Term 3 Week 4 Newsletter

Principal's Report

Dear Parents and Carers,

On Thursday and Friday of this week our Stafford Heights athletes headed to the North Districts Athletics carnival.  Our team of athletes represented our school with pride.  Congratulations to everyone for their efforts.

School Opinion Survey (SOS)

Thank you to the 26 parents/carers who have already completed the Parent/Caregiver Survey. If you have not had a chance to complete the survey yet, please note that the online surveys will remain open until Friday, 22 August 2025. This is your opportunity to provide feedback about what our school does well and how we can improve.

To have your say, check your email for an invitation from the Department of Education titled School Opinion Survey for parents and caregivers, 2025.

Can’t find your invitation? If your family has more than one parent/caregiver, check that they haven’t received the invitation and/or check your junk email folder.

School Uniform

At Stafford Heights State School, students wear their uniform with pride. Our school uniform fosters a strong sense of belonging and community. Our uniforms are thoughtfully designed to ensure comfort, practicality, and sun safety.   Wearing the uniform is a requirement of enrolment.

With the cooler weather now upon us, it’s important that all students are in the correct winter uniform to stay warm and maintain our school’s high expectations.

• School jumper or blue jumper
• Blue track pants, or blue leggings/tights (under skorts)

Hats
Stafford Heights State is a SunSmart school and follows a strict ‘Hat On, Play is On’ policy.  Students must wear a hat for all outdoor activities, including walking to and from school.

Hair

• Hair touching the collar must be tied back
• Fringes must not cover eyes
• Only natural hair colours allowed
• Hair accessories should be blue or white

Jewellery

• Watch
• Plain small studs or sleepers
• Approved medical wristbands only

Cosmetics

• Nail polish and makeup are not permitted

Thank you for supporting our uniform policy and helping students wear it with pride.

Leaving Stafford Heights in 2026

This term we commence planning for the 2026 school year.  If your family is planning to leave Stafford Heights at the end of the 2025 school year, could you please notify the office by email - admin@staffordheightsss.eq.edu.au

If you know of families wishing to join our Stafford Heights community, please encourage them to also contact the school office by email - admin@staffordheightsss.eq.edu.au 

Sarah Abdy

Principal

Head of Curriculum

Structured Synthetic Phonics

Updates to the Australian Curriculum in English strongly align with a large body of reading research on the most effective approach to teach reading- Structured Synthetic Phonics. This approach teaches children how sounds and letters link together to form words that we can read and write.  It provides students with a reliable strategy for decoding unknown words and discourages guessing.  Until recently, students have been taught a different way to read which used predictable texts that often have repeated sentences or phrases where the reader memorises whole words or sentences and/or picture cues to ‘read’ unknown words.  

Reading includes two vital components that need to be mastered:

• Being able to decode letters on a page or screen into words.
• Being able to understand and build meaning from the text.

As reading is not a natural skill the most effective and efficient way to teach reading is to explicitly teach the vital components in a logical order for students to become confident successful readers. 

Classrooms are focused on teaching Structured synthetic phonics to explicitly teach reading and spelling in short explicit sessions to review, revise and strengthen word reading skills.  Once students transition from word level reading to reading a continuous text, they may begin segmenting and blending most words on the page.  With multiple readings students will increase in automaticity and fluency. Home reading plays an important part in the practice of word and text level reading to gain automaticity and fluency with decodable readers.

Teachers also focus on language comprehension skills through the teaching of English as well as the other learning areas.  This is explicitly taught through class and shared reading and includes the technical knowledge and skills that students need to read text and also build their comprehension and understanding of texts.  Language comprehension skills include vocabulary, background knowledge, syntax and grammar, text structure, inferencing and comprehension monitoring.   

Shared and class reading is an explicit exploration of rich varied texts, where the teacher makes their thinking obvious to students and there are prompts to build students language skills.

The aim of shared and class reading is for students to discuss thinking and ideas with scaffolding, actively engage with text, challenge and change the thinking of each other, give reasons for, justify what they assert and speculate, and answer in full sentences. 

Shared and class reading includes active participation between students and teachers in dialogue or conversation about the text. Because we need to compare the information in the text with what we already know, we may need to adjust our existing knowledge.

Sometimes the information in the text conflicts with our prior knowledge and we need to resolve this for learning to occur.

Majella Cooper

Head of Curriculum 

Head of Inclusion

Secondary school Transition

In Semester 2, we follow the transition journey for our year 6 students as they move towards high school. Starting high school can be one of the most challenging transitions for some students to make. Planning involves both the student’s current school and future school. Please contact the secondary school in which you are considering to be informed of upcoming information sessions, or open days. This may also be helpful to do for the respective schools you are interested in if still undecided. Many schools will begin orientation days for students in Term 4. For some students, extra support may be required in collaboration with the student, their parents and guardians, and external professionals supporting the student. HIVE staff will be available to discuss individual needs and support in the planning around this transition phase of schooling. Timely planning can assist in supporting this transition. Please contact your classroom teacher should you have any concerns regarding the transition to secondary school and feel your student may require extra support. 

Multicultural Queensland Month

During the month of August there is an annual statewide initiative to recognise and promote Queensland’s cultural diversity. The 2025 theme, “One Queensland, many stories”, invites us all to reflect on and share the stories that connect us—stories of migration, culture, resilience, community, and belonging. Explore the Queensland Government Multicultural Queensland Month website to learn External linkwhat is occurring near you and discover resources that will help to understand and promote cultural diversity.

https://www.tatsipca.qld.gov.au/multicultural-queensland-month

Shelley Kemp

Head of Inclusion

Naidoc Week Prize Winners

Congratulations to the prize winners for our Naidoc Competition. Thanks to Target Brookside, Kmart Stafford and Officeworks Aspley for their generous donations of these prizes.

Enrolments

What to Include in an Enrolment Application

• Proof of address and residency documents
• State School Consent and school permission forms
• original birth certificate for each child
• passport and visa for any children born overseas
• recent report card
• Any relevant medical information and health action plans.
• Any current court orders or custody details related to the enrolling child/ren
• Any other information that you consider important for us to know about your child/ren.
• For students with an international passport and an Australian visa the following are also required: 
• visa grant notice from the Department of Home Affairs. Please note, a VIVO check does not provide details necessary for school enrolment.
• passport photo page.
• An official, English translation of their birth certificate may be requested.
• An Authority to Enrol in a Queensland State School is required for all subclass TR500 visas and is arranged by contacting Education Queensland International External link External link.
• All temporary visa holders should refer to Education Queensland International  External link External link to determine if an Authority to Enrol is required for their visa subclass.

Once you have completed the necessary forms, please return them (along with the necessary documents) to admin@staffordheightsss.eq.edu.au or alternatively contact Sonia Yates our enrolments Officer directly.

Pre Prep News

PREP ENROLMENTS FOR 2026

Applications for Prep 2026 are now being accepted.

If you have a sibling that is due to start in 2026 please make sure you come and see us in the office to receive an enrolment pack.

Please visit our school website at: https://staffordheightsss.eq.edu.au/enrolments to download our enrolment forms or alternatively collect from administration.

Please note: Our school is now catchment managed therefore we require the following documents to be sent through with the enrolment forms and permission forms.

The right age for Prep 2026 is for all children born between 1 July 2020 and 30 June 2021. Our Prep program is planned and designed to cater for all children at all levels of development who are born in this 12 month period

Book Week - "Book an Adventure"

General School Information

Term 3 Calendar of Events

Office Reminders

• Office Hours – 8.15am-3.15pm

• No Hat No Play Outside

* Student Birthday’s

If your child is celebrating a birthday and would like to bring cake to school to celebrate with the class please make sure that you contact the teacher or the office to ask how many students are in the class. We ask that you bring in something that can be easily given out to students for eg: cupcakes, freddo frogs and zooper doopers. (Please note: no full sized cakes as classrooms do not have the facilities to cut up slices to hand out)

• Students with Long Hair - All students with long hair should tie their hair back with a blue hair tie while at school (as 
per the Stafford Heights SS Student Dress Code)

• Early Pick Up of Students - If you need to pick up your child early throughout the day please come up to the 
office and sign your child out on the IPad.

• Family Holiday’s during School Term – if your family is going on a holiday during the school term, please email the office to inform them of the dates so that we know why your child will be absent from school. If the time away from school 10 school days or more the office will require you to fill out a specific form.

• Students Late to School – if your child is late to school (arrive after 9am), please make sure you come to the office first to receive a late slip to hand to their teacher. 

• Animals on School Premises – Please note that no animals are to enter school grounds at all as per the signs on each of our school fences.

Medication at School

If your child requires medication at school, please bring the medication in the original 
packaging with a label from the chemist along with a letter from the Doctor stating the child’s name, medication, dosage and time to administer. You will then be required to fill out forms to give us permission to administer this medication during school hours.

Please note: where the dosage of a medication requires tables to be halved, we have to request that parents/carers supply a pill cutter, labelled with your child’s name.

If medication supply is running low, you will receive a phone call to bring more tablets to the office. Please DO NOT send tablets in a zip lock bag with your child to hand to the office, we require a parent/carer to come to the office to give the extra tablets.

Student Absences

Even though you may have notified your child's teacher we still require you to inform the office when your child is away from school. Please note: all Unexplained absences are noted in a child’s Report card.

1. Leave a message on 3621 2333 OR
2. SMS: 0426 305 697 OR
3. QParents App – Submit Absence OR
4. Email: admin@staffordheightsss.eq.edu.au

Even though absences may result in missed learning opportunities, the main reason we ask that you notify us when your child is away is so we are made aware that your child is SAFE.

2025 Premier's Reading Challenge

Final days to hand in forms - 22nd August 

QParents

We’re streamlining our office processes by making the most of QParents and encourage all parents to create an account. It’s a user-friendly portal which provides secure online access to information about your child’s schooling including attendance, report cards, invoices and payment history. QParents also provides ease of viewing and updating your child’s details (including address and medical conditions) and helps both schools and parents through improved administration efficiencies and reduced printing and mail-outs. Please see the QParents Fact Sheet below for details about how to sign up.

PBL News - "Be in the right place, at the right time, doing the right thing"

This week our behaviour focus will be Be in the right place, at the right time, doing the right thing which falls under Respect for Self and will look at using the Staffie Life Skill of Responsible Decision Making. 

This week we will use this focus closely on lunchtimes and we will be reminding students why we have designated play areas and why we insist on them staying in them. We will remind our students that they need to make responsible decisions and stay where there is an adult to supervise them, being on hand should they need help and being a safe space to play - concrete leading to many accidents etc.

This focus is one that you can easily use and remind your students of at home. You can encourage your students to make responsible choices which might help time management. For example, right place, right time might look like doing homework away from the TV to minimise distractions or as simple as going to bed on time.

Health & Physical Education

Athletics

We have a large number of students who will be attending the North District Track and Field on August 7^th and 8^th at Nudgee College.

All the best to those students competing.

Term 3 – Before School Activity.

We will continue with skipping on Monday Mornings at 8.30 and running on Wednesday Mornings at 8.30 this term weather permitting.  

Students are to wait in the blue area on both mornings to be collected by the relevant staff member.  Remember, you must have a hat and be wearing it to participate.

Volleyball Cup

Our year 5 & 6 Students have expressed interest in participating in the Annual Volleyball Cup at Craigslea State High School on Thursday 21^st August.  Permission forms have been sent home and are due back by Friday 15^th August.

Mrs Jardine

HPE Teacher.

Arts News (Dance, Drama, Music)

The arts room has been a buzz of activity and excitement over the past fortnight with bucket drums, glockenspiels, rhythms playing as well as lots of drama games using expression and movement.

Spotlight on Prep

Preps have started to unpack what is drama. We have discussed how drama is about pretending, imagination, sharing feelings, using voice and movement and storytelling. Over the past fortnight students in Prep have enjoyed bringing a much-loved story to life, We’re Going on a Bear Hunt.   First students packed a bag for the bear hunt and then through movement set off an adventure, swishing through long grass, squelching through mud, shivering through a snowstorm, tip toeing through a cave, and of course finding and running from a bear. It’s been a lot of fun, and so much expression in the faces of our youngest learners. Check out the photos below.

In music we have been working on our aural skills and echoing back rhythms. We have also been exploring the rhythm in our names and clapping them with claves. Throughout this semester, preps will explore a familiar class song to innovate and create simple composition with untuned instruments.

Prep Drama

Class News - 1A & 1B

In maths this term, 1A and 1B have begun looking at measurement using informal units. We have been really enjoying finding things around the classroom to measure with blocks or paddle pop sticks, such as our desks, books, and even each other! This has made our maths lessons lots of fun so far this term. The grade 1 students are all becoming expert measurers at how long, short, tall or wide things are. Maybe they can measure how tall the teachers are next?...

Lions Club - Reading Bears Program

The Lions Club of Brisbane Inner Club visited our school bringing their reading initiative with the introduction of the Read Bears program. 

This program aims to enhance children’s reading skills by encouraging them to read to their bears each night.

Last Tuesday 29th July, year one students received special presentation boxes containing a bear, a book, and an information sheet.

The Lions Club of Brisbane Inner North, through their dedicated knitting group, has meticulously crafted bears to meet the program’s specifications. 

The Lions Club expressed enthusiasm about the initiative’s potential impact on local students’ literacy.

Schools throughout Queensland have reported significant improvements in Year One reading levels since adopting the Read Bears program. We are excited to bring this initiative to Stafford Heights State School and hope to see similar positive outcomes.”

Student Council

Make sure you pop into our Lolly Store tomorrow night at the Disco 

Instrumental News

Library News

Rules for Borrowing:

* You must always have a Library Bag with you to borrow a book from the library (no exceptions)

* You may borrow one (1) book for the week (prep to Year 3)

* Remember always keep your book safe by placing the book back into your Library bag when not reading it.

* Always bring your returning Library Book and bag back to school on borrowing day.

* If you misplace your library book, or the book has been damaged beyond repair, the school's policy requires replacement or reimbursement for that resource.

Student Awards

Student of the Week - Week 2

Respect Award - Week 2

Year 6 Graduation Fundraiser

Staffie's Got Talent

P&C

Community News

APPLY NOW for QACI Brilliant Futures  - a two-year selective-entry preparation program for student participation in Year 7 and Year 8. Current Year 6 students are welcome to APPLY NOW. QACI Brilliant Futures provides impactful, collaborative extra-curricular learning experiences aligned with the International Baccalaureate Learner Profile, including inquiry, critical thinking and reflection.