Newsletter - 30/04/2025

Principal News

I would like to extend a warm welcome back to term 2 to all students, parents, staff and school community members. I hope you all had an enjoyable and relaxing Easter Holiday break.

I would like to welcome all new families who have enrolled at Fitzgerald for this term. We also have 2 new staff members that have started at Fitzgerald this term: Lucy McCall (pictured below) has started as an Administration Officer in the front office. Some of you may have already met or spoken with Lucy over the phone. Taiya Thaiday has also begun as the school’s First Nation Support Teacher Aide. Taiya will be working Thursday and Fridays and will be working with First Nation’s students and their families. We welcome both of these staff members to our school.   

Last week our school held our ANZAC Day Parade. We had the pleasure of listening to guest speaker Meech Philpott, who is an integral member of the Kokoda Memorial Foundation. Students, staff and parents all eagerly listened as Meech spoke of the importance of the ANZAC spirit, specifically bravery and what this looked like during war time. Meech then linked what bravery could look like in school aged children attending school at Fitzgerald- a very important and inspiring message. I was immensely proud of the school community during the ANZAC Parade. Our year 6 student council lead the parade with confidence and our school choir performed beautifully. The behaviour of all students was also exemplary. I was particularly proud that this did not go unnoticed from Meech, our guest speaker!

It was also great to see a large contingent of staff and students attend the Mackay ANZAC Day march. I thank students and parents for recognising the importance of the march and also to staff assisting in the supervision of this event. After the march, our school captains Indiana and Felix also laid a wreath on behalf of Fitzgerald State School- all students represented the school with pride which was great to see.

This week, students have had the opportunity to attend the ANZAC display and presentation held by Phil Rutherford. This is an annual event in the Fitzgerald calendar and one that is always well received by staff and students. Phil has an extensive display of Military items and the students especially like to see these items up close.

This week is Guidance Officer Week. Our school would like to recognise and thank our school Guidance Officer, Alexia Wotherspoon (pictured) on all of the great things she does in our school. Through supporting students to working with staff and parents, your help and support for our school community is invaluable and we truly appreciate everything you do!

Our new 2025 P&C met for the first time this week. It was great to see several initiatives up and running already for the year. Please keep an eye out for any future information relating to school P&C events and tuckshop news. 

Myself, Peter and Teri have been pleased to see that all classes have had a successful start to term 2. It has been pleasing to see that our students are settled both in and outside of the classrooms. There has already been plenty of learning on display across the whole school and I look forward to the progress our students make across term 2.

Term 2 shapes up to be very busy, please ensure that you are aware of key events that are advertised both through the school newsletter and on the school Facebook page.

Have a great week everyone!

Tim

Timothy Campbell
Acting Principal

Guidance Officer

eSafety is Australia’s independent regulator for online safety.  They educate Australians about online safety risks and help to remove harmful content such as cyberbullying of children, adult cyber abuse and intimate images or videos shared without consent.

Concerningly, there have been recent reports of online incidents occurring for some students in our school.

The eSafety Guide has information on how to protect your personal information and report harmful content on common social media, games, apps and sites.  Further information via the link below 'eSafety Safety Guide'.

The eSafety site has lots of valuable information for parents and an option to sign up for the parent newsletter.  Just follow the link below 'eSafety Parents'.

REMEMBER The Online Safety Amendment (Social Media Minimum Age) Act 2024 introduces a mandatory minimum age of 16 for accounts on certain social media platforms, forming one part of a broader strategy to create safer digital spaces for everyone.

The age restriction requirements will take effect by December 2025. Details about how they will operate, how and when they will be enforced, which services will be affected and other relevant information will be developed throughout 2025 and provided on the eSafety website. The information will help young people, parents, carers, educators and the online industry understand and prepare for the change.

Walking In Her Shoes

Alexia Wotherspoon
Guidance Officer

Music & Instrumental

Choral News

Choral Fanfare

Creative Generation Choral Fanfare (Choral Fanfare) is the biennial choral festival for Queensland state schools which promotes and celebrates school-based choral music programs. More than 9,000 students participate in the program which showcases the outstanding vocal talents in Queensland's state schools through performance.

Choral Fanfare aims to:

• offer students, as well as conductors, the experience of expert adjudication and feedback
• provide students with the opportunity to perform alongside choirs from other state schools
• highlight school-based choirs
• promote excellence in choral performance.

Mackay Regional Final - Monday 9^th June – Fitzgerald School Hall  - The Junior and Senior Choirs will be competing in this competition.  Parents and community members are most welcome to attend.  Information will be sent home in Term 2 regarding this event.

SHEP 

Students in Year 5 and 6 (Senior Choir) are eligible to nominate for Choral SHEP (State Honours Excellence Program) – an educational program for choral students to pursue musical excellence.  This program is run by the Queensland Conservatorium of Music.  Further information about SHEP can be via the link below.

Fee                      $290

Dates                  August 29 – 31

Venue                Mackay North SHS (Valley Street)

Times                 Friday 4 – 7pm; Saturday 8 – 4pm

Notes have been sent home with interested Year 5 and 6 senior choir students.  Please return early in Term 2 to Mrs Miller - lmill269@eq.edu.au

Sing Out

Last term, 32 Fitzgerald students from Years 4, 5 and 6, participated in “Sing Out” – a singing festival held over 3 days for students in Mackay regional schools.  Students engaged with Brisbane conductor, Jenny Moon, rehearsed new repertoire and performed to an appreciative audience of family and friends.  We congratulate our young choristers, who represented our school with excellence.

Instrumental News

Twilight Concert

For all beginning and continuing instrumental students and recorder ensemble
Wednesday 21^st May (Week 5, Term 2) – 6pm in School Hall

Regional Instrument Camp

Sunday 22^nd June – Wednesday 25^th June (Seaforth) – for accepted Year 6 instrumental students only (to be advised in Term 2).

Linda Miller
Music Teacher / Instrumental Music Coordinator 

From the Resource Centre

Brittany Kendall          Jo Struthers
Teacher Librarian       Teacher Aide

Positive Behaviour for Learning

Katelyn Sartor
Teacher 6C

Walk Safely to School Day

National "Walk Safely to School Day" is on Friday, May 16.  This annual event is where Primary School children are encouraged to walk and commute safely to school.  This is a School Community Event seeking to promote road safety, health, public transport and the environment.

To promote this important day, we are encouraging parents to drop their children off at the Norris Road Touch Football Field car park on Friday, May 16 at 8:15am.  School staff will also be in attendance to supervise the children at the carpark and then walking them up Norris Road to school for the day.

Students across all year levels are welcome to attend the "Walk Safely to School Day".  When students get to school, they will be escorted to their classes by school staff.

Parents or younger siblings are also welcome to walk to school with students.

After school pick up is as per normal.

Please contact the office if you would like further information.

Head of Special Education Services

Circus Quirkus has been organized by the Mackay PCYC as a special outing to bring some joy and laughter to the children, teenagers and families who have been having a hard time due to illness, disabilities or other health related issues. This also includes those who may be experiencing emotional and/or financial difficulties.

They will do their best to provide you with tickets, however they are limited in the number of tickets available, therefore they cannot guarantee you will receive all the tickets you request until orders have been received. Tickets will be sent 2 weeks prior to the show at the latest. The show is recommended as suitable for the ages of 2 years and above.

For ticket orders and if you have any queries, please don’t hesitate to send an email to showtickets@helpthekids.com.au or Call Rae on (07) 3810 2587 (MON – WED, 10AM - 2PM)

Carolyn Berck
Teacher - Special Needs

Upcoming Events

P&C News

The P&C would like to extent their sincere gratitude for the entire community's support over the last month. We have been working hard behind the scenes on quite a few projects, the biggest of which being our Mothers Day Market and our Tuckshop re-opening.

We are pleased to announce that the Tuckshop will be operating as of Thursday May 01 this week, 5 days a week, online, cash or card, whichever you choose to use. We have welcomed a new tuckshop convenor, her name is Stacey, along with our two Tuckshop Assistants, Ashley and Gennaya. Thank you all for your patience while we worked through this. There is lots of new yummy items on the menu as well as new food available for the kids to purchase over the counter. As you can appreciate this is new and there are bound to be hiccups. If you have any issues at all please email us at fitzgeraldsspc@outlook.com.

As always, we do love to meet new people and welcome volunteers as much or as little as you are able to. The P&C is bringing back the Volunteer Rewards Program this year. Once you have volunteered a total of 5 hours, whether it be in a single event or across multiple days and events, you will receive a $10 voucher that your child can use at the tuckshop or at the canteen during an event such as a disco.

We look forward to seeing you all this weekend at our Mother's Day Markets while you are out voting. 

Jess Majid
P&C President

The Power of Fundraising at Fitzy

At Fitzy we believe in creating a vibrant and enriching environment for our students — and fundraising plays a crucial role in making that possible. From upgrading resources and playgrounds, supporting extracurricular programs to hosting unforgettable community events, every dollar raised goes directly back to improving our school.

But none of it can happen without the dedication of our wonderful volunteers. Whether it's lending a hand at a stall, selling raffle tickets, or helping to set up an event, our parent and carer community is the backbone of our fundraising success. Your time, energy, and enthusiasm make all the difference!

This year, the P&C has an exciting calendar of fundraising events lined up, including:
🍩 Krispy Kreme Fundraiser
🏃‍♂️ Sports Day Canteens
💃 School Discos
🎬 Movie Nights                                                                    
🏃‍♀️ Sensory Run
🎄 Christmas Carols and Fun Fair   

Current Fundraiser: Mother’s Day Market
Our current fundraiser is the Mother’s Day Market, proudly sponsored by Jamaica Blue Canelands and Coral Tree Property. It is happening this Saturday 3^rd May from 10am-4pm We’ll be hosting a Mother’s Day Stall at this weekend’s market, where Fitzy families can come along and purchase lovely gifts in time for Mum’s special day. If you would like to volunteer please contact fitzgeraldsspc@outlook.com.

We’re also excited to be running our Mega Mother’s Day Raffle! Tickets are on sale now and each family should have received tickets home. Please return the sold tickets to the school office by Thursday 8^th of May in sealed clip lock bag or envelope. Can you please include your child’s name, their class as well as a parent name. If your family doesn’t wish to sell the tickets, can you also return the unsold tickets to the school so we can sell them later. We are aiming to sell as many as possible to help reach our fundraising goals. The raffle will be drawn on the Friday the 9^th May, and winners will be notified that day to arrange collection of prizes from the school office.

Prizes have been generously donated by:

• Jamaica Blue Canelands
• Purely Magnetic
• The Dumpling Hut
• The Crochet Cat
• MaJesstic Braids
• Beauty by Stacey
• AML Designs
• Keep Smiling Clinic
• Purely Magnetic
• The Sleek Boutique
• Chemist Warehouse
• Wild Tribe
• Beads By Ashlee
• Grocery Donations from our families and much more…

If we have any Market Stock left over from the Market we will host a Mother’s Day Stall next Thursday 8^th and Friday 9^th May before school at 8am-8:30am in the Library.

Every contribution, whether it’s buying a raffle ticket or volunteering at an event, helps build a stronger school community. Thank you for your ongoing support — let’s make 2025 our most successful fundraising year yet!

Tanya Taylor
Fundraising Co Ordinator

Community News