From the Principal 

Welcome back to 2026

It has been wonderful to see so many smiling faces back to start the 2026 school year. Students have settled beautifully into their new classes and during the visits we have made to each class, we have enjoyed seeing well organised and engaged groups of students. Thank you to all the parents and carers who have prepared their children so well for school this year. Thank you to our amazing staff who have established such warm, engaging and stimulating learning environments throughout the school. A special welcome to our new families and students. We know you will quickly become part of our positive school community. 

We would also like to welcome our new staff, who have worked hard to transition to our great school. A strength of Camelot Rise Primary School is our people, and our whole-school practices deliver a guaranteed curriculum for all our students. It has been this invisible work of setting up dynamic classroom environments and planning together that has contributed to such a smooth start for the students.

Thank you to all the dedicated staff that spent many hours at home and school over the holidays preparing their resources and classrooms for the start of the school year. We are most fortunate to have such dedicated, professional staff who work collaboratively to ensure the best learning environment for our students.

On behalf of the staff, I would like to welcome all our new and returning families to Camelot Rise Primary School, and we trust that you will enjoy working with us to provide your child with the best possible education.

In 2026 we will continue to produce newsletters on a fortnightly basis, and we will also be communicating with families via Compass. It is extremely important that all families have access to Compass and stay aware of what is happening at school.

Class structure for 2026 

Foundation E: Miss Caroline Eaves

Foundation L: Ms Le-Buu Ly

1MC:  Mrs Mary Katsigiannis (Monday – Wednesday) & Mrs Candice Reinke (Thursday and Friday)

1W: Mrs Sarah Woods

1K: Mrs Karen Watts

2N: Miss Amanda Neary 

2JR: Mrs Peta Rose (Monday - Tuesday) & Mrs Stephanie Johnson (Wednesday - Friday)

3CB: Mrs Michelle Cohen-Beavis 

3KR: Mrs Aggie Kurzak-Reeves

3G: Miss Lauren Gabrielle

4SMrs Julie Shepherd

4J: Miss Ashleigh Jacobs

4F: Mrs Sarah Fortune

5YT: Mr Chris Young (Monday – Wednesday) & Mrs Illana Tusia (Thursday - Friday) 

5B: Mrs Linda Bett 

6C: Miss Jacinta Collier

6A: Mrs Riena Astuti 

Attached to this letter is a map of the school that indicates the location of 2026 classes. 

Specialist Programs for 2026

Administration

Principal:                                                                  Mr Matthew Coney

Assistant Principal:                                              Mr Ben Heys

Mental Health and Wellbeing Leader:          Mrs Tennille Giannopoulos

Acting Learning Specialist:                               Miss Ashleigh Jacobs

Business Manager:                                              Mrs Jessica Fitzsimmons

Student Administration:      Mrs Kerryn Wardle, Mrs Tracy Davidson & Mrs Fiona Schwass

Education Support Staff (Integration Aides/Learning Support)

Mrs Jo Hewett                                           Mr Andy Pullar                                  Mrs Fiona Schwass Mrs Chrissie Sandford-Ricci                Miss Sienna Bett

Mental Health and Wellbeing Leader Role

In 2026 we have appointed Tennille Giannopoulos to the role of Mental Health and Wellbeing Leader.

We will send home information shortly that outlines the purpose of this role and how Tennille will support students and families throughout our school.

The link below will take you to the Department of Education website where you will be able to read more about this role. We are very excited to have Tennille working in this very important role for Camelot Rise Primary School.

Mental Health in Schools : Guidance | VIC.GOV.AU | Policy and Advisory Library

Welcome to our new staff in 2026

In 2026 we would like to welcome and welcome back -

We look forward to introducing these new staff to the students and community at a school assembly early in 2026. 

Camelot Rise Primary School is turning 50!

Save the date – Friday, 20th November 3.30pm – 7.00pm

This year is a very special one for our school as we are turning 50! We are planning a 50th Birthday Celebration on Friday 20th November between 3.30pm – 7.00pm.

There will be lots of information about this exciting event throughout the year but please mark this date in your calendar.

Getting to Know You Interviews

We have set aside time for our very important ‘Getting to Know You Interviews’ on Thursday 5th February. These meetings provide a timely opportunity for our teaching staff to form an effective partnership with each child’s family. Working in partnerships and having consistent expectations between home and school leads to better outcomes for our students. The Interviews are strictly 10 minutes. If families need longer than 10 minutes, then follow-up time should be organised. The bookings for interviews are all made using COMPASS.

Staff Professional Learning

As a school, we are always looking for ways to upskill our staff and maintain the high-quality education we provide at Camelot Rise PS. This year, our staff will work with a highly regarded Educational Consultant, Mardi Gorman. Mardi has worked with our staff in the past, and the feedback and impact on the teachers and, ultimately, student learning outcomes and engagement levels were outstanding. Throughout the year, Mardi will spend time in classrooms, working with teachers and students and providing ongoing professional learning to our staff. We look forward to welcoming Mardi back to Camelot Rise PS.

Home - Mardi Gorman Education Consultancy

School Review

Camelot Rise Primary School will be conducting a School Review in Term Four this year.

• All schools must participate in a school review every 4 years.

• The school review informs the development of the school’s 4-year School Strategic Plan.

• The school reviewer also assesses compliance with the Curriculum and Student Learning Minimum Standard for schools where this assessment is required.

The School review is a key element of the Framework for Improving Student Outcomes (FISO 2.0) improvement cycle.

Schools undertake a school review every 4 years to inform the directions of the school’s 4-year School Strategic Plan (SSP).

There are 2 components of school review:

1. the pre-review self-evaluation (PRSE) where schools review their data and other evidence to form a collective view of current practice and areas for improvement. Schools complete the PRSE on the Strategic Planning Online Tool (SPOT) with the support of their senior education improvement leader (SEIL)

2. a review facilitated by an independent school reviewer with a panel comprising the principal, SEIL and for most schools, the school council president and challenge partners. Further detail on panel composition is provided in the guidance tab. The panel considers the PRSE and undertakes additional review activities such as classroom observations and focus groups. The review concludes with a report that includes the recommended goals, targets and key improvement strategies for the school’s next SSP.

We look forward to participating in this process in 2026 to enable us to celebrate our successes over the last four years and guide us for our future growth in the upcoming four years.

Birthday treats

When celebrating a student’s birthday or other milestones, some parents choose to send something small to school for their child to share with the class. At Camelot Rise Primary School, this is allowable; however, strict parameters must be adhered to for Child Safety, including medical and equity purposes. 

Please note and ensure the following:

• Only individually pre-packaged food, where the ingredients are clearly visible, will be allowed. (A packet of Freddo Frogs or similar is a great option)

or

• A small, inexpensive, non-food party favour such as a fidget toy, pencils etc to take home.

Please note that any items brought to school to share must be:

• Given directly to the child’s class teacher by the parent at the beginning of the day.

• Will be shared with the class at the end of the day by the teacher.

• Taken home by each student to show their parents, who will decide when it may be eaten/played with

Classes often sing ‘Happy Birthday’ to students or teachers on their celebration day. This is a great way to celebrate at school.  However, if you wish to send something for your child’s class, the above requirements must be followed. If you are unsure if the item you wish to send meets the guidelines, please get in touch with the classroom teacher or the school office.

Productive Partnerships

Camelot Rise Primary School staff are looking forward to a productive partnership with you to ensure all children can achieve their highest potential. We recognise that in order to be successful in school, our children need support from both the home and school, knowing that a strong partnership with you will make a great difference in your child’s education. As partners, we share the responsibility for our students’ success. We want you to know that we will do our very best to carry out our responsibilities, and we ask that you guide and support your child’s learning by ensuring:

• Attendance at school daily and arrival on time, ready for the day’s learning experience

• Supporting the school values

• Daily reading to develop a love for literature and to improve critical language skills

• Sharing school experiences with you so that you are aware of your child’s school life

Working and ‘learning together’ we can achieve great results.

Communication

At Camelot Rise Primary School we have a high emphasis on building community and developing the important link between school and home.

Should you need to contact your child/ren’s teacher, an email is the suggested starting point, with this form of communication particularly accessible for working parents who are not able to visit the school and chat before and/or after school. 

When emailing, we ask parents to respectfully give staff sufficient time to respond or to take action as requested, as during school hours we concentrate our efforts on the students. Our teachers and staff are very responsive to parents and careers; however, they are extremely busy each day. For this reason, we ask for emails and phone calls to be kept to a minimum – and not to be an avenue for daily or weekly updates about individual students.

Please remain mindful that teachers are occupied during much of the day. It is very important that teaching staff devote full attention and ‘duty of care’ to our school’s students throughout each school day (noting that some staff are not full time, therefore may need a longer response timeframe depending on working hours and days). 

Additionally, staff are not expected to attend to emails outside of ‘business hours’, during holidays or on weekends. We also have an expectation that all parents and members of the community communicate with staff in a respectful manner at all times. 

Emails are best used when you have a message that does not require a lot of detail and is not urgent; if a message is urgent, please call the school office on 9803 5344. 

Curriculum Days and Teacher Professional Practise Days - Student Free Days 2026

Term 1

• Tuesday 27th January (Mandated day))
• Tuesday 24th February

Term 2

• Thursday 30th April 

Term 3

• Friday, 4th September

Term 4

• Monday, 2rd November 

All of the dates listed above are Student Free days at Camelot Rise Primary School. We will advise the community if Camp Australia will be able to provide a service on these days. Reminders of these dates will be sent out throughout the year.

School Assemblies

In 2026 we will continue to hold our school assemblies on a fortnightly basis. The rationale behind this decision is to allow teachers to spend more time with their classes and enable them to complete weekly ‘Wellbeing’ sessions. 

All students will still have the opportunity to be presented with a ‘Student of the Week’ award and be involved in a class performance throughout the year.

Assemblies will commence at 2.45pm until approximately 3.15pm.

Each class / specialist teacher will now present two awards at each assembly. Student Leaders will continue to read out the names of the students accepting the award (but not the reasons as to why they were selected – this will be discussed back in the classroom). Students will come forward and collect their award and stand proudly in front of their peers and school community.

At each assembly we will still have children presenting a song, dance, class presentation, student and teacher announcements etc. 

During non-assembly weeks the Year 6 Student Leaders will be working with a Year 6 teacher on their leadership roles across the school. This may include making news reports or mini movies about the school activities in the Green Room. These items will then be shared at the assembly the following week.

Our first school assembly for 2026 will be Friday, 6th February.

Information Nights

We were thrilled with the attendance at our Parent Information Nights during the first week of the year. It was great that parents were able to listen to the teachers talk about the upcoming year ahead and parents had the opportunity to ask questions. The presentations that were used by staff on the night have been sent home to families via Compass and are displayed on our school website for future reference.

Thanks to the teaching staff for leading these sessions.

'We are Learning' Boards

Each term our teachers carefully plan what the students will be learning in all curriculum areas for the upcoming term. This is based on the Victorian Curriculum. The Victorian Curriculum F–10 sets out what every student should learn during their first eleven years of schooling. The curriculum is the common set of knowledge and skills required by students for life-long learning, social development and active and informed citizenship.

The Victorian Curriculum F–10 incorporates the Australian Curriculum and reflects Victorian priorities and standards.

Our staff carefully plan the content of what is taught based on the learning needs of the students, prior knowledge and student interests. The planning documents our teachers produce form part of our ‘We are Learning’ Board that is displayed in the foyer of our school.

We invite parents to look at our ‘We are Learning’ board that clearly articulates exactly what is being taught in all class and specialist classes this term. The class and specialist teachers have prepared this information. As a parent it is invaluable to know what is taught at school so you can assist and support your child / children at home. This information will be updated each term. Thanks to all the teachers for the amazing amount of work they have put into this display!

We encourage all parents to look at this board and see what exciting learning adventures your child has to look forward to this term.

All of these ‘We are Learning documents’ will be sent out to all families via Compass by the end of Week Two each term.

Welcome to our New Foundation (Prep) Students

We are thrilled with the way our 2026 Foundation (Prep) students have settled into schooling life. It was a pleasure to see so many smiling faces. I would like to thank Caroline Eaves, and Le-Buu Ly who have created wonderfully attractive classrooms for these students and the look of excitement on the student faces was priceless.

Supervision of Students in the Playground Before and After School

To ensure that students are appropriately supervised, we ask that students arrive at school after 8.45am each morning.  If you elect to send your child/ren to school prior to 8.45am, it is important that you understand that they cannot be supervised until the school gates are open and yard duty teachers begin their assigned duty from 8.45am.  Similarly, at the end of the school day, the school will ensure the appropriate supervision of all students until 3.45pm and after this time it is the responsibility of parents to collect/supervise their children. Any children not collected after this time will be sent to our After School Program.

We strongly encourage all families to register for Camp Australia (there is no cost to do this) as there might be a time when your child will need to access this service.

Why do Students do NAPLAN?

The National Assessment Program – Literacy and Numeracy (NAPLAN) is a literacy and numeracy assessment that students in Years 3, 5, 7 and 9 sit each year. It is the only national assessment all Australian students have the opportunity to undertake. As students’ progress through their school years, it is important to check how well they are learning the essential skills of reading, writing and numeracy. NAPLAN assesses the literacy and numeracy skills that students are learning through the school curriculum and allows parents and carers to see how their child is progressing against national proficiency standards. 

NAPLAN is just one aspect of a school’s assessment and reporting process. It does not replace ongoing assessments made by teachers about student performance, but it can provide teachers with more information about students’ educational progress. NAPLAN also provides schools, education authorities and governments with information about how education programs are working, and whether young Australians are achieving important educational outcomes in literacy and numeracy.

Your Child will do the NAPLAN tests online

Online NAPLAN tests are designed to provide precise results and are engaging for students. The tests are tailored (or adaptive), which means that each test presents questions that may be more or less difficult depending on a student’s responses. This helps students remain engaged with the assessment. 

Tailored testing allows a wider range of student abilities to be assessed and measures student achievement more precisely. A student’s overall NAPLAN result is based on both the number and complexity of questions they answer correctly. Your child should not be concerned if they find questions challenging; they may be taking a more complex test pathway. 

All Year 3 students will continue to complete the writing assessment on paper.

What does NAPLAN assess?

NAPLAN assesses literacy and numeracy skills that students are learning through their regular school curriculum. Students sit assessments in writing, reading, conventions of language (spelling, grammar and punctuation) and numeracy. The questions assess content aligned to the Australian Curriculum: English and Mathematics. 

To find out more about NAPLAN, visit nap.edu.au.

What can I do to Support my Child?

Students are not expected to study for NAPLAN. You can support your child by letting them know that NAPLAN is a part of their school program and reminding them to simply do their best. Some explanation of NAPLAN is useful to help students understand and be comfortable with the format of the tests. However, it is not necessary for parents and carers to do this. Teachers will ensure students are familiar with the types of questions in the tests and will provide appropriate support and guidance. 

ACARA does not recommend excessive preparation for NAPLAN or the use of services by coaching providers. See the types of questions and tools available in the online NAPLAN assessments at NAP – Public demonstration site.

Where can I get more information?

For more information about NAPLAN:

• contact your child’s school 
• contact your local test administration authority at nap.edu.au/TAA 
• visit nap.edu.au 

NAPLAN Timetable

The NAPLAN test window starts on Wednesday 11 March 2026 and finishes on Monday 23 March 2026. Schools must schedule the tests as soon as possible within the testing window, prioritising the first week.

Victorian High-Ability Program Primary                                             

 This year, the Student Excellence Program continues to offer various initiatives aimed at supporting government schools in creating a dynamic learning environment and enhancing teacher capacity to nurture and challenge high-ability students. At Camelot Rise Primary School, we are dedicated to fostering the growth of our students academically and socially.

Throughout the year, selected students will have the opportunity to participate in the Victorian High-Ability Program, an initiative coordinated by the Department. This program caters to high-ability students in Years 5 to 8, providing them with access to 10-week online extension and enrichment courses in English and Mathematics. Delivered by Virtual School Victoria, the virtual program aims to expand and enhance students' skills in these key subjects.

The selection process for the Victorian High-Ability Program is overseen by the Department, focusing on students' academic performance. Parents of selected students will receive further details about the program from the school.

Congratulations to the following students who have been selected to participate in the Maths  and English Victorian High-Ability program this term:

Grade 5 – Aran R (Maths) Jasmine L (English)

School Council Elections

During Week One information regarding the 2026 School Council election process was sent to families via Compass. I would encourage any interested parent to contact me for more information. School council is an extremely vital part of the school, and it is from school council feedback that helps inform the future direction of our school. Please look out for this if you think you may be interested in nominating or being nominated for 2026. Information includes a timeline and summary of the role of School Council. 

Student's Mobile Phones and Smart Watches

A reminder that the Department of Education has in place a mobile phone ban that requires students who bring mobiles phones to school to have them switched off and securely put away during school hours.

The department is requiring all schools to ensure this ban is in place and enforced from the start of the school year.

The ban applies equally to all government schools across the state.

This helps ensure that school is a learning environment free from unnecessary distractions and disruptions. 

By ensuring mobile phones are kept away at recess and lunch times, students can interact with each other face-to-face, without the distractions and social pressures that mobile phones can cause.

This also applies to ‘smart’ watches that some of our students have. ‘Smart’ watches have similar capabilities to mobile phones, including the ability to send and receive messages, make phone calls and play games. As such, these watches will also need to be locked up at school. 

If your child brings a phone or smart watch to school, they will need to lock it up during school hours and then collect it back from the safe at the end of the day. If parents need to contact their children with urgent messages, please contact the school and we will ensure the message is passed on. This way our staff are aware of the arrangements.

I ask for the support of all our families, staff and students in continuing to support the implementation of this policy in our school. 

Further information 

Exceptions: For a small number of students with particular health needs, an exception to the policy may be granted. Please contact Matthew Coney or Ben Heys if you would like to discuss this.

Emergencies: In the event of an emergency or if you need to immediately contact your child, I ask that families contact the school office who will pass on a message as required. 

School mobile phone policy: A copy of our school’s local mobile phone policy, which implements the government’s mobile policy in line with our local context, is available here: Camelot Rise Primary | Glen Waverley | Home

Parent support: The Mobile phones in schools webpage provides links to resources for families to help them balance their children’s time using mobile phones.

If you have further questions, please contact the administration office.

Student Leadership Badge Presentations

Our Student Leadership Badge Presentation will be held on Friday 6 February at 2.45pm as part of our school assembly. Mr John Mullahy (MP – Member for Glen Waverley) will be at this assembly to present the badges to our student leaders and talk to all students about leadership. We thank Mr Mullahy for his time to attend this very special assembly for our students and their families.

At this assembly we will be presenting badges to the following students:

• School Captains 
• Sport Captains
• Visual Arts Captains
• Performing Arts Captains
• French Captains
• STEM Captains
• Environment Captains
• Wellbeing Captains
• House Captains (Avalon, Galahad, King Arthur & Chivalry)

We hope to see as many parents as possible attend this assembly.

The Resilience Project

In 2026 Camelot Rise Primary School students and staff will once again be participating in the Resilience Project. In addition to weekly lessons teaching the core values of the Resilience Project of Gratitude, Empathy and Mindfulness, we will also delve into the importance of emotional literacy and connection. 

Your child will also have a Resilience Project diary this year. This diary has daily tasks that can be completed at home to ensure that these skills are being practised at school and at home. 

Camelot Rise Primary School staff will attend a professional learning session with the Resilience Project this term focussing on making authentic connections. We look forward to another successful year implementing this program.

onPsych is available at our School!

Do you find that your child is having emotional or behavioural issues? Are they struggling socially, academically? Camelot Rise Primary School now has an accredited mental health social worker to support your child. 

Tracy Harris is an accredited mental health social worker who specialises in child and adolescent mental health. Their services are provided at the school at NO OUT OF POCKET COST through Medicare bulk billing, NDIS and other services. They will work collaboratively with you, your child, and the teachers to maximise opportunities for positive growth. 

If you believe that this might benefit you child, please contact Ben Heys ben.heys@education.vic.gov.au and request a Parent Pack for further information.

Chinese New Year

Tuesday, 17th February marks the beginning of the 2026 Chinese New Year. I would like to take this opportunity to wish everyone in our community who celebrates this significant event a Happy New Year!

2026 Parent Payments Reminder

Parent payments are an essential source of funds for a school to operate effectively. Without student fees schools would not be able to provide the many programs and resources we provide for the students at Camelot Rise Primary School. We would like to thank the parents that have already made these payments.

Working with Children Checks (WWC)

We encourage and value parental and community support at Camelot Rise Primary School. There are many ways that parents, grandparents and friends can assist at our school. We encourage all parents to obtain a Working with Children’s Check that will allow you to be very involved in your child’s education. These checks are free for volunteers. Once you have your WWC please come to the office so we can photocopy this, and we will add your name to our list of parents who have a current WWC check. If you are assisting in the classroom or attending an excursion you must add your WWC to the Compass portal when signing in even if we have a copy in the school office.

Accident Insurance

The Department of Education (DE) does not provide personal accident insurance for students. Parents are generally responsible for paying the cost of medical treatment for injured students, including any transport costs.  Ambulance cover could be one consideration as the school will not hesitate to call an ambulance if we are concerned about a child’s wellbeing.

The Department of Education (DE) states that reasonable low-cost accident insurance policies are available from the commercial insurance sector. 

Personal Goods Brought to to School at Owner's Risk

The Department of Education (DE) does not hold insurance for personal property brought to schools. Principals are requested to remind students and parents/guardians of this at the beginning of each academic year and to discourage parents/students from bringing any unnecessary or particularly valuable items to school. Please, try and avoid bringing these items as it can be most upsetting for all concerned when items do go missing. 

Annual Privacy Number

Our school collects, uses, discloses and stores student and parent personal information for standard school functions or where permitted by law, as stated in the Schools’ Privacy Policy.

Please take time to remind yourself of our school’s collection notice, found on our website Camelot Rise Primary | Glen Waverley | Home

For more information about privacy, refer to: Schools’ Privacy Policy — information for parents.  

This information is also available in ten community languages:

* Amharic

* Arabic

* Dari

* Gujarati

* Mandarin

* Somali

* Sudanese

* Turkish

* Urdu

* Vietnamese

Our Physical Education/Sports Uniform

As part of a school uniform the Year 4, 5 & 6 students have the opportunity to purchase and wear a sports uniform. This sports uniform is an optional item.

Historically our students have worn their ‘normal school uniform’ on Sports Days, however, now students can wear their sports uniform when representing the school and participating in Physical Education classes.

These items are currently available in the PSW shop.

These are optional additions to the school uniform. 

These uniforms can be worn by Year 4, 5 & 6 students on the following days:

• Physical Education classes
• Sporting events
• Interschool Sports
• House Sport events

We are very excited at the prospect of these sports uniforms as we will look fantastic and further develop a sense of pride in the school.

Literacy Parental Engagement and Activities

We have listed below a useful Department of Education website that provides parents with many activities that their children can participate in to help inspire and boost their Literacy & Numeracy ​ skills. 

https://www.education.vic.gov.au/Documents/school/teachers/teachingresources/discipline/english/literacy/LiteracyandNumeracyTipstoHelpYourChild_Final.pdf

Help with School Costs

Families are encouraged to contact Ben, myself or the school office if you are having difficulty with school costs. Programs like Affordable School Uniforms and the Camps, Sports and Excursions Fund (CSEF) can help with the cost of school uniforms and other essential school items as well as school activities for eligible students.

For more information for parents, refer to Help with school costs and fees.

Heat Policy

The school operates a heat policy, and we keep the children indoors in air-conditioned classrooms on very hot days where the temperature exceeds 35degrees c.  On these days we also have our extended our ‘lunch play’ at recess time to ensure the children are not playing during the hottest part of the day. We have also been asked to remind our parent community about the dangers of leaving children in cars on very hot days. 

Home-School Communication

Ben Heys (Assistant Principal) and I are always open and available to meet with parents and our community. Our number one priority is the engagement, wellbeing and care of all students at Camelot Rise Primary School, and we are always happy to hear feedback on the improvements we are making and what we can do to better assist our students. Ben and I are always available to speak to parents in relation to any feedback you can provide us that will ultimately benefit the students at Camelot Rise Primary School. Please feel free to drop in at any time or contact us to arrange a suitable meeting time.

Please come and see us for a chat!

Matthew Coney and Ben Heys