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.

Welcome to 2024!

A huge warm welcome to the 2024 school year to all the students, parents, grandparents and everyone in our Kalinda community. 

It has been a great start to the school year with students being highly engaged with our 2024 Blast Off Program in the classrooms. This start-of-the-year program provides a great opportunity for teachers and their classes to work collaboratively together on the norms within the classroom, such as how we treat one another, the effort we put into our work, and the resilience we aim to show when challenged. Building strong relationships between students and between students and staff underpins all the learning that will happen throughout the year.

We are particularly proud of how our Foundation students have begun the year. They have settled into the year really well, started building great friendships with one another, and seem to be really enjoying the beginning of their learning journey.

Toilet Upgrade

We are very pleased to advise that the major upgrade to our student toilets was successfully undertaken over the recent school holidays, with some finishing touches to be completed this week.

Working within the existing spaces, both blocks have been upgraded with all new fixtures and fittings, providing respectful spaces for the well-being of all students. Incorporated into the upgrade is an additional separate stand-alone accessible toilet and an upgrade to the existing toilets.

All students are now enjoying the benefits of the improvements, with much lighter, brighter, and more modern amenities, including upgraded ventilation. We are receiving very positive feedback from students and the school community. We are delighted with the response and thrilled that we have been able to provide this huge improvement to our school, making our student toilets a safe and welcoming environment for all.

Canteen

Last week I was advised that Jess Crea will be unable to continue in her role in the canteen this year.  I would like to give Jess a huge thank you for the great job she did in the canteen last year.

As such, we ask that if anyone in our school community (or someone you know outside of our community) is interested in this role. The role of Canteen Manager is a casual paid position and we are open to being flexible about the hours and days worked in this position. 

If interested in this role, please contact me via email at shaun.mcclare@education.vic.gov.au

In the meantime, we will be planning a sushi day, a baked potato day and hot cross bun sales later in the term.

Icy Poles

For the last few years, icy-pole sales on Friday afternoons in Term 1 and 4 have contributed towards the funds for the Year 6 Graduation. This has ensured that the Graduation is both a wonderful and low-cost event that is accessible for 100% of students.

In previous years the P&F has organised these sales, along with Year 6 students who help out. From this year we are asking for some members of our 2024 Graduation Committee to be in charge of this. Our P&F is already very busy with some major event planning for 2024.

If your child is in Year 6 this year  and you are interested in helping to co-ordinate these sales, or just to come along and help the students with this task, then please contact the school at kalinda.ps@education.vic.gov.au

Drop-off and pick-up times and car park safety

Just a friendly reminder that students are not allowed to be dropped off before 8:45 am or picked up from school after 3:45 pm on school days. If you are not able to manage this, then we ask that you book your children in at TheirCare.

I would also like to remind all families that the car park and driveway are only to be entered by cars of staff and parents with a valid accessible parking permit. If you do have a permit, we ask that you respect our carpark speed limit of 10 Km/hr to ensure the safety of all students and their families. 

Enrolling at Kalinda for 2025

School tours for 2025 Foundation enrolments will begin towards the end of this term. We will provide more information closer to that time. In the meantime, if you are interested in expressing your interest in enrolling at Kalinda or taking a tour, please contact us to leave your details with the office. We can be contacted at kalinda.ps@education.vic.gov.au or 03 9876 3289

Shaun McClare,

Principal 

Kalinda Primary School

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