Brookfield Banter 25/06/25

From the Principal - Leanne Duncan

Growing Global Competence Grant Approval!

We are thrilled to share that Louise Raben our German teacher, has successfully secured funding for Brookfield State School through the Queensland Department of Education’s Growing Global Competence Fund.

This is a fantastic achievement that will support our school in deepening students’ global understanding and intercultural learning.

Our school and Frau Raben will be working closely with Tess Stewart, our P&C President, and the wider P&C team on an exciting new project that brings a global focus to our local community and school environment. We’re looking forward to the opportunities this will bring for our students to explore, connect and engage with global perspectives right here in Brookfield.

Stay tuned as our project is revealed in Semester 2!

Have you enrolled for 2026? 

Happiest of Holidays!

What a great way to wrap up the Semester - Our Senior Choir made Brookfield State School proud with their performance at Choral Fanfare Regional finals at the end of last week, our first Kindy visit happened and our Year 5's had a great time at camp, returning home today! Now it is time for staff, students and families to rest and rejuvenate ready to do it all again in Term 3!  Community Calendar is attached for your information.

Whether you're taking a break from the school routine, having some time to pause, a holiday or enjoying time with family or friends' – ENJOY!!  Enjoy the chance to pause, step away from school lunches and schedules, and appreciate time to connect with family/friends!   

If you're staying local or passing through our community, thank you in advance for helping keep an eye on our beautiful school.

Community Calendar - Term 3

From the Deputy Principal - Leah Cathcart

PBL: Positive Behaviour for Learning

This week our focus was all about end-of-term reflections and celebrations.

Positive Behaviour for Learning (PBL) is a key part of our school culture at Brookfield State School, guiding how we work together to create a respectful, safe, and supportive learning environment.

As we wrap up another successful term, our classes took time to reflect and celebrate how we have demonstrated our school values:

Belong – Strive – Succeed

In each classroom, students were invited to think about their own learning journey and behaviour this term. We asked:

“How did YOU show that you belong, strive, and succeed at BSS?”

Using elbow-buddies, students shared proud moments and personal highlights from the term—times when they had supported a classmate, challenged themselves in their learning, or achieved a goal they had worked hard for.

We also gathered in sharing circles to reflect on how we have been:

• Respectful – through kindness, manners, and listening.
• Responsible – by making good choices and showing leadership.
• Safe – by following rules and caring for others.

Each student shared a proud moment that reflected one of these school-wide expectations, and it was inspiring to hear such a wide range of stories showing personal growth, perseverance, and care for others.

Congratulations, Brookfield! What a positive term of learning and growing together.

We look forward to carrying these reflections into next term, continuing to build a school where every student belongs, strives, and succeeds.

Prep 2026 Orientation – Coming Soon!

We are very excited to welcome our Pre-Preppies and their families next term for Prep Orientation Day – Friday 25 July 2025 9:15-11:00.

We have a fabulous morning planned, full of engaging experiences for the children and valuable insights for parents. It’s a special opportunity to meet the Prep teaching team, explore our classrooms and begin building a connection with our wonderful school community.

We can’t wait to see you there!

Ready-set-Prep – Kindy Visits

As part of our ongoing commitment to supporting a smooth transition to “big school,” connecting with our local Kindergartens and Early Learning Centres is a vital part of the journey. These connections help build confidence, familiarity, and excitement in our future Prep students.

We are very fortunate to be located so close to Brookfield Early Learning Centre, allowing us to regularly plan visits with our prep classes. On Tuesday, Prep B proudly led the way as the first class to visit this year. In preparation, each Prep B student crafted a letter to share with the kindy children, highlighting something interesting about life in Prep.

For some of our prep students, the visit was a return to a familiar and much-loved place—their former kindy. For others, it was a new setting, but one that still felt familiar and welcoming. Regardless of their individual backgrounds, the experience of reconnecting with the kindy environment brought out a natural warmth and ease in all the children.

It was truly heartwarming to watch the kindy children greet their new prep friends, swap names, play together, and share in a story time session. A buzz of excitement filled the room as many kindy children realised the visiting prep students—and even the teaching team—were from the same school where their older siblings already attend, and where they themselves will be going next year. These small but meaningful moments are powerful in creating positive, community-based experiences that support a confident and joyful transition to school.

Prep A and Prep C are now eagerly awaiting their turns to visit in Terms 3 and 4.

Families with children attending other early learning centres can look forward to a visit from our school mascot, Brookie Bear, who will be making rounds with me, during Term 4, to spread some BSS cheer and share the excitement of starting school.

Building Connections Across Year Levels: The Power of Buddy Classes

At our school, the Buddy Class program continues to be a highlight of the student experience—bringing together younger and older students in meaningful, supportive, and joyful ways.

Throughout the year, buddy classes meet regularly to engage in a wide range of activities: shared reading, collaborative art projects, games, and special events. These sessions are designed to foster connection, build confidence, and create a strong sense of belonging across the school community.

For our younger students, having an older buddy provides a friendly face in the playground, a mentor to look up to, and a gentle guide as they grow more familiar with school life. For older students, the role of buddy offers the chance to develop leadership skills, empathy, and pride in being a positive role model.

The benefits of these relationships are felt well beyond the classroom. Students learn the value of kindness, patience, and communication. They cheer each other on at events, wave to each other in passing, and build friendships that bridge the year levels.

It’s always heartening to witness the joy and laughter that fills the room during buddy time. Whether they’re working on a project or simply enjoying a chat, the genuine connection between buddies is clear.

At its heart, the Buddy Class program is about community—and at our school, that sense of 

Wishing You a Wonderful Holiday Break

As we wrap up another busy and successful term, I want to take a moment to say thank you to all our families for your continued support of your children’s learning and the many routines that make school life run smoothly.

From early morning drop-offs and packed lunches to washed uniforms and school events—your efforts do not go unnoticed. It truly takes a team, and we are so grateful for the partnership we share in supporting your child’s education and growth.

Now it’s time to pause. Enjoy the slower starts to the day, a break from the lunchbox rush, and a well-earned rest from the rhythm of school life. Most importantly, enjoy the precious time together as a family—making memories, relaxing, and reconnecting.

I’m looking forward to doing the same with my own family over the break, with some Melbourne theatre and sporting experiences planned.

We look forward to welcoming everyone back next term and can’t wait to hear all the holiday stories from our students.

Take care and have a safe, happy holiday.

From the Deputy Principal - Katie Lewis

Crazy Sock Day - Friday 27 June

We are looking forward to seeing lots of bright, colourful, crazy socks on Friday 27 June.

Students are asked to bring a GOLD COIN donation to support our Year 6 Graduation Fundraising efforts. Our School Captains will come around to classrooms to collect donations on Friday morning.

Thank you for your support of our fundraising efforts.

Fanfare Wrap Up

Congratulations once again to our Senior Choir for their performance at the Old Museum last week as part of the Choral Fanfare Regional Finals. 

The standard of the session was incredibly high, as both adjudicators mentioned as well as in our own observations.  Congratulations to each and every one of our students for their commitment and effort in the lead up to their performance on Thursday.

We shared a video of the Senior Choir performance on our Facebook page, and I urge you to watch it. This song was absolutely amazing and I had tears in my eyes during this performance - wow, just wow!

Thank you to Mrs McMillan for conducting our choirs and for all that you do for music at Brookfield, we truly are incredibly fortunate to have you provide such amazing musical experiences for our students. Thank you also to Mrs Catherine Robertson who accompanied our choir on the day. What a team!

Save the Date - Sausage in a Bun - July 28

Mark your calendars now - Monday 28 July, we will be having SAUSAGE IN A BUN for our Year 6 Graduation Fundraising efforts. What a lovely way to warm up on a cold July day.  Keep an eye on Flexi Schools to place your orders after the holidays.

Happy Holidays

As we come to the end of yet another busy term, I encourage you to take a moment to reflect on all that this term has been - the highs, the lows, the achievements and the areas for growth. It is always a great opportunity to pause for reflection, for us as parents, and also for our children.

I hope you are all able to enjoy some downtime this holiday period and that our students can take some time to rest, reset and recharge so that they are ready for Term 3.

From the Head of Curriculum - Lisa McKay

ICAS

Our students have many talents, and this year they’ll once again have the chance to take part in the ICAS competition to share and celebrate their achievements.

What is ICAS?  

ICAS is an online academic competition for Years 3-6 that gives students the opportunity to challenge their higher order thinking and problem-solving skills in English, Mathematics and Science. ICAS evaluates student performance against other competition entrants across the state and nation. The data reveals student strengths and weaknesses and can help you recognise and support your child's academic journey.    

Every student who participates is celebrated and recognised with a printed certificate in each subject area, and an online results report to track development each year. Top performers are eligible for one of the highly coveted ICAS medals.

Brookfield State School is offering students the opportunity to sit the following tests.

How to Participate in ICAS 

If you wish for your child to participate in ICAS this year, please: 

Please note: Online payments for ICAS close on 27th July. 

1. Read about ICAS subjects and prices here: icasassessments.com/products-icas/
2. Read the Privacy Collection Statement - below
3. Read the terms and conditions here: (icasassessments.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/2023-ICAS-Assessments-Schools-TsCs_S2023.V6-1.pdf)
4. Go to the Parent Portal to sign up to chosen subject areas here: (shop.icasassessments.com/pages/pps)
5. Your parent payment access code is: QKB733

      Your parent page link is: ttps://shop.icasassessments.com/pages/parent-payment/QKB733

1. Enter your child’s details, select the subject areas your child would like to participate in, then proceed to payment.

After payment is made via the Parent Payment System, you will receive an order confirmation email, please keep this for your records. 

The following information is a privacy notification about how your child’s data is kept private and secure.

Please do not hesitate to contact the school office if you have any questions. 

It is Reporting Time

As reports will be emailed this week, it's a good opportunity to remind you of the updates to the K–12 Curriculum and Reporting Framework (CARF) introduced this year. The CARF guides us on how we teach and report on student progress. These changes were outlined in earlier editions of our Banter and can be found below. If you have any questions about your child's report, please see their class teacher.       

Prep Reports

While Prep students have continued to study all curriculum areas, they will only receive formal grades for English, Mathematics and Health and Physical Education (HPE). For other subjects, students have engaged in learning experiences, and instead of the usual formative assessments, they will participate in monitoring tasks to track their progress. The changes will be reflected in the end of Semester 1 report, which will be emailed in Week 10. 

Reporting Scales and Descriptions

The scales below will be used in the end of Semester 1 report, which will be issued via email on Thursday.

For more information, please refer to the following links. 

The Curriculum and Reporting Framework (CARF) can be found at https://education.qld.gov.au/curriculum/stages-of-schooling/k-12

If you have any questions about these changes, please feel free to contact the Curriculum Coordinator Lisa McKay on lmcka51@eq.edu.au

From the Social Worker - Mrs D

Wellbeing Chat

As the term wraps up, I reflect on the amount of time and energy it takes to parent our children, from prep to adulthood, that family dynamics are messy at times, but challenges can make us stronger.  This insight from inside parenting sums up the importance of being present, not only in the celebrations but also in the challenges.  

Love isn’t just soft. It’s not just the hugs and praise and the cheering from the sidelines.

It’s also the strength it takes to say no. To hold a limit, to speak the truth, even when its uncomfortable.

Our children feel most secure when they know love doesn’t vanish in conflict, when it doesn’t depend on performance or perfection, when it shows up clearly and consistently in both the comfort and the challenge.

Loving them loudly means showing up fully, not perfectly, just fully. With warmth, honestly and presence. Because that what build trust, that’s what teaches them what love really is. And that what they will carry with them into their tween and teenage years and beyond.

Happy winter break,

Music News

Choral Fanfare

Congratulations to our Senior Choir for their performance at the Choral Fanfare Regional Finals last week. Even though we’re not going through to the next round of competition, they did themselves and Brookfield proud. Thanks to all of the parents who came along to support us – it was lovely to have our own cheer squad there. Special thanks to Mrs Catherine Robertson who has shared her time and talent to accompany us at both the heats and the regional finals.

Beginner Strings Workshop

A huge “well done” also goes to our Yr 3 Sting players who participated in the Moggill Beginner Strings workshop last Friday. It was a huge day for all involved and the amount of learning that happened in those few hours was phenomenal. Thanks to Mrs Ellen Harle and the local Strings teachers for organising and running the day for our students.

But wait – there’s more!

Your children have spent the last semester learning and practising music in various groups at school, but many of you have not had the opportunity to hear a performance yet. Never fear - we have the solution!  We are pleased to be able to announce our....

Mid-Year Music Concert!

Please find details below for your calendars.

WHEN: Thursday, July 24 (Wk2)

TIME: 6pm start. Students, please arrive no later than 5:45pm. We anticipate being done and dusted by 7pm.

WHERE: School Hall

WHO: Senior Strings, Senior Band, Senior Choir, Yr5 Marimba, Yr6 Marimba, Intermediate Choir. 

WEAR: Senior groups - black and white performance uniform, Intermediates - school uniform. (Those Yr 4 students who are in both Intermediate Choir and Snr Strings will wear their black and whites throughout the evening.)

This is a great time to hear how far our groups have come in such a short time, and to get a glimpse of just how good we can be. We are looking forward to being able to perform for all our family and friends. If you have any questions, please don't hesitate to contact your child's conductor.

We look forward to seeing you there!

Library News

Term 3: We're excited ... Book Week is in Week 6! 

Premier’s Reading Challenge - Finishes August 22

The holidays are a wonderful time to snuggle down and read some books for the Premier’s Reading Challenge! Don’t forget to fill in your yellow Reading Record forms and parents/guardians, please remember to tick the box on the front and sign it. Thanks for your support. Go Brookfield readers!

Helping Hands News

Extra-Curricular Calendar - Term 3

Office News

Holiday Use of Facilities

Brookfield State School will continue to be a hub of activity over the school holiday period.

Henschell Cricket will be using our oval for their Winter Holiday Clinic. 

Gabba Sports will be on site to repair the cricket nets which were damaged in the cyclone.

Our groundsman Dan will be on site during the holidays undertaking repairs and garden maintenance.

Our IT consultant will be on site in the first week ready to assist with the installation of our photocopying machines.

There will also be some air conditioning replacements in classrooms taking place.

Our wonderful school cleaners will be on site in the second week of holidays undertaking their deep clean program.

Happy holidays everyone!

Office Hours

Please note the changes to the opening hours of our administration office below.

• Monday, 8:00am - 3:30pm
• Tuesday to Friday, 8:00am - 4:00pm

If you have any queries, please do not hesitate to contact us at admin@brookfieldss.eq.edu.au

Permissions

Payments Methods

The following are the payment methods available to you for your child/ren's invoices.

• BPoint
• EFTPOS
• Cash
• QParents
• Qkr

The link below will direct you to the BPoint payment system. This can also be found at the bottom of any invoice and statement. If you use the link provided below you will need to enter your details manually.

Absences

Reporting an absence

Parents can report their student's absence via the following options:

• QParents 
• Email - absences@brookfieldss.eq.edu.au
• Phone - 07 3374 7333 option 1

Any absence that is more than 10 consecutive school days must be requested via an exemption form to be approved by the principal prior to the absence. Please see the link below for more information about why an exemption is required from compulsory schooling 

Unexplained Absences

To avoid having unexplained absences listed on your child/rens school report, please ensure any unexplained absences are corrected by informing office staff on the day of absence. These can also be updated via the QParents app.

Late Arrival and Early Pick Up

We ask that all parents please bring their students via the office if arriving after 8:55am to ensure they are signed in, which will update their absence on the roll. Please note that even if you have emailed Admin advising your student/s will be late it is still mandatory that they are brought to the office to sign in.

If you need to collect your child/ren early (before 2:55pm) please ensure that you email both your class teacher and Admin.

Please note ALL STUDENTS must come to the main office to be collected prior to 2:55pm, unless confirmed otherwise by Admin.

Ensuring your student/s sign in and out of school correctly is for their safety. We thank you for your understanding.

2025 Term Dates

• Term 1: Tuesday 28 January to Friday 4 April—10 weeks.
• Term 2: Tuesday 22 April to Friday 27 June—10 weeks.
• Term 3: Monday 14 July to Friday 19 September—10 weeks.
• Term 4: Tuesday 7 October to Friday 12 December—10 weeks

Community News

QASMT National Science Week Campus Tours

Join us during National Science Week for a guided tour of the Queensland Academy for Science Mathematics and Technology (QASMT), a proud IB World School nurturing highly capable learners from Year 7 to Year 12.

📅 Tour Dates:

August 11th, 12th, 14th & 15th, 2025

These tours provide a valuable opportunity for families to explore our innovative learning spaces, gain insight into the International Baccalaureate curriculum, and see how students at QASMT are supported to flourish both academically and personally.

🔗 Bookings are essential. Reserve your place via: https://www.trybooking.com/DCNET

Sharks Camp 2025 - July.

GET IN QUICK LIMITED SPOTS AVAILABLE!! Sharks Camp is a four-day volleyball camp designed to cater to athletes of all skill levels. With elite development opportunities available and pathways into club and state-level volleyball, this camp has something for everyone!

The Dates:

8th July | 9th July | 10th July | 11th July

We usually hit capacity pretty quickly, so if you're interested sign up today to secure your spot!!

YEAHHHH SHARKS!!

Visit our website for more information https://sharksvolleyball.com/sharks-camp." 

Brookfield Tennis Centre

The Brookfield Tennis Centre are offering a free trial tennis lesson for all kids at the Brookfield State School courts or at the Brookfield Tennis Centre courts. Brookfield State School has a very proud tennis tradition with roughly half the school enrolled in tennis lessons at any point in time and we'd love your child to be a part of it. 

This a great way for your kids to make new friends, learn a great set of skills and a game for life and have a wonderful time in the process.  All kids that enrol into lessons will receive a free tennis racquet from the team at the Brookfield Tennis Centre to help them get going.

Their coaching staff will take good care of them during the session. They will walk your child up to their class after the lesson in time for the bell.

To register your child please email John and Roanne at tennis@brookfieldtennis.com.au.  Spaces are limited.