early next year, there will be an election to select new parent members of our school council. I wish to thank these parents who have given generously of their time to ensure the school was given useful feedback and ideas with which to go forward. We look forward to some parents nominating themselves to be part of the voting process for these important roles in our school from 2022. 


Attendance

A reminder to parents and carers that attendance is a legal obligation under the Education Act. This time of year students can become less engaged with their schoolwork and less patient with peers.  It is important that if your child needs support to attend school you need to talk with us and exchange ideas allowing the opportunity for us to work together as a team. High absenteeism or endemic lateness in the primary years doesn't set good patterns for secondary schooling and has a major impact on the life chances of students.  Therefore, there is a system expectation which is overseen by an external audit process, that Principals follow a set policy around high levels of absence. 


Asbestos Removal

On Monday 6 December, there will be an asbestos roof removed from a house adjacent to the school’s Buran Street entrance. We will not be staffing this entrance before or after school on that Monday and parents can make their own choice as to how they and their children enter the school. All other entrances will be staffed as usual.

Have a good week,

Kathy

Active School Travel – We’re In!

Our school has been selected as one of 13 new schools joining Brisbane City Council’s Active School Travel (AST) program in 2022.

Active School Travel promotes clean and green, active and healthy school travel modes such as walking, cycling, scootering, carpooling and public transport. Over the next three years, our school will receive a range of free resources, tools, incursions from Council to enable active travel to and from school.

By choosing to actively travel to school, at least one day a week on our active travel day, we can reduce traffic congestion at the school gate, improve our students’ road safety awareness, create a cleaner environment, and improve our health and fitness! Or if you have to drive, park the car away from the school and actively travel the rest of the way. That’s Park & Stride.

More details to come early next year, and we strongly encourage you to be part of this great initiative to change our school environment and culture.

Start thinking how you can use your car less travelling to and from school next year.

Booklists and Student Resource Scheme

Craigslea, like many schools, is a booklist and Student Resource Scheme (SRS) school.  2022 Booklists have already been sent home but you can also find them on the school website.

Parents will be invoiced for the SRS on day 1 of the new year.  Parents who wish to opt out will need to complete a form (even if done in previous years).  Opting out requires that parents purchase the SRS resources themselves.  Please note that this is a more expensive way of purchasing the resources.

Assessment 

As this year draws to a close, students are beginning to enter the assessment period of the term. Teachers are working to a tight timeline to turnaround from teaching to assessing to reporting, so every day is busy! Assessments are an opportunity for students to 'show what they know' and they are really just an extension of the learning and activities that they have been doing in class. 

Therefore, it is important that students are at school for those earlier leassons in order to have the best opportunity, to indeed show what they know. Assessments are important and valued and we encourage students to do their best at all times, but we also teach them to understand that it is only one part of their learning process and there are always more opportunities in the future to demonstrate their knowledge and understanding. 

Principal’s Academic Award – Excellence in Literacy

LIFE Awards – Prep to Year 3

Recycling Hub – Please see the information below around what we are collecting to recycle.

Principal’s Academic Award 

Progress Award  -  Consistent Effort in all Curriculum Areas 

• Tries their best in all areas of the Curriculum 
•   Completes all set tasks—neatly and on time 
• Completes all homework tasks—neatly and on time 

Principal’s Academic Award 

Progress Award  -  Consistent Effort in all Curriculum Areas 

• Tries their best in all areas of the Curriculum 
•   Completes all set tasks—neatly and on time 
• Completes all homework tasks—neatly and on time