FROM THE PRINCIPAL’S DESK
Thoughts for the Week

 “…banish anxiety from your heart and cast off the troubles from your body…” Ecclesiastes 11:10

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“Music produces a kind of pleasure which human nature cannot do without.” Confucius

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“Art Extravaganza”
What a wonderful term, conjuring up exhibitions of still life, landscapes and portraiture. It does not even stop there. Under the extensive umbrella of ‘art’ we accommodate sculpture, textile medium and photography. I am pleased to inform you that, coinciding with the school’s 75^th birthday year, we will stage an Art Extravaganza this Friday, 31^st March. Art played an important role to early Rochedale settlers. Some painted, from the naivest school, images from a past, distant childhood in Europe while others captured the charm and boldness of the new country. Traditional Queenslanders, perched on stumps with sweeping verandas, became early favourites. The ochre-red soil, pushing lush, emerald-green produce skywards towards a bluer-than-blue sky interrupted with occasional tufts of cloud became a new experience. This experience endures in professional art today. To paint one’s own home and garden is still a desire which people satisfy with varying degrees of success. Art is still one of the Key Learning Areas of our curriculum, and quite rightly so. From the early ‘attempts’ at painting their homes, pre-school children, and their friends in Grade 1, see – and discern – quite clearly the end result, which to the untrained eye may present some difficulty. Do come for a visit this Friday. You just never know, there may well be a painting or two for sale to brighten up that wall in your home. If not, you will have met some wonderful people here at Rochedale State School where we enjoy art as a community.

Now retired, but unforgettable
Norman May invented the catchphrase Gold, Gold, Gold during the Moscow Olympics of 1980. Contemporary sportscasters could well have borrowed May’s famous phrase which he used to yell at fever pitch. While some dismiss the Commonwealth Games as a ‘second rate’ event due to the absence of dominant sporting nations such as Russia, Germany and the USA, the truth of the matter is that World Records tumble at the Commonwealth Games! The Courier-Mail supplement has been filled with Australian swimmers and other athletes who have excelled their own and their coaches’ expectations. Hot on the heels of the Turino Winter Olympics, summer cricket and the commencement of the football season, we have to concede that we are indeed a sporting nation. Our international success is totally out of proportion to our small population. Clearly, we are doing something right. The trouble is that we are too carried away with the end result, when the sports caster becomes excited in the commentary box, forgetting the hard yards put in ahead of time. Swimmers train daily. Swimmers are dedicated. So are our track and field stars. While we talk about gifted students, and there are plenty of them around, most get to Gold through hard work. To run, when your body says otherwise, to train in a pool on cold winter mornings, take dedication and commitment. Both these traits can be transferred to almost any human endeavour. They are held in high regard at Rochedale State School and encouraged by my Staff.

Premier Peter Beattie cut a lonely figure as he walked across a rain-soaked Innisfail street last week. School children in the north of our State were told to stay home as the fury of Cyclone Larry bore down on their communities. Thankfully Larry killed no one, yet ‘he’ left a devastating legacy. Children later returned to schools to find roofs gone, windows smashed and debris littering their once neatly kept educational settings. At Rochedale we empathise with our colleagues and students in the State’s north. We pray for their speedy recovery and return to normality so that education, once again, can flourish in those communities which were so savagely beaten by Cyclone Larry.

LIAM SMITH
Principal

P&C NEWS
P&C Meeting

The P&C meeting will be held this Tuesday night (28/3/06) in the Teachers’ Staffroom.

Agenda items for this meeting include:

·         Planning for the 75^th Anniversary Celebrations – Fete (to be held on Saturday September 16^th) & and the Reunion Picnic/Cricket (to be held on Sunday September 17^th)

·         Grant applications

All are welcome, we look forward to seeing you there.

ROSHCA Application for Additional Child Care Places
The Australian Government has made available additional child care places for Outside Hours Care Programs throughout Australia. It is necessary for the P&C to submit an application for consideration by the Dept of Families, Community Services and Indigenous Affairs to gain additional places for ROSHCA.

To support our application and to gauge an accurate and up to date picture of the number we need to apply for, we require those families who are currently on the ROSHCA Waiting List and those families currently using ROSHCA but needing to utilise extra sessions, to contact our ROSHCA Coordinator – Fran Wells during ROSHCA hours on Ph: 38411 1943 before Monday April 3 to up-date and confirm your family’s requirements.

Please understand at this stage we are unable to provide extra child care places at ROSHCA but hopefully, if our application is successful, this may be achieved by July this year.

Tip Top Fundraiser
Thank you to all who sent in Tip Top bags or packets last week. This will be a continuous fundraiser for 2006, so remember, don’t throw out those Tip Top bags/packets – they can be left in the special container located outside of the Tuckshop.

Thank you for your support
Julie Johnson
P&C President
Ph 0423 919 534

STUDENT COUNCIL NEWS
Free Dress Day
Thank you to everyone who supported our free dress day. We had a winning sportsperson from each grade-
1 Keyra S
2 Emily B
3 Matthew S
4 Rhianon S
5 Marcus L
6 Olivia L
7 Chris P

These students received a gift voucher from Amart Sport. We raised $550, which will go towards our chest freezer. Any money left over will be donated to the Innisfail Cyclone Appeal 

Lunch Time Discos
will be held in the last week of school. Entry fee will be 50c. In the Junior disco there will be a special prize for the best Easter Bonnet. The Junior Disco (Grades 1-4) will be held on Thursday 4^th April and the Senior Disco (Grades 5- 7) will be held on the 6^th April.

ICE CREAM DAY
Ding, ding! This Wednesday is ice cream day! Our tasty vanilla ice cream cones will be covered in your choice of 100’s and 1000’, Milo, rainbow sprinkles and choc sprinkles. All this for only $1.00!! Come and get your ice cream outside the hall at big lunch to aid the cyclone relief appeal. Enjoy!!

Year 2 Teachers

ARTS EXTRAVAGANZA
This Friday night is our Arts Extravaganza from 6:00pm – 10:00pm in the school hall. The children’s artwork looks fabulous and everything is coming together as planned. We hope you all can make, it to what hopes to be a great night. Come along, support our school and more importantly appreciate the efforts to our students. We also need helpers to pack up at the end of the night. If you are able to give us a hand it would be sincerely appreciated.

See you on Friday!

UNIFORM SHOP
Friday 31st of March is the last day for you to submit your winter uniform orders.  This is a strict deadline and we cannot accept late orders. We have some second hand winter clothing available for sale at reasonable prices. 

A reminder that there have been some prices changes effective 1 March.  The price list can be downloaded from our website - www.rochedalss.eq.edu.au, and click on the word "Uniform Shop" on the left hand side.

If you have any queries, please feel free to contact me through the school's email link:- mscott119@eq.edu.au

Thanks
Mari-shell S.

tuckshop News
If for any reason you are unable to work on your rostered day, please give Norma a call on 3341 1149.

TUCKSHOP
Tues    Chris A
28/3

Wed     Melissa T
29/3

Thurs  Sharon M
30/3      Sharon G

Fri       Amanda H     Gaila D                  INTERSCHOOL SPORT
31/3      Leanne W, Douglas K

Mon    Kaye S
3/4        Toni G

Tues    Sharon McF
4/4

Wed     Amanda R 9:30            
PIZZA DAY
5/4

Thurs 
6/4        Katrina B

Fri       Gaila D
7/4        Jenny C, Katrina B
1 HELPER NEEDED

Mon 10/4 – Mon 17/4
EASTER VACATION

Tues   
18/4   PUPIL FREE DAY

Wed     Angie L
19/4     

Thurs  Douglas K
20/4      Amanda C

Fri                   INTERSCHOOL SPORT
21/4      3 VOLUNTEERS NEEDED

Thank you Jenny, Katrina and Allison for your help on Friday.

Pizza Day
We are having another Domino’s Pizza Day on Wednesday 5^th April for Big Lunch. All other food is still available. Enclosed with today’s newsletter is an order form. This must be filled out and returned with money by Monday 3^rd April. There will be a container on the counter at the tuckshop marked “Pizza Orders”. The cost will be $2.50 for a ¼ slice pizza. This is a pre-order system. NO MONEY NO PIZZA. Enjoy!

Volunteers Needed
Please, are you able to offer assistance on Fridays?  We are in urgent need of volunteers on Fridays.  This day is the busiest of the week.  If you can only help out for 2 or 3 hours, please give me a call at home on 3341-1149 or pop into the Tuckshop.

Friday Interschool Sports Years 5,6,7
If you are attending interschool sport on Fridays you must put your order in the plastic container marked “SPORT” on the counter before you go to parade.

Please mark on orders “SPORT”

You must also order chips and drinks through the bag system. (NO bag NO Goodies).

Apple Slinky Machine
I am sure you have read or heard of the apple slinky. It just happens that we now have one and I have a licence to use this marvellous piece of equipment. You have 2 choices.

1                     Bring your own apple from home and we will turn out a slinky for 30c or

2                     Purchase an apple from the tuckshop for 80c and we will turn out a slinky.

These slinkies look cool and taste yummy.

Running Food Stock Down
As we are nearing the end of term, we will be letting our stock run down. If we cannot supply your child’s food an alternative will be supplied.

ROSHCA
Monday
Afternoon Tea              Dip & Crackers
Craft                            Chatterboxes
Outside Activity            Oval Tiggy

Tuesday
Afternoon Tea              Fruit Platter                  
Craft                            Scoobie Bracelets
Outside Activity            Relay Races

Wednesday
Afternoon Tea              Dip & Crackers
Craft                            Photo Frames
Outside Activity            Cricket

Thursday
Afternoon Tea              Dip and Crackers
Craft                            Paper Craft
Outside Activity            Soccer

Friday
Afternoon Tea              Fruit Platter
Craft                            Hammabeads
Outside Activity            Skyball

LADIES DO YOU SUFFER NAGGING SHOULDER AND BACKACHE THAT CONSTANTLY MAKES YOU TIRED!
Massage works specifically to get rid of muscular pain and relax your whole body.

Regular massage relives muscle aches and releases muscle knots.

Finding it hard to maintain daily activities because your back is killing you?

The kids always demanding your time and so does your husband?

Make time for yourself, put you feet up and relax as I come to you.

Appointments Day/evening – ph Susann on 0415 681 889 / 3208 2073

Relax and Rebalance – Massages/Facials/60 minutes for $40 / Gift Vouchers Available.