Dear Parents and Carers,

Term 4 is always a busy term with assessment and reporting, Awards Presentation, Year 6 and Year 12 Graduations, PBL Rewards day and end of year celebrations.

Please check your fridge Calendar for important school events and keep an eye on Facebook posts and communication books as we approach the end of this year to make sure you are informed and up to date with all events.

Our students and staff will be very focussed over the next few weeks on finishing unit work, and teachers are gathering evidence and information to share in report cards which will come home at the end of this term. There are plenty of things to celebrate in our students report cards- things we can check and measure and give a rating to. Some things though, are difficult to measure but are obvious within a busy, engaged classroom. We are always excited to share the work that is happening across our classrooms and as reporting draws closer, we look forward to celebrating student achievements with you. 

2025 Strategic Planning

Currently, we are focusing on our Strategic Planning for 2025, identifying our school priorities and how best we can meet the educational needs of our students. We have already identified READING as our big focus for 2025 and we will share our finalised 2025 School Improvement agenda with our school community later this term.

2025 Classes and Staff

It’s also the time of year when parents, students and staff start thinking about next year and class groupings for 2025. We are aiming to send home class groupings with report cards at the end of Week 10. The process of developing classes is a multifaceted and exciting task. Because we try to make the best groupings possible it can take some planning and time. The following is a brief description of the steps that we take to formulate class groupings:

1.Confirmation of the total student population for 2025.

Sometimes this is hard to know, as 2025 enrolments are not yet finalised, and sometimes depend on late transfers as families move in or out of the area. If you know your child will not be at Gympie Special School for 2025, please let us know as soon as possible, by contacting our office.

2. Determining the number of classes we are able to create depending on upon the number of teachers allocated to the school. We get indicative staffing numbers before the end of this year, but as always, Day 8, 2025 numbers are the final determining factor.
3. The school is divided into 4 sectors consisting of: Early Years - Years P-2, Primary - Years 3 to 6, Secondary - Years 7, 8, 9, 10 and Senior - Years 11&12. Class groups are formed in these sectors based on students’ educational and social emotional needs.
4. Once classes are developed, we allocate staff to each class. This may be subject to change as staff may receive transfers in or out of the school. We also have teachers who relocate, retire, take family leave and some who are on contract whose contract simply comes to an end.

Learning to work with new teachers, new staff and new classmates each year is an important part of the school journey as our young people build resilience, learning to work with a wide variety of people (as they will in other areas of their life), build their network of familiar adults and learn to make new friends. As you can see there are a great many variables, some of which cannot be controlled. We ask for your patience and support as we work towards a successful transition to learning in 2025.

Happy World Teacher’s Day

Last Friday on 25^th October, we celebrated “World Teacher’s Day”. This was the perfect opportunity to thank and acknowledge the amazing teaching staff we have here at Gympie Special School, who make a difference every day for our students. We were able to recognise the years of service, dedication and commitment for those staff who had reached Career milestones. Thank you for the commitment, enthusiasm and support you provide each and every day.

Day for Daniel

On Friday 25^th October we also raised safety awareness for our students by acknowledging Day for Daniel by wearing red to school. Day for Daniel is Australia’s largest child safety education and awareness day. This National Day of Action advocates for safer communities for children and empowering them to Recognise, React and Report when they feel unsafe. We believe Day for Daniel is the perfect opportunity to start conversations around personal safety.

Awards Presentation Ceremony Monday 11^th November 9.15am to 10.30am – please be seated by 9.10am.

On Monday 11th November, we will be holding our Annual Awards ceremony at 9.15am in our Performing Arts Room. We look forward to your company. Please be seated by 9.10am for a prompt start. Remember, parking is sometimes difficult and you may need to come a little earlier to find parking.

Year 12 Graduation News

We are very excited to spend time with our Year 12 students this term as they prepare for their graduation.

In the morning, on Friday 15^th November at 9.30am we will be holding a short Graduation Ceremony for our Year 12s and their families, followed by cutting the Graduation cake. We will then farewell our Year 12s as they leave school for the last time and prepare for their Formal Graduation Dinner.

The Gympie Special School formal graduation dinner is Friday 15^th November from 5.30pm at the Gympie Senior Citizens Hall and this is a very special celebration for our students, families and staff. This is always a bittersweet moment as we wish our Year 12s, who have been such a huge part of our school life, all the best for the future. 

If we have good weather students will be going to the Memorial Park for photographs before moving across to the Senior Citizens Hall. The students and staff have been working hard on organising the night and making decorations and ensuring the night will be a memorable success. 

PBL Rewards Day Monday 2^nd December @ 10 pin Bowling!

In week 10, on Monday 2nd December, we are having our Whole School PBL Rewards Day! This is very exciting and the PBL team planned a great event to reward our students for their terrific behaviour. We are having a 10 PIN BOWLING experience to celebrate the wonderful behaviour our students have demonstrated this year.

2025 BOOKLISTS/ Stationary Lists 

Each student will be provided with a 2025 Booklist/ Stationary List at the end of this term, for families to purchase the necessary resources. We have partnered with Nextra at Gympie Central Shopping Centre. You can drop your list into them and they will prepare your child’s stationary list for you.

The school office will be open from Monday 19^th January 2025 for families to drop their student’s stationary box off prior to the start of school. Thank you for your cooperation in ensuring all items are purchased, named and ready for the first day of school. Have fun covering and decorating your child’s equipment and books – don’t forget to NAME everything.

Medication

At the end of each year, all medication and medical equipment is sent home. If your child takes medication during the school day, it must be collected from the school office on your child’s last day of attendance.

For 2025, please ensure your child’s medication is in a clearly labelled pharmacy box with correct dosage, time of administration and is in date. The office will be open from 8.30am to 2.30pm from Monday 19^th January 2025 for you to drop off medication and sign forms.

2025 Health Plans

For any students on a Health Plan, Lisa our school nurse will be available next term to meet to discuss your child’s plan. If you are attending any medical appointments during the holiday period, could you please organise the following for your child?

• New midazolam orders (required yearly)
• Updated Asthma Plan (required yearly)
• Updated Anaphylaxis plan (required yearly)
• Dietician letter if your child requires Gastronomy tube feeds (required yearly)
• Copies of any current health management reports or summaries that may assist in the management of your child’s specialised health requirements at school

Keeping the school informed about any changes to the health and management of your child, ensures we can work in partnership with you to better support your child at school, and maximise their safety and attendance.

I look forward to seeing many of you over the next few weeks as you help us celebrate the success of our students!

Moving forward, learning together,

Ms. Sarah