Principal's Message
From the Principal
Welcome to the 2026 School Year
Welcome to the 2026 school year. To the families returning to Hamilton (Gray Street) Primary School, it has been wonderful to see your familiar faces back at school this week. To those families joining us for the first time, thank you for choosing Gray Street as the place for your child’s educational journey. I would also like to extend a special welcome to families who are new to the Gray Street community. I hope you find our school to be a place where friendships are formed and where your child receives the support they need in their personal and learning development. At Gray Street we are proud of the high quality teaching and learning that is provided by our caring and passionate staff. We are also proud of the kind and inclusive way our students learn and play together.
At Gray Street, we value the strong relationships we share with our families and the partnership we have with you in supporting your child’s learning and development. These partnerships are strengthened through open and transparent communication. I encourage parents and carers to contact their child’s classroom teacher at any time throughout the year if questions or concerns arise. The classroom teacher is your first point of reference with any queries or concerns as they are the person your child will see each day in the school year ahead.
Thank you to all families who made time this week to bring your child in for their check-in chat and assessment time. Staff consistently commented on what a positive start this provided to the school year. These sessions allowed valuable time for staff to get to know your child, and for students to meet classmates and develop a sense of belonging in their 2026 classroom. We hope this ‘soft start’ helped your child feel confident and settled as they began their first full day today, and excited about the opportunities the year ahead will bring.
A great start to Foundation
Our Foundation students had a wonderful and exciting start to the year on Thursday. It was a pleasure to see how well they have settled into the school day. A reflection of the great work done by our amazing Prep Team, including the thoughtful welcome Facebook post they shared the night before to help settle any night before nerves. I also extend our thanks to the supportive and encouraging conversations had by parents in the lead up to the day. The messages you instil in your child about school, learning and friendships all have a significant impact. A reminder that as part of our approach to supporting a smooth transition into school, Foundation students will have rest days on Wednesdays throughout February. These rest days are important as our youngest learners build their stamina and adjust to the demands of a full school day.
Year 6 Leadership Development Day
For the first time this year, we launched the school year with a Year 6 Leadership Development Day as a strategy to provide our student leaders with a strong foundation for the year ahead. Throughout the day, our Year 6 leaders identified their character strengths, developed some clarity of their leadership roles and responsibilities, and began planning the actions and commitments they will undertake in their leadership positions this year. A highlight of the day was a special interactive session with Master Mukhtar from Palace Martial Arts. Muhktar worked with students to explore the importance of leadership mindset, resilience, and positive decision-making. His session encouraged students to think deeply about what it means to lead with confidence, respect, and integrity. An added highlight was the opportunity for our Year 6 students to spend time with their Foundation buddies, helping to strengthen connections and model leadership through care and responsibility. We look forward to seeing our Year 6 leaders grow into their roles and make a positive impact across our school community throughout the year.
SCHOOL COUNCIL
The first School Council meeting for the year will be held on Wednesday February 18th. This will be the final meeting for our current Council. Information about the 2026 School Council election process will be shared via XUNO in the coming weeks. This year there will be four vacancies becoming available for parents in our community to join our School Council this year, although there are always opportunities to contribute in other ways such as assisting with the fundraising events.
Beginning of Day – Drop-Off Times
The school yard is supervised by staff from 8:35am each morning. We ask that parents and carers do not drop children off before this time, as supervision is not available. From 8:35am–8:50am, students are encouraged to spend time in the yard playing and catching up with friends before the start of the school day. The 8:50am bell signals that students may enter their classrooms and organise their belongings, ready for learning to
commence at 9:00am.
End of Day – Pick-Up Times
At the end of the school day, staff supervise the Drop and Go zones along Kennedy Street, at both the French Street (garden end) and Gray Street end of the school. Please ensure your child clearly understands where they will be picked up and what your pick-up arrangements are. Our expectation is that all students leave the school grounds safely and are collected by their caregiver.
Students are NOT to remain playing in the yard after dismissal without parent/carer supervision. Parents are very welcome to stay and chat with other families once they have collected their child. Our playground is a wonderful space to build connections with other families and to support children in developing friendships.
Attendance
Regular school attendance is important as it supports consistency in learning and the development of friendships. We understand, however, that there will be times when children are absent due to illness or family circumstances. Please notify the school of your child’s absence via Xuno or by contacting the school office.
Classroom teachers mark student attendance at 9:00am each morning. If your child is absent without reason, parents and carers will receive a notification via Xuno. If you receive this notification, please update your child's absence on XUNO or contact the office.
If your child arrives late, please ensure they enter the school via the office to collect a “Good Morning” smiley face, allowing our Administration staff to update the attendance roll accordingly.
Communication with Families
XUNO will remain our main platform for sharing key information with families, including important updates and upcoming events. Through XUNO, parents and carers can also send and receive messages directly with their child’s teacher.
Our school newsletter will now be published monthly and will primarily focus on reflections, celebrations, and highlights from the previous month. The next newsletter will be published on the last Friday in February, Friday 27th.
You may have also noticed we have started improving our use of our Facebook and Instagram page. This will be a platform where families will begin to see more regular sharing of learning, events, and the many wonderful happenings across our school community.