Website: https://eskss.eq.edu.au School landline: 07 54244111 Absences: 07 54244160

principal@eskss.eq.edu.au admin@eskss.eq.edu.au pandc@eskss.eq.edu.au 49 East Street, Esk, Qld 4312

May 25th 2018

Hello everyone,

After the heavy focus of NAPLAN it has been wonderful to see

the children enjoy a more relaxed time. Student Council

movie night was very well attended. Jumanji was the most

popular choice, but Emjoi was fun as well. Thankyou to Miss

Bean, Mrs Rollston, Mrs Rowley and Mrs Oxenford for

facilitating this event for the school.

The Under 8’s morning for Prep, Year 1 and Year 2, was

opened to the wider community, and was very well attended.

There were nearly 30 different activities that the children

could move between. The animal petting zoo, the fire truck

and police cars were very popular, but it wasn’t long before

the children branched out and enjoyed the other activities. It

was truly wonderful to host the parents of our students, and

staff would like to express their thanks for your support in

this way. It made such a difference to the range of activities

on offer. Many families from the Kindy and the wider

community also attended.

Our thanks goes to the many volunteers who brought along

an activity that made our morning very special. My personal

thanks is extended to the dedicated teachers and teacher

aides who poured in their own time as well. Mrs Waldron | Principal

Classroom Report –5/6 DR

For the last couple of weeks we have been working on our Technology

projects. In Technology this semester, we are constructing a 3-D

island that was created from a 2-D drawing the students completed

earlier. The islands constructed will have at least six geographical

features and six features of the student’s choice. The 3-D island will

also display an alphanumeric grid to enable the students to give the

locations of these features for another student to find.

Most of the class are presently building up their geographical features

with paper and glue. We can slowly see the mountains, volcanoes

and bays appearing on their islands. It’s great to see their imaginative

minds at work as they decide what they will use to create their

waterfalls, lava and blowholes. It will be amazing to see the finished

articles.

Website: https://eskss.eq.edu.au School landline: 07 54244111 Absences: 07 54244160

principal@eskss.eq.edu.au admin@eskss.eq.edu.au pandc@eskss.eq.edu.au 49 East Street, Esk, Qld 4312

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Library News: Ms Benson – Teacher/Librarian

Children’s Book Council of Australia 2018 Readers Cup

What is it?

Teams of four or five students read a set of books and

together answer questions to the books. This

competition is hosted all over Australia in a variety of

venues. It is organised by the Children’s Book Council

of Australia and locally by the Ipswich District Teacher

Librarian Network and Somerset Regional Council.

Why do it?

The Readers Cup competitions challenge students to

read a wide variety of books and work together as a

team. It allows readers to compete at a regional and

state level similar to sporting competitions and to

meet other students with an equal passion for books.

What has happened in the past?

In 2017 over 20 schools competed in the Somerset-

Lockyer Readers Cup and this year a group of

students will have the opportunity for this unique

experience. The competition will be held on Friday

the 15 June, 2018 at the Fernvale State School Hall.

What books are being read this year in Somerset

Region?

The students in the competition will read the

following books:

Turtle Trackers -- Samantha Wheeler

Crenshaw -- Katherine Applegate

Shop at Hoopers Bend – Emily Rodda

Super Con-nerd – Oliver Phommavah

The Elephant – Peter Carnavas

The books are provided by the school and Somerset

Regional libraries.

Highly respected author Samantha Wheeler is the

Quiz Master at this year’s competition and author of

Turtle Trackers.

Important Dates

May

25, 26 – Esk Show

June

13 – Athletics’ Carnival (1/2 day Field Events)

14 – Athletics’ Carnival (Full Day)

15 – Reader’s Cup

17 - 22 – Canberra Year 5/6 Camp

26 – Year 3/4 Camp

29 – Rewards Day

29 – Year 5/6 Somerset Cup

29 – Reports Issued, Last Day Term 2

July

16 – First Day Term 3

Reading for Better Understanding

While your child is learning to read they are also learning to understand what they are reading and relating this to their everyday experiences. The comprehension skills your child develops– understanding and making sense of the words, stories, ideas and concepts they are reading about – will be put to good use throughout their schooling and throughout their life. Reading with understanding means your child needs to know enough words and their meanings so they can understand what is important, what caused an event, or why certain things happened in a story. It involves:

Decoding – understanding what the story is about as well as knowing what each letter and word is. Decoding is about navigating your way through what is actually written - the words, sentences and paragraphs - as well as what isn’t written, the ideas, feelings, experiences, theories and knowledge the words are trying to convey.

Making connections between stories and life experiences – something that develops over time. The stories that your child reads can help them make sense of certain experiences or feelings that they’ll then be able to draw on in their future reading.

Gaining new insights – thinking about what is being read and seeing how this relates to everyday life. This is where understanding comes into its own and the joy of reading is born. When your child thinks about what they are reading, they can go on journeys or discover new things about themselves and the world that wouldn’t normally be available to them.

What teachers do at school - Teachers will show how books, magazines, shopping lists and text books that your child is reading are structured. For instance, story books usually have characters that face a problem and they take an action or make a decision that helps them solve the problem. Magazines or web pages may describe something, such a show a bird makes a nest, compare two or more things, or lists steps to follow as you would in a recipe. Your child’s teacher may talk about what the words mean. They may pick out particular words and ask your child what they mean or how they could be used. They may also encourage your child to use words they have just learnt in as many ways as possible. Or they may revisit words your child already knows and ask them to use these words in different ways. What you can do at home - Some suggestions for what you can do at home when reading with your child are:

Read stories or passages in short sections and let your child tell you what happened before you continue reading. This way you can check their understanding, without pressure, and help them understand how stories are put together.

Talk to your child about the books they read at school and with you at home to help hone their comprehension skills. Ask your child probing questions about the book – ‘I wonder why they did that?’ or ‘how do you think they felt when that happened?’ or ‘what might have happened if they didn’t do that?’

Where possible, connect events in the book to things that have happened in your child’s life. This will help them understand why a character does things and may help them to enjoy the story more.

After finishing a book, ask your child to tell you the story in their own words. Even if they get some parts wrong or out of sequence, as long as they “get” what the story is about, they understand what they have read.

Discuss the meanings of unknown words, both those your child reads and those they hear. Show them how to look up the meanings by using a dictionary or searching online. Other things you can consider include encouraging your child to:

tell you about what is happening in the book as if they were the main character

draw a map of the book's setting – where do the characters live, where do they travel to, how do they get there, how long does it take, who else might live there?

think about why particular characters do things – for example, why did they decide to visit the wizard? Or think about things that happen in the book, like why the main character got angry – what did they do, what happened after that?

tell you about an experience or something that interests them. Write this story down, using your child’s words. You could even help your child write the story themselves, depending on where they are up to in developing their writing skills. Then read their story back to them, letting them see their words written down and read aloud. Reading is supposed to be enjoyable. If we like doing something we are more

likely to continue. - Mrs Andrea Oxenford – Literacy and Learning Support Teacher

Website: https://eskss.eq.edu.au School landline: 07 54244111 Absences: 07 54244160

principal@eskss.eq.edu.au admin@eskss.eq.edu.au pandc@eskss.eq.edu.au 49 East Street, Esk, Qld 4312

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Week 5 Term 2 2018

Prep

Jessica B – Being a caring class member

Olivia H – Always staying on task

Year 1/2 K

Maddison I – Using conjunctions in sentences

Ciel W – Switching on to his learning

Year 2/3 M

Bodean P – Helping others in need

Claudia T – Being focused in all learning areas

Year 3/4 N

Jordyn H - A great effort with your homework

Rowan H – For being a quiet achiever

Year 3/4 S

Name Withheld – Being a quiet achiever

Ashleigh LG – Always putting her best foot forward

Year 5/6 B

Olivia B – Being a kind and considerate class member

Breanna M – Always completing her work to a high standard

Year 5/6 DR

Isaac G

Lincoln W

Charissa M Excellent focus in Technology

Ladia F

Haley D Excellent contributions and participation in

Naomi J all aspects of classwork

The Biggest Morning Tea

Dear Parents, Friends and community members,

Once again this year we are hosting the Biggest Morning Tea at Esk State

School. All money raised goes directly towards finding a cure for cancer.

Our target for this year is a very ambitious $6000!

The following points are for your information and how you can help us

achieve our goal.

1. Date: Saturday June 23rd at 11:30 am

2. Please come along, buy a plate of food, enjoy a cup of tea/coffee

for $5 and bring friends. If you need to book a table please contact Mrs Kitching to tell her your numbers.

3. Purchase a teapot or two to decorate. Student teapots are $1,

High school students and adults are $2 and Business entries are

$5. Let your imagination run wild, use paint, glitter, collage, draw,

crochet, knit to decorate yours. Businesses can put their

business card on their entry. All teapots will be on display in the hall and the best ones in each category will receive a prize.

4. Purchase some raffle tickets, grab a book if you like, tickets are

$1 each. We have a monster multi-draw raffle, with prizes

including, fitness vouchers, Esk Butcher Shoppe voucher, craft

baskets, garden baskets, bath packs, 3 framed prints, bags, a

bonsai tree and many more items.

5. You could donate prizes for the raffle or for the lucky door prize if

you wish.

6. Bake goodies to sell on the day.

7. Finally you can donate on the day, or online if you wish, every

single dollar counts!

Please see Mrs Kitching if you would like further information, teapots and

raffle tickets are available from her classroom in B1.

Tiny school, small community, gigantic hearts, together we can make a

difference.

Website: https://eskss.eq.edu.au School landline: 07 54244111 Absences: 07 54244160

principal@eskss.eq.edu.au admin@eskss.eq.edu.au pandc@eskss.eq.edu.au 49 East Street, Esk, Qld 4312

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Toogoolawah PICTURES

Friday, 25th May PG Special Event - bookings essential

Doors: 6.30 pm Movie: 7 - 9.10 pm

Saturday, 26th May M ‘AVENGERS’

Doors: 7 pm Movie: 7.30 - 10.15 pm

Alexandra Hall, T’wah

Inquiries: 0438 149 954 For more information - FB: Toogoolawah Pictures - Alexandra Hall

More photos from Under 8’s Day