Greenslopes State School Archives

Greenslopes Librarian Says Kids Reading More During Lockdown

Nearly 100,000 books were checked out from Brisbane libraries two days before the closure announcement due to COVID-19 lockdown and Greenslopes State School librarian Wendy Pierce said that reading activities among the children saw a sharp rise during this pandemic crisis.

The Council revealed that checkouts were at 405 percent in recent months and Ms Pierce said that more and more children were willing to read “challenging books” as they were confined indoors. The kids also received parental influence and guidance in choosing what books to read.

Among the popular choices were children’s classics like “Secret Garden,” “Treasure Island” and “Peter Pan.”

Photo Credit: 2020 Premier Reading Challenge/Facebook

In line with nurturing the children’s love for books, the Premier’s Reading Challenge’s (PRC) registration is now open for young bookworms from prep to Year 9.

To join, register as a group or as individuals and then download the book list. With the help of their parents/guardians and teachers, participants must record the books they finish in the form to be submitted to the PRC.

This event is not a competition but it’s a way to help the children develop an enriching habit. Two lucky students who complete the challenge may get a chance to win a literacy workshop for their school, while eight kids could also win $500 book vouchers.

Greenslopes State School Joins Queensland Government’s Plastic Recycle Scheme

Photo Credit: Catherine Sheila/Pexels

Students of Greenslopes State School are helping clean up the environment one container at a time and even earning whilst at it. This is by getting involved in the state government’s container refund scheme, Containers for Change.

Launched November 2018, the scheme offers a ten cent refund per item on any eligible container. Eligible containers can be made from glass, plastic, aluminium or liquid paper board and can range in size from 150ml to 3L.

When it started, around 30 state schools around Queensland already participated in the program. Participating schools trialled their ways to collect containers within their school communities and work to harness the energy of everyone associated with their school, including parents and carers, students and teachers.

For Queenslanders who prefer to donate their drink container to a community group, sports club or another organisation, container return points can direct the 10c refund payment to a registered group.

In Greenslopes, the state school happens to be the registered group. Those who want to donate to Greenslopes State School’s Parents and Citizens Association, you may use the code C10028875 which is the school’s unique Scheme ID. The P&C association will receive funds to spend back on the school.

About Containers for Change

Photo credit: Containers for Change QLD/Facebook

Containers for Change is a state-wide container refund scheme that aims to reduce the amount of drink containers that are littered and increase Queensland’s recycling rate.

Not-for-profit group Container Exchange (CoEx) was appointed by the government as the Product Responsibility Organisation (PRO), to develop and run the container refund scheme in Queensland.

For further information about Containers for Change, visit their website or the Queensland Government’s website.

Safer Roads: Greenslopes State School to Receive New School Zone Signage

As part of the Brisbane City Council’s Enhanced School Zone Signage Program, Greenslopes State School will be receiving its school zone signage by Term 1 in 2019. The new signage will reduce the speed limit along Logan Road, Greenslopes to 40km/h at peak school times.

Speed Limits in School Zones

Speed limits in school zones are part of the State Government’s Safe school travel (SafeST) program.

School zones are installed to reduce traffic speed near schools. These are identified by signages which are displayed on both approaches to the school. The signs show the speed limit and the times during which it applies.

Photo credit: Department of Transport and Main Road

Speed limits which apply include:

40km/h on roads where the existing limit is 50km/h, 60km/h or 70km/h
60km/h on roads where the existing limit is 80km/h
60km/h or 80km/h on roads where the speed limit is 90km/h or 100km/h, depending on the amount of school-related activity on or near the road
80km/h on roads where the existing limit is 110km/h.

You may learn more about the school zone speed limits on the Department of Transport and Main Road’s School Zones guidelines.

Enhanced School Zone Signage Program

BCC’s Enhanced School Zone Signage Program aims to improve road safety around schools on multi-lane roads. Council started reducing speed limits on inner-city streets to a maximum of 40 km/h in 2009.

Apart from the Greenslopes State School, the following schools will receive new signages during the 2018-19 financial year:

Brisbane State High School – Cordelia Street, Vulture Street, Merivale Street, and Gladstone Road/Ernest Street, South Brisbane
All Hallows’ School – Ann Street, Brisbane City
Cavendish Road State High School – Holland Road, Holland Park
Brisbane Bayside State College – Wynnum Road, Wynnum

The council has already rolled out these new signages at 42 locations across the city between July 2015 and June 2018.

To learn more about the Council’s efforts in making roads safer for the school community, you may visit the official page for Safe Roads Around Schools initiative.