McCullough StreetMacGregor QLD 4109Subscribe:Subscribe: https://macgregorss.schoolzineplus.com/subscribe

Email:Email: admin@macgregorss.eq.edu.auPhone:Phone: 07 3323 4333

Fax:Fax: 07 3345 8701

23 August 201823 August 2018

PRINCIPAL’S COMMENTWe all know that our school is a very special place. We havegreat students, great teachers who work in a very speciallearning environment. For me though, one of the trulyremarkable aspects of our school is our cultural diversity. Acharacteristic of our school that should be celebrated is peoplefrom many different nationalities, cultural and religious beliefsworking together in harmony within a caring and sharingcommunity.

It is therefore very sad to hear an elected representative, ofthe Australian Senate from Queensland, calling for limits toimmigration on religious or ethnic background. In Australia,like at MacGregor State School everyone should be welcome,valued and respected.

School Council

Our school Council was formed three years ago and has beenpivotal in leading our strategic directions for schoolimprovement over that that time. When the council was formed,half of the members were elected for two years and the otherhalf were elected for three years, to ensure continuity andconsistency. All members of the council are now elected for twoyear terms.

At the end of this month, we will elect three new parents andtwo new staff members. I would like to thank all of the pastmembers who have just completed their three year terms. CraigBlanch, Dr Alpesh Malde and Anthony Lam who served asparent representatives along with Dean Grady, Marie Stenning,and Kerri Wright who served as staff representatives. Theirefforts and commitment to our school are greatly appreciated.

I would also like to thank Anthony Lam for the extracommitment he gave to our school by serving as the Chairof our School Council for the last three years. His leadership,guidance and support through the transitioning period has beenvital to the smooth running of the school.

We will be conducting elections for new parent representativesnext week August 27 – 31. Nominations have been receivedfrom Celin Chand, Susan Furze, Raymond Huan, Alpesh Malde,Yi Sui and Yelena Vlacic-Zischke. Their profiles are available onour school website.

Emma Piggot, Amber Campbell, Haley Clayton, Jane Wellwayand Renu Gill nominated for the teacher positions and MandyClark nominated for a non-teaching position. Staff will vote atthe same time as the parent community.

I thank everyone who nominated for a position on the council,congratulate them on their commitment to our school, and wishthem well in the coming elections.

Canberra Trip

I had the pleasure of being at the airport to see our Year SixStudents and leave for Canberra this morning. I was so proudof their manners and their ability to follow the instructions ofteachers and Virgin Airways staff.

I thank our teachers and their families for allowing this trip tooccur. It is always worthwhile remembering that our staff is notpaid overtime or time in lieu for school camps and excursions.It is their absolute dedication to their students that enables tripslike this.

Fun Run

Students have now received information about our upcomingFun Run. I have challenged all children to try to raise $20; $2a lap for 10 laps. This would amount to $26000 for the P&Cgoal of $30000 to complete the air-conditioning of the entire

school. What a legacy to leave behind, a totally air-conditionedMacGregor.

We all need to be part of this important project.

Congratulations Guowen

Guowen Z, a past student who completed his primary schoolin Macgregor, represented Australia to take part in theInternational Maths Olympiad (IMO) held in Romania in July. Hewon a gold medal (Silver medal in 2017) and ranked 12th overallworldwide and number one in Australia. The Australian team isnumber 11th.

Congratulations Guowen!

Congratulations Stephanie

Stephanie represented the Metropolitan East Region in thetennis state championships in Rockhampton last week.

There were 12 regions with a total of 48 girls and 48 boys.

It was an amazing experience for her as it was not only was itan individual but also team event.

Stephanie unfortunately lost in a 8-10 tie breaker to progress toplay off for the 7th and last position for the state team.

Results:

Stephanie placed 11th overall (1 to 48)Metropolitan East Girls team placed 2nd overallMetropolitan East team placed 3rd overallFast four team event (mixed doubles) 3rd overall

Stephanie’s tennis is progressing well this year. She currentlyhas an Australian Women’s tennis ranking of 1082. Her goal isto be ranked under 1000 by the end of the year.

Well done Stephanie. Your hard work has paid off!

PRINCIPAL REMINDERS

Excursion Payment Reminders

As you are aware, MacGregor State School is a busy place withnumerous excursions, incursions and extra-curricular activitieshappening throughout the year. When receiving a permissionform, please make a note of the payment due date. As we arenot accepting payments after the date stated on this form. Allpayments for these events will be invoiced to you via email andBPoint can often take a couple of days to process the payment.Please allow for this processing time.

School Absence

There is adage that every day counts in the educational lifeof a student. In reality, every minute counts. Our school yearis only 200 days long, less public holidays, school events andexcursions. Our school day is only five hours long once breaksare factored into our routine.

This means in reality we have limited time for students to learn.I therefore urge all parents to ensure students are at schoolready to commence learning at 8:45am. Any child arriving after8:45am must obtain a late slip from the front office before goingto class.

Student Absence Line Ph. 3323 4366.

Parents taking students out of school for holidays or overseastrips during the school term need to seek an exemption fromschooling if a child will be away more than ten school days.

The Deputy Principals and I will constantly review attendanceand contact parents when non-attendance is impacting on astudent’s academic achievement.

CONTACT WITH THE SCHOOL

Occasions will arise when parents seek clarification on issuesaround education or disciplinary matters. Correct protocol isalways to address the issue with the classroom teacher first. Iffurther clarification is necessary, you can then contact one ofour Deputy Principals. The Principal is the final stage in conflictmanagement in our school. Our Deputies and I will always askabout how the issue was addressed prior to contacting us.Email is the best form of contact as Teachers and Leadershipare busy with the general business of a school day.

WHAT’S HAPPENING IN OUR SCHOOL

FINANCE OFFICE

It is that time of the year again where the school looks atoutstanding fees. We thank the parents who have made theirpayments. Some parents will receive reminder notices for theirfees that are now overdue and we would appreciate promptpayment. Should you wish to discuss your account, pleasecontact the Business Manager.

Reminder: The payment window is available on Monday toThursday from 8.30am to 11am only. Our preferred method ofpayment is via the BPoint link on your invoices and QParents.

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STUDENT COUNCIL NEWS

Thank you to everyone who participated in the Student Councilfundraiser on Friday the 17th of August. The student councilcombined MacGregor’s Biggest Morning Tea with Daffodil Day.

To participate in the Biggest Morning Tea the students wereasked to bring a gold coin donation and had morning tea as awhole school on the courts. It was lovely to see our studentssupporting such an important cause, as well as having a chatwith friends during morning tea. Daffodil Day merchandise wassold on the day and the total amount raised to date is approx.$1,200. What a great donation to the Cancer Council Australia.

Cancer affects us all and your donation will help raiseawareness and hope in the community as well as playing aninvaluable part in helping to invest in the vital research thatprevents cancers, creates hope and saves lives of futuregenerations to come.

ART NEWS

Year 2 have been busy producing some wonderful pieces of artfor Book Week. Please try and call in to the library this week tohave a look at their work.

The pieces of art displayed reflect the following books -

Mopoke by Philip BuntingBoy by Phil Cummings and Shane DevalesA Walk in the Bush by Gwyn PerkinsHark It's Me Ruby Lee by Lisa Shanahan and Binny

CONGRATULATIONS MACGREGOR CHESS

I am very pleased to report to you on the outstanding successof the MacGregor SS Chess Teams at the Somerville HouseWinter Competition.

Five teams represented MacGregor State School:

Team 1: Sravan R, Joe L, Ryan X and Cynthia L.Team 2: Micah L, Kevin T, Jun L and John KTeam 3: Gilbert S, Imira D, Jimmy H and Daniel YTeam 4: Tharuk M, Sanuli T, Kathy L and Ling HTeam 5: Joseph C, Anthony R, Dayton S and Eric Y

Many of the MacGregor SS students won medals for theirindividual victories in the board competitions.

Four teams won trophies for their success in team competitionsin Open and Intermediate Divisions.

The biggest success was achieved by the first and secondMacGregor SS teams, who won First and Second placesrespectively in the Open Division, ahead of the strongestBrisbane schools.

Young Li Lioqi won the first place in the Beginner Division.

Alice and Alex Yu were 3rd and 6th in the Beginner Division andthey were awarded with the medals.

Team 5 (Joseph Chen, Anthony R, Dayton S and Eric Y) wonSilver Trophy and medals in the Intermediate Division.

Official results are available:

http://www.northsidejuniorchess.com

Congratulations to all participants!

I wish them every success when they play in the InterschoolTerm 3 competition at Stretton College (30/08/2018).

Kind regardsOleg KorenevskiGardiner Chess Coach

WHAT’S HAPPENING IN OUR SENIORSCHOOL

MATHS TEAMS CHALLENGE WINNERS

On Friday 3rd August 2 teams from MacGregor SS competedin the annual Maths Teams Challenge at Stretton College. Over26 different Primary Schools attended. This competitionrequires students to not only be great mathematicians but towork co-operatively and efficiently as a team. The students thisyear did an outstanding job with Team A coming first and TeamB coming second. Congratulations to the following students:

Ben Z 6D, Ella z 6A, Jarrah C 6E, Alexandra L 5E, Jackson D5A, Joy C 5B, Ee Lin S 5D, Alexander Q 6B, Dennis L 6F, JasonL 6C

YEAR 6 - GRAHAM PERRETT VISIT

As part of the Canberra Camp preparation, the Year 6 studentsinvited Graham Perret to MacGregor to talk about his role and

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what they can expect to see during their visit to ParliamentHouse this week. Mr Perrett is an Australian Labor Politicianand a member of the Australian House of Representatives in theseat of Moreton.

FROM THE HEAD OF SCHOOL - JUNIOR

COOLER WEATHER - LOOKING AFTERYOURSELF

Over the next month or so, you will notice that the weatherstarts to cool. It is an important time of year when we needto remind the students to take care of themselves. One of themost important things they can do to reduce the spread ofgerms and bacteria is to ensure that they wash their handsregularly.

This sign can be printed off and placed in bathrooms as hometo help remind students about the best way to clean their handsand reduce the spread of germs.

The students will also see these start to appear in our toiletblocks over the coming weeks.

STUDENTS ATTENDING SCHOOL WHEN UNWELL

We are seeing an increase in the number of students beingsent to school unwell. To ensure we maintain high standardsof hygiene at our school, we ask that if your child is unwell youmake alternate arrangements for their care until they are better.It is easy for the spread of germs to occur, when children arecoughing and sneezing, have vomiting or gastro issues or arunny nose.

We need to ensure the health and safety of all students andstaff is considered. Thank you for your assistance with this.

HATS

Even during the cooler months of the year, hats are required tobe worn to school every day. There appears to be an increasein the number of students coming to school without a hat towear. This is required during PE lessons and general play times.

Please ensure all hats are clearly labelled, for ease of return ifmisplaced.

PREP ENROLMENTS FOR 2019

If you have not submitted your enrolment forms for Prep in2019, time is running out. Prep interviews have commencedand will run over the next two weeks, after this time we willstart allocating students to classes and setting dates for theorientation sessions.

Enrolment forms can be downloaded from the school website,www.macgregorss@eq.edu.au. Alternatively contact ourEnrolments Officer Mrs Desley Andresco on 07 33234333 ifyou have further questions.

If you reside outside our catchment area, you can complete ononline Expression of interest form. This places you on a waitlistshould vacancies become available.

Gary DaveyHEAD OF JUNIOR SCHOOL

PERFORMING ARTS NEWS

CHOIR

All singing choirs recently competed in the Gold CoastEisteddfod. This is a very tough competition with the standardof choirs being particularly high this year. All groups performedbeautifully and represented our school very well. Below are theresults for each group.

Vocal Melody Year 2 Choir – 3rd Place and HonoursVocal Melody Year 3 Choir –Honours

Vocal Harmony – HonoursVocal Fusion – Very Highly Commended and Honours

MacGregor Musical Masters

It is Eisteddfod season and we are fortunate to have many verytalented students competing in a variety of competitions aroundBrisbane. Below are some of the amazing results students fromMacGregor have achieved in the past few weeks.

Solo Eisteddfod Achievements:

• Louis F – 3rd place in Primary solo at PercussionNational Eisteddfod, 1st place in 9 years solo at GoldCoast Eisteddfod, 1st place in AMEB Grade 6 PianoSolo at Gold Coast Eisteddfod. He also received thefollowing awards at the Beenleigh Eisteddfod - 1stplace in 20th Century Any Instrument Solo 8/9 Years,1st Instrumental Solo 8/9 years, 2nd place PianoSolo (Memorised) 8/9 years and 3rd placeInstrumental Duet 10/11 years.

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It is very exciting to see all of our students, not only excellingwithin school but also outside of school. We are very proud ofyour achievements.

SPEECH CHOIR

Last Sunday our senior speech choir participated in a specialevent hosted by the Communication, Speech and PerformanceTeachers Association hosted at Iona College.

Congratulations to our wonderful speech choir students andtheir families who participated. Our students werecomplimented on their ability, good manners and contributionto the success of the day. Well done students and parents!

Thanks to Miss Alaecia Snowdon the groups Director for thework she does with the students each week. It is exciting to seetheir progress and the amazing performance they deliver. Thesestudents will be heading of fto the Gold Coast Eisteddfod nextweek to compete. We wish them well.

STRINGS UPDATE

INSTRUMENTAL MUSIC - STRING PROGRAM

MacGregor State School’s Instrumental Program is preparingfor a new intake of children into the String Program in 2019. Alimited number of places are available for children currently inYear 2, to commence learning the violin, the cello or the doublebass next year. Children selected will receive instrumentallessons at school and become a member of a String Orchestra.

Parents of Year 2 children interested in the school StringProgram are invited to attend an Information Evening to beheld in the school hall, on Thursday 11th October at 6.30pm (Term 4, Week 1). At this meeting, there will be a briefdemonstration of the string instruments, an explanation of theinstrumental music program by the string teacher, and anopportunity to ask questions. Application forms which will beavailable at the meeting and must be completed and returnedto the school.

BAND UPDATE

Music Fest – save the date:

Wind Symphony – 1.00pm Thursday 1st November –Iona College (bus)Wind Ensemble – 2:00pm Thursday 1st November –

• Susie K – 3rd place for Baroque Solo, 2nd place inViolin Solo 10 years and 1st place in Grade 4 StringSolo at the Beenleigh Eisteddfod. She receivedHighly Commended in 10 years String Solo and 3rdplace in Grade 4 Violin Solo at the BrisbaneEisteddfod. She also competed in the AustaQueensland String Concerto Competition andreceived 2nd place. Go Susie!

• Erica K – 1st place in age String Solo and 3rd placein String Solo Grade 3 at the Brisbane Eisteddfod.She also received 1st place in her Grade 3 Cello soloat the Redlands Eisteddfod.

• Eric K - 1st place in age String solo and 1st place inString Solo Grade 8 at the Brisbane Eisteddfod. Ericalso received 1st place in his Violin Solo at theRedlands Eisteddfod.

• Lily S – 1st place in the following sections at theBeenleigh Eisteddfod - Baroque any instrument,Classical any instrument, Romantic any instrument,20th Century any instrument and Contemporary anyinstrument. She was also awarded the IntermediateInstrumental Championship at the BeenleighEisteddfod and 2018 Junior StringChampionship at Redland Eisteddfod. At theBrisbane Eisteddfod she received 1st place in StringSolo Grade 7 and 2nd place in 10 years String Solo.Wow Lily, what a year you have had!

• Jing L – Highly Commended in 9 years Piano Solo atthe Brisbane Eisteddfod and 3rd place in 9 years20th Century Piano solo at the Beenleigh Eisteddfod.

• Alex M – Highly Commended in Grade 3 Piano Soloat the Brisbane Eisteddfod.

• Shen K – Highly Commended in String Solo Grade 3at the Brisbane Eisteddfod.

• David F – Highly Commended for his piano solo atthe Brisbane Eisteddfod.

• Ashley H – 1st place in Flute Solo Grade 1 and 2 atthe Brisbane Eisteddfod.

• Kelly H for receiving Honours in her Grade 6 AMEBViolin exam.

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Iona College (bus)Stage Band – 7:20pm Friday 2nd November – CalamvaleCommunity College (own transport)

Brass Soirée

Thursday 13th September – MacGregor State High School

All students must nominate their solo piece and practice,practice, practice. We are so thankful for the amazing, talentedaccompanist from MacGregor SHS Mrs Tamara Luski for givingup her time to accompany all 62 students. We look forward tothe evening of Brass.

Open Rehearsal – Wind Ensemble

Parents and grandparents of Wind Ensemble students areinvited to the first Open Rehearsal on 5th September, 2018.From 2:30pm parents will join Mr Mossley for afternoon tea,before sitting in on a rehearsal with the students. No longer areyou the encouraging audience member, you will become a partof the band and sit among the students. Save the date.

Stage Band – Road Trip

Coolum State High School have just begun a new jazz band,and to celebrate they have invited the MacGregor State SchoolStage Band to attend a full day workshop. The day will endwith a performance to their Junior School assembly, to promoteand encourage Instrumental Music. What a great honour for ourstudents.

AMEB Success

Zahran H

Not only a Trombone player, but also a talented Piano player,completing AMEB Grade 1 Piano – HONOURS.

Jun L

Successfully completing AMEB Grade 3 Theory. 95/100 –HIGH DISTINCTION. Theory is an integral component of beinga musician and we encourage more students to fill their brainwith wonderful knowledge. Congratulations.

GOLD COAST EISTEDDFOD

Students from Year 2 Speech Choir, Senior Speech Choir,MacGregor Dancers Years 4/5, Year 6, Year 3 and DanceExcellence will be competing at the Gold Coast Eisteddfod nextweek. Students should ensure that they have all the necessaryitems for their performances.

Speech Choirs will need to wear their full performance uniform.Students out of uniform will be unable to attend. ALL BOYSneed to have black socks for this event.

Dance groups will need to wear their formal uniform down onthe bus. A small back pack can be taken with food and water.

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It would be great if parents could ensure the students arecollected on time, as the staff have families they need to gohome to. Thank you in anticipation of your assistance.

If you have not returned the permission slip, please do so thisweek.

SCHOOL MUSICAL – THE AMAZINGADVENTURES OF SUPERSTAN

You could not have missed the beaming faces of the studentswho performed in this year’s musical, ‘The Amazing Adventuresof Super Stan’. A special shout out to all of the studentsand teachers who have worked tirelessly this year to bringthis musical to the MacGregor Stage. If you have not had thechance yet, please like and follow the school’s Facebook pageto see some great shots from the evening.

Thank you to the families who purchased tickets, items fromthe canteen and took the time to socialise with other parents’pre-show, during interval and post show.

This is an example of the GREAT community spirit that exists atour wonderful school.

Thank you for your continued support of the performing artsprogram here at MacGregor.

Kind regardsGary DaveyHEAD OF JUNIOR SCHOOL

QPARENTS, FACEBOOK & EMAILOver the last couple of weeks, you will have noticed that alot more communication is being sent home via email. Thesechanges are to streamline communication and provide moreconvenient options for paying student accounts.

QParents allows parents to update studentdetails, pay accounts and advise ofstudent’s absences from the convenienceof your home.

To register you will need your child’s unique EducationQueensland ID number and the invitation code from QParents.The EQ ID was sent home earlier this term. It is importantto keep this somewhere safe as you will need this shortly toregister for parent/teacher conferences.

The invitation code has also been emailed home to all parents.This email is sent to the first parent listed in One School.More than one parent can have access, to gain access pleasecontact the office so that you can also be sent a registrationcode.

Paying student accounts online is a great feature of QParents.Only one parent can have this allocated to their profile. Again

this can be changed from one parent to the other by contactingthe office.

We currently have 60% of the students with one or moreparents registered for QParents. It would be great to see evenmore parents accessing this service.

Keeping your email address up to date is important. Not onlywill you receive email communication from the school, invoicesfor school based activities and services will be emailed home. Itis important that you keep your email account updated so thatemails can be received.

Did you know that our school has aFacebook page? Keep up to date with newsand information about our wonderful school. Like our Facebookpage now.

MACSHACK NEWS

TUCKSHOP ORDERING FOR FRIDAY'S

Beginning in Term 3 all orders for tuckshop will need to beplaced online via Flexischools.

Brown bags will be accepted in class baskets for a short timeas famlies transition over to online. There is no over the counterservice available on a Friday to place orders.

Online ordering is easy to set up by following the belowinstructions.

Step 1: Register

Go to the link below from your computer or mobile device.Login & register for an account and add your students to getstarted.

http://www.flexischools.com.au

Step 2: Top-up

Top-up your account using VISA, Mastercard, PayPal or bydirect deposit. We recommend topping up your account by$20. Flexischools will email you a reminder when your accountis running low.

Step 3: Order and Pay You are now ready to order from themenu for tuckshop.

Thank you for your continued support of the tuckshop.

Changes to the Tuckshop menu for Term 3.

The tuckshop has been through a process of reviewing ourservice and as part of this process we have been asked toremove a few items to meet the Smart Choices Guidelines.

The following items are no longer available from the tuckshop.

• Red Rock Deli chips

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Call for Volunteers

The tuckshop has a wide variety of tasks the require doing eachweek and we are calling for volunteers to help. If you have 20minutes to spare each week we would love to hear from you.Tasks include sticking labels on brown bags, making fruit saladand muffins, stocking the drinks fridge and washing dishes ormaking posters for up and coming events for the tuckshop.

Drop by and talk to our tuckshop team. We would love to hearfrom you.

Thanks,Angie

UNIFORM & BOOK SHOP NEWS

UNIFORM & STATIONERY SHOP OPENINGHOURS

MONDAY, WEDNESDAY & FRIDAY 8:00am to9:00am

ONLINE ORDERING AVAILABLE:

https://macgregorss.mystudentaccount.com

Online orders are delivered to your child’s classroom

WINTER UNIFORMS

Winter uniforms have arrived at the Uniform Shop. All sizes areavailable, prices are as follows: -

Fleecy Jacket - $45Lightweight Microfibre Jacket - $50

Fleecy Pullover / Jumper - $28Fleecy Tracksuit pant - $26

Grey long pants - $26Green tights - $10.00

*** NEW PRODUCT – NAME LABELS ***

Name Labels are now available from the Uniform Shop. Labelsoptions available are: - Iron-on clothing labels and stick-onmulti-purpose labels.

$5 for a minimum of 20 labels and $1 for an additional 5labels.

Order forms are available from the Uniform Shop.

ENTERTAINMENT BOOKS

Entertainment Books are now on sale at the Uniform Shopor alternatively orders can be placed online at the link below.Selling for $70, you’ll receive over $20,000 in valuable offersand discount vouchers. $14 from every book sold goes to ourschool fundraising.

https://www.entertainmentbook.com.au/orderbooks/2224s84

• Chocolate chip muffins and cookies

• Chill Alao drinks

• Focus fruit water

• Krazy Lemon

• Spinach and ricotto rolls

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