Beerwah State School

Dear Parents and Carers,

My name is Jay Wilson, and I am both proud and excited to step into the role of Acting Principal at Beerwah State School while Mr Bowden is on leave. From my very first day, I have been struck by the warmth, energy, and strong sense of community that makes this school so special.

Over the past week, I have made it my priority to meet as many students and families as possible. I have thoroughly enjoyed visiting classrooms, walking through the playgrounds, and having conversations with our students, who were eager to introduce themselves and share their stories.

I have also had the pleasure of meeting our dedicated teaching and support staff, who speak so passionately about Beerwah State School, its values, and the important role they play in nurturing student learning and wellbeing.

It has also been a privilege to connect with parents and carers across the week. I believe very strongly in the partnership between families and schools, and I look forward to continuing to build those connections. If you see me around the school grounds, please don’t hesitate to come and say hello. Together, I know we can continue to strengthen the proud traditions of Beerwah State School while embracing new opportunities for every child to thrive.

Book Week

What a sensational way to finish the week by celebrating Book Week with our special parade! The school was buzzing with excitement as students and teachers alike brought their favourite book characters to life through imaginative costumes. Encouraging a love of reading is such an important part of every student’s learning journey, and this week truly highlighted the joy and creativity that reading can inspire.

On Friday morning, our hall was filled with colour, imagination, and laughter as students confidently showcased their costumes during the parade. Many students and staff stayed in character throughout the day, I’m pretty sure I even spotted Bruce Bogtrotter enjoying some chocolate cake still in the afternoon!

I was thrilled to see so many Beerwah families join us to celebrate this special event. A heartfelt thank you to all the parents and carers who helped organise the terrific costumes, your support truly made the day a success.

Finally, I want to recognise our wonderful students and staff for their enthusiasm and passion for reading. Friday’s celebration was a fantastic reminder of the joy that comes from sharing stories, and it was an absolute delight to be part of it.

Parent/Carer Communication

As I mentioned earlier, I strongly believe that positive relationships with families are at the heart of every successful school. I strive to be a highly visible and approachable leader, and I welcome opportunities to connect with parents and carers about their child’s learning and wellbeing.

During my first week, I had the pleasure of meeting with several Beerwah families to discuss individual concerns and share insights. These conversations were both positive and productive, reinforcing the value of open and respectful communication.

I am committed to ensuring that all interactions between families and the school are based on mutual respect and trust. Building strong partnerships with our families is essential, and I encourage you to reach out at any time, your insights and feedback are always valued, and I will make every effort to meet with you at the earliest available opportunity.

School Review Postponed

Beerwah State School was scheduled to have its School Review conducted by the Department of Education during Week 7 of this term. However, this review has now been postponed to a later date in Term 4. Once the new date is confirmed, we will communicate it to all Beerwah families.

School Reviews are a valuable opportunity to celebrate a school’s achievements, reflect on our progress, and receive constructive feedback that helps us set new goals for continued improvement. We look forward to sharing this process with our school community later in the year.

School Concert

Our teachers and students are hard at work preparing for our annual School Concert, a truly magical highlight of the school year! I can already imagine the excitement, creativity, and talent that will light up the stage.

A reminder to all families: the School Concert will be held on Wednesday, 10th September, at 6:00pm, where all of our classes and ensembles will be performing. Tickets will be available to purchase online via Skoolbag/Audiri from Monday 18th August to Monday 8th September. Tickets are $5.00 per chair, and seating will be allocated through the app, so be sure to get in early for the best spots!

I have no doubt that the evening will be filled with imagination, creativity, and the incredible talent of our Beerwah students. We can’t wait to celebrate this special event with our school community.

School Opinion Survey Extension

The deadline for completing the School Opinion Survey has been extended to Friday, 29th August. If you have not yet had the chance to participate, I highly encourage all families to do so. This survey provides a valuable opportunity for you to offer constructive feedback and help us continue to improve our school.

An invitation to complete the survey was emailed to families on 21st July. Please note that the invitation comes from the Department of Education, not the school, so be sure to check your junk or spam folders if you cannot locate it.

It would be wonderful if all families could complete the survey, as a higher response rate provides a more accurate reflection of our school community.

Check out our calendar of events throughout the year, via the school's website at

Beerwah State School - https://beerwahss.eq.edu.au/calendar-and-news/events-calendar

You can sync any event to your personal calendar by clicking to  open the event and click on the  'Add to Calendar' button.  

Check out our School and P&C Facebook pages for more Celebrations and what's happening at our School.

Beerwah State School Facebook page

                                                                                                 BSS P&C Facebook page

"Everyone is a reader, some just haven't found their favourite book yet"

BORROWING;

Wednesday      4A,   4/5,  5/6B - return books Tuesday

Thursday Prep/1, 2A, 3A - return books Wednesday

If you require a Library bag they are available through the Uniform Shop for $18.00.

2025 Lunchtime Play Equipment

All P-6 students will have the opportunity to borrow, use and return a variety of sporting equipment at play break. Year level/ classroom teachers will oversee the equipment and students will be responsible for being a SAFE, RESPECTFUL and ACTIVE LEARNER and all times.

If you have any questions with regards to sport, please phone Ms Murphy at the school on 5436 5555 or email jlmur1@eq.edu.au

Janelle Murphy (HPE Teacher)

The SAKG (Stephanie Alexander Kitchen Garden) program is a wonderful program we have in our school. The students have the opportunity to plant, nurture and grow fresh produce in our school’s garden. We then use the produce to create delicious and mostly nutritious meals and snacks, in our kitchen.

Supported by QLD Government Health and Wellbeing, Pick of the Crop and the P&C, we have funded an outdoor kitchen, an oven, kitchen appliances and supplies. The garden has received seedings and much needed garden goodies to keep them thriving. A native bush garden and new garden beds near the kitchen are next on the list.

We aim to promote healthy eating and work with our community. Our volunteer, Dianne from CWA Country Kitchens, helps us to promote healthy eating.

Week 4 in the kitchen, our 5/6 classes cooked a delicious Nasi Goreng (Indonesian Fried Rice).

Hello everyone, my name is Benjamin Tipman and I am very excited to be your new Guidance Officer here at Beerwah State School. Over the past 12 years, I have been privileged to work in some amazing parts of our state including Weipa, Bamaga, Cooktown and now the Sunshine Coast. I’m currently working across 4 different schools as a Guidance Officer and am thrilled to be joining you here in this wonderful part of the world. I’m looking forward to meeting you all and seeing you around our beautiful school.

P&C Meetings

We always meet on the third Monday of each month during school term so our next meeting will be on Monday 15th September (week 10, term 30) at 6pm in the school library.

At our last meeting it was great to see some new faces and wonderful to have a really in depth chat about the perception and reality of school life with the current behaviour in children. If you were to step into the shoes of your child’s teacher for a day, what would you see? You might be surprised…..

Volunteering

Did you know: volunteering will make a difference to your life and your childs. If they see you being proactive in your community, they will probably do the same when they are able, so every positive action you have will create a more positive reaction in your child.

The P&C Association are an approved volunteer organization with Centrelink (Services Australia) so if you need to complete volunteering hours, the school is a great option. This can be extended to grandparents and other friends, they will need to apply for a Blue Card to volunteer in the school which is an easy process we can assist with. Contact us by email and we can arrange to work out how we can help each other.

Events & Fundraising

We have a few key dates coming up with some events that we need help with.

August Bake Sale

A huge thank you to the small group of volunteers who baked and attended the bake sale at the Beerwah Community Hall last weekend. Even though the crowd was small, we still raised $444 with our baked goods and every dollar will be put into the school to benefit every child. Thank you bakers and volunteers.

Book Week

Thank you to our volunteers for book week book fair sales. We don’t have specific figures to announce but all funds raised will contribute towards new books for the library for all our children to enjoy. Reading is such an important life skill and fantastic pastime that all should be able to enjoy.

Fathers Day Stall – 4th September

We are still looking for some volunteers for our Fathers Day stall. On Thursday 4th September, the P&C host a Fathers Day stall in the morning to sell small gifts for your child to purchase for the man in their life. Prices will range from $1 - $10 and classes are taken to the stall in turn to select their gifts. To run the stall we need some volunteers for a couple of hours in the morning. Please get in touch if you can help. The stall generally runs from 9-11am.

Entertainment Book

The P&C receive 20% of the purchase price for each Entertainment membership sold. There are always specials on the website so check it out today, it could save you $$$ off hundreds of venues and attractions. This would be great for keeping your children entertained during the school holidays. Have a look at their website: www.entertainmentbook.com.au for current offers. Don’t forget to find Beerwah Primary P&C Association as your referral so we receive our contribution.

If you have any ideas for new fundraising initiatives, come along to our next meeting to share them. Alternatively, you can email P&C anytime on pandc@beerwahss.eq.edu.au

Book Club

The latest book club orders will be delivered once they have arrived at school, then the next issue will soon be with your child. The best way to order is online at www.scholastic.com.au/LOOP all books are delivered to the school and distributed to each child. If you would prefer to order as gifts, ensure you select that option and your items will be available for collection from the office.

An extra bonus is that the school receives 15% of all order values to purchase books for our library. Books are such a wonderful addition to any child’s life and there are some amazing prices in the book club.

It’s amazing to see students enjoying food that their parents think they won’t try, but because their friends are eating it, they will too! Let’s be honest, kids actually love real food and they don’t always have the chance to try new things because we’re all used to what we know. Give your child a chance by purchasing a tuckshop meal and let them try some new flavours and textures. Who knows, they might tell you about food that you’re not

familiar with too! Better still, come into the tuckshop to give a hand and taste what we’re serving and you might find a new favourite!

All of the meals from the tuckshop are made on-site from locally sourced ingredients. Sarah takes great care to ensure that the meals are nutritious, and delicious. We are dedicated to following the Smart Choices Strategy by providing healthy food and drinks and limiting “red foods”.

Sarah will continue to deliver delicious recipes all term. Keep an eye on Audiri and Facebook for the menu. Buying your child a meal from tuckshop not only supports the school but encourages your child to try new things. Children are more likely to try new foods when they see their peers eating them.

We have a menu planned for the term however sometimes things change. Please don’t request specific meals or changes to the menu as it is planned with our volunteers availability in mind.

Do you have time on a Friday to help out for a short time? Are you able to assist in the tuckshop? We need your help! It’s not a job for one person, and even 20 minutes will be a great assistance.

If there is a need to cancel the tuckshop for any reason, notifications will be sent out ASAP and we will postpone until the following week. Please be patient as we work through any issues which may arise. As the tuckshop is run purely by volunteers, sometimes life gets complicated, and we have to swap things about at the last minute.

The weekly special will be sent out on Audiri each week, along with updates on Facebook. Ordering must close at 6pm sharp on Qkr each Thursday as our volunteers need to shop and prepare. Orders will be prepared for first break Friday. Ordering is only through the Qkr! app, and must be before the cut-off.

If you have ideas or suggestions for meals or inclusions, please get in touch. pandc@beerwahss.eq.edu.au

Mornings are still quite chilly at the moment so why not contact our second hand uniform shop convenor Janie to pick up a black jacket or jumper at incredibly cheap prices. Drop her an email to arrange a time to see what we have available: janie.bssuniformshop@gmail.com

New school uniforms are available from The School Locker in Maroochydore.

Ordering is online or in-store, it’s so simple and convenient. Plus, by setting up your free Student Advantage Membership online, you will access special members pricing where applicable.

If you don’t have this information, look at the school website for details.

If you are uncertain of the size you require, one of each size of polo shirt and dress will be available in school to try on. Appointments need to be made in advance, please email janie.bssuniformshop@gmail.com to arrange an appointment.

The P&C have some second-hand uniforms available for sale at drastically reduced prices depending on the condition. Contact Janie at the above email address if you would like to have a look at what’s available.

If you have school polo shirts and dresses that are too small, or if your child is leaving school, please drop in your uniforms to the school office as we will happily re-sell to another family who can use them.

With limited volunteers and fundraising opportunities, this is one avenue that will help all families, and the P&C Association.

Did you know that Qkr! Can be accessed from any web browser? If you prefer to use a computer or tablet or unable to download the app, simply go to https://qkr-store.qkrschool.com/store/#/home and set up your Qkr! account to access school payments, uniform shop, and tuckshop ordering.  

Kandoo Joeys is open to all families with before-school-aged children. We open every Thursday morning from 9.00am-11.00am from Weeks 2-9 of the school Term. You will find us in J Block, next to the Admin Block. Bring along a hat and some morning tea for your little one and come and join in the fun and social connections as your children learn through play. 

For more information contact  playgroup@beerwahss.eq.edu.au  

Helping Hands provides quality before and after school care. This service forms strong, collaborative ties with the school, children, families, and the local community; to ensure the needs and interests of every child and family are supported. We provide an environment in which children feel safe and have fun. Afternoon tea is included.

We are located in G Block which is next to the Junior Oval. For the children’s safety it is a requirement that you park in the normal front carpark (Old Gympie Road) and use the covered walkway to and from G Block.  Children must be supervised at all times by an adult.

If you have any questions please phone Helping Hands Co-ordinator Sharon on: 0448 083 043, or click on the link below.

Concerns regarding young children with difficult and defiant behaviours? The Management of Young Children Program (MYCP) is available to support you.

The MYCP is supported by Beerwah and Landsborough State Schools (therefore no cost for these families) and is a practical and individualised behaviour support program for parents and carers of young children aged 2½ to 7 years and their families. It is a well-established and evidence based early intervention program targeting children who display defiant or oppositional behaviour with the aim of reducing such problematic behaviours in primary school and beyond.

For more information or interest in participating in the program, please see the school website link or contact the Landsborough State School office 5436 2777.

Our School has our own Skoolbag iPhone and Android App to help us communicate more effectively with our school Parent/Student community. Download the Skoolbag App to receive short messages, reminders and alerts. Parents will also be able to use eForms for absentee notes and change of details.

Click here to visit Skoolbag website