In this issue

Update from Park Ridge Transit

From Tuesday the 6th of October 2020 Park Ridge Transit  will change the way that we display school route numbers on the destination signs.

They will be displayed as per the route number on the TransLink website for TransLink services. This means, am school services will be prefixed with 60__ and pm school services will be prefixed with 61__for Translink services.

For example: Instead of displaying “School Bus 33” we will now display “School Bus 6033” for the am and “School Bus 6133” for the pm.

Services from Cedar Grove (W services) will now display  a prefix of 53 in the am and 63 in the pm. There are no changes to the numbers on Greenbank services.

If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to contact us on (07) 3802 1233

Regards
Park Ridge Transit

School Bus Passes for Westside Bus Company and Park Ridge Transit

Students who have a bus pass for travel will be required to obtain a new pass for the 2020 school year. If you are changing schools in 2020 (this includes moving to grade 7) or address you will need to contact our reception on (07) 3802 1233 and we will advise you of how to update your details. To avoid delays in receiving your pass we kindly request that you contact us prior to the end of the school year.

If you have no changes to your details, you will receive your new bus pass in the mail in early January.

Please note that there are limited reception facilities available at our Redbank depot and you should call before attending the depot as we maybe able to assist over the phone.

Bus Routes for Parklands

Please find attached all of the Bus routes, that have been made available to Parklands families.

Bus Queensland now offer 3 pick ups in the afternoon outside Prep with various routes.

• Departing 3:22pm
• Departing 3:31pm
• Departing 3:45pm

As this is a service offered by Bus Queensland (not PCC) please direct all further enquires to Bus Queensland on 3802 1233 or email customers@busqld.com.au

PRT Changes to School Bus Routes (effective 29-01-2019)

6013

6055

6113 (1)

6142

6155

Term Dates 2021

As the year comes towards a close we would normally be preparing for final concerts & ceremonies and we would have the opportunity to show what the students have been learning all year & how far they have progressed. While it is disappointing for them to not be able to perform live, we are planning to record some performances by the Give It A Go! Band, the Wind Ensemble & our choirs to make available electronically. Secondary Choir have already done some recording which we will hopefully be able to share with you soon.

Lessons

All music lessons continue in Term 4,  face-to-face on campus, until the weeks noted below. Please be assured that appropriate cleaning & distancing measures are still in place. Lesson timetables can be found on Mrs Patane’s window, or on the Instrumental Music website through the Secondary Directory.

Give It A Go! Lessons:

• Last lesson & return of instruments in Week 6, 9-13 Nov

Private / Shared Lessons:

• Last lessons in Week 7, 16-20 Nov

All 2020 enrolments will automatically roll over into 2021 unless parents notify us that their child is not continuing lessons. This means that current students do not need to re-enrol for 2021. Please notify us of any withdrawals before the start of school next year.

Ensemble Rehearsals

Ensemble rehearsals will continue until the weeks noted below. Some Ensembles are active longer than others, so please check the list for your child’s group. These dates will also be communicated to students in rehearsals.

Wind Ensemble:

• Recording & final rehearsal, Wednesday 4^thNov 7:20am in Church Auditorium

Give It A Go! Band:

• Recording & final rehearsal, Wednesday 4^thNov 7:20am in Church Auditorium
• Lunch time concert, Wednesday 4^thNov 12:20pm in Primary Undercover Area

Primary Junior Choir:

• Final rehearsal Thursday 19^thNov 7:50am in Mrs Patane’s Music Room

Primary Senior Choir:

• Final rehearsal Tuesday 17^thNov 2:30pm in Mrs Patane’s Music Room

Secondary Choir:

• Final rehearsal Friday 13^thNov 7:30am in S1

It’s never too late to be part of our growing Instrumental Programme, and enrolments are definitely open for 2021. Here’s how your child can be involved:

1. Give It A Go! Band Programme – Year 4 students only

This is a one year beginner programme for Year 4 students, giving them the opportunity to learn a woodwind, brass or percussion instrument in small groups during school time. The next Give It A Go! intake is in 2021 – offers have been sent home already & places are filling fast! Return your enrolment form ASAP to avoid disappointment!

2. Private lessons

Private lessons are available for piano, guitar, drum kit, most woodwind & and all brass & stringed instruments. Lessons are scheduled mostly during school time, & fees are billed by & payable directly to the instrumental teachers at $30/30mins.

3. Shared lessons

Shared lessons are available for all of the above instruments except piano. Lessons are again scheduled mostly during school time, & fees are also billed by & payable directly to the instrumental teachers at $18/30mins for a Group of 2 or $14/30mins for a Group of 3, pending availability.

Enrolment forms are available for download below, or by emailing instruments@parklands.qld.edu.au

__PCC Music Department Guidelines with form

Walk for a Farmer 2020

Our year 9 students are a wonderful bunch of students and last term on September the 17th they embarked on a journey of service. They were out to raise money for the farmers who are struggling with drought. With an absolutely beautiful day for walking, the year 9 students began their walk from the Karawatha Forest Discovery Centre and returned to school.

I am pleased to say that almost every student who participated in this event completed the full 20 km of our walking goal. This simple token of walking to raise funds is symbolic of the effort taken by our farmers who are facing drought and having it affect their livelihoods.

The money raised will go towards a registered charity Drought Angels, which is a not-for-profit organisation. Drought Angels is a charity full of BIG hearts, making a difference to Aussie farming families. They deliver support carefully wrapped with a listening ear and a warm hug, providing personalised and discreet financial assistance as their way of saying THANK YOU for all you do to put food on our tables and clothes on our backs. The Drought Angels team shares a passion for our farmers and is focused on keeping them on the land for future generations. With help, they will never be forgotten.

Through your generous donations via the Go Fund Me website and through cash donations I am pleased to say that they raised $3905.72. A thank you to the year 9 Pastoral Care Teachers Mr Braun and Mrs Crook. A thank you to Mr Elvery, Mrs Edgarton and Mrs Volkers for walking with the students the whole way. Of course a very big, “Well done!” to our year 9 students.

Primary Student’s Achievement:

Connor Peacock – QLD State Go Kart Titles Results

Connor Peacock competes in the sport of ‘Sprint Go Kart’ racing and has been racing since he was 7 years old. KA4 Junior is a highly competitive class, for kids aged 13-16 years of age and at age 11, he is the youngest person in the sports history to be competing in this category.

At age 11, Connor shows wisdom in his racing beyond his years and doesn’t allow the older kids to get the better of him. KA4 Junior has Connor racing his 100cc IAME KA100 powered Arrow X5 Go Kart, at speeds of 110kph bumper to bumper with other competitors around, just 2inches off the ground.

Over the racing year that was impacted by COVID 19, Connor still competed in 12 events at various tracks across Australia and managed to secure enough podium finishes to qualify in the top 30 kids in his class in all of QLD. This earned himself a spot at the QLD Kart Championship, which was held at his home track of Ipswich Kart Club over the October long weekend – which was a huge honour for him and an achievement in itself.

The QLD Kart Championship weekend saw Connor fight hard across 131kms of racing over 3 days and ultimately finish 10th in QLD for his class of KA4 Junior and moving him up the national rankings to stand 15th in Australia. As the youngest person to ever compete in this class at a State Championship level, Connor’s results are outstanding and something we are extremely proud of him for achieving.

Many thanks
Steven Peacock and Mr J

Year One

Year 1 has had a busy, yet fun Term 4 so far.

We are busy making memories as the end of 2020 is drawing near. Book Week was a wonderful highlight. Year 1 participated in a variety of activities in the classroom throughout the week as we enjoyed reading many of our favourite books. Dressing up as our favourite character was definitely entertaining. It is fabulous to see the children so excited about reading.

We have been revising many of our math concepts and daily math groups are keeping everyone engaged as they consolidate math skills. Our Sound and Light Unit in Science has been stretching our minds and the classes loved using mini torches while making discoveries about transparent, translucent and opaque objects.

Until next time! Take care!
Mrs Clausen, Mrs Davis, Mrs Marsh and Year 1!

Auslan

Hello everyone and welcome back to term 4.

My name is Beth Tailby and I teach Auslan here at parklands on Thursday.  My background has been in education for 27 years.  I started as a teachers aide and then progressed to teaching, lecturing, finally receiving my PhD and working as a Principal Project Officer in EQ before returning to teaching.  I lost all of my hearing about 16 years ago and slowly learned Auslan.  Although I speak the same as a hearing person, I am blessed to have Auslan to fill the gaps and provide me access to conversations and give a proud identity of a Deaf Aboriginal Woman. I want to give this gift to everyone also.

Parents of Deaf and Hard of Hearing students are welcome to participate in Auslan for families on Thursday mornings at 8 am. If children wish to bring a friend they are very welcome to do so.  Many Deaf and Hard of Hearing children who do not find a place within the Deaf community will find it hard to get support and access the curriculum with hearing aids or cochlear alone.  When a person reads lips they only access a maximum of 30% of what is said and then have to make up the rest.  This process is exhausting and will lead to fatigue and loss of information.  Auslan provides a gap filler for those who are in this position.  Those who are non-verbal for any reason, Auslan can provide a pathway for expression and access to their peers.

Last term we decided to introduce vocabulary in a different way.  We organised with the kitchen staff to cook breakfast.  Matthew and I had a ball, made a mess and ate a huge feed of pancakes.  We would like to have  more people participate so we can share breakfast together as a larger signing group.

Do not worry if you do not know any Auslan.  It’s easy to learn.  We are planning a walking weave where we walk around the school and learn relevant school based signs.  We will again cook breakfast or maybe sit under a tree and have some basic conversations.

This Term I hope to see more of you there.  We meet at the library at 8 am and will then take off on our Auslan adventure.

Take care everyone and again, I hope to see you all soon

Open Mic

Over the course of 2020 there has been a new initiative which has been started through the dedication of our College Arts Captains, Elissa Bailey and Jake West, called Open Mic. This has seen small concerts put on for students by students during break times in our Outdoor Theatre area near Student Services.

So far there have been three concerts through the year, occurring in terms 1, 3 and 4. We have had the privilege of being entertained by a variety of students from year 8 to year 12 with vocalists, instrumentalists and balladeers gracing the stage area.

We are hoping to continue the great initiative which was started this year into 2021, providing a performance opportunity for students of the Arts to entertain others within the college. Students who are interested in performing should talk with the 2021 College Arts Captains, Tori Hankins and Bryce West, or talk with Mr Elvery.

2020 Performers

Jake West – Vocalist
Liam West – Pianist
Amy Finch – Vocalist
Dennis Popa – Piano-Accordion
Bryce West – Vocalist
Ethan Bronzi – Poet
Amelia Robertson – Vocalist and Ukulele

In acknowledgement of the difficult year our College community has endured, and in anticipation of the predicted slow recovery of our economy, Parklands has released the 2021 Fee Schedule with no overall increase. It is our hope that this small gesture will help our families prepare for the New Year with at least some good financial news.  I know many of us are hoping that 2021 brings with it a little more stability to our community; I certainly am.  However, if I am honest I think 2021 will bring its own challenges and trials. As I look on as England’s COVID-19 cases force another round of restrictions, I pray that Australia is spared the same fate.  I would like to think that our current efforts are containing the virus and keeping us all safe, and I pray that is so next year.

There is a lot to look forward to next year and although 2020 is not yet finished, I can’t help but get a little excited for what we are doing here at Parklands.  In 2021, we will commence a building program that will allow us to grow our current population of 730+ students, to a total of 1170 students. We will grow our school slowly and carefully and keep an eye on our culture over the next 13 years. Our first task will be to build an additional classroom for Prep in 2021, for occupancy in 2022 and then slowly but surely increase our student and staff population as that extra class travels all the way though to Grade 12 in 2034.

Right now we are drawing plans and asking our primary school teachers and teacher aides what they need in a modern, creative classroom space. We are asking questions about the way classes interact, how we use specialists and how we might integrate outdoor areas to complement our classroom experiences. We are excited to be building facilities that cater for both our present students and the students of the future, and we collectively dream about the place education has in the society of the future.  It’s really exciting.

Amidst the discussions about buildings and the future, there are some things that will not change.  Now, and into the distant future, Parklands will always be a community and family for our students.  Together we will embrace the future of learning, but not at the expense of connection and our values.  We will always put Christ first and aspire to be like Him (Ephesians 5:1-2).  Our faith will ever be the rock on which we build our lives, and we will remain an institution that seeks to serve one another in faith, hope & love (1 Corinthians 13).  Christ is our hope, and Parklands exists to lead children in “…the way they should go” (Proverbs 22:6). Our school will, to the best of our collective ability, be a light to Logan City and a beacon of hope in a complex and sometimes hopeless world. Above all, we will remember that our school is not bricks and mortar, but the people in it.

And so as we launch into the exciting times ahead, let us all be reminded of the wonderfully unique school we have. Although we have had our challenges in 2020, our population united and together we emerged as a stronger community.  And it is my prayer that as we venture into 2021 and beyond, that all of our families will experience the blessing of being part of the Parklands community.

Gary Cully
Principal

CSSAQ Basketball

Thursday 9^th October saw over 40 teams make their way to Coomera Indoor Sports Centre for the annual CSSAQ basketball competition. Parklands had teams in all 4 divisions, 2 boys and 2 girls’ teams. The quality of basketball on show is getting better each year, with our teams putting their best foot forward even with limited preparation. A highlight of the day was when our junior boys were in a really tight game against Citipointe, all our other teams were court side cheering and supporting them. Eventually sealing the win by one point. This show of support and team work is what makes sport so great. Well done to all students who represented Parklands so well through the day and thank you to the coaches for the time and effort you put in.

CSSAQ Team Games 2

• On Monday 19^th October 2020, Parklands competed in the CSSAQ Team Games 2 Gala day. The four teams that competed in the competition were; girls touch, boys touch, girls basketball and boys basketball.

It was a great opportunity for students to finally get some game time this year. All teams gave 100% on a very hot day against some very tough competition. The boys touch were the standout team of the day winning two out of 5 games. Well done to all students.

Secondary NRL 9S Gala Day

• The year 7 and year 9/10 boys rugby league teams competed at Caboolture in the NRL 9s Gala day. It was the first competitive rugby league the boys had played all year.

The year 7 boys had one win, one draw and two losses. They showed plenty of heart and resilience playing most of the day with no subs. The year 9/10 boys played some awesome attacking rugby league and were rock solid in defence. They won all their games with only one sub. Well done to all the boys.

Primary Rugby League Gala Day

• On Thursday 29^th Oct, Parklands year 5/6 As, year 5/6 Bs and the year 3/4 Boys Rugby League teams competed in the NRL Titans 9s Gala day at Southport. It was awesome to see the boys finally get to compete against other schools after having trained for most of the year.

The teams all worked hard and played some creative and attacking rugby league. The year 3/4 and 5/6 B boys never gave up and showed great effort in all games. Both teams improved drastically throughout the day.

The 5/6 As won 2 out of 3 games and only lost their second game in a very close and tough match.

The day was complimented by some tackle clinics, tug of war and relay races to encourage team spirit.

Well done to all the boys!

The Responsible Thinking Process at Parklands

A lot of us grew up with detention in school – I know I did. Detention is typically a place where a student will sit for a period of time and a) do nothing, b) write lines, c) pick up rubbish or some other task under supervision. Usually these tasks have very little learning attached to them and is more about wasting a student’s own time for their misconduct.

As an RTP Facilitator, one of the misconceptions that I often hear is that the RTC is for “naughty” students and sometimes the RTC is perceived as a “detention” for these naughty students to come and be punished. When one looks from the outside in, with little education or understanding around the RTC, I understand how people can perceive the RTC to be this way. A child demonstrates a disruptive behaviour and leaves the classroom to attend the RTC due to this. Sounds like detention or punishment right? Wrong.

Detention has a negative connotation attached to it, where the RTC rather, is a space for students to learn responsibility, self-control and to devise strategies for positive life choices. It is very different to a detention as the student is thinking, self- reflecting, learning to think from another person’s perspective and developing a plan for future.

Where staff would usually supervise a detention, the RTP Facilitators exist to provide emotional support, to positively challenge and coach students through this process and then support them to re-engage in class and put their plan into place. Very different to detention.

So then, now that we have clarified the difference between a detention facility and our RTC, it is important to understand the process that student’s experience when engaging.

If you think about it, each person is raised in a home and taught a wide selection of life skills as they age and interact with others. For example, being raised in a large family might mean that a child may learn how to interact confidently with different age groups or genders, or being raised with a sibling with a disability may teach another child how to have compassion and empathy for others and so on.

Not all children experience the same upbringing or learn the same skills. It makes sense for students to be referred to the RTC to learn the skills that they might not have been raised with. For example, at home it might be acceptable for a child to invade their siblings’ personal space in a playful way, however at school this might not be perceived as appropriate. The child might need to visit the RTC for a friendly chat with the RTP facilitator to have the difference explained to them or to consider how invading someone else’s space might make the other person feel.

Each time a student is referred, they are given the opportunity to utilise the Responsible Thinking Process to help them learn new skills such as how to manage conflict, how to follow class rules, how to be better prepared for class, how to be a kind friend and so on. This is done through discussion with the RTP Facilitator and also the completion of a RTP plan which enables students to think through self-reflective questions such as “what rule was I not following”, “how did this impact on others”, and “what is my goal for when I return to class”.

From what I have seen, students who are given the opportunity to come and discuss their behaviour or mistakes and learn from them – they tend to be much better off and well-rounded in the long run.  Our team has found that when students are consistently referred, they are able to put their goals and strategies into practice. Eventually they come to a place where they have learned the skill of thinking before acting and ask themselves questions like “how will this make my friend feel” or “what will be the consequence of this behaviour”. Our goal is that a student will be able to successfully and independently implement the Responsible Thinking Process in time without needing to attend the RTC as often.

So if your child is regularly referred to the RTC for behaviour, please don’t see it as your child attending detention and being punished, rather, please see it as their opportunity to continue developing life skills and learning new ways of thinking.

I can’t believe we’ve only got about 4 weeks left of school for 2020 – wow, how time has flown!

2021 Class Placements

We believe God has a destiny for every student in our school. He has already placed within them the skills, gifts and talents that they need so as to become the person God intended them to be. We are also blessed to have excellent teachers at Parklands because of God’s call on their life.                                                                                                                                        Class teachers, Teacher Aides, Specialists, RTC & LE Staff spend an enormous amount of time praying, working through and discussing the issues involved with student placements and in trying to ensure that classes are well balanced. The matters of student learning style, academic ability, student & staff personality, friendships, behavioural concerns, as well as social and emotional needs are earnestly discussed in the whole class selection process.

A reminder, we know the students at school and do not accommodate requests from parents to swap class placements. It is an extremely difficult task that is complicated by requests for and against staff and other students or friends. We ask that you would pray for wisdom and discernment for your child’s teacher as they look to care for and meet the needs of each student.

Thank you for your understanding and support in this regard and look forward to seeing a wonderful working relationship develop between teacher, student and parent!

Awards Day

The Parklands Christian College Awards Day ceremonies, will be taking place on Thursday 26th November. Occasions such as these are a time that would normally have us surrounded by parents, friends and supporters of the College. Sadly, due to the current Covid-19 pandemic, government restrictions and Parklands’ commitment to keeping our College community safe, the Awards Day ceremonies will be a student and staff only event this year. Parents, we ‘Thank you’ in anticipation for your understanding, assistance and support in regard to this decision!

The Awards Day ceremonies will be taking place during class time in 2 sessions. Prep to Year 2 will commence at 9am and conclude by 10:30am. The Year 3 to Year 6 ceremony will commence at 11am and conclude by 12:30pm. Cleaning of the auditorium will take place between the 2 sessions.

Although this will not be a typical Parklands Awards ceremony it will still be designed to celebrate the achievements of our students and encourage them in a public manner. As parents are not able to attend this event, we will have a professional photographer from MSP Photography present on the day to capture your child’s celebratory moments. As a gift, the College will be providing parents with an electronic copy of the photo, details of how to access this will be emailed at a later date.

I know this year’s Awards Day ceremonies are going to be totally different without parents attending but know, we’ll certainly do all we can to make it a memorable occasion and highlight for all students.

Uniforms

Please clearly label all uniform items with your child’s first and last NAME (not just initials).

We still have 3 weeks left of school plus students need to look smart for Awards Day so we are asking parents to please ensure that their children are correctly and neatly dressed every day – especially the correct WHITE sneakers. If unsure of the Primary Uniform Policy, please feel free to check our website, ask a class teacher or RTC staff. Appreciate your assistance and support in this regard.

BALANCING YOUR CHILD’S DIGITAL DIET

BY MARTINE OGLETHORPE

When considering your child’s or young person’s digital diet it’s important to move beyond the notion of keeping kids safe to look at the types of activities their screen-time might be denying them.

There are many aspects to take into account including the maintenance of mental and physical health; fulfilling school and family duties and ensuring that young people develop a full gamut of real world communication skills.

For the sake of living a balanced life ensure your child has sufficient time for:

1. Sleep: It’s super important that kids are getting a good night’s sleep. Keeping devices out of the bedroom when they are young, and avoiding the screens for at least an hour before bed, helps ensure their sleep needs are met.
2. Down time: Today’s kids don’t tend to get as much time to be bored as kids used to. It is an important skill to be able to fill in their time themselves. Bored time promotes creative play and thinking as kids are forced to come up with other ways to amuse themselves.
3. Connection: Face-to-face interaction is obviously crucial for children’s social and emotional development and wellbeing. Time with friends, siblings and family members must always be a priority. Learning to engage, problem solve and read body language and facial expressions are all crucial skills that need real-life time and experience to develop.
4. Physical activity: A healthy body and mind requires activity and movement. Kids still love to get out and play. However, some may need a bit more encouragement to remind them.
5. Reflection: Whilst playing games may be described by many kids as their downtime (and yes, there is some validity to this argument) kids also need downtime that involves doing very little. It is in these moments of reflection, of thinking and of pondering, that our ideas come to us and our creativity for other activities flows.
6. Focus: There are times of the day when all of us need to be focused on other tasks. These may be homework, chores, reading a book or the newspaper, building something or making something. There needs to be time in kids’ days where they are able to focus solely on a task without the distractions of a screen.
7. Family meals: Getting plenty of good food is of course very important to kids’ wellbeing. But it’s not just about the food. Sitting at the table with parents, siblings or others, focusing on enjoying a meal together without the need of a screen, helps children to develop good habits while they are young which they can carry into the future.

Obviously there will be times when all these needs are not completely balanced. There will be periods when screens are used more often and times when one or more valuable needs is neglected. But if we can use this as a guide and aim to fit the many key experiences our kids need into each day, we are much more likely to ensure our kids grow up with a healthy respect for their screens and a healthy respect for the many areas of their life that need to be nurtured.

Pray you have a wonderful rest of this term.

With only a 4 weeks left of the academic year the Year 7’s are fast approaching Year 8.

What a journey Year 7 has been for many of them.

From nervous and anxious students starting day one packing for every subject, just in case, to students who are (hopefully) confident in organising their own world, most of the time. Each student has grown in a variety of ways and I am incredibly proud of each and every one of them.

Year 7 is a year of transition. A year of leaving behind being the oldest and tallest of the primary school and beginning being the ‘twelvies’ in Secondary school. It’s a year of learning to move between classrooms, packing the night before and being organised, switching mindsets as they change subjects and teachers, each who have a different teaching style. A year of managing homework that is not given out on a Monday and due back on Friday, but on differing days, and a year of developing new friendships as they are introduced to new people and find out more about themselves and their developing character.

On top of this our Year 7’s have spent 7 weeks learning from home, during our time of PCConline. Managing the additional stress of online learning and adapting to a different learning style very quickly. 2020 has sure encouraged the development of resilience and adaptability in our Year 7 students.

As we hurry towards the last few weeks of term, I have been encouraging the Year 7’s to celebrate their many successes this year and think on the skills and attitudes they wish to develop and work on in Year 8.

The students have been encouraged to finish well, placing their best efforts into their studies till the final day of the year. To continue to be fearless, curious and courageous in working on their assessment, creative in the classrooms, when confronting challenges and show their peers and the college community that the Year 7 cohort of 2020 is a loving one that supports and uplifts one another.

I would like to draw your attention to the Year 7 assessment schedule and the assignments and assessments (both worked on and completed in class time) that are coming up.

I look forward to celebrating the many success of 2020 with the Year 7’s as we begin to conclude a year that has not been like any other.

Free Dental Care

FREE DENTAL CARE

It is that time of the year that everyone’s calendar starts filling quickly and before we know it there are no free weekends left! With that in mind and Covid restrictions easing slightly, a few of us from The Friendlies committee were finally able to gather together for a very long overdue morning tea. How wonderful it was to be able to catch up with everyone and be able to sit and connect with each other! We really missed those of you who couldn’t make it.

We briefly discussed the year we have had and decided with a unanimous vote that the 2020 Office Bearers will roll into 2021! Congratulations to our 2021 Office Bearers and thank you for serving our school community for another year.

Office Bearers for 2021 are as follows:

President: Angela Marsh
Vice President: Nicole Lowe
Secretary: Claire Dover
Treasurer: Renee Jackson

It was with great joy that we were also able to celebrate one of our members, Elke, who got married in the past year. We wish Elke and her husband Jasper all the happiness for their future together.

One of our long-time members and special friend, Christine has decided to step down from serving on The Friendlies. Christine has been volunteering for 13years on The Friendlies and has always been more than happy to help at all of our events, she will be greatly missed by us all. Chris is about to become a first time Grandma! We are so happy and excited for her family.

Next year, hopefully some of our community events will be able to take place. If you are new to our school and are wondering what The Friendlies are all about, our mission statement is:

The Friendlies are families of the Parklands Christian College school community who endeavour to bring the love of Christ and encourage lifelong relationships within the school community. We provide opportunities to connect and fellowship at various events that we have throughout the year. We would love for you to join with us in strengthening one another.

For Now, Keep Smiling
The Friendlies Team

friendlies@parklands.qld.edu.au

Parklands Outside School Hours Care is situated within the school grounds of Parklands Christian College in the Prep Building Area.  The service operates for before school, after school and vacation care.  Before and after school care offers a nutritious breakfast/afternoon tea and children are able to engage in a variety of activities based on their interests.

During the school term the service operates from 6:30-8:30am and 3:00-6:00pm (with office staff available from 2pm), and vacation care from 6:30am-6:00pm.  Parklands OSHC have qualified educators and encourage parents and families to pop into the service to discuss any care needs, suggestions or ideas or alternatively via phone 3297 0577 or email: parklandsbookings@bigpond.com.

We currently have limited spots available for before and after school care and advise families that a current 2020 enrolment is required to accept all bookings including emergency care bookings.

We look forward to assisting with all your care needs.

School Days only

School Transport Assistance Scheme

The Queensland Government offers financial assistance to parents of both state and non-state school students travelling to and from school daily by private arrangement. This is known as STAS (School Transport Assistance Scheme).

Please phone the Gold Coast office on 5630 8857 to clarify your eligibility. Alternatively you can visit their website http://www.tmr.qld.gov.au/schooltransport

Tuckshop in need of volunteers

There is an opportunity for parents to contribute to the life of the school by volunteering their time in the tuckshop.

The tuckshop has been growing since moving to the new facility and with growth in sales we would really love your help!

Please contact our Tuckshop Convenor, Marie Rushin, on 0422 637 370 or email tuckshop@parklands.qld.edu.au

Tuckshop Menu 2020