The Bee's Knees, Term 2, Week 10 2025

From the Junior School Principal

Farewell Term 2 – and Thank You

As Term 2 concludes, I would like to thank our students, families and staff for their collective contributions to a productive term. This has been a time of significant learning, connections, and shared achievement across our Junior School, and it has been a pleasure to witness the growth and engagement of our students.

Today, we held the first of four Parent Information Sessions for families enrolling in Prep 2026. These sessions provide valuable insight into the unique offerings of Kelvin Grove State College, outline the enrolment process, and explain how we support children and families through a well-considered Prep transition program. Thank you to the families who joined us today for this important first step.

We encourage all families with Prep-aged children for 2026 to begin the enrolment process by submitting an application via the link below or by scanning the QR code on the poster below:

http://bit.ly/4k1ld8Q

Upcoming Prep 2026 Information Session dates:

• Thursday, 24 July at 5:00 pm

• Thursday, 4 September at 9:30 am

• Thursday, 9 October at 5:00 pm

Our Junior School P&C Sub-Committee continues to foster strong community partnerships and parent engagement. In Term 3, we look forward to a number of initiatives including the annual Trivia Night on Friday 23 August. In addition, the introduction of Parent Representatives for each class will enhance classroom communication and connection. Further details about this exciting opportunity will be shared at the next Junior School P&C subcommittee meeting. More details below in the P&C report. 

This week we farewell two valued staff members. Miss Isabelle Renton, our Health and Physical Education teacher, is embarking on an overseas adventure, and we thank her for her enthusiasm and contribution to our school community. We also farewell Mr Jackson Barling, who has been a dedicated teacher aide and now moves on to pursue his professional rugby career. We wish both Isabelle and Jackson every success in their next chapter.

At the same time, we are pleased to welcome back Mrs Mel Nicoll from maternity leave. Mrs Nicoll will be co-teaching in Year 1 alongside Ms Sabrina Williams. I would like to acknowledge the excellent work Ms Williams has undertaken throughout the semester and look forward to the strong partnership these two educators will share next term.

Families are advised that Semester 1 report cards will be emailed home in Week 1 of Term 3. This semester, the report card format has been updated and will look a little different. Further information regarding these changes is outlined in an article by Amie Smith, Head of Curriculum, included in this newsletter.

As we enter the mid-year break, I encourage families to enjoy quality time together. Research from the Australian Institute of Family Studies indicates that even brief periods of meaningful connection—such as shared meals, reading, or engaging in simple activities—support emotional wellbeing and strengthen relationships with parents and caregivers. This important connection through downtime on the holidays also contributes to improved learning outcomes at school.

Looking ahead to Term 3:

• NAIDOC Week (Week 1): A school-wide celebration of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultures, achievements and histories.

• 100 Days of Prep (Week 1): An important milestone recognising the growth and achievements of our prep students.

• Parent-Teacher Interviews (Weeks 2 and 3): An opportunity to connect with teachers and discuss student progress following on from the publication of report cards.

• Prep 2026 Information Session (Thursday, Week 2 at 5:00 pm): A continued part of our transition journey for new or existing KG families.

I wish all families a restful and safe break and look forward to welcoming students and staff back for Term 3.

Warm Regards,
Jordan Burke 
Junior School Principal

From the Deputy Principal Prep - Year 2

Our learning: Literacy

Our Prep to Year 2’s have all been experimenting and working towards spelling, sentence and paragraph construction across the term. A learning Spotlight on our Year 1 classes who have explored the literary world of ‘The Gruffalo’ seeing a huge amount of student engagement, leading to wonderful demonstrations of sentences regarding the characters appearance, qualities and opinions. It is terms such as this where the progress made in student learning across each prep, grade 1 and grade 2 classrooms is astounding- truly showcasing the hard work of our teaching team and the unwavering love for learning our students hold.

Events:

Under 8’s Day: In Week 8, we felt the magic of Under 8’s day in a morning of science, sun and slithery-ness (yes, there were reptiles!). We welcomed our P-2 students, their families and wider community including surrounding Kindy’s to our campus, with students participating in activities ranging from disco dancing, crafty creating, football fun and meaningful mindfulness. Activity passports were full of stamps, indicating the enjoyment of all activities experienced by our Under 8 students.

Sports Days: Our Grade 1 and 2 sports morning and Prep afternoon of sporting fun were a huge success. Our students showed an enormous amount of pride in wearing their house colours and singing the house chants to kick the sports sessions off. This was followed by sprints, hurdles and rotational activities to mimic the athletics-based activities to come in their later years of primary school. The most popular of activities was the Tug-of-war which saw our parents and students come head-to-head in moments of healthy competitiveness. We are so grateful to our parents and carers who could join us on the day, along with our PE teacher, Ms Reck who led such fantastic sports sessions.

Upcoming Events: Early Term 3 sees more events, particularly for our Prep Students! Friday of Week 2 will see a huge milestone for our littlest people on campus -100 Days of schooling! As per the poster and communications, we encourage our students to arrive in the theme of ‘100’ and welcome families for a morning of fun and photo opportunities before moving off into our assembly.

In Early Week 3, our prep’s board big busses for a special adventure to Lone Pine Sanctuary on the 29^th of July with all information available through Qparent, SchoolZine and your classroom teacher.

Sasha Hemsworth

From the Deputy Principal Year 3-5

Athletics

This term students in Years 3, 4 and 5 participated in our annual track and field carnival.

Miss Renton had the students learning by doing in the events of shot put, discus, long jump high jump and running.

All this class work led up to the carnival day and participation rates were super high and it was very pleasing to see everyone smiling and cheering on their peers.

Well done to all students for taking part and giving everything a go.

Thank you to all the parents who came and cheered on their child/ren, the staff who always do an excellent job to make the event runs on schedule and every student gets a go.

Special thanks to Miss Renton, Mr Lonnie, Miss Sussmilch, Miss GJ, Mr Philpot and Miss Reck for your hard work behind the scenes to ensure the day is so successful. It is very much appreciated.

The wining House and age champions will be announced on assembly tomorrow morning.

Maths Club

The mathematical genius of Miss Wolstencroft was on full display when she convinced me to allow her to have another lunch duty during the week to promote maths at KG.

It is great to see our students coming at lunch times to solve mathematical challenges.

Keep up the great work.

Maths Problem for the Holidays

Mr Philmann arrives at school every morning at 7:45am and leaves at 3:55pm each afternoon during weeks 1, 3, 5 7 and 9.

During his second week of work, he leaves at 4:25pm. This also happens in weeks 4, 6,8 and 10

How many hours in total does Mr Philmann work during the 10 weeks.

Mr Walker – 4W

Mr Walker will be taking some medical leave for the first 4-6 weeks of Term 3. Hopefully Mr Walker will be back in week 5 but this will depend on how well he recovers from his surgery.

Replacing Mr Walker will be Mrs Paula Macleod, who has taught at Kelvin Grove for many years now and is a very familiar face to the students from Prep to Year 5.

Mrs Macleod is very experienced and is looking forward to working alongside the students and families of 4W.

Mr Walker’s Parent and Teacher Interviews will be postponed until his return and further information will be sent out when Mr Walker returns to Kelvin Grove.

Research Project – Kelvin Grove State College, USQ and UQ

Are You A Parent of a Child Between 0 to 12 Years Old?

Researchers from the University of Southern Queensland and The University of Queensland, are conducting research into parents’ opinions about parenting and the natural environment.

If you are a parent (18+ years) of a child aged 0 to 12 years and live in Australia, we would love to hear your views. You will need to complete a short online survey. To find out more or to participate click here. 

This research has been approved by the UniSQ Human Research Ethics Committee (ETH2024-0126)

Kelvin Grove & QParents (KG&QP)

In 2025 KG commenced using QParents, think KG&QP.

QParents is a secure, online portal that has been created by the Department of Education to provide parents of Queensland state school students with 24-hour acess to their child’s information.

Features of QParents

Access to

• Attendance details (Junior School only)
• Report cards
• Upcoming events (MS/SS only)
• Timetables (MS/SS only)
• Invoices
• Payment history

How will I get access?

The QParents portal is located online. Once registered, parents can login to the portal using their secure account details.

You will only be able to register for a QParents account if your child's school signs up to QParents. Once the school has launched the QParents program, parents or caregivers will then be nominated by the school as QParents account owners (QPAOs) for access to student information. The nominated account owners will then need to register with QParents to access this information.

Your school will also supply you with the registration requirements for QParents. You will need to undertake online identity verification and provide personal information such as your name and mobile phone number. During the registration process, you may view the Privacy Statement and Terms and Conditions in QParents for further details about information collection and use. For more detailed information or assistance with the QParents registration process, please refer to the QParents online help guide.

What personal information is stored about me?

The following details are stored to enable the management of your account:

• your full name
• your password
• the student number you are associated with
• your email address and (if provided) mobile phone number
• basic details of any delegated viewers you have invited
• the types of documents you provided during registration (but not the actual details on the documents)
• details of any pending payments you have made (but not credit card details).

Where is my personal information stored?

The Department of Education has contracted Microsoft to host the QParents application. Your personal information is stored in Microsoft's secure data centre in Australia. Be assured that all personal information is protected using the latest encryption techniques, rendering this information unreadable to unauthorised people while housed in the Azure platform. See the Microsoft Azure Trust Centre for further details.

Which devices will I be able to use to access the site?

The main QParents site.

You can access QParents through a:

• smartphone (mobile browser or download the QParents app from the itunes App store or Google Play Store.
• tablet
• personal computer.

Allan Tharenou

From the Inclusion Team

Inclusion Team Update – Celebrating a Successful Semester One

As Semester One draws to a close, the Inclusion Team would like to reflect on the incredible progress made across the Junior School. It has been a wonderful semester filled with learning, growth, and positive connections, and we are proud of what our KG students have achieved.  These achievements would not be possible without the ongoing collaboration and commitment of our families, wider school community and the KG staff who work with dedication and care to help students thrive each day. Your impact is deeply valued and appreciated.

We’d also like to give a special mention to Jackson Barling, who’s literacy and numeracy support across the Junior School has made a meaningful difference for many students. His thoughtful, student-centred approach has been a wonderful asset to the KG team.

As the semester ends, we also say a fond farewell to Neteske Venter, who will be moving on from her roles as teacher aide to pursue an exciting new career path as Teacher. We thank both Jackson and Neteske for their dedication, kindness, and the many ways they’ve supported our students and staff. They will be greatly missed, and we wish them all the very best in their future endeavours.

Thank you again to all who have contributed to a successful and inclusive Semester One. We look forward to continuing this great work together in Semester Two. Wishing everyone a safe and restful break!

Jodie Beaton

From the HOD of Curriculum

Semester One Report Cards – What to Expect

Report cards for Semester One will be sent home in Week 1 of Term 3. These reports are an important way for us to share how your child is progressing in their learning, effort and behaviour.

What You’ll See on the Report:

• The learning areas/subjects provided during the semester
• The student’s achievement on the reporting scale for each subject
• Behaviour and effort indicators
• Personalised commendations and focus areas for improvement

Prep Report Cards – What’s Different?

With the move to Version 9 of the Australian Curriculum, Prep students will now only receive achievement ratings for the following subjects:

• English
• Mathematics
• Health & Physical Education

Other subjects will still appear on the report card but will include effort ratings and comments only.

New Reporting Scale – Prep to Year 2

For students in Prep to Year 2, you’ll notice a new achievement scale on report cards:

• Applying – The student is demonstrating deep and broad knowledge, understanding and skills from the achievement standard.
• Connecting – The student is demonstrating deep knowledge, understanding and skills from the achievement standard.
• Working with – The student is demonstrating the expected knowledge, understanding and skills from the achievement standard.
• Exploring – The student is demonstrating partial knowledge, understanding and skills from the achievement standard.
• Beginning – The student is beginning to demonstrate knowledge, understanding and skills from the achievement standard.

We look forward to celebrating your child’s achievements and growth this semester! If you have any questions or would like further clarification, please don’t hesitate to contact the school.

Amie Smith

From the Admin Team

Dear Parents and Carers,

Lost property items have been placed on tables near the Junior School Tuckshop. We encourage you to take a moment as a family, to check whether any of these items belong to your child/ren. Please note that any unclaimed belongings will be donated to charity. 

Wishing you and your family a safe and enjoyable break. We look forward to welcoming you and your child/ren back in Term 4. 

Best Regards

Anna and Janice  

Student of the Week Awards Term 2 Week 8: 

From the P & C

🐝 Bee Connected with Your Junior School Community!
At Kelvin Grove Junior School P&C, our vision for a strong community starts with meaningful parent involvement. We’re excited to introduce a new initiative to help build those connections — Parent Representatives.
Our goal is simple: strengthen communication between families, the P&C, and the school, and foster a sense of shared purpose across our classrooms.
Each Parent Representative will:
● Act as a communication link between class teachers, families, and the P&C
● Help coordinate class social events and support for families
● Share relevant school information to help parents stay informed
We believe this will create a more connected school culture, where families feel empowered, welcomed, and engaged. This is something I wish was available to me when first joining the school community in 2023 as a doe-eyed family, wanting to see the best for my eldest child.
If you’re as passionate as I am to see the school community thrive, we invite you to click here to learn more and express your interest.
📋Next P&C Meeting — Week 2, Term 3
Our next Junior School P&C meeting is happening 22 July at 3:15pm in the JS Library. Click here for the Agenda. Here's a preview of what we’ll be discussing:
● Exclusive briefings to the P&C by our Junior School Principal and an opportunity to be engaged.
● Introduction and feedback on Parent Representatives
● Updates for Term 3 events (Trivia Night - August 23, Father’s and Family Day Stall - September 3 and 4)
● General Business
🕓 We know you’re busy — and we’re grateful for any time you can give. Out of respect for your time, the meeting will finish promptly at 4:30pm.
✨ First-time attendee? You’re very welcome! There’s no pressure to take on any roles — you won’t be asked to do a job unless you volunteer (promise!).
We’d love to see you there!

Warmly,

David Tran
Chairperson, Junior School P&C
(a subcommittee of the Kelvin Grove State College P&C)