Regional Swimming Event

Congratulations to our 3 super swimmers who took on the regions best on Tuesday in Swan Hill. All 3 had fantastic results: Jack - 3rd in freestyle and 2nd in butterfly. Riley - 3rd in butterfly. Jerome - 6th in breaststroke. What a fantastic effort!

Baby News

On behalf of staff, students and families I would like to congratulate Nic (Mr Ross) and Bridget on the safe arrival of their precious little baby Eddie last Friday. Mrs Burnett will be joining the 3/4 team for the remainder of the term while Mr Ross is on leave.

Harmony Week - dress up day

Harmony week is about celebrating inclusiveness, respect and a sense of belonging for all Australians, from the traditional custodians of the land to those who have come from many countries around the world.

We will be recognizing Harmony week next Friday 20th, by asking students to wear orange (Traditionally, orange signifies social communication and meaningful conversations. It also relates to the freedom of ideas and encouragement of mutual respect), or wear traditional dress from their home country. We will also run activities in the classroom, a colouring competition and poster competition and all come together at recess for a free orange sno cone and minor games. Prizes for students wearing the most orange!

NAPLAN

The National Assessment Program – Literacy and Numeracy (NAPLAN) 2026 for Grades 3 and 5, is well underway. The writing test was on Wednesday, and the reading test today. Only the Language Conventions and Numeracy test to go.

Student Progress reports

In an effort to keep families informed and up to date we will once again provide progress reports at the end of this term. This will give you a snapshot of your child’s progress and achievements this term. These will be available on Thursday 2nd April on XUNO. Please contact the office if you require a hardcopy.

Professional Learning at Rochester Primary School

Our staff are committed to continually improving their practice to provide the best learning opportunities for our students. Teachers and education support staff regularly meet before or after school to take part in professional learning aligned with our 2026 Annual Implementation Plan. These sessions involve staff working together to share ideas, reflect on teaching practice and strengthen learning programs.

Throughout the year, some staff also attend external professional learning, including opportunities provided by the Department of Education.

Last Tuesday, we focussed on improving our ability to focus the learning and the explicit teaching part of our Instructional. Carmel came up from Melbourne and ran staff through training on our new spelling program - Soundwaves.

Kate Whitford

Rochester Primary School Newsletter

Respect, Resilience, Responsibility

Term 1 Week 7 · 12 Mar 2026

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