Principal's report

Acknowledgement of Country

We acknowledge the Wurundjeri Woi Wurrung People of the Kulin nation; past, present and those who will walk with us into the future. We acknowledge the rich and unique cultural and spiritual relationships to the land, waters and seas, educational practices and the hopes of all First Nations Peoples. We do this in the spirit of reconciliation as we move to a place of justice and partnership - together we work, learn, play and care for one another and this land.

Mathematics 2.0 Changes to Reports

As we continue our commitment to delivering high-quality, future-focused education, I’d like to share some exciting and important updates regarding Mathematics 2.0, the revised mathematics curriculum now being implemented across Victorian government schools.

The Victorian Curriculum: Mathematics 2.0 represents a significant update to how mathematics is taught and learned. This new version brings a stronger emphasis on problem-solving, reasoning, and the real-world application of mathematical skills. It also includes clearer descriptions of what students are expected to learn, and more flexibility for teachers to meet students at their point of need.

What’s Changing?

Some of the key changes include:

• Improved structure and clarity: The new curriculum has been streamlined into six key proficiency strands, which support deep understanding and engagement.
• Focus on mathematical thinking: There is a stronger emphasis on critical and creative thinking, helping students to understand not just what to do, but why.
• Inclusion of contemporary contexts: Students will engage with maths in contexts that are relevant to today’s world, such as data literacy, financial mathematics, and digital technologies.

What Does This Mean for Your Child’s Reports?

With the new curriculum comes a refreshed approach to how we assess and report on student learning in mathematics.

• Reports will align with new curriculum language and expectations. You may notice updated terminology and clearer achievement standards that better reflect what students are learning and how they’re progressing.
• Teachers will continue to assess student progress against achievement standards, but the structure of the curriculum has changed, so the way progress is described may look different.  This means we have a new continuum of achievement standards that students will be assessed against.

The most significant change in reporting is that students will now have one aggregated progression point for mathematics, rather than progression points for each individual strand. Along with changes to the content taught at each level, this will mean it is not appropriate to compare where your child was last year against where they are this year. Some students may appear not to have grown, even though they have made progress.

Our teaching teams have been working diligently to implement these changes thoughtfully and ensure continuity for our students. Professional learning has been a key part of this process, and we’re proud of how our staff have embraced the opportunities presented by Mathematics 2.0.

Supporting Your Child at Home

As always, families play a vital role in supporting student learning. We encourage you to talk to your child about what they’re doing in maths, and look for ways to explore maths in everyday life—whether it's budgeting for groceries, measuring while cooking, or discussing statistics in the news.

If you have any questions about the new curriculum or what you see in your child’s report, please don’t hesitate to contact your classroom teacher or myself. We’re always here to support our learners—and their families—on this exciting journey.

Staff Update

With Ms Davies teaching in the classroom 2 days per week and only doing PE classes one day per week, we went through a recruitment process to cover Thursday PE classes (Foundation) and also the day of Learning Specialist release that Ms Davies had been doing.

Following the recruitment process we received approval for Brooke Witherow to have Permission to Teach (PTT). Brooke is in her final year of her teaching degree, and we were very pleased to have her PTT approved.

Brooke has now begun teaching at Kalinda and we wish her all the best in this next step in her career. She knows our students and school so well through her position as our School First Aid Officer, and she is a great addition to our teaching team.

Wendy will be covering the First Aid position over the next few weeks as we go through a recruitment process to cover this position.

Celebrating student learning

At Kalinda we love celebrating student effort and learning achievements. In this edition of the newsletter, please see the 'Student News' page for so many great examples of student work across the various year levels and curriculum areas.

Final month of this term

This final month of Term 2 will be a busy time across the school. With roofworks continuing, we are hoping for as much dry weather as possible to allow the works to continue at pace.

Next week our 5/6 students will be holding their Market Day. Students have spent a large part of this term planning, market and building their products to sell this event. Students from across the school will have an opportunity to attend the Market and buy products.

The Market Day provides great learning opportunities for students in communication, budgeting, teamwork, customer service, etc.  Congratulations to all the 5/6 students for the hard work you have put in and to the parents who have helped them.

Bogan Bingo

Another exciting event we are looking forward to is our Bogan Bingo on the 20th June. Thank you to the P&F for the work they have put into planning this. The Trivia night was a great success last year, and I am sure this event will also be lots of fun. Please see the P&F page in the newsletter for further information.

Dress Up Day - 4th July

The Junior School Council have organised a dress up day on the final day of term (Friday 4th July). The theme of the day will be to dress as your future self (such as dressing in the career you wish to pursue). The JSC will make some announcements in the coming week about where the fundraising (from a gold coin donation) will go.

Hosting visiting Japanese students

Thank you to the families who responded to our calls to host visiting students from Japan in August. I am sure this will be a great experience for the students and for your family and we really appreciate you supporting our sister school partnership.

We are still seeking three more host families. If you are interested, please complete this form.

Sibling enrolment reminder

Families are reminded that enrolments are online and open for Foundation 2026

We are using VicStudents, an online system for new enrolments in Victorian government schools.   

To get started

• Visit https://students.educationapps.vic.gov.au/s/ to create an account and complete the online application form by Friday 25 July 2025.  If you would prefer to submit a paper application form, please contact us.
• We will then review the information submitted and be in contact with you between Monday 28 July and Friday 8 August 2025 (for applications submitted by the due date of 25 July 2025).  
• You should accept one enrolment offer by Friday 22 August 2025. When accepting an offer, you will be required to provide additional personal and health information that will be shared with your chosen school.

For more information about enrolling your child into a Victorian government primary school, visit Enrolling in Foundation (Prep). 

Please contact the office if you have any problems or need assistance with the application.

Japanese Intern - request for Host Families

We are still looking for more host families. If interested in hosting Hamada sensei, or would like to find out more information about hosting, then please contact our Japanese Intern coordinator, Ms Jess White at Jessica.white@education.vic.gov.au

Please see more information about Hamada sensei below:

We are kind. We are resilient. We are respectful.