Welcome to the first newsletter of 2026!

Welcome back to school! We hope you had a great holiday filled with fun, relaxation, and plenty of rest. As we begin this new school term, it’s the perfect time to refresh our minds, set new goals, and look forward to exciting learning experiences. Wishing everyone a happy, successful, and inspiring return to school!

On Tuesday and Wednesday this week, our staff participated in essential professional learning, including First Aid, Occupational Health and Safety (OHS), and Child Safety training.

In addition, staff worked collaboratively in teams to strengthen our core purpose, shared goals, and commitment to wellbeing, as well as high-quality teaching and learning. These valuable sessions allowed us to reflect, plan, and align our practices to best support our students and school community. With this strong foundation in place, we are feeling prepared, motivated, and excited to launch into 2026!

Welcome New Staff

We are delighted to welcome several new staff members to our school community next year. Each brings valuable experience, energy and a strong commitment to supporting our students. We look forward to the positive contributions they will make and the fresh perspectives they bring to our team.

Hello everyone!

I’m Miss Liu and I am so excited to be your teacher this year in Grade 3/4! In my spare time, I have a few hobbies that I really love. I enjoy scrapbooking, because it lets me be creative and helps me save special memories.

I also love travelling, especially to Japan.

At home, I have a nearly 2-year-old Groodle named Cookie. He’s super cute, playful, and always keeps me busy. I’m looking forward to a fantastic year together filled with learning, laughter, and growth.

Hi, I’m Gabby!

I’m delighted to join the team at Mount Pleasant Road Primary School next year. I have 2 children named Henry and Hazel. Next year, Hazel will be in 4-year-old kinder and Henry will be in grade 1. My kids keep me very busy and they always make me laugh! I am passionate about teaching and helping students to succeed. I am looking forward to a year of learning with you all.

Some of my favourite things include:

- Weekends at the beach

- Going to the footy (go Hawks!)

- Playing netball with my friends

- Spending time with my nieces and nephews

- Drinking coffee

I’m Miss Teo and I am so excited to be your teacher for the year of 2026. It will be such an amazing year together!

Here is some things about myself:

I am from Singapore and I moved to Australia with my family when I was 5 years old. From then, I have attended school in Melbourne ever since!

Some of my favourite hobbies include:

Reading (I love a good fiction novel that is either from romance, thriller or fantasy)
Dancing ( I have been dancing as a hobby for many years, which started when I was in primary school, and created many of my own choreographies!)
Playing the guitar
Building cute miniature houses from Rolife
I also love watching Korean dramas and Disney movies with my sister. My favourite Korean dramas include Itaewon Class and Crash Landing on You. Some of my Disney favourites are Beauty and the Beast, Ratatouille and Bambi!

Hello, ni hao, apa khabar? 😊 My name is Tannie Wong. I am excited to be joining Mt Pleasant Road Primary School community as the Chinese teacher. I am a passionate Chinese Teacher with over ten years of experience in teaching Mandarin.

Having lived and studied in Malaysia, Taiwan and Melbourne, I’ve developed a deep love for languages and the connections they create between people and cultures. My goal as a teacher is to spark curiosity and joy in learning, not just about language, but about life and the world around us.

When I am not teaching, I love spending time in the garden, planting flower and vegetables, reading and exploring creative ways to bring Chinese language and culture to life for my students.

2026 Teaching Teams

Morning bells and times

The school will open from 8:45 a.m, and students will be supervised in the yard from this time. At 8:55 a.m students will move to their classrooms, where they will unpack their bags and prepare for the day. All students should be settled and ready to begin Morning Circle at 9:00 a.m.

Families needing to drop before 8.45am can use OSH Club, our onsite before and after care program.

Assembly in 2026

In 2026, we will be running fortnightly assemblies, alternating between Junior and Senior school. Please refer to Compass for the full schedule and specific dates of these assemblies.

In addition to the fortnightly program, we will hold a whole school assembly on the last day of each term or for special occasions.

Twilight Sports BBQ Volunteer Co-ordinator

We are excited to be preparing for our Twilight Sports on March 6th! Each year, our P&F and wonderful parent volunteers come together to run a BBQ for the school community, creating a fun and welcoming atmosphere for everyone to enjoy. At the moment, we do not have a P&F co-ordinator or a volunteer to lead and organise a larger group of volunteers to help run the BBQ on the night. This support is essential to ensure we can run the BBQ and feed our community. If you are able to help in any way or would like more information, please contact Claudia. Your support would be greatly appreciated by our whole school community.

Weekly Wrap Up

It was a short week for students in Grades 1 to 6 as we eased back into the school routine so seamlesly. Next week, we are excited to welcome our Foundation students, who will be starting full time from Wednesday. We look forward to having them join the rest of the school community as they settle into their classrooms, build confidence, and begin their learning journey. It will be wonderful to see our school filled with all students together.

See you next week.

Claudia

First Steps Centre

Kinder News