Newsletter - 07/02/2025
Principal News
Dear Parents
School is back and the rains are here! Thankfully not as severely as to our North. My thoughts run to those schools and communities that have been forced to close or have been damaged due to the flooding. Let’s hope for sunshine next week to allow the grounds to dry out and students to be able to run and enjoy playing with their friends.
A warm welcome back to our families along with all those families new to our school as we begin another exciting school year! It’s been wonderful to see the eager faces of our students as they return to their classrooms, ready to learn, grow, and make new memories together, while our teachers have been busy creating engaging lessons, and the children have already been hard at work in their learning.
Our PBL focus for the first two weeks is around the Top Ten listed below. These cover various aspects of the Fitzgerald expectations: Be a Learner; Be Safe; Be Respectful; and Be Responsible and are essential for students to know and follow to create a cohesive and positive school environment.
It was wonderful to have Member for Mackay, Mr Nigel Dalton at our School Leader Badge Presentation on Monday. Following this we had our Student Councillors attend the GRIP leadership day at the MECC yesterday. This was a fun look at the Responsibilities of a Student Leader, Leadership through Friendship, New Ideas to Help Others and Achieving Ideas Before the End of the Year. I am looking forward to working with this wonderful group of leaders as they work to serve the student community of Fitzgerald this year.
Tracey Adams
Principal
From the Head of Department, Curriculum
Reading at home using shared reading practices
Why use shared book reading?
Shared reading describes the interaction that occurs between an adult and a child when reading or looking at a book. Although one of the most obvious and engaging features of storybooks is their illustrations, they also provide children with access to a world of sights, sounds, and words that may be quite different from what they experience in their homes, communities, and schools.
Reading aloud with your child builds language development so that by the time children have mastered letter-sound correspondences and can read increasingly complex texts themselves, they will have the language skills to understand what they read. Having strong oral language skills sets the foundations for children to build strong literacy skills.
Reading authentic texts aloud to your child allows them to continue to hear stories, information and written language they may not yet be able to read themselves.
What does shared reading look like?
An important aspect of shared reading is the conversation that occurs between the adult and child during the reading. Pausing while reading and taking the time to discuss details in the story can support your child’s oral language development. The conversation might focus on the storyline, such as characters or where the story takes place; it may focus on similar experiences the child has had to those that happened in the book; it may focus on specific words; aspects of print; or concepts that are new to the child. When you read aloud to your child, they hear and learn lots of new and sophisticated words and sentences they may not hear or use in everyday talk.
What books should be used for shared reading?
In the early years of reading instruction, children engage with different books for different purposes. They need to read decodable texts to develop their word reading skills and they need to read and hear authentic texts to develop strong oral language skills. Authentic texts include picture books, storybooks, information texts and any reading material the child enjoys.
When children are first learning to read, the books they will read independently are designed to improve their ability to decode (decodable texts). For most children, the language used in these books will be far simpler than the language they already understand and use.
Virtually all children’s books are appropriate for shared reading, but the best books will have rich, detailed pictures, and are interesting to the child. Remember, the purpose of shared reading is to stimulate rich talk between the adult and child, not for the child to be able to read the text themselves.
Teri Robson
Head of Department, Curriculum
5C - Number Patterns
Students learning what group work means. Each group worked to try to find the numbers 1-100 and discover patterns.
Trina Patton
5c Teacher
From the Guidance Officer
Recently students, staff and families may have experienced some big emotions as a result of the events surrounding the school lockdown. We were very thankful to Mackay North State High School for sending extra guidance officers and their chaplain to help our guidance officer and psychologist to support students and staff. A traumatic event is any situation that a student may experience as distressing or frightening, including accidental injury (to them or others), serious illness, the death of someone close, natural disasters and extreme weather events. Any traumatic event, including natural disasters such as recent rains, can create some concern for people. Families play an important role in supporting their children and following are some great tips. Other information can be found at https://emergingminds.com.au/
Alexia Wotherspoon
Guidance Officer
From HPE
REPRESENTATIVE SPORTING TRIALS 10-12 YEARS (STUDENTS BORN 2013, 2014, 2015)
The 2025 Representative School Sports calendar is available on the MDSS Facebook page. Please note that these trials are for students who are experienced in the sports offered and are not “come and try” type days. Students need to have developed and demonstrated skills and suitable experience in order to attend. Suitability to attend a trial will be at the school’s discretion.
The Process:
- Mr Hope will receive information sheets prior to the trials for each sport from the convenor.
- Students are then called for a meeting via the school intercom system (students are also given information on parades) where the trial requirements and paperwork are discussed. A school-based trial may need to be conducted. Students are given the paperwork to take home and complete.
- Due dates and payment details are displayed on the cover sheet.
- Once notes and money are returned, Mr Hope checks the paperwork is correct and signs the document. THE PAPERWORK IS THEN GIVEN BACK TO THE STUDENT WHO THEN TAKES THE PAPERWORK TO THEIR TRIAL. NO PAPERWORK = NO TRIAL!
PLEASE NOTE!
- PERMISSION/ DETAILS BOOKLET - 17 pages (make sure all parts are filled as directed on the document – also make sure parents and students sign where necessary!) Please ensure the first page after the information sheet is also filled in!
Please contact me on rhope6@eq.edu.au if you require the paperwork emailed out or if you have any questions regarding sport trials.
CROSS COUNTRY
Trainings will be on Tuesday and Thursday afternoons from 3:00pm to 3:30pm. It is a good idea for students to bring a water bottle and a hat as it is usually very hot. If it is raining or heatwave conditions, we will get messages out via the school’s Facebook page and SMS to advise parents that training is cancelled.
ASSESSMENT IN HPE
Students are graded in two parts in HPE. They are given a mark for Health (theory lessons in class) as well as PE (physical activity lessons). A final grade is given, combining and averaging the Health and Physical Education components.
Russell Hope
HPE Teacher
Music
Junior & Senior Choir
Rehearsals have started and choir participation notes have been handed out. It’s not too late - new members are always welcome. Rehearsals are Tuesdays (Junior Choir at 2nd lunch and Senior Choir at 1:30pm) and Thursdays (Senior Choir at 2nd lunch and Junior Choir at 1:30pm).
Sing Out
This event is for students in Years 4, 5 and 6 who participate in Junior or Senior Choir. (It is non-compulsory).
Dates: Wednesday 2nd – Friday 4th April
Cost: $75
Notes have been sent home with interested students. Please ensure notes are returned with payment by Friday 28th February.
Linda Miller
Music Teacher/Instrumental Music Coordinator
From the Library
Brittany Kendall
Teacher Librarian
Upcoming Events
| 10th-14th March | School Library Week |
| 25th March | Beginner Instrumental Afternoon Tea |
| 17th-28th March | Life Ed |
| 2nd-4th April | Sing Out |
From PCYC Fun Squad
"Exciting News: Welcome to PCYC Fun Squad!
Dear Parents and Guardians,
We are thrilled to announce that our PCYC OSHC program has a brand new name for the new year — PCYC Fun Squad!
This exciting change reflects our ongoing commitment to providing a fun, engaging, and dynamic environment for your children. Our dedicated team is ready to bring even more creativity, adventure, and learning to every day spent with us!
Looking back, our December and January Holiday Fun (formerly Vacation Care) was absolutely incredible! We had a blast with your children, diving into exciting activities, games, and outings. From arts and crafts to thrilling outdoor adventures, the holiday program was filled with laughter and new friendships. We couldn’t have asked for a better start to the year, and we’re so excited to keep the momentum going with even more fun ahead!
We can’t wait for your child to experience all the exciting activities, new programs, and the vibrant energy that will come with being part of the PCYC Fun Squad. From team-building games to artistic adventures, this year will be full of opportunities for growth and fun!
Thank you for your continued support. Here's to a fantastic year ahead with lots of laughter, learning, and, of course, fun!
Jordyn Hay
OSHC Service Manager
Community News
