The Moorabbin Primary School Community touch the land and think of the Bunurong People and surrounding Clans of the Kulin Nation who cared for the land before us.

We share our gratitude to their Elders past, present and emerging.

As we touch this land, we promise to treasure it, taking care of all its people,

animals, plants and waterways.

We at Moorabbin Primary School appreciate this land.

Dear parents and carers,

Welcome to the 2026 school year!

We are excited to begin another year of learning, growth, and connection, and we are so glad to have you as part of our school community. Our school is a place where students are encouraged to be curious, confident, and kind. This year, we look forward to building strong partnerships between home and school, knowing that collaboration with families is essential to student success.

Together, we will support every child academically, socially, and emotionally as they explore new ideas and reach new milestones. I have been extremely proud of the way the students have settled back into school routine this week. They have engaged well with their learning and are connecting harmoniously with their peers.

Our new Foundation students did an amazing job on their first day at school, showing their confidence and excitement about starting their first year at primary school. Our grade 5 Big Buddies deserve a special mention for their wonderful work helping the Foundation children to settle so comfortably into their first year of school and for the great job that they are doing during recess and lunch play ensuring all our new students are happy and have someone to play with.

I formally invite everyone to attend our first assembly for 2026 with a traditional smoking ceremony and welcome to country with Jaeden Williams a prominent member of the Boonwurrung People, we hope to hold this assembly outside on Thursday afternoon at 2.45pm (weather dependent). If the weather is not conducive for us to hold our assembly outside, we will pivot into the Gym.

Assemblies will then continue to be held every Thursday afternoon starting at 3pm each and you are always welcome to come along. We will start our assemblies next week. Throughout the year, the newsletter will keep you informed about important dates, upcoming events, classroom highlights, and ways to get involved.

We encourage you to stay connected, ask questions, and share in the many moments—big and small—that make our school such a special place, this year our newsletters will be sent out electronically via COMPASS every fortnight. It will also be published through the school website. You will receive a notification on COMPASS when the newsletter is uploaded.

Please always take the time to read the newsletter. It keeps you in touch with what has happened at school during the week, gives information about upcoming events and deals with other items of school administration. We try to make the newsletter as informative and interesting as we can. This week’s newsletter is quite large as it contains a lot of important information about school procedures.

Over this fortnight, the rest of our Grade 6 students and 2 student reps from each class will take part in the class elections that decide the remainder of our leadership roles for 2026. However, all Grade 6 students are considered school leaders.

One of the most important ways families can support learning is by ensuring students attend school regularly. Being at school every day helps students stay connected to their teachers and peers, build strong routines, and make the most of learning opportunities. We encourage families to prioritise attendance and punctuality, as even small absences can add up and impact progress over time.

Thank you for trusting us with your children and for being an active part of our community. We look forward to a positive, productive, and rewarding year ahead. Wishing you a wonderful start to the 2026 school year!

Noxia Angelides

Principal

Eudoxia.Angelides@education.vic.gov.au

IMPORTANT INFORMATION FOR THE START OF THE YEAR

PAYMENTS TO THE SCHOOL

Thank you to the families who have already paid this year’s curriculum contributions. School statements will be sent home in the next few weeks. Please note that the School Savings Bonus was a once-off payment in 2025. Any remaining balance has been carried forward and will appear as a credit on your account. If you need to arrange a payment plan, please call into the school office and we will be happy to assist.

Contributions and other voluntary contributions continue to provide support for our specialty subjects, our school speech therapist, our school counsellor, our learning enhancement Tutors in extension and intervention. Your contribution would be greatly appreciated.

TAX DEDUCTIBLE If you have nominated to contribute to the building fund, tax receipts will be sent out by the end of term

COMMUNICATION WITH YOUR CHILD’S TEACHER

We welcome feedback when we are doing a good job and when you think there is something that might need improving. If there is a classroom problem, please talk first to your child’s teacher. (The staff emails were sent to each class last week along with this terms timetable). If you are sending staff an email, please allow 24 hours for a response, unless it is an emergency of course! If the problem is not resolved, or you wish to discuss this matter or any matter please speak to me. The feedback policy is on our school website if you need extra information

IMPORTANT INFORMATION ABOUT OUR SCHOOL FOR OUR NEW PARENTS AND A FEW REMINDERS FOR EVERYONE

School Starting and Finishing Times

School starts at 9:00 am every morning and finishes at 3:30 pm each afternoon. If a child arrives after 9:30 am they will be marked as absent for the morning session. It is important that all children are at school by 9:00 am every day ready to learn.

Yard Supervision

We have staff on supervision duty in the yard between 8:45 am and 9:00 am each morning and 3:30 pm and 3:45 pm each afternoon.

No children should arrive at school prior to 8:45 am, as the gates will be locked and they will not be able to access the school yard.

At the end of the day, any children who have not been picked up will have to go to the office and the office staff will ring their parents. Children who have not been picked up at the Junior School will be walked to the office.

We also have four staff on supervision duty at both the recess and lunch breaks each day. The teachers will be wearing BLUE fluoro vests so that they are easy for the children to see. Each staff member carries a first aid bag with them when they are on duty. This allows them to provide basic first aid for any minor cuts or abrasions. If a child is injured and requires more than a clean and a band aid they are sent to the sickbay where a staff member will administer the appropriate first aid. Parents will be contacted if required.

No Smoking, Vapes, or Dogs Permitted in the School Yards

We ask that all parents abide by the rules at all times.

SCHOOL UNIFORM

Our school uniform is a mostly colour-based uniform and as such the only requirement is that it is royal blue. At MPS families can either purchase uniform through the SPARTAN or they can purchase items from stores such as Kmart or Target. The only piece of uniform with a school logo on it is the polo and Jacket.

Items that are not school uniform include:

coloured long sleeve tops worn under short sleeve polos or dresses
windcheaters that have any logos other than our school logo on them.
Patterned tights or patterned knee length socks.
Black bike shorts

Children are encouraged to wear comfortable shoes. We recommend they wear runners on days that they have sport or PE. No open toed shoes are permitted.

All children, regardless of their gender, who have shoulder length hair or longer, should have it tied back. No children are permitted to wear makeup and fake nails.

SECOND HAND UNIFORM

Thank you to all of the families who have donated uniforms that they no longer require. If you have any uniform (small sizes) that are in good condition, please send them to school and we will endeavour to pass it on to our second-hand volunteers who are running the stall on these dates. See below:

-Monday 2nd March

-Tuesday 24th Mar (accepting house-coloured items for Athletics day)

WEATHER

As is typical with Melbourne, we have experienced a range of weather conditions this summer. When it is hot we endeavour to keep the children as comfortable as possible. We have air-conditioners in every room to keep everyone cool. We encourage every child to bring a drink bottle full of cold water to school each day. The children are permitted to have a drink bottle with a pop-top lid, which must contain water, with them during teaching times to ensure they stay adequately hydrated.

Depending on the temperature, we vary the amount of time the children spend outside during their break times, when it reaches 32°C the school instigates an “extreme weather timetable”. When it is raining or in extreme heat, the children stay inside and are able to do indoor activities of their choice.

SHARING INFORMATION WITH YOUR CHILD’S TEACHER

From time to time, parents have information that they want to share or discuss with their child’s teacher.

If this is the case, you can

email your child’s teacher through Compass or their email address of which you now have
chat with them after school
make an appointment to meet with them if it something that might require more than a quick chat
call them however please be mindful that although the teachers do have access to the phone it can be difficult to talk to them throughout the day. We suggest you call before or after school.

CCTV CAMERAS

The school has CCTV cameras installed on all sides of each building. The cameras were installed with the approval of the Department of Education (DE) and as part of the new build that we completed late last year.

All of the cameras are located on the external parts of the school buildings. There are NO cameras inside any of the buildings.

Mobile Phones/smart watches and electronic devices

All government schools are required to have a policy that complies with the DE policy on internet connected devices, including mobile phones, iPads, and smart watches.

Our policy is on our school website so could all parents please ensure they read the policy. Please be aware that children are not permitted to wear smart watches that have an internet connection to school and must be handed in each morning.

The School and the DE take no responsibility for any lost, stolen, or damaged mobile phones, smart watches, or iPads.

MEDICAL ISSUES

We currently have many students in the school who have medical conditions, including Asthma, Anaphylaxis, Diabetes etc.

It is vital that we have current management plans and medication for every child who has a medical issue.

All Anaphylaxis plans need to be signed by a doctor and parents to verify the information is correct and that we have permission to administer an EpiPen if we need to. From time to time, children’s plans change so it is important that the school is kept updated on any changes.

Each staff member has Level 2 First Aid, Asthma, CPR and Anaphylaxis training. A number of staff also have Level 2 First Aid qualifications.

NO SHARING FOOD

As we have students who have various allergies it is important that children do not share food at any time. Medical advice does not recommend banning foods as the children have to learn to manage their allergies. We ask that parents discuss the importance of not sharing food with their friends.

PERSONAL DETAILS

Have you changed your phone number, address, workplace or emergency contacts? If the answer is yes, have you informed the school? It is essential that we have current details for every student.

If we need to contact parents, it can be very frustrating when our information is not correct. If you need to update any of your details, you can do so on Compass or email us at moorabbin.ps@education.vic.gov.au

SCHOOLS' PRIVACY POLICY

Click on the link below which explains how Victorian government schools collect and manage personal and health information.

Schools' privacy policy | vic.gov.au

ACCIDENT INSURANCE

Moorabbin Primary and the DE do not have accident insurance for students and as such if a child is injured at school parents are not covered for any out-of-pocket expenses including, doctor, hospital or ambulance bills. Parents need to arrange their own insurance.

Parents, please be aware that if your child in injured, is having an asthma attack or if we believe they are in any medical emergency, we will always err on the side of caution and call an ambulance. If the ambulance takes the child to hospital, parents are responsible for the costs incurred.

PERSONAL BELONGINGS

If children bring expensive items to school, including balls or toys, they do so at parents' own risk. If there is any damage to them, or they are lost or stolen, the school does not accept any responsibility. DE does not have insurance to cover teacher or student personal belongings.

Parents, please ensure you are aware of what of your child is bringing to school. All items brought to school must be clearly named. The school does not recommend children bring any expensive or treasured items to school.

SUNSMART

Children need to ensure they come to school each day prepared for the heat of the summer days. They MUST bring their hat to school EVERY day as we have a “No Hat no Play” rule that we enforce from 01 September to 30 April.

We have recently updated our SunSmart Policy in line with the Cancer Council SunSmart Schools Program and students are now required to wear a hat on days when the UV factor is at 6 or above.

This new rule means that there will be days in Terms 2 and 3 when the children will be required to wear their hat. We suggest that the children have their hat in their bag every day.

Students must wear a school hat. Baseball hats are not permitted.

Noxia Angelides

Principal

P & F NEWS