Ms D Principal Message

This week we warmly welcomed our newest members of the Toorak Primary School community—our Prep students. All students arrived on Monday morning with great confidence and enthusiasm as they began their school journey. Our teachers were genuinely impressed by the maturity shown by our Preps, particularly in how smoothly they transitioned into the classroom each morning and separated from parents and carers.

I have already had several visits from our Prep students, who were eager to share their work and proudly deliver some beautiful artwork to display in my office.

As I visited classrooms throughout the week, it was evident that students across the school are demonstrating strong learning behaviours that have been explicitly taught through our Start-Up Program. From how we enter and exit classrooms, to how we set up our pages in workbooks, these routines and expectations help reduce cognitive load and maximise time on task as we move through the year.

I was also fortunate to listen to many leadership speeches from our students and was impressed by the confidence they continue to develop when speaking in front of their peers. Students and staff have thoughtfully selected our student leaders for Semester 1, and these students were acknowledged at our whole-school assembly earlier today.

2026 Assemblies

In 2026, our school assemblies will have a slight refresh and will look a little different from previous years. Assemblies remain an essential part of Toorak Primary School’s culture and community, supporting our shared commitment to a safe, inclusive and high-performing learning environment. They are purposeful opportunities to strengthen school culture, communication, wellbeing and student engagement.

New format – same time! Time: Wednesdays at 3:00pm

Whole-School Assemblies:

• Week 1 and Week 10 (or the final week) of each term
• Led by the school leadership team and the Year 6 students
• Held outdoors where possible (weather permitting)

From Week 2 onwards, assemblies will be held weekly but divided into F–2 and 3–6 groups. Each group will attend an assembly once per fortnight. This approach allows assemblies to be more developmentally appropriate and provides increased leadership opportunities for our class and year-level captains. These assemblies will be held indoors.

We look forward to continuing to celebrate student learning, leadership and our shared values through this refreshed assembly structure.

 Please see below for a schedule for assemblies for Term 1:

Term 1 Roster:

Meet and Greet

On Wednesday 18 February, you will have the opportunity to meet with your child’s classroom teacher. This meeting provides an opportunity to share your knowledge of your child’s strengths, interests and future goals, as well as any additional information you feel may support the teacher in planning for your child during the 2026 school year.

Bookings for the Meet and Greet are now available via Compass. All meetings will be held in person. If you would prefer to meet online, please email your child’s classroom teacher directly so they can arrange a virtual meeting.

School Council

Nominations for school council are now open.  We currently have 5 parent positions available for a 2 year term.  Please consider nominating yourself or another parent member to council.  Being on council is a rewarding experience. Parents on school councils provide important viewpoints and have valuable skills and a range of experiences and knowledge that can help inform and shape the direction of the school. Those parents who become active on a school council find their involvement satisfying and may also find that their children feel a greater sense of belonging.  There is a small commitment of time required:

2x meetings per term (4:30 to 6:30pm, alternating between in person and online)

Joining a school council subcommittee and attending a short meeting led by a school rep in the week leading up to a council meeting.

Nomination forms are available to download from compass or hard copy forms are available at the front office.  Nominations for the 2026 school year close on Friday 13 February. I look forward to receiving your nominations.

Birthdays

Birthdays for students are often a memorable occasion and they often like to celebrate with their peers.  If you would like your child to celebrate with their peers and are bringing in food please be mindful of students who have allergies in your child’s class, if unsure please contact your child’s teacher in advance of the day. We strongly encourage treats other than food so that we can be inclusive to all.  Please refrain from sending large cakes as teachers do not have the time to cut and share this out with students, and we may return this to you.

Planning Week

All teachers will be involved in working collaboratively with our teaching and learning leaders next week to plan the lesson sequences for the term.  Your child will have all their specialists in the one day next week and the usual timetable may be different.  Please see below for the day your child’s teachers will be away from class undertaking planning:

Monday: Year 3

Tuesday: Year 6

Wednesday: Year 1

Thursday: Year 2

Friday: Year 4 and 5

Classroom Contact

Your child’s classroom teacher(s) are your first point of contact regarding your child, and they are keen to work in partnership with families to provide the best possible support.

Teachers begin their school day at 8:45am. Mornings are a busy time as staff prepare for learning to commence, so we ask that families refrain from approaching teachers before school, as this can impact the smooth start to the day for students.

If you need to contact your child’s teacher, please do so via Compass, or arrange a meeting after school. Teachers are available for meetings on Mondays and Thursdays from 3:30pm. Staff are not available on Tuesdays and Wednesdays as they are engaged in scheduled professional learning.

Attendance

Regular attendance and punctuality are essential to support your child’s learning and wellbeing. Our organisational bell rings at 8:55am, signalling for students to move to their line-up areas before heading into class. Rolls are marked at 9:00am.

Students arriving after 9:00am must be signed in at the office by a parent or carer and issued with a late pass to give to their classroom teacher. Students are not permitted to sign themselves in.

If your child is absent, please record an attendance note via the Compass app, including the reason for the absence. Any unexplained absences will result in an SMS notification at 10:00am advising that your child has been marked absent.

In line with our Attendance Policy, attendance and punctuality are monitored regularly by the leadership team. Families may be contacted if we notice patterns of prolonged absences or frequent late arrivals. These conversations are always supportive in nature, as we are keen to work with families to ensure the best outcomes for students.

Fencing Upgrade

The last gate is due to be installed tomorrow and that will include the fencing work.  Whilst we are a community school and our grounds are used extensively afterhours, the school has been subjected to damage mostly over the weekends and therefore we will be locking the gates on Friday afternoons at 3:45pm and reopening them on Monday mornings.  The council playgrounds will be fully accessible during this time.

Annual privacy reminder for our school community

Our school collects and uses student and parent personal information for standard school functions or where permitted by law, as stated in the Schools’ privacy policy and the Schools’ privacy collection notice.

Our Photographing, Filming and Recording Students policy describes how we collect and use photographs, video and recordings of students. The policy also explains when parent consent is required and how it can be provided and withdrawn.

We ask parents to also review the guidance we provide on how we use Microsoft 365/Google Workspace for Education safely at the school and what parents can do to further protect their child’s information. If after reviewing the guidance, you have any questions or concerns regarding your child using please contact the school. A copy of the parent guides are also available on our school website.

Kind Regards

Suada Dzaferovic

Principal