Principal's Report

Indigenous Literacy Foundation Fundraiser

On Friday 16th October, the Year 1s and 2s sang the 2026 Busking For Change song and raised money for the Indigenous Literacy Foundation (ILF).  Nine classes performed together and sang the song, "Minyan Ngabangka". It described the life of the Indigenous community of Brewarrina, NSW and their connection to the river. Many students wore goggles to represent the fun of swimming in the river and donated a gold coin to the ILF. Together we raised $139 which will go towards creating and purchasing books in their own languages for remote Indigenous communities around Australia. Congratulations to all the wonderful singers and to Alison for organising such a wonderful event!

World Teachers' Day

This Friday marks World Teachers' Day, an opportunity to recognise and celebrate the incredible work of our teachers and staff.

At Hampton Primary School, we'll be celebrating a little early on Thursday with some special activities. Many of our staff will be welcoming a special visitor into their classroom or workplace for the morning, giving someone important in their lives the opportunity to see firsthand what they do each day. It's a lovely way to bring together their personal and professional worlds and share a little of what makes working in a school so special.

World Teachers' Day is also a wonderful opportunity for our community to acknowledge the dedication, care and commitment of our staff. If you have a moment this week, I encourage you to say a simple thank you to a teacher or staff member who has made a difference to your child. I know many of you already do this so generously and regularly, and those small gestures are always appreciated.

Our staff are at the heart of what makes Hampton Primary School such a wonderful place to learn and grow, and I'm incredibly grateful for everything they contribute to our school community.

2027 Class Placement Process

At this time each year, we outline our class placement process for the following year, consistent with our Class Placement Policy. Placing students into classes is a complex and important process, and one that our teachers approach with considerable care and thought.

Our priority is to create balanced classes that support the learning, wellbeing and social development of all students.

Teacher Considerations

Our teachers begin by considering a range of information about each student, including:

• Academic ability
• Learning behaviours
• Additional learning needs
• English as an Additional Language (EAL)

This information helps us establish balanced classes that cater for the diverse needs of our students.

Who Do You Work Well With?

During Week 6 of this term, students will be asked to nominate four other students in their year level who they work well with.

You'll notice that we deliberately use the phrase 'work well with' rather than 'friends'. While friendships are certainly important, we know that students don't always work most effectively alongside their closest friends. Our focus is on establishing positive educational relationships that support learning.

There are a few important things to understand about this process:

• Students will be placed with at least one of the four peers they nominate.
• There is no preference given to the order in which students are listed. Being nominated first or fourth makes no difference.
• Gender and current class groupings do not influence these nominations.
• On very rare occasions, we may be unable to accommodate a nomination. If this occurs, we will contact the family to discuss it.

I encourage families to have a conversation with their children about what makes someone a good learning partner. Our teachers will also guide students through this discussion before nominations are completed.

Parent Requests

As outlined in our Class Placement Policy, we do not accept requests for particular teachers.

In an extremely limited number of circumstances, families may wish to raise an educational, health or wellbeing reason for their child to be specifically paired with, or separated from, another student.

Examples may include:

• A student with additional needs who benefits from established, positive peer relationships that support their learning and wellbeing.
• A student who has experienced ongoing, targeted incidents involving another student that have negatively impacted their learning or wellbeing.

These requests must relate to a specific educational, health or wellbeing need rather than general friendship preferences.

If you believe your child meets these criteria, requests must be:

• Emailed to hampton.ps@education.vic.gov.au
• Addressed to the Principal, with the subject line 'Class Placement'
• Received by close of business Friday 6 November 2026

No late requests will be considered, including requests made during or after our transition sessions, which commence in mid-November. Please also note that transition groupings are not indicative of final class placements.

I want to emphasise that I expect very few, if any, requests from families. Our teachers know their students exceptionally well, and I have every confidence in their professional judgement and the considerable thought they put into this process.

We appreciate your trust and support as we work to create positive, balanced learning environments for all students in 2027.

Parent Contributions 2027

Information regarding parent contributions and booklists for 2027 will be sent to families by the end of next week.

Golf Day Success!

What a fantastic result from our recent Hampton Primary School Golf Day, with 100 players participating and over $8,000 raised, almost three times last year's total!

The feedback was overwhelmingly positive, and it was wonderful to see such strong support from our school community.

A huge thank you to Tom Archer, Chris Bauer, Melissa Cajili and Amy Taylor for their incredible efforts in organising the event, along with our Parents' Association for their support behind the scenes. Carlo Cajili, who coordinated the entire event again this year has done a magnificent job, and we are incredibly grateful for the time, energy and expertise he gave and continues to give. 

We're also extremely grateful to our major sponsors, Brad Kelleher and GC Built, for their generous financial contribution, and Innes Ireland and The House of Golf Mentone for donating almost $7,000 worth of vouchers and prizes.

Thank you to everyone who participated or contributed to making the day such a success!