RSS Newsletter Issue 6 2024

Principal

Schools and teachers use a lot of different data to make decisions. Some of the information we get from working with students, families and communities and other data we get from formal events. Assessment tasks, participation in excursions and attendance at school incursions are just some of the formal data sets we use to help make decisions at school. This is sometimes level of achievement results on tests and assessments; NAPLAN results; results from classroom work. At other times parents, students or staff are directly surveyed using short survey tools. 

My favourite part of working in schools, is when data triangulates. When more than one data source tells us the same thing, we know that our work is solid. Working in schools, we use the data from what we see and what is happening every day to help, and then occasionally other data opportunities are provided to help with our judgments. When I arrived at Richmond State School, and when Department staff have visited or new staff have begun their work, the observations are the same: 

Richmond State School is a GREAT school. 

The climate is welcoming.  

The students are learning.

The students are engaged - you can see the motivation and perseverance.

The relationships between students and the staff are great.  

What’s really exciting, is earlier this week the results of our student QEWSurvey were back and the data matches the vibes! 

The Queensland Engagement and Wellbeing Survey happens in Term 2 every year, for students across Years 4-12 and is a system-wide way of gaining a better understanding of the wellbeing and engagement of our students and how we can best support them. The questions asked of students at RSS (from Years 5-10 this year) collect anonymous data organised by the domains of the Student Learning and Wellbeing Framework (the SLAWF). If you’d like to have a chat about the SLAWF and the QEWSurvey, please reach out to organise a time for a chat, however there’s a few sections that are worth highlighting in this newsletter. 

 First you need to know: 

But when you look at all 28 responses from our Year 5-10 cohort, there’s great moments to celebrate! 

First – take a look at the way our students view their relationships and school: 

In terms of teaching and learning – all our students report high quality relationships between themselves and their teachers. They also report highly the clarity of expectations from staff. 

There's also some great triangulation between what we’re seeing in classrooms and our work with high impact pedagogy – and providing clear teaching in classrooms too: 

The work that teachers do for their learning wall, and the work undertaken with our Speech Language Pathologist to provide robust vocabulary instruction is feeding into these great results. 

In terms of the work we’ve been doing since Term One, as outlined by our Annual Improvement Plan, these results help us to continue to provide that clear teaching and learning experience. Teachers have been brainstorming what we need to refine to continue this great work towards our 2024 goals. 

If you’d like to talk more about our AIP, the SLAWF; or the results from our most recent QEWS please reach out on 4768 6333 or via email – ecumm26@eq.edu.au 

Thank you for your understanding as I learn the formatting features of the Schoolzine eNewsletter programming. I have learned a lot trying to include all this great data so everyone can share the successes we celebrate at Richmond State School.

Kind regards,

Elizabeth Cumming

Principal

Deputy Principal

Learning After the Bell will commence for Semester 2 from Monday of Week 2 Term 3. Letters seeking expressions of interest for students to attend are being distributed this week and will need to be returned by Wednesday 15th July, first week back of Term 3. Some changes have been trialled in recent weeks to enhance the program moving forward. For example, students now take an eating and play break from 2:30pm - 3:00pm to enable them to reinvigorate themselves before commencing their further study. Furthermore, our school’s computer resources have been centralised at the library and now offer more ready access to students where digital technologies are able to be used to support learning needs. For parents seeking further advice on strategies to support their students with homework, the website address below is a great source of information: 

How To Help Kids With Homework | Spark their Future (Queensland Government resource) 

Key Points from this source are: 

• Establish a routine so homework becomes a regular part of their day/week. 
• Understand how your child learns. 
• Help them get organised. 
• Encourage your child when they make an effort. 
• Seek help from the school if your child needs it. 

Concluding events for Semester 1 have included our school’s disco with its Western theme building towards the much-anticipated Richmond Field days. The disco was well attended by all with fantastic dancing skills on display. Our schools display at the Field Days was an opportunity to showcase the brilliant work of students across all year levels with work samples demonstrating the high quality and breadth of learning at Richmond State School. In the final week of the term, High School students and staff are excited to be tasking an excursion to work collaboratively with Hughenden State School as they visit for an interactive Science Workshop at their new Science Lab classroom. Meanwhile, Richmond State School Year 5/6 classes will also be hosting a return excursion of students from Hughenden visiting our school to participate in STEM learning opportunities using our new LEGO robotics resources. These increased interactions with Hughenden State School are the result of increased collaboration between the schools to foster greater sharing of resources, knowledge and to boost student engaging with a broader peer group. 

Regards

Chris Smith

Deputy Principal

Head of Department - Curriculum

As the term draws to a close, so does our first semester of learning for the year. This week, families will be receiving the Semester 1 Report Cards for their student/s.  

Report Cards are a formal way of communicating each student’s achievement across each learning area, as well as their behaviour and effort exhibited across the semester. Report Cards offer an opportunity for parents and carers to connect with teachers and be involved in their child’s learning.  

This semester, we are trialling a new way to send report cards home, via email. Please ensure your contact details are up to date with the school office, including your email address. This will be done as well as sending Report Cards home in the post. 

When you read the email, it may look different depending on the year level your child is in. Each year level follows a 5-point scale for both their achievement and effort. The scales are below:  

On the primary students’ reports, class teachers will also provide a behaviour comment and an overall comment.  

On all report cards, teachers are able to request a Parent Teacher Interview. This will be shown on the last page of the report and will say either “Welcomed but not Required”, or “Required”. We welcome parents to contact their child’s teacher to discuss their report cards, and next steps for Semester Two.  

Next semester sees a change to some of the subject offerings.  

These include:  

• Prep to Year 8 Art focus moving to Dance. 
• Year 9/10 engaging with Harvest Ed as part of their Food & Fibre Technologies Subject, and Career Education in place of History. 
• Prep – Year 6 Technology will focus on Digital Technologies. 

At the beginning of Term 3 we will send home the Parent Curriculum Overviews. These highlight the learning being undertaken for the term, as well as important assessment dates and teacher contact details. I encourage you to take the time to read these, engage with your child’s learning and contact their teachers as needed.  

Wishing everyone a safe and enjoyable holiday break. We will see everyone back at school on Monday 8th July to commence Term 3! 

Regards,

Rachel Evans
Head of Department (Curriculum)

Administration of Medication

With the cooler weather approaching, it is a great time to review the process for medication being administered at school. 

If your child needs to take medication at school, please provide the office staff with:

• a completed and signed Consent to administer medication form;
• the medication in its original container; and
• medical authorisation (e.g. the pharmacy label, or a letter from the doctor, or a completed and signed health action plan).

Please remember that any medication must be brought into the Administration Office. If you have any queries, please contact the office. 

Student Achievements

Week 7

Week 8

Week 9

PBL

Golden Ticket Winners

Sport - Cross Country

Congratulations to all of our students that attended the North West Trials for Cross Country in Winton. You all put in tremendous effort. A big thank you to all the parents that drove over to Winton for their children to compete and for cheering them on.

 Fallon and Dustin will be going on to the next level of competition. They will be travelling to Brisbane in Term 3 to compete in the State Championships. We wish them the best of luck!

Sport - Basketball

During Week 8, Declan travelled to Rockhampton to compete in the State Basketball Championships. This is the first time a Northwest Region team has played in the State Championships. The team consisted of students across regions that met only once or twice before playing in the Championships. Students played in multiple games throughout the tournament and even came away with a win under their belt. 

Under 8's Day

Thank you so much to everyone that joined us for our under eights day event. It was wonderful to see the children engage in so many exciting and hands-on activities. We had water play, leaf painting, instrument making, play dough, biscuit decorating, bubbles and so much more! A special thankyou to Richmond Multi-Purpose Health Centre, SES, Queensland Police, Me and My Mum Hub, Spar Richmond and Renee Backer Face painter extrardinaire for their time and effort in making the day a success . It was great to see the Kindy & Bilby kids from Richmond Early Education Centre in attendance as well. Overall, a really wondeful morning celebrating the importance of the first 8 years of a childs life and developement.

Thankyou to Mrs Ybema, Miss Baartz & Mrs Evans for organising the event. A special big thankyou to Spar Richmond for their donation of morning tea.

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Clare - RSS Psychologist

My name is Clare, and I am excited to join the Wellbeing team at Richmond State School as a Provisional Psychologist. I am an avid traveller with a thirst for adventure having visited 67 countries and counting. My hobbies include stand up paddle board, yoga, and coffee. You can find me hanging with my cat Domino or taking on a trivia night.

Clare joins us full time for part of Term Three, before she begins to provide support to Hughenden, Julia Creek, Prairie and Cameron Downs State Schools. 

Premiers Reading Challenge

Dear parents/carers,

I am delighted to invite all Richmond State School students to join in the 2024 Premiers Reading Challenge.
The Premiers Reading Challenge is not a competition but a way to encourage students to develop a love of reading for life. Students are encouraged to select a range of fiction and non-fiction books suited to their reading ability and record books read during the reading period, between 7th May to 23rd  August. The Premiers Reading Challenge is the perfect opportunity for parents to foster a love of reading at home just as much as we do here at Richmond State School.
You will or may have already recieved  a reader record form and a consent form informing you about how the school and the Department of Education (department) will use, record and disclose your child’s personal information and material.
To complete the challenge:
✓ Prep to Year 2 must read or experience at least 20 books
✓ Years 3 and 4 must read at least 20 books
✓ Years 5 to 9 must read at least 15 books.
Experiencing books can include shared reading, listening to stories, or reading picture books. The aim for the 2024 challenge is to encourage students to make time to read. Last year saw more than 110,000 children from around the state participate.

Every student who completes the challenge and returns the completed record reader form and consent form, will receive a Certificate of Achievement signed by the Premier. I look forward to seeing as many of our students as possible take part in the 2024 Premier’s Reading Challenge.
Attached Consent Form
For your child to successfully complete the reading challenge the attached consent form must be completed by a parent or guardian and returned with the students reading log by the 26th of August.

For suggested books or for more information about the Premiers Reading Challenge, please visit:https://readingchallenge.education.qld.gov.au/resources/book-lists

 Mrs Hayley Ybema 

RSS Prep Tacher.

Fruit Break

Tuckshop

Term 2 Specials

P&C Information

Temporary Cleaning vacancy

We currently have temporary cleaning hours avaliable within our Cleaning Team. The vacant hours are for 2 part-time cleaners. Cleaners generally work split shifts, however we are open to being flexible in hours where possible i.e. during school hours.