Victoria Park State School Newsletter - Week 4, Term 3, 2025
Principal's Report
As we approach the midpoint of Term 3, we are getting excited about a number of fantastic events on the horizon at Victoria Park State School. This newsletter contains information about Eisteddfod, Get Set for Prep, Book Week, the Bush Dance, the Student Free Day and Consent Manager. We are also excited to celebrate lots of our students' successes.
School Events
Term 3 includes a number of exciting events on our school calendar. If you're new to our school, you may not be familiar with all of them however many provide great opportunities for our families to connect with our school and members of our community.
After lots of practice and preparation, Eisteddfod is finally upon us. To commence our strong showing at this year's Eisteddfod, our choirs will perform at the MECC this Thursday August 14. Further information including schedules and how to purchase tickets can be found further towards the end of our newsletter and Week 5's rehearsal schedule has been published on SZApp. Good luck to our Vic Park musicians!
Book Week is an occasion that is fiercely celebrated at Victoria Park. Held this year from August 18-22 (Week 6), Book Week coincides with Book Fair which runs simultaneously in the library and allows students to expand their library of reading materials. The week aims to find lots of opportunities to engage students with reading and celebrate our love of literacy at Vic Park. Highlights include competitions to decorate classroom doors in book themes and our dress up day Friday August 22. All updates regarding our school events are shared on SZApp with major events registered as events on our Facebook Page as well.
Speaking of major events, just a week later on Friday August 29, our school will hold its biannual Bush Dance. This event occurs across the day and is one we greatly encourage our parents to attend. Keep an eye on SZApp for full details on when your child's class will perform closer to the date.
Week 7 will also be an exciting week for our prospective Prep students with our first Get Set for Prep session commencing on Wednesday August 27 at 9am. This marks the beginning of lots of opportunities offered at Vic Park for your family to engage with our school prior to the start of the 2026 school year. If you know of any families who are looking to enrol a student in Prep next year at Victoria Park, please encourage them to attend or to make contact with our Prep Transition Co-ordinator for further assistance.
We look forward to engaging with many of our community members over the next few event-filled weeks!
Student Free Day
Please note that Friday September 5 (week 8) is a designated Student Free Day for all Queensland State Schools. Accordingly, school will not be in session and Victoria Park State School will be closed inclusive of our administration office. Families will need to make other arrangements for their children on this day. School resumes as usual on Monday September 8.
School Consent Processes
Thank you to those parents who worked with us during Parent Teacher Interviews to register for QParents. In Term 3 we will commence using QParents for electronic consent as it represents the safest way to store the information provided in the process of giving consent. Our consistent platforms for communication moving forward will be;
- Schoolzine (or SZ app) for outward, school-wide communication (newsletters, notifications, student of the week text messages, newsflashes or bulk email messages).
- QParents for tasks linked to student record management such as recording absences, updating your child's details, accessing report cards, settling accounts and as of the end of this term, provision of consent for activities, excursions, online services access and use of photos and media.
- Email for reciprocal communication between our families and our staff members. All staff email addresses are included at the end of our newsletter.
If you haven't had a chance to sign up to QParents, our friendly admin staff are still available to help. This can be arranged by calling us on 4951 6333.
P&C Happenings
On Friday our P&C President, Laurie Madsen informed us of her difficult decision to resign from the position of President. I want to take this opportunity to offer my heartfelt thanks and gratitude to Laurie for her dedication and commitment to our school, both as 2025's President and as a long-standing member of our P&C committee, executive and parent body. Laurie has become a familiar face to most members of our school community largely due to her extensive involvement in co-ordinating and facilitating school events and she leaves behind an impressive legacy having contributed immensely to our school via the P&C. The difference she has made to our students and our school community as a whole can't be understated.
Our P&C will look to elect a new President in their next meetings, with our first meeting of the term scheduled for this Thursday August 14 at 3:10pm in the admin building. It's not too late to join our amazing P&C!
Sarah Mutton
Principal
Date Claimers
Date Claimers for Term 3 can be found on our live school calendar here;
Choral Eisteddfod – Ticket Information -14th August 2025
Tickets are now available for this year’s Choral Eisteddfod.
Cost: $10 per ticket
Where to buy: MECC Ticket Box Office or online
To purchase online:
Click the link below:
https://www.themecc.com.au/.../macrossan_and_amiet...
Select the pink “Purchase Tickets” rectangle on the right-hand side.
Choose the “Theatre” option (left-hand side).
Click OK.
All tickets are listed under 14th August 2025.
Session times for each group:
Year 2 – 8:30 AM session
Folk Choir – 10:00 AM session
Senior Choir – 10:00 AM session
Year 1 – 12:30 PM session
Year 3 – 12:30 PM session
We look forward to seeing you there and supporting our talented students on stage!
Sporting Schools Sport Term 3 - Basketball
Sporting Schools – Term 3 Basketball Program
Parents, please fill in the form found on SchoolZine to register your child's interest.
We’re excited to announce that our Term 3 Sporting Schools sport is Basketball!
The program will run on the following dates:
For Juniors (Prep – Year 2):
Tuesday 12th August
Tuesday 19th August
For Seniors (Year 3 – 6):
Tuesday 26th August
Tuesday 2nd September
Time: 2:50pm – 3:40pm
Please note: All students must be collected promptly at 3:40pm.
If your child will be walking home, they must bring a signed note and give it directly to Mrs Armstrong.
Students must wear their school hats and appropriate shoes during the session.
Thank you for your support – we’re looking forward to a fun and active term on the court!
Celebrating Success
📚✨ Celebrating Our Young Authors! ✨📚
We are thrilled to congratulate three of our talented students who have recently received recognition for their outstanding storytelling skills! 🖊️👏
🏅 “Whispers in the Fog” by Saoirse Lobo was awarded 3rd Place in the 2025 Whitsunday Voices Short Story Competition in the Grades 5–6 category! The judges praised the story for its creativity, originality, and strong storytelling. An incredible achievement!
🏅 “The Weight of Feathers” by Karina Ribiero was awarded Highly Commended in the Year 5–6 Short Story category of the 2025 Literary Competition, hosted by the IEU-QNT and ETAQ. What a fantastic honour!
🏅 “Pair of Pranksters” by Oscar Bromiley Placed second in the Year 3-4 category in the Whitsunday Voices Short Story Competition.
We’re so proud of these young authors and their success on the writing stage. We can’t wait to see what stories they’ll tell next! 🌟
#YoungWriters #CreativeKids #VictoriaParkProud #WhitsundayVoices2025 #ETAQ2025 #LiteraryStars
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Congratulations to our Athletics Superstars! 
A huge shoutout to the following students for their fantastic achievements in track and field events:
Jaxson- 200m
Riley B – 100m
Blaise B – 100m
Scarlett S – Long Jump
Jax T – 200m & Discus
Lyla M – Discus
We are so proud of your efforts, determination and sporting spirit and would like to wish you all the best for the upcoming Capricornia Trials taking place in August.
Students of the Week
Student of the week - Week 2
Prep C | Gianna | For spending time to complete neat and tidy written work. |
Prep C | Melakai | For a focussed effort on his handwriting. |
1A | Taytum | For being a 2D shape expert. |
1A | Zac | For being a maths whizz this week. |
1B | Ren | Great job using words charts to help spell words correctly in his writing |
1B | Zaylee | Great improvement with copying work from the whiteboard |
1C | Alice | For approaching every day with enthusiasm, cheerfulness and a willingness to do her best! |
1C | Dante | For showing creativity and enthusiasm towards his persuasive writing. Well done Dante! |
1D | Anthony | For settling in beautifully at Victoria Park. Your kind personality brightens our classroom! |
2C | Brooklyn | Creating a fantastic and engaging narrative beginning based on the nursery rhyme Three Blind Mice! |
2C | Xavier | For being the first to complete his narrative beginning based on Three Blind Mice. |
2/3 | Alexis | For being a diligent, enthusiastic and hard-working class member. Keep up the great work! |
2/3 | Grace | For always listening in class and being persistent in her learning activities. Fantastic work Grace! |
3B | Brianna | For your amazing focus in all lessons, Keep it up! |
3C | Gracie | For always being attentive in class and having a can-do attitude. Great work Gracie! |
3C | Indy-Rose | For neatly and accurately arranging her working out during Maths. Great work Indy! |
3/4 | Alexis | For being a diligent, enthusiastic and hard-working class member. Keep up the great work! |
3/4 | Nina | For a fantastic start to the term. We are so happy you came to VPSS and the 3/4 class! |
4A | Sarah | For approaching all activities with a smile and a 'can do' attitude |
4A | Sonny | For your interesting arguments in persuasive writing this week. |
4B | Nenyasha | Amazing work in English this week. Keep up the great work Nenyasha! |
4B | Nicole | Being a quiet and conscientious worker. You are a role model Nicole! |
4C | Bobbi | For working hard and listening carefully at all times. Keep up the good work. |
4C | Sean | For maintaining neat and well-organised bookwork and demonstrating outstanding penmanship. |
5/6M | Dakota | Being a great role model, always doing what's right and leading by example. |
5/6S | Reese | For a great effort on her visual analysis of The Wild Robot chapter summaries. |
6B | Johan | For being respectful and working hard on all of your tasks in class! Keep it up! |
6C | Trevor | For his commitment and dedication to robotics. |
Congratulations to Week 2's Attendance Cup Winners
P-2 = 1D 95.84%
3-4 = 4B 95.55%
5-6 = 5/6M 92.8%
Student of the week - Week 3
Prep A | Koby | For your improvement in making good choices. Keep up the fantastic effort! |
Prep A | Nysha | For making a fantastic start to Term 3. You are a superstar! |
Prep B | Edie | For showing kindness and helping others. |
Prep B | Riyansh | For being a focused learner and making great progress when reading. |
Prep C | Daenerys | Working hard to recall letter sounds and to sound out words. |
Prep C | Luke | Working hard to sound out words when reading. |
1B | Bohdi | For improved skill with copying work from the board. |
1C | Angus | For consistently showing persistence and aiming high with all learning tasks. |
1C | Charlotte | For approaching every day with enthusiasm, cheerfulness and a willingness to do her best. |
1D | Lyla | For your fantastic effort. Your persuasive writing was full of clever ideas and strong reasons! |
1D | Rydah | For engaging in all lessons and your amazing independent writing! |
2A | Cazaylia | For being a positive member of 2A. Keep up the great work, Cazaylia! |
2A | Chronicle | For trying his best with class work. Keep trying hard, Chronicle! |
2B | Led | For always trying his best and always following our school rules. |
2B | Lexi | For always following the school rules and for being a fantastic role model for her peers. |
2C | Charlotte | For showing maturity this week by making positive choices, even when faced with hard decisions. |
2C | Fatima | For coming to class each day with a positive attitude, a curious mind, and a willingness to try! |
3A | Alby | For always trying his best to complete tasks and using amazing manners. |
3A | Psalm | For settling in beautifully to our class with a positive attitude and a willingness to learn. |
3B | Asha Deah | Amazing justifications in maths! |
3B | Nova | Amazing justifications in maths! |
3/4 | Gwen | For being a wonderful role model to your peers and a helpful classmate. |
3/4 | Oscar | For asking interested questions and participating actively in class discussions. |
4A | Fershymel | Exhibits a positive outlook and attitude in the classroom. |
4A | Mitch | Perseveres when faced with difficulty by asking questions and trying his best |
4B | Danjamel | Great effort in Maths this week! |
4B | Oaklee | For bringing energy and determination to everything she does. You are a star Oaklee! |
4C | Inayah | For being self-motivated and industrious. She does her absolute best at all times. |
4C | Phoenix | For being empathetic and compassionate towards others. |
5A | Riley | You went out of your way to help another student. You are such a wonderful person! |
5A | William | For the thoughtful way in which you offer help to classmates making our classroom a happier place to be! |
5B | Emma | For speaking at the Year 5 Phase Parade with enthusiasm and confidence. You did an amazing job! |
5B | Lyla | For speaking at the Year 5 Phase Parade with enthusiasm and confidence. You did an amazing job! |
5/6M | Ashton | Great work and effort in Maths on perimeter and area concepts. |
5/6S | Lillian | Great contribution to discussions on adding and subtracting fractions with the same denominator. |
6A | Linkinn | Working hard on understanding fractions. |
6A | Theney | For working hard to present her best work in all areas. |
6B | Caban | For your fantastic attitude and effort with your maths assessment! |
6B | Carter | For working hard on tasks, following rules and using beautiful manners when asking for help. |
6C | Ariati | For being a responsible and respectful class member |
Congratulations to Week 3's Attendance Cup Winners
P-2 = 1B 92.17%
3-4 = 4B 96.02%
5-6 = 5/6M 91.6%
Positive Behaviour for Learning (PBL)
PBL Goals of the Week
Below are our two PBL goals for this fortnight.
- Being Sun Smart - Week 4
- Bullying No Way - Week 5
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School Improvement
Our Strategic Plan 2023 - 2026
Our 2023-2026 strategic plan encourages us to R.I.S.E. to the challenge;
R – Responsive Curriculum. We want to ensure that our curriculum is relevant to our local kids, is responsive to modern educational trends and is interesting for our students.
I – Innovative Instruction. We want to capitalise on being Mackay’s first school with laptop classes to ensure that through the use of engaging teaching approaches and clever use of digital technology, every lesson is exciting and engaging for our students.
S – Strengthened Systems. Our 2022 school review revealed that there are strong systems in place with regards to how we operate at VPSS. In deference to the great work that has come before, we want to ensure that we strengthen these to continue our great progress.
E – Expert Educators. We want to ensure that our kids at Victoria Park are learning from the very best educators and have committed to facilitating this.
School Opinion Survey
It's not too late to complete 2025's School Opinion Survey The survey is confidential with all results consolidated and reported back to the school at its conclusion. The survey should take under five minutes and will be open until Friday August 22, 2025. Thank you for taking the time to provide your feedback.
Health & Safety
From the P&C
Victoria Park State School is lucky to have an incredible Parents and Citizens Association. Here you can find out all about what our committee is up to. We very much encourage anyone and everyone to get involved - many hands make light work!
P&C Meetings are held every 2nd Wednesday at 3pm or 6pm.
P&C Committee Update – President Vacancy
Following the recent resignation of our P&C President, Laurie, there is now a vacancy on our committee.
If you are interested in nominating for this position, please get in touch with us at pandc@victoriaparkss.eq.edu.au. Nominations will be put forward at our next meeting on Thursday 14th August at 3:10pm.
We would like to take this opportunity to sincerely thank Laurie for her remarkable contribution to our school community over the past 10 years. Throughout her time in various P&C roles, Laurie has given countless hours of her time, energy, and heart, always working to make our school a better place for students, families, and staff. From organising events and fundraising initiatives, to advocating for resources and improvements, her dedication has left a lasting impact.
Laurie’s leadership, kindness, and willingness to go the extra mile have been truly inspiring, and she will be greatly missed in the role. On behalf of the entire school community, we wish Laurie and her family every happiness for the future, and we thank her for all she has done.
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Thank You for Your Sweet Support!
The P&C would like to thank everyone who came in free dress and generously donated lollies for our upcoming Christmas Fair.
We were overwhelmed by the number of donations and your generosity will go a long way in helping us prepare for a fun and festive event this year.
We truly appreciate your support and community spirit!
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Christmas Fair Sponsors & Donations Request
Dear Families of Vic Park,
It’s that time of year again, the P&C is now seeking sponsorship and donations for this year’s Christmas Fair.
Attached are two letters we’ve prepared for local businesses inviting their support. If you own a business or know someone who might be interested in sponsoring or donating towards the 2025 Christmas Fair, we’d love to hear from you!
Your support helps us make the Christmas Fair a truly special event for our school community.
Thank you for helping us bring the magic to life!
Old style sports shirts further price reduction 
Order on Flexischools today or pop into the uniform shop Monday mornings or Wednesday afternoons.
$10 - while stock lasts
(Please note new design shirt prices will be at regular price of $35 each and in first wave will be limited to 1 shirt per child).
Contact Us
Phase Leaders
To ensure we get to know each and every one of our students, each member of our school leadership team oversees a cohort of students. 'Phase Leaders' are the next step to resolving an issue after the classroom teacher has been contacted.
ECDP Phase Leader: Ms Roanna Capone - ecapo4@eq.edu.au
Prep Phase Leader: Mrs Kristi Elworthy - kelwo2@eq.edu.au
Year 1 Phase Leader: Ms Roanna Capone - ecapo4@eq.edu.au
Year 2 Phase Leader: Mrs Kristi Elworthy - kelwo2@eq.edu.au
Year 3 Phase Leader: Mrs Jenny Whittington - jwhit211@eq.edu.au
Year 4 Phase Leader: Mrs Jenny Whittington - jwhit211@eq.edu.au
Year 5 Phase Leader: Mrs Sarah Mutton - samut0@eq.edu.au
Year 6 Phase Leader: Mrs Sarah Mutton - samut0@eq.edu.au
Phone conversations or appointments to speak to Phase Leaders can be made by calling the office (4951 6333).
Staff List
Email addresses for all teaching staff can be found below. We ask that parents respect teachers' right to disconnect outside of work hours and be reminded that emails may not always be answered immediately - especially during the day when teachers are teaching. Urgent messages should instead be communicated to the office via a phone call (4951 6333).
Staff Contact List: https://victoriaparkss.schoolzineplus.com/staff-email-list
Gallery week 3 & 4
Victoria Park Community Noticeboard
Mackay Cricket - Colouring in competition
Mackay Cricket’s August Colouring-In Competition!
Time to get those pencils, crayons, and creativity out! For the month of August, we’re running a fun Colouring-In Competition for all our young cricket fans.
How to enter:
1️⃣ Print off our colouring mural
2️⃣ Colour it in with your brightest ideas
3️⃣ Drop it into the entry box at Harrup Park Reception any time during August🏆 At the end of the month, we’ll pick one winner from each age group:
- Kindy (Under 5)
- Lower Primary (Prep – Year 3)
- Upper Primary (Year 4 – 6)
Each winner will receive a cricket prize pack and have their masterpiece proudly displayed at Harrup Park! Let’s see your cricket-themed creativity shine!
Download the mural https://bit.ly/gbra-colouring-competition and get colouring today.
#MackayCricket #ColouringInComp #JuniorCricket #CreativeKids #HarrupPark #CricketFun #InspireGreatness
School Holiday Cartoon Camp
