CELEBRATING STUDENT SUCCESS

In previous newsletters I have shared with you the very pleasing year 3 & 5 NAPLAN results and the Semester One report cards for the whole school. Whilst these are very important measures of our academic success, school is so much more.

Recently I had a parent make a comparison regarding school culture between Milton and another school local to us. She said that the biggest difference she noticed was that we are ‘child centred’ where we are focussed on what is best for the students compared to being ‘adult centred’ where the focus is on what is best for the adults. I took this as a very big compliment for our school, with staff who work very hard to make this happen every day, with the resources we have at our disposal.

We have many successes for our students throughout the school year and below I have included just a few of them to share with you-

GIRLS SOCCER

Our senior girls’ soccer team recently won back-to-back titles in the South East Queensland Soccer Competition. Coached by Mr McMahon, the girls played magnificently, defeating Stretton Ste College (a much larger school) 4-2 in the grand final.

DEBATING

Debating has been successfully reintroduced in year 5/6 thanks to Mrs Lazarus one of our arts teachers.

The following students recently participated in their second debate-

Charlotte, Tilly, Florence, George and Sebastian in year 5

Emily, Max and Trixie in year 6.

Both teams put a huge effort in for their preparation and commitment.

Yr 6 were successful against Somerville House. 

Yr 5 were narrowly defeated by Ironside SS. 

An amazing effort given it’s their second debate ever.

BOOK PRIZES

We are constantly encouraging our students to read regularly, as this opens the door to every other aspect of learning in all subject areas.

This term we continued an initiative which is proudly sponsored by Rhiannon and Thomas Coussens from Place Real Estate (also parents in our school) where one student from each class has been nominated by their teacher to receive a book prize.

This book may be awarded for a variety of reasons. It could be for improved reading, sustained reading at school or home or just for a general love of reading.

All of the books have been selected from our recent Book Fair and as a result, such a large purchase of books has given us credit to select even more books for our library. It’s been a win for everyone.

Thanks so much to Rhiannon and Thomas for their ongoing sponsorship and support for our students.

Below are the recipients for this term-

GENIUS HOUR PROJECT

Many classes across the school undertake Genius Hour, which is about students engaging in something they are passionate about or have a particular interest in which can assist the community.

Abigail Q, a Year 5 student at Milton State School, has made a significant contribution to a charity close to her heart, thanks to the generous support of our school community.

Abigail’s family has a longstanding connection with Our Rainbow House, a charity that provides education and support to disadvantaged children in Zambia. Earlier this term, representatives from Our Rainbow House and a past Milton student visited the school to share the impact of funds raised from the 2024 Disco.

Inspired by this, Abigail used her Genius Hour project time to plan and organise a craft and bake stall with the goal of raising as much money as possible for the charity. She spent countless hours at home creating jewellery, sculpting, sewing purses and baking sweet treats, with wonderful support from her mum and grandma.

In Week 9, Abigail ran her stall in the Fig Tree Courtyard at morning tea. It was a huge success, selling out in just half an hour and raising $336. On top of this, three generous sponsors promised to match her efforts, bringing the total donation to an incredible $1,344.

This money will help Our Rainbow House provide food, clothing and other essentials, supporting children in Zambia to access a quality education and a brighter future.

ART SHOW

Thanks to the outstanding work of our art teacher Mrs Shannon Ravenscroft, the very talented students from Year 4, 1D, 1M & 1NH, have once again produced some amazing artwork.

Every student across the school gets the opportunity to undertake all 5 strands of The Arts curriculum (music, media, visual art, dance & drama) over the course of a school year.

This is a unique program, which does not exist in this format in any other school across Queensland and has been our approach for almost two decades.

STRATEGIC PLANNING- PARENT FORUMS

As a part of our strategic planning for 2026-2029, we will be conducting some parent forums with randomly selected parents from each class being invited in for an hour one afternoon next term to share their thoughts.

Class teachers will host the session, with some specific questions being sent to those selected, prior to the forum.

I will reach out to those randomly selected parents early next term to outline the process and gauge interest in participating.

After these forums take place, we will be sending out an online survey to allow all families to have their input.

Naturally, with any consultation process it is just that, consultation.

We cannot act upon every idea, however we can look at common themes and see how we might address these, whilst continuing to follow our obligations related to systemic requirements and our professional judgment as educators, working hard to deliver the best we can, with the resources we have available.

More info to come next term.

NEW DESIGNATED PLAY AREAS

As of next term, we are trialling some newly designated playground areas for students.

Students have been informed of these changes by their class teachers and on assembly.

We are doing this for a couple of reasons-

• We are finding that with the growth in the lower school numbers (P-2) we cannot accommodate the number of students in and around the Junior Learning Centre if we have older students also playing in that space. In some cases, we are seeing unintended issues/incidents/injuries occurring between younger and older students.
• At the end of this year, Block E (year 4 classroom block) will be removed to make way for the new building construction, due to begin later in 2026. The year 4 classes will be relocated to Block A in 2026 and therefore it makes sense for them to be playing closer to where they will be located.

NEW DESIGNATED PLAY AREAS- This will apply before school and during break times-

• Prep- Year 2- the areas under and around Block C (Junior Learning Centre) Block D (year 5 classrooms and The Hive) and Block E (year 4 classrooms) and the Park Playground (only during school time, not before school). This will include the small sandpit adjacent to the oval and sandpit on the corner of Bayswater St & Haig Rd end of the grounds.

• Year 3-6 - the Fig Tree Courtyard, MOSHC Courtyard (only during break times, not before school), multipurpose area and surrounds, Gregory Park Oval and basketball half court. 

• Year 4 & 5 students can still put their schoolbags at their classroom upon arrival at school and then they will need to move to their designated areas. 

Essentially, the southern end of the school will be for Prep -2 students and the northern end for yr 3-6 students.

This will not limit students from entering/exiting via any gate as we know many siblings will arrive and depart the school together.

Naturally, all students can access the tuckshop, attend various clubs during break times or before school (The Hive, choir etc) but they must return to their designated play areas once completed an activity.

We are confident that this redesignation, will reduce the number of incidents/issues/injuries between older and younger students.

We appreciate your patience and support as we undertake these changes, as it will take some time for students to learn the new rules around designated areas.

NOT RETURNING IN 2026?

As we enter the final term of the 2025 school year, we are once again preparing for our staffing and creating classes for 2026.

With the exception of year 6 students, if for some reason your child/ren will not be returning to our school in 2026, I would appreciate you sending a brief email to Bec in the school reception remme13@eq.edu.au indicating such.

Even if it is just a possibility that you may be leaving, we would like to know so we can forward plan. This does not mean that your child/ren will lose their place in the school should your plans change and they need to remain.

If you have a child that is due to enter prep in 2026 and you are yet to enrol them, please ensure that you download the enrolment forms from the school website and do so ASAP. Similarly, should you know someone who is not yet associated with the school and is intending to enrol, please have them do the same, irrespective of whether it is prep or another year level.

ONLINE SAFETY- GROUP CHATS

It has come to our attention that a number of students in various year levels are part of ‘group chats’ on their iPads through a range of different apps.

Most of the issues that arise with ‘group chats’ originate outside of school hours and are usually initiated on smartphones and then end up infiltrating school life and show up on a student’s iPad.

It is essential that these are monitored by parents and that appropriate online etiquette is discussed frequently.

This is a topic that we discuss in the classroom and we have Online Safety lessons throughout the year, however as the vast majority of these group chat interactions occur at home, we wanted to alert you to this fact.

These online chats are not permitted to be used at school – please ensure these apps are turned off for school.

Please revise these topics with your child:

• Appropriate online language
• Not sharing personal information
• Not sharing images
• What to do if they feel uncomfortable or unsafe
• What to do if someone else has used inappropriate language or images 

Parents and Carers are the first point of call for online situations that occur at home. Please ensure that you are up-to-date with the group conversations and apps that involve online interaction that your child uses. This is important in the new technology age that we find ourselves and our children in.

The link below will take you to our School Website which has Online Safety resources:
https://miltonss.eq.edu.au/curriculum/bring-your-own-device

The link below will take you to the Queensland Government page that has some useful resources around Keeping Kids Safe Online:
https://www.qld.gov.au/youth/relationships-safety-sexuality/staying-safe/stop-cyberbullying/for-parents-and-carers/keeping-kids-safe-online

The link below will take you to a document that can show you how to adapt your child’s iPad settings (including turning off icloud – VERY IMPORTANT)
https://miltonss.eq.edu.au/SupportAndResources/FormsAndDocuments/Documents/BYOD%20Help%20Guides/IPAD%20settings%20for%20parents%20updated%202022.pdf

BE OUR EYES AND EARS

We reply on our school community to ensure that our school remains safe and secure, particularly during the school holiday periods. If you see something that looks suspicious, such as people in the grounds etc, please contact School Watch on 13 17 88 or the police directly.

Every time we have vandalism or theft, it impacts upon our school budget which means less resourcing for the things that add to your child’s educational experience.

Obviously, MOSHC will be operational during the holiday period.

We look forward to seeing everyone back at school on Tuesday 7 October for Term 4 and the next big event- Fair on The Green!

Kind regards,
Paul Zernike
Principal
pzern1@eq.edu.au