A message from Tami -Jo

Whilst it has been cold and wet at times, our students have had a great term so far. There have been a number of sporting events throughout the term with School Athletics Carnivals and divisional events; Year 7 Camp; incursions and excursions in many year levels such as Project Rocket and visiting the Melbourne Museum and Scienceworks; as well as some whole school acknowledgments such as National Sorry Day.

The staff have been focussing on assessment and reporting; moderating assessments/marks/progression points with each other, following up with students and writing reports. The secondary students have had their first exam period of the year.

It has been so busy and there is still so much more to come.

Expectations at School

As we work together to create a safe, respectful and high-achieving school environment, we ask for your continued support with a few key areas that are essential to student success. We need to work together as a partnership to ensure the success of our students.

We have a clear mobile phone ban during school hours to minimise distractions and promote focused learning. Please support this policy by ensuring your child knows phones must be off and away in their lockers from the moment they enter the school yard until they leave.

Our mobile phone ban during school hours plays a key role in creating a calm, respectful and focused learning environment. By removing phones from the classroom and playground, we significantly reduce incidents of:

Bullying and online conflict that often starts or escalates through messaging apps and social media
Filming of fights or inappropriate behaviour, which can cause lasting harm to students and school culture
Disruptions in learning and social interactions, helping students stay present and connected with each other in healthier ways

Your encouragement at home makes a real difference in helping us maintain a positive, focused school culture. Your support also when mobile phones are confiscated is essential.

Consistent attendance is vital to learning. Every day counts, and arriving on time sets the tone for the whole day. Please continue prioritising attendance and punctuality, and let us know if there are any barriers we can support you with.

We are committed to building a school community grounded in respect. We expect all students to treat staff, classmates, and their families with courtesy and kindness. Likewise, we value your support in reinforcing respectful behaviour at home and in the way we communicate with each other as a school community.

School Survey

The students in Years 4-9 complete the Attitudes to School Survey each year and are asked many questions around how they feel about school from how their teachers and peers are treated; their feelings about bullying; and how their teacher interacts with them. Our data this year shows improvement in many areas however bullying and how the students treat teachers and each other remains a concern.

At school, we spend considerable time teaching and reinforcing expectations around behaviour, how to treat others with kindness and respect, how to seek help when needed, and how to respond to situations involving undesirable or inappropriate behaviour. These lessons are part of our commitment to supporting every child in becoming a confident, respectful, and responsible member of our community.

However, these values begin at home. Long before children arrive at school, they have already learned to say “please,” “thank you,” “you’re welcome,” and “I’m sorry.” Home is also where they first learn to show sympathy for friends, respect for elders and teachers, and the importance of following rules to keep themselves and others safe.

At school, we build on this foundation, but it is very much a partnership between families and staff. Ongoing conversations at home about how to treat others—even in challenging, difficult, or confronting situations—are vital. Our children will eventually find themselves in workplaces, on the road, or in other public spaces where they will encounter people who are unkind, aggressive, or disrespectful. How they choose to respond in these moments—whether they escalate the situation or defuse it—can have significant consequences.

We need your support at home to make these messages real and meaningful, by discussing and modelling these values and offering real-life examples of why they matter. Together, we can ensure these lessons are not just taught, but lived.

School Values

At the heart of our school values are:

Integrity Doing the right thing—even when no one is watching. Standing up for others and refusing to participate in hurtful or inappropriate behaviour.

Teamwork Being solution-focused and working positively with others, regardless of their opinions, beliefs, or abilities.

Learning Persevering through challenges, being open to new perspectives, solving problems creatively, and embracing a growth mindset.

Respect Treating everyone with dignity and care, listening to others’ viewpoints, and recognising that differences enrich our community. A respectful community is a safe, welcoming, and supportive place for everyone to work and play.

Kindness Showing empathy, offering help without expecting something in return, and contributing to a caring, connected school environment.

When we work together—school, home, and community—we create a safe, happy, and inclusive place where every child can thrive.

We recognise that at times school decisions may challenge individual preferences. However, we ask for your positive partnership in supporting the school’s leadership and decisions, especially in front of your children. A united front between home and school builds trust, reinforces expectations, and ultimately benefits every child.

We deeply value your partnership in your child’s education. Working together is how we can best support our students to have a safe and productive learning environment.

Changes to Student Reports in 2025

We would like to inform families about some important changes to our student reporting system that will begin this year.

Our school is moving to two formal academic reports per year — one at the end of each semester. These reports will replace the previous system, which focused more on learning goals and individual achievement tracking throughout the year.

This change aligns with updates to the Victorian Curriculum, which have altered how student progress is measured and reported.

What this means for families:

You may notice differences in progression points between 2024 and 2025 reports. This is due to changes in the curriculum structure and does not necessarily reflect a drop or jump in achievement, but rather a shift in how learning is assessed.
In Mathematics, for example, reporting used to be broken down into multiple strands (e.g. Number, Measurement, Statistics). Under the revised curriculum, there is now only one overall progression point for Mathematics, meaning your child will receive one score representing their overall progress in this subject.
This change also means that you will no longer see a visual representation of growth in Mathematics from 2024 to 2025, as the new structure does not allow for a direct comparison. We are unsure of what this looks like in English and are investigating it currently with Compass.

We understand that changes like these may raise questions, and we’re committed to supporting you in understanding what your child’s report means. Teachers will continue to provide clear feedback and will be happy to discuss your child’s progress with you in more detail during interviews or upon request.

Thank you for your ongoing support as we continue to align our teaching and reporting with the updated Victorian Curriculum.

Suspension and Expulsion Policy

Our school is committed to providing a safe, respectful and inclusive environment for all students and staff. You may be aware of recent changes announced to suspension and expulsion powers that will be available to Victorian principals from day one of Term 3, (Monday 21 July 2025).

We know that students’ behaviour outside of school, particularly online, can sometimes impact the safety of students and staff at school.

In exceptional circumstances, principals of Victorian government schools will be able suspend or expel students for behaviour that occurs outside of school grounds and/or hours including online, if it poses a significant danger to the safety and wellbeing of students or staff.

These powers apply only to serious incidents where there is a clear and close connection to the school and the behaviour of a student outside of school unreasonably impacts the safety and wellbeing of students or staff at school, and their ability to learn or work. Please note: 

· They do not apply to behaviours unrelated to the school or school community.

· They only apply to behaviour which occurs from Monday 21 July 2025 onwards.

Please note that this does not mean that schools will police what occurs outside of school.

Suspension and expulsion will remain measures of last resort – our primary approach continues to focus on proactive and positive behaviour support, including working with you to teach students the behaviours we expect of them, in school and in life.

5/6 Athletics Carnival

A huge congratulations to the Year 5/6 and PE teams for their amazing work with the 5/6 Athletics Carnival.

Celebrations of Learning

As part of the commitment to our partnership, we hope that you will join us for the Celebration of Learning at the end of term.

We warmly invite parents and carers to our upcoming Celebration of Learning event, where students in Years 7, 8, and 9 will showcase their learning achievements from across the curriculum.

This event will take the form of a gallery walk through the Ngargna Building, beginning in the Art Room and concluding in room N7. Families will have the opportunity to view student displays and projects from a variety of subjects, gaining insight into the rich learning experiences taking place throughout the year.

Schedule:

Year 8 – Monday 16th of June, 2:00pm–2:45pm
Year 7 – Tuesday 17th of June, 2:00pm–2:45pm
Year 9 – Wednesday 18th of June, 2:00pm–2:45pm

We look forward to celebrating our students’ creativity, effort, and progress with you!

In the primary space, the students will showcase their work in their classrooms. Please join with us to show the students how much we value their work. It also sends a message to them that you want to sit down with them and discuss their learning, progress, strengths and improvements with them.

Our Primary Celebrations of Learning are:

Prep- Tuesday 24th June 2.30pm

Year 1- Monday 23rd June 2.30pm

Year 2- Tuesday 24th June 2.30pm

Year 3- Tuesday July 1st 2.30pm

Year 4- Tuesday July 1st 2.30pm

Year 5- Tuesday July 1st 2.30pm

Year 6- Wednesday 2nd July 2.30pm

I hope that the rest of the term proceeds well. We look forward to seeing you soon