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Term 1, Week 10 - 28th March

Principal Message

Hi everyone

I am sure you share with me the amazement at how quick term 1 has gone. It feels like yesterday we were coming in for day one of the school year. Thank you to families and the wider Winton community for your support this term. I appreciate that there has been some change this year, and I am grateful for the warm welcome and strong support received from all. The new school year was an uncertain time for the whole community with a change of principal, however I hope that now the year is well underway you are reassured that the great Winton State School will continue to provide a high quality education to every student.

We are so grateful for the local businesses who have supported us in providing tuckshop over the last couple of years. Tuckshop has become an important routine in our school, that students and staff alike look forward to each week. To reduce the pressure on our wonderful local businesses, especially during tourist season, we are working towards running tuckshop from school. I have advertised for a tuckshop convenor and we have been doing some work in the background on ordering systems and other logistics. I will keep you posted on this as it progresses, however this is very exciting for our school.

Thank you to Mr Clarke for coordinating a fun filled cross country. The weather was pretty average leading up to this, and while walking the course in the early hours of the morning and relying on weather predictions we made the risky decision to go ahead and I am so glad we did. A highlight for me was the interschool aspect and seeing all the young people of Winton come together and share this event. Congratulations to Paterson who won the carnival on points, and our senior students are started their fundraising campaign for camp in term 3. Well done to students who placed, and every student who participated. Thanks to all staff and families across the schools involved for your support and participation at this event. We look forward to the remaining interschool carnivals across the year.

I don't think there is a better way to celebrate end of term leading into Easter Holidays than an Easter Bonnet parade. Well done to our early years students for their creativity with not only their easter bonnets, however also the performances they prepared. It is so pleasing to see the students engagement in the arts shining through. There is wonderful benefit to the arts for students expression, regulation, confidence and literacy. Thank you to the families who were able to attend this event, and to our early years team for coordinating this exciting celebration.

Four of our senior students who are undertaking a Certificate II in Rural Operations this year attended Goat camp this week. They travelled to Barcy for camp from Sunday to Thursday, with their online teacher from Longreach. It looked like a great time was had by all, with some exciting hands on learning.

I thank you again for a wonderful term 1. I am so proud of every student, the growth we have seen so far in 2024 both in and out of the classroom is remarkable. Happy Easter to everyone in the Winton community, especially our amazing students. Have a safe and happy holiday and we look forward to seeing you back, well rested and ready for another big term on the 15th April.

Take care,

Meggin

Staffing update

Term 2 will see a couple of staffing changes for our school.

After over 20 years we farewell Miss Pammy this term. We are so grateful for the contribution Pammy has made to our school and community, she will be missed. Pammy is not only well respected at Winton State School, however is active in many areas of the community. I thank Pammy for her contribution to the school, and the teaching profession. We wish Pammy, Charles and Atlas all the best as they explore a new community and widen their positive impact.

Betty Hite is also moving on from term 2, moving closer to her family and headed for Capella SHS. We will be sad to see Betty go, however being closer to her family in Rockhampton has been a priority for a Betty and we know this move will be great for her. Betty has taught our students from Prep through to 12 and is well respected by all. Her work in particular with the senior students in the hospitality space is commendable. We thank Betty for all she has done for our school and community and wish her luck at the new school.

We will not be replacing either Pammy or Betty for the remainder of the year. Mandy Smith and I will form the schools leadership team and we have been able to cover Betty's teaching load with existing staff in the school.

We also welcome Danielle Taylor as our recently appointed Business Manager.

School day changes

This week a letter was sent home outlining changes to the school day structure from term 2. This was sent home in hard copy with students and also emailed to all families. Below is a summary of the new day structure, the key changes are the removal of form each morning (learning starts at 8:50am), lunch break durations and finish time of 2:45pm. Please also note that parade will now be help Monday at 2:30pm to coincide with our Health and Wellbeing lesson.

P & C Committee

The Annual General Meeting (AGM) was held for P & C in week 8. During this meeting, all positions on the P & C were declared vacant and we formed a new committee for 2024. Thank you to all members of the P & C from 2023, esepcially those who served in executive roles. Congratulations to Brendan Willis (President) and Jayci Jack (Secretary) who were elcted to roles on the executive committee. We do still have positions vacant of treasurer and vice president. If you would like to nominate for one of these positions we will hold another meeting in the first week of school. Keep an eye on Facebook and emails for this to be advertised. You are welcome to attend P & C without holding an executive position, please come along and be part of this important team in our school community.

Facilities Update

The science lab is starting to gain some momentum. The furniture has been delivered, we are expecting flooring to be done in the next few days following by fittings and fixtures being installed soon. We will keep you updated on expected completion of this further into term 3.