Year 8 & 9 

Assistant Principal's Report

Welcome Back to School – Term 1

I hope our students, families and staff have enjoyed a safe, restful and well-deserved summer break. As we begin a new school year, I would like to warmly welcome everyone back to our school community and extend a special welcome to our new students and families joining us in 2026.

The start of the year is always an exciting time—full of fresh opportunities, new connections and renewed energy. Our staff have been busy over the break preparing classrooms, refining learning programs and ensuring the school is ready to support every student to have a successful start to the year.

Starting the Year Well

The first few weeks of Term 1 are focused on helping students settle back into routines, build positive relationships and feel a strong sense of belonging. Teachers will be revisiting our school expectations, wellbeing supports and learning goals to ensure consistency and clarity for all students.

We encourage families to support this transition by:

• Re-establishing morning and evening routines
• Ensuring students arrive on time and ready to learn
• Talking positively with your child about school and the year ahead

Wellbeing and Connection

Student wellbeing remains a priority. Our staff are committed to creating safe, inclusive and supportive learning environments where every student feels known and valued. If your child is feeling nervous or needs additional support as they return to school, please don’t hesitate to reach out to their tutor teacher or year level coordinator—we’re here to help.

Communication and Partnership

Strong partnerships between home and school make a real difference. Please keep an eye on Compass, newsletters and school communications for important updates, key dates and upcoming events. We value your involvement and look forward to working closely with you throughout the year.

Looking Ahead

2026 promises to be a year of growth, learning and achievement. I am excited to see our students reconnect with friends, engage in their learning and make the most of the opportunities ahead.

Thank you for being part of our school community. We look forward to a fantastic year together.

Warm regards,

Megan Taylor - Assistant Principal Years 8 - 9

Year Level Leader's Report Year 8

Our Year 8 cohort has made a fantastic start to the year. Students have settled in well, and we’ve been really pleased with the positive attitude and effort shown so far. Uniform standards have also been excellent—thank you for your ongoing support with this.

If your child has had a growth spurt over the holidays and requires new uniform items, please contact the school to check whether you may be eligible for a school uniform voucher.

A reminder that our School Swimming Sports will be held on Thursday 11th February. Students are encouraged to dress in their house colours and enthusiastically support their teams. Please also remember to pack sunscreen for the day.

Sport House Captain and SRC nominations will be occurring during assemblies on Wednesday. We encourage students to consider nominating and taking on these leadership opportunities.

Congratulations to Charlotte Toull, our Student of the Week, for being an all-round friendly and positive presence with both staff and students—well done, Charlotte.

Finally, a reminder that we are a community. If there is anything you or your child need support with, please don’t hesitate to get in contact with the school—we’re always here to help.

Allan Nilsen - Year 8 Year Level Leader    & Ewan Slater - Year 8 Year Level Leader

andreas.nilsen@education.vic.gov.au          ewan.slater@education.vic.gov.au

8A Kanika Sharma                 8B Peta Hills                                  8C Alex De Leon

8D Brett Vevers                       8E Chris Lennon                          8F Tony Di Fabrizio 

8G Harpreet Kaur                  8H Emily Wrigglesworth          8J Sandy Tran

Year 8 Year Level Leaders                      Ewan Slater & Allan Nilsen 

Year 8 Administration Assistants:      Sharon Hamilton & Angela Whitfield

Attached Year 8 staff:                                Joshua Minns, Troy West, Isabella Rafaelle,

                                                                            Aleia Beecher, Roby Corelli, Scott Lynch,

                                                                            Chris Palatsides, Sagun Sharma

Year Level Leader's Report Year 9 

What a start to 2026! Year 9's have started the year so well.

Year 9 is a busy year with so many opportunities and new experiences. 2026 is the second year with our new Student voice electives. There are some wonderful new electives on offer this year, based on what our students want to learn. 

The Morrisby survey is an aptitude test which remains a key element of Year 9. Year 9's complete this survey in term three. This is fantastic opportunity that offers vital career and subject advice to our students from Morrisby trained career practitioners.

Our days kick off with WYNtime each morning. 

Our week starts off with our “Ready to Learn” Mondays. Goals are set, binders checked and Cornell notes reviewed. Tuesday and Thursday are our “Reading for Pleasure” days, where students read a book of choice. Students may read anything of their choosing, from books to magazines. “WYNing Wednesdays” are our time to build connections, strengthen the bonds in our classrooms (and maybe have a sneaky competition or two). Friday finishes off our week with celebrations and reflections. We look at the week that was, check our goals and celebrate our successes! WYNtime is a fundamental part of ensuring our students are ready for the day and building up key lifeskills. 

The Friday celebrations continue with our weekly Year 9 assembly. Important messages and events are announced, Student of the Week is celebrated, and Tutor Challenge points are awarded. A Year 9 tradition is our term-based competition for the Tutor Challenge Cup. Throughout the week classes can be awarded points that go towards our Tutor challenge. Points are awarded to classes for attendance, uniform and our weekly assembly challenges.  Challenges could be a game, a quiz or a competition. The class with the most points is crowned our winner and are awarded 1000 MyWyndam points and bragging rights for the following term. 

We also acknowledge and celebrate our Student of the Week. Students are nominated through our School Positive Behaviour posts on Compass by their teachers. This week there looks to be a record number of Positive posts, and I cannot wait to celebrate such a successful first week!

I would also like to welcome our 2026 Year 9 team. 

Year 9 Coordinator – Ms Braddy

9A – Mr Patrick Bur

9B – Mrs Singh 

9C – Ms Miles 

9D – Mr McLenon 

9E – Ms Zhou

9F – Ms Midha

9G – Ms Weyi 

9S – Mr Perdana

I look forward to watching our Year 9s strive to achieve their goals and grow together this year.

Amelia Coster - Year 9 Year Level Leader

amelia.coster@education.vic.gov.au

9A  Patrick Bur                          9B Tanishka Singh                9C Christine Miles

9D Anthony McLellan            9E Lily Zhou                           9F Ruchika Midha 

9G Deyi Wei                                 9S Riady Perdana

Year 9 Year Level Leader                        Amelia Coster

Year 9 Year Level Coordinator             Caitlin Braddy 

Year 9 Administration Assistants:      Sharon Hamilton & Angela Whitfield

Attached Year 9 staff:                                Benjamin Kenna, Emily Bellin, Dillon Croce, 

                                                                            Samantha Mikulas, Vonda Nelson, Rhea Rutzou,

                                                                            Bily Bosevski