Term 2, Week 10

Principal - Cassandra Clarke

As we reach the end of Term 2, it's a great time to reflect on what a busy and exciting term it has been! From the Year 4 Camp to Gala Days, Sports Days, Under 8s Day, and so many other engaging activities, there has been a lot happening across our school.

I'm pleased to share that I will be continuing in my role at Brisbane Central State School for the remainder of the year. It has been a privilege to work alongside such a dedicated and supportive school community, and I’m incredibly proud of what we’ve achieved together so far. I’m looking forward to the months ahead and the opportunities we have to continue building on this positive momentum as a team.

I would also like to take this opportunity to sincerely thank Mr Grogan for his contributions to BCSS over the past few years. We wish him all the very best in his new role.

Thank you again for your continued support and the warm, collaborative spirit that makes our school such a special place.

Our teachers have been working incredibly hard on assessments and report cards, and we thank them for their continued dedication and effort. Report Cards will be sent home electronically on Friday, please check your junk mailbox if you don’t receive in your child’s report in your inbox.

Please note: The Department of Education is currently investigating an issue with OneSchool Reporting. Reports sent through OneSchool to some Gmail addresses are being stopped by Gmail as Spam. Teams are working to restore service as soon as possible. If you do not receive your child's Report Card by the commencement of Term 3, please let us know.

Deputy Principal - Nikolas Taufatofua

As we wrap up a busy and exciting Term 2, I want to take a moment to reflect on and celebrate some of the wonderful experiences we’ve shared as a school community.

Our Under 8s Day was a fantastic success! It was such a joy to see our youngest learners immersed in engaging and hands-on activities, from the always-popular petting zoo to sessions with Coach Max, Shake Dance, Speak Up, Chess Club and Cricket Australia. A huge thank you to our amazing staff for creating such a memorable day of fun and learning.

It is great to welcome our Year 4 students back from camp. From all reports, they had an incredible time building friendships, confidence and independence—well done to all involved and thank you to our Year 4 Teachers for providing this opportunity!

On our last day of term, we enjoy our PBL (Positive Behaviour for Learning) Celebration Day—what a treat to stay cosy in our pyjamas as a reward for all the positive behaviour choices our students have made across the term.

Looking ahead, Term 3 is already shaping up to be exciting. In Week 1, a group of our talented students will proudly represent our school at Creative Generations—we can't wait to see their hard work and creativity on display. In Week 2, our Year 6 students will head off on their much-anticipated camp. We know it will be an unforgettable experience for them!

As the semester draws to a close, I want to sincerely thank our entire school community—students, families, staff and our dedicated P&C—for making this such a positive and productive term. The energy, commitment and care you bring to our school ensures that our students continue to thrive.

We look forward to seeing you back for another exciting term of learning and our 150^th Celebration in Term 3! In the meantime, wishing everyone a safe and restful holiday break.

Prep Enrolments

Enrolments are now open for 2026. Students born from 1^st July 2020 to 30^th June 2021 are now invited to submit their enrolment forms. Enrolment forms are available on Brisbane Central State School’s website.  

ICAS Registrations

Each year, at Brisbane Central State School, we offer parents the opportunity for their child/children to sit the International Competitions and Assessments for Schools (ICAS) tests. ICAS is an online academic competition that gives students the opportunity to challenge their higher order thinking and problem-solving skills.  Every student who participates is celebrated and recognised with a printed certificate and an online report of results. Top performers are eligible for one of the highly coveted ICAS medals.   

 To learn more about this year’s ICAS competition, visit: (icasassessments.com/products-icas/). 

In addition, this video demonstrates the testing platform.  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9DMCtlAjQHs  

Parents register their children for ICAS and make payment using the online UNSW Global Parent Payment System.  ICAS registrations are open for use by Brisbane Central State School parents and is open until Monday 14 July 2025.  Registrations for the tests will not be possible after this date. 

BCSS parent payment system is currently active.  You can register in one of two ways:

1. Direct login link – faster!

Use this link to log directly into the shop and start registering:

Brisbane Central page link is:  https://shop.icasassessments.com/pages/parent-payment/RHV663

1. Log in using the PPS code

Visit our shop and use our PPS code to log in:

Shop link: https://shop.icasassessments.com/pages/pps

Brisbane Central school access code is: RHV663

How to participate in ICAS 

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

1. Read about ICAS subjects and prices here: (com/products-icas/)
2. Read the Privacy Collection Statement below.
3. Read the terms and conditions here: (com/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/2023-ICAS-Assessments-Schools-TsCs_S2023.V6-1.pdf) 
4. Go to Parent Portal to purchase chosen tests - see above.
5. Enter your child’s details, select the subject area tests you would like to purchase, then proceed to payment.
6. After payment is made via the Parent Payment System, you will receive an order confirmation email. Please keep this for your records. 

Please note that the ICAS tests shown for selection are at the school’s discretion.  Brisbane Central State School is offering the English, Mathematics, Writing and Science assessments.   Writing is only provided by ICAS from Year 3, while the other subject areas are available from Years 2 to Year 6.   We will notify parents of the dates that Brisbane Central will run the different ICAS tests after the close of bookings. 

Your child’s ICAS certificates will be delivered to the school about 4 weeks after the close of the assessment period Once we have received your child’s ICAS certificate, we will send it home with your child. The back of the certificate shows ICAS results and the login details, “TAP ID and Pin”.  Use these login details from previous years or from certificates this year to access the Results Portal. 

https://orti.icasassessments.com/ortiStudent 

Please note, we cannot facilitate refunds or make alterations as all money is paid directly to ICAS Assessments.

Read the terms and conditions here: (https://www.icasassessments.com/icasa-terms-and-conditions/#icas-parents). 

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

ICAS Assessment is owned by Janison Solutions Pty Ltd (We, Us, Our).

To deliver assessment products, Janison will require your child’s School to obtain your consent to provide Janison with certain personal information of students. Janison will collect, store, use, disclose and otherwise deal with such personal information in accordance with its privacy policy (below). We are aware of our responsibility to protect personal information related to children and students from being disclosed when we deliver an ICAS Assessments product. Unless you, as the child’s legal guardian consents, we will not:

• collect any personal information or data of children other than the information we need for the successful completion of an assessment, test, or exam.
• transfer any personal information we obtain from a child in the delivery of assessments and tests to any jurisdiction outside of Australia.
• share any personal information relating to children with any third parties (except for those third parties necessary for us to carry out our Services or provide our Products e.g., medal engraving).
• use any personal information or data relating to children for marketing purposes.

You can view our full privacy policy at https://www.janison.com/privacy-policy/.

We may retain personal information and data relevant to a child for their future purposes or for research purposes by Janison for the duration of the school life cycle of the child. However, if you or your child at any time wish to have their personal information or data removed from our systems, they or you may opt out by simply contacting our Privacy Officer at privacy@janison.com or by contacting icasassessments@janison.com.

We are proud to be offering ICAS to our students this year and encourage you to consider entering your child. Please do not hesitate to contact the school office if you have any questions.  

Please do not hesitate to contact the school via Maureen Kelly, mkell83@eq.edu.au, if you have any questions. 

What can we do to make the written report cards meaningful for parents?

We invite all parents/carers to respond to the linked survey.

Your input can help shape the decisions we make regarding written report cards from Semester 2 2025.  We are keen to hear the perspectives of parents and look forward to working together to make our written report cards more meaningful for informing parents about their child’s achievement and learning.

Online survey open to all parents   https://forms.office.com/r/u9fdEcKzxW

We look forward to hearing from many parents. 

Reporting

School report cards are issued at the end of each Semester, in June and December.  Teachers report to parents on the achievement that the student has demonstrated against the Australian Curriculum Achievement Standard for each learning area. 

Learning expectations

• Each learning area/subject area has a learning statement which outlines the learning that has been the focus for the class during the semester.

Student’s achievement against expected standards

• The level of mastery is rated using a 5-point scale which is described on the front of the report card. 
• Student work is measured against the parts of Australian Curriculum Achievement Standard that were taught and assessed for each learning area/subject during the semester.

Learning strengths and how the student may be able to improve

• One identified learning strength from the current semester is recorded and one identified opportunity for improvement and further learning.
• The strength and improvement opportunity communicate aspects demonstrated below, at or beyond the year level standard, and are specific to the student.

How well the student is engaging with the expected learning through effort and behaviour information  

• Learning effort and behaviour are each communicated through a 5-point scale. These scales are described on the front of the report card. 

For student new to Standard Australian English

• If your child has limited Standard Australian English to a level that attracts targeted teaching from our English as an Additional Language or Dialect team, then the student may receive an ‘N’ in English rather than a rating on the 5-point scale. In this case, the English reporting comments use the English as an Additional Language or Dialect Band Scales rather than the Achievement Standard to reflect their achievement in the area of language development.  On a case by case basis, an N may be used as the rating in other subject areas also.  

The semester one report cards will be emailed home on Friday 27 June. In preparation for this, we ask all parents to ensure that they add Application.ONESCHOOL@qed.qld.gov.au to the list of safe senders to ensure report card emails are not sent to the email Junk folder. The reports will be sent to the email address we have on record. If you do not receive your child's report on the designated day, we ask you first check your Junk folder before contacting the school to request the report. Requests relating to your child's report should be sent to the principal, Mrs Clarke via email (principal@brisbanecentralss.eq.edu.au).  Any questions about the content of your child's report should be directed to your child's teacher in the first instance.

CGEN 2025

While many of us were enjoying a relaxing Sunday, a group of dedicated Brisbane Central State School students were hard at work rehearsing for this year’s Creative Generation – State Schools on Stage (CGEN) performance. Under the guidance of the ever-enthusiastic Miss Clark, these talented students are putting in hours of practice as they prepare to take the stage in July.

CGEN is a prestigious event that brings together some of the most talented performers from schools across Queensland. We are incredibly proud that Brisbane Central is represented by such passionate and hardworking students. Their commitment, even on weekends, is truly impressive and reflects their love of the performing arts.

We can’t wait to see them shine on stage! Well done to our CGEN performers and to Miss Clark for your incredible dedication.

Reader’s Cup

This term a group of 15 eager readers gladly accepted the reading challenge to read five exciting books over eight weeks as part of the Readers Cup competition. 

The Reader’s Cup is organised by the Qld Branch of the Children's Book Council of Australia. It is a Queensland-wide competition for young readers.  We started with a school challenge for any Year 5 and 6 students who were ‘ready to read’ a unique selection of books, write and answer quiz questions and discuss in weekly meetings.  We would like to congratulate everyone who participated in the Reader Cup selection at Brisbane Central for their high level of engagement and understanding of the books and most of all we enjoyed hearing each other’s perspectives about the books.

Team selection was highly competitive, with only five students chosen to represent Brisbane Central at the regional competition.  We competed against 24 other schools, answering a total of 50 questions on the five selected books.  We triumphed in 5^th place, a reflection of hard work and dedication to the Readers Cup challenge.   

By: Aastha, Anna, Aura, Sarah and Tanvi

Library – Invoicing for overdue books

Sometimes students don't have their library books with them in the class library session. When this happens, children are reminded by the teacher about their borrowed books and students can also return and borrow books on any day before school.  Parents are sent a reminder email from the library system showing which book/s are overdue, weekly on Mondays.  Students cannot borrow more books until the overdue one/s are returned.

If books are still not returned after some time, we ask parents to pay a $15 fee per book to help cover the cost of replacing them.  Parents are sent an invoice from the school office when this happens.   This usually occurs three to four weeks after the book was first overdue to allow time to find and return the book.  After the payment of the invoice, the child can start borrowing books from the library. 

Due to staffing changes in the school office, we have not been sending invoices for non-returned library books this term.  This invoicing will start again in Term 3. 

If your child currently has one or two books overdue and you would like to receive an invoice, please email Maureen Kelly, Head of Department Curriculum, on mkell83@eq.edu.au.   If there are special circumstances around the non-return of the books, feel free to get in touch.

Guidance Officer

Pressing pause on tech tantrums: positive switch-off strategies

Does managing screen time feel like a daily battle in your family? If so, you’re not alone. Many parents face frustration and pushback, but these challenges don’t mean you’re doing anything wrong.

The pull of screens is strong, and kids easily lose track of time: what feels like five minutes can turn into fifty. Many apps and games trigger dopamine responses, making it harder to step away. So when the screen goes off, children are not just pausing a game: they are abruptly ending something deeply absorbing and enjoyable.

But with the right tools and strategies, you can turn screen time struggles into opportunities for balance and connection, for any age group. By making screen time predictable, introducing engaging follow-on activities, using visual timers, and modelling calm responses to frustration, we can help kids navigate tech challenges with confidence.

Triple P’s latest article empowers parents and carers with straightforward information like this for a calm and positive approach to switching off screens.

For more tips and strategies to help you raise capable, confident kids, check out their free online programs.

Students Connect Through Indigenous Art

A couple of weeks ago, our Year 3 students had the incredible opportunity to work with visiting Indigenous artist Ben Barker. As part of their Visual Arts learning, students explored traditional symbols and storytelling, gaining a deeper appreciation of Indigenous culture and artistic expression. Guided by the artist, students created their own artworks that expressed their personal stories and connection to the land. Their beautiful artworks will be proudly displayed at our Art Show in Term 4.

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P–2 Under 8s Day

What a wonderful day it was as our Prep to Year 2 students came together to celebrate Under 8s Day! This year’s theme, “Unleashing Scientific Thinking Through Play,” inspired a morning full of curiosity, exploration, and joyful learning. Under 8s Day is a highlight of the school calendar for our youngest learners and a chance to celebrate the early years of education through rich and meaningful experiences. This year, students enjoyed a variety of engaging, hands-on activities designed to spark wonder — all through the power of play!

Our school grounds were alive with excited chatter, laughter, and the occasional gasp of amazement as children immersed themselves in these play-based adventures. A big thank you goes to our creative staff for designing such a wide range of activities, as well as to our special visitors and volunteers — Coach Max, Gardiner Chess Club, SHAKE Dance, Speak Up, Cricket Blast, and ABC Animal Farm. A very special mention goes to our fabulous Year 6 students and the visiting seniors from Fortitude Valley State Secondary College, who showed tremendous leadership in supporting our Prep to Year 2 students.

Celebrations like these remind us that some of the most powerful learning happens when children are given the space to play, wonder, and imagine.

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Library News

Book Club

Book Club will be in back in Term 3

Thank you for your support and all your book purchases.

BCSS 150th celebration

On Saturday, 30th August, we’ll be celebrating a truly special milestone — our school’s 150th Birthday! This is a remarkable achievement that few schools reach, and it's a wonderful opportunity to reflect on our rich history of learning and strong community spirit.

We warmly invite all families, friends, and past students to join us for this memorable celebration.

To help us plan the day, please register your attendance via the TryBooking link below. You can also express your interest in attending the Alumni Morning Tea.

👉 Register here: www.trybooking.com/DBGSF

We look forward to celebrating with you!

School photo

Annual school photo will be next term. The envelop and information will be sent out Term 3 Week 1

Chess club

Mustachery on Brunswick