Principal's News

Dear Parents/Guardians,

Pupil Free Days in June

Each year schools are granted  5 pupil free days by the Department. Our next Pupil free day is Friday 20th June. This is the day we have allocated to Assessment and Reporting.

Victorian Government Schools Principal Conference

Last week Ms Ross, Miss Blackman and myself, attended the Victorian Government Schools Principal Conference. The conference theme was Excellence in Every Classroom. We had the opportunity to network with other principals, and hear from influential and insightful speakers, as well as learn more about the Department of Education’s evidence-informed direction. We were also asked to present and run a workshop centred around our flood recovery and how we have achieved such success since. The audience were amazed at what they heard and saw. They really couldn't believe what our school and community had been through.

Cold weather 

Please ensure your child is appropriately dressed for the colder weather. Students spend time outside at recess and lunch each day and during Phys Ed and sport session, which means additional layers of clothing may be needed to keep warm. Thank you to those families who ensure outer layers comply with our uniform colours and policy.

School Beanies

As the weather starts to  change and the mornings become cooler, now might be the perfect time to buy your child a school beanie if they don't already own one. These are available at the school office for $12. (Please note coloured beanies are not part of our school uniform - dark blue or big freeze beanies are acceptable)

Lost Property - Uniform

Our lost property collection is steadily growing and sadly many items are unnamed. We do our best to return lost items but they typically end up in the BER. As the term progresses, there seems to be more and more jumpers being left in the yard, on the oval and at the play equipment. Please assist us by naming all your child’s school clothing and reminding your child to take greater care for their property. All unclaimed uniform will be taken to the op-shop at the end of this term.

Staff and Student Illnesses

Covid and the flu is currently prevalent across our community. As such we have had a number of staff absent due to illness. In these circumstances, we try to cover teachers with consistent casual relief teachers (CRTs), however at times we have difficulties finding replacement teachers and have needed to split classes. Please know this is not our preferred method of managing staff absences, however in the case where classes are split, students are receiving consistent teaching and learning. 

To help minimise the spread of illness across the school, we ask that if your child is displaying flu or covid symptoms, they are kept at home in an effort to reduce the spread of infection. Please update XUNO with an attendance explanation for their absence. We thank families for their support with this matter.

Prep Enrolments

The Department of Education suggests schools encourage families to submit these by the end of this term. If you know of families interested in attending Rochester Primary School in 2026, please encourage them to contact the school. 

Student Arrival time.

There have been an increasing number of students arriving at school quite early each morning. Please be advised that staff supervision begins at 8:40am and children are not supervised in the yard before this time. We ask that parents and carers ensure students are not left unsupervised by making use of the before school program if needed. Thank you for your help with this. 

Semester 1 student reports

Teachers are currently collecting and analysing  student assessment data in preparation for our Semester 1 reports. Over the next couple of weeks, all teachers will be working in Professional Learning Teams to moderate student data in order to make consistent and comparable judgements of student learning against the Curriculum. It is important that students are at school so they can complete these assessments. Student reports will be released via XUNO during the last week of Term 2.

Semester One student reports

Over the next couple of weeks, all teachers will be working in Professional Learning Teams to moderate student data in order to make consistent and comparable judgements of student learning against the Victorian Curriculum. Reports will be released via XUNO during the last week of Term 2.

Parking Reminder

A friendly reminder to avoid parking or dropping off students in school gate ways as these need to be kept clear for emergencies, urgent maintenance, safety reason and is also against the law. Thank you for your help with this.

Kate Whitford