Riverwalk News – Week 9 Term 1 2026

Dear Parents/Carers

We are incredibly proud of our students for such a fantastic start to their school journey! It has been wonderful to see how much they are already growing and learning. Each day, they continue to impress us with their courage, determination, and willingness to give things a go — we love seeing their confidence shine!

A reminder of our daily schedule:

• To help students settle into their learning more smoothly all learning spaces will now open at 8:55am, giving students the opportunity for a calm and gentle start to the day.
• Students have a ‘brain food’ break at 10am, please ensure your child has fresh fruit or vegetables to eat at this time. 
• Students eat their lunch at 11:30am after their first break, and enjoy their snack at 1:30pm before their second break.

Please remember that we are still building our independence and learning our daily routines. To support us with this, we kindly ask that families say goodbye at the door and encourage children to head into the learning space on their own. Thank you for helping us grow in confidence! 

If you’d like to chat with your child’s teacher, you’re welcome to do so at the end of the day. You can also pop by the office, and our friendly administration team will be happy to help you connect with them.

Home Reading and Library Books:

When visiting the library, all books will now be borrowed through the school library system. Please ensure your child brings their black satchel to school each day with all library books and their reading log inside. Teachers are keeping track of home reading, so we kindly ask that reading logs are filled in regularly.

Thank you for all your support this term! With your help, our students have had fun, learned lots, and made every day at school a positive and successful adventure. We’re so excited to see all the adventures and learning that Term 2 will bring! 

Thank you for your continued support.

Foundation Team

Lauren Smith, Jess Bray, Rachel Wilson, Raeven Haigh, Jessica Zuniga, Olivia Butingan, Marija Kusturic, Caitlin Lambert, Dominque Dunnell

Important Reminders:

• Drink Bottles: Please ensure your child has a drink bottle with them every day. 

• Brainfood: Please pack a healthy fruit or vegetable snack everyday for brainfood. 

• Uniform: Please ensure your child is in the correct school uniform with Riverwalk logo and all items are labelled with their name. This will help us in returning lost items sooner!

Important Dates:

Friday 27th March

• Harmony Day – Students are encouraged to wear their cultural dress or the colour orange. As part of our Cultural Diversity celebrations, students will participate in a cultural music incursion. Open afternoon for our Riverwalk community in your child’s learning space during Session 5 (from 2:30pm).

Monday 30th March

• PJ & Crazy Hair Day – Students are invited to come to school in their favourite pyjamas and have fun with their hair—think bright colours, wacky styles, or anything creative and imaginative! They can choose to do both or just one—whatever makes them feel fun and fabulous!

Tuesday 31st March

• School Photo Day – Please ensure your child is wearing their full academic uniform (button striped shirt with shorts/pants/skort or dress, green knitted jumper and knitted vest, black soft shell jacket)

Thursday 2nd April 2026

• Easter Hat Parade – 9:00am – 10:00am in the Asphalt Courtyard. Students are to wear full school uniform and bring along their Easter hat to show off their creativity. We are excited to celebrate Easter together!
• Last Day of Term – Early Dismissal at 1:30pm

Our Learning:

Maths

• Patterns
• Shapes
• Numbers 0-5

English

• Letters and sounds – Ss, Aa, Tt, Pp, Ii, Nn, Mm, Oo, Gg, Ff, Cc, Dd
• Predicting
• Making Text-to-Self Connections 

Investigations

• Safe and Unsafe Behaviours
• Signs and Symbols

Wellbeing

• Mindfulness and Savouring
• Simple Calming Strategies

Auslan

• Farm animals

Excellence Certificates:

Congratulations to all students for demonstrating a Love of Learning and being enthusiastic members of the Foundation learning community. We are so proud of you all!

Dear Parents/Carers

This year, we have made a change to our daily schedule. All learning spaces will now open at 8:55am, allowing students to come in and have a soft start to the day. Students will eat their lunch at 11:30am after their first break, and then have their snack at 1:30pm before their second break.

As students are eating a little later in the morning, please ensure your child brings “brain food” for a 10:00am snack. This can include fruit or vegetables.

When visiting the library, all books are now borrowed through the system. Please ensure your child brings their black satchel to school every day with ALL books and their reading log inside. Teachers are monitoring how many nights students read, so please remember to fill in the log regularly.

Harmony Day – Friday 27th March
This Friday, Riverwalk Primary School will be celebrating Harmony Day. Students are encouraged to wear their cultural dress or the colour orange. As part of our Cultural Diversity celebrations, students will participate in a cultural music incursion.

We will also be hosting an open afternoon for our Riverwalk community in your child’s learning space during Session 5 (from 2:30pm).

PJ & Crazy Hair Day – Monday 30th March
Students are invited to come to school dressed in their favourite pyjamas and get creative with their hair—think bright colours, wild styles, or anything fun and imaginative! Students may choose to do both or just one.

Easter Hat Parade – Thursday 2nd April 2026
Time: 9:00am – 10:00am
Where: Asphalt Courtyard

Students are to wear full school uniform and bring along their Easter hat to show off their creativity. We are excited to celebrate Easter together!

Thank you for your continued support.

Kind regards,
Year 1 Team

Year 1 Team

Danielle Larkin, Tahnee Matthews, Cassandra Walsh, Mandy McEwen, Tracy McMillan, Alysha Guzzardi, Rachelle Pira & Chelsey Montebello

Important Reminders:

Reading logs

• This year, we are using reading log books instead of school diaries to record your child’s reading at home. Please use these reading logs to record reading activities, notes, and progress. This helps us support your child’s reading development more effectively.

Brain food

• Please pack a healthy fruit or vegetable snack everyday.

Uniform

• Please have a hat and a water bottle at school every day.
• Please ensure your child is in the correct school uniform with the Riverwalk logo.

Important Dates:

Wednesday 31st March

• School photos – please ensure your child is wearing their full academic uniform (button striped shirt with shorts/pants/skort or dress, green knitted jumper and knitted vest, black soft shell jacket)

Thursday 1st April

• Last day of school – early dismissal at 1:30pm
• Easter Hat Parade – 9:00am – 10:00am in the asphalt courtyard

Our Learning:

Maths

• Skip counting by 5s and 10s.
• Place value.

English

• Recount.

Investigations

• Senses safety.
• Healthy food groups.
• Exercise movement.
• Hygiene -germs.

Wellbeing

• Emotions. 
• Acts of Kindness.
• Everyone belongs.

Auslan

• Family, School Signs,  Farm animals.

Excellence Certificates:

Week 7

1A – Remi

1B – Aiyla

1C – Kobi

1D – Kyron

1E – Simarleen

1F – Jett

1G – Issa

Week 8

1A – Latina

1B – James

1C – Alia

1D – Ahana

1E – Sanjot

1F – Darcie

1G – Devi

Week 9

1A – Janaki

1B – Jacob

1C – Aarish

1D – Dylan

1E – Sima

1F – Katie

1G – Tyson

Dear Parents and Carers,

We can’t believe how fast this term has flown by. We are so impressed with all of our grade 2 students learning and growth in such a short amount of time. It was great to see and have conversations with families at our recent student led conferences. Keeping the home and school connection is important and we value everyone’s time when attending school events. 

We have been exploring writing recounts and expanding our vocabulary through a text study. It is great to see students adding detail to their writing and using the new  words within general conversation. 

Our wellbeing focus has been around our emotions, what they look like, feel like and sound like and how to recognise why we feel a certain way and how to move through the emotion and exploring strategies to support.

Through investigations we have looked at how our bodies have grown and how to keep ourselves and others safe and healthy. 

We hope all families have a restful and fun upcoming holiday break and we look forward to Term 2’s learning. 

Year 2 Team

Diana McGregor, Ben Walker, Krysta Flahive, Stephanie Marangos, Katherine Rankin, Nicole Timbs, Samantha Ferreira, Hannah Smith, Ben Kelly 

Important reminders:

• Term 1 is a sunsmart term so students need to wear hats.
• As warm weather begins students should also bring a drink bottle to school each day.
• Please pack a healthy fruit or vegetable snack everyday in a separate container. 
• Students are reminded to fill in their reading logs when they read, teachers are checking reading logs every day. 
• Students should be reading every night for at least 15 minutes.

Key dates:

25th March – Student-Led Conferences – 1:30-6:30pm – students finish school at 12.30 

27th March – Harmony Day

1st April – School photos 

2nd April – Last day of term 1. Early finish 

Look what we’re learning 

Reading

Text study and learning new vocabulary words. 

Maths

Addition and subtraction using double facts. Ordering numbers. Collecting and graphing data. 

Wellbeing

Zones of regulation and positive coping skills. Finding things to be grateful for.  

Writing:

Recounts. Writing about events that have happened by including who, what, where, when and why.

Investigations:

Being safe and responsible at school. People who can help us at school

Excellence Certificate 

WEEK 6

2A –  Diana

2B – Willow

2C-  Shayleigh

2D – Gurfateh

2E – Reyansh

2F- Kelsey

WEEK 7

2A –  Natalia

2B – Kyshiaa

2C-  Dylan

2D – John

2E – Preston

2F- Grace 

WEEK 8

2A –  Nivan

2B – Jack

2C-  Amberly

2D –  John

2E – Arsh

2F- Riyaz

Dear Parents and Carers,

We have reached the end of Term 1 and what a fantastic start to Year 3 it has been. Students have settled in beautifully, showing enthusiasm for their learning while building positive relationships with their peers.

In Mathematics, students strengthened their understanding of place value and developed confidence using number lines to solve addition and subtraction problems. In English, they explored persuasive letter writing, learning how to clearly share their opinions and support them with strong reasons.

Our Investigations unit allowed students to explore how people grow and the importance of making healthy choices. They also applied their learning by designing solutions to help keep people safe in different environments. In Wellbeing, students built their understanding of emotions and practised positive strategies to manage challenges.

We are incredibly proud of the growth and effort shown this term and look forward to continuing this learning journey in the term ahead.

Year 3 Team

Paige Lemin, Nathan Gauci, Shaun Jennings, Olivia Cameron, Tenylle Crees, Emilyscott McCabe, Christine Drayton, Nick Stonehouse and Ashlea Sagona.

Key dates:

• Friday March 27th – Harmony Day Open Afternoon
• Monday 30th March- PJ & Crazy Hair Day 
• Tuesday March 31st – School photos
• Wednesday April 1st- House Athletics Day 3-6
•  Thursday April 2nd- Easter Hat Parade & Raffle & Last day of Term 1

Important reminders

• Term 1 is a SunSmart term so students need to wear hats.
• As warm weather begins students should also bring a drink bottle to school each day.
• Please pack a healthy fruit or vegetable snack every day for brain food in a separate container.
• Please bring your satchels to school on your library days to be able to borrow new books each week. Please add your reading to the journal to keep track of your progress.
• Students should be reading every night for at least 20 minutes.

We are learning about…

• Maths: addition and subtraction 2-3 digit numbers
• English: Persuasive writing
• Investigations: Safe designs
• Wellbeing: Self-regulation and impulse control

Excellence certificates:

Dear Parents and Carers,

The past few weeks have flown by in Year 4, and it has been wonderful to see students continuing to settle into their new learning environment with new peers and classroom routines. A strong focus has been placed on kind and thoughtful communication, and students are doing a fantastic job of building positive relationships and showing respect for one another in their daily interactions.

We are excited to share that our upcoming Investigations Learning Task will soon be underway. In this task, students will identify a real-world problem, such as creating a calm space in the yard or designing tools to help improve focus in the classroom. They will then plan and design a practical solution, applying their creativity, problem-solving skills and critical thinking. We look forward to seeing the students’ ideas.

As we approach the final week of Term 1, we would like to extend a big thank you for your ongoing support throughout the term. It has been a fantastic start to the year, with students building positive relationships with their peers and teachers while developing confidence in their learning. We are looking forward to finishing the term strongly and celebrating all that has been achieved in Term

Year 4 Team
Hayley Cottrell, Stacie Buller, Mitch Stoop, Tanya Saggers, Paula Hounsell, Josh Mifsud, Emily Lloyd

Important Reminders

• Term 1 is a sunsmart term so students need to wear hats and bring a drink bottle every day.
• Please pack a healthy fruit or vegetable snack everyday.
• Students have reminded to fill in their reading logs books when they read and bring their satchel to school every day with their books inside.
• Students should be reading every night. Students in year 4 are building their stamina to be able to read for 35 minutes.

Important Dates

• Friday March 27th – Harmony Day Open Afternoon
• Monday March 31st-  School photos
• Wednesday April 1st- House Athletics Day 3-6
• Thursday April 2nd-  Easter Hat Parade & Raffle & Last day of Term 1

We are learning about…

• Maths: Multiplication (x4, x8) Area, Angles
• English: Persuasive speeches and writing
• Investigations: Health and Design Technology (Inclusion & Safety)
• Wellbeing: Emotions and Positive Coping
• Auslan: Everyday signs, Family and School signs

Excellence Certificates

Dear Parents and Carers,

We cannot believe we are nearly finished Term 1 already! The time has flown as we have settled into our new Learning Groups, made new friends and begun learning with our new teachers and peers. 

We’d like to wish all students a huge Congratulations for surviving and thriving throughout NAPLAN the past few weeks. Although daunting at times, our students faced this with resilience, a growth mindset and gave it their best effort! We’d also like to thank parents and carers for their support in helping their child stay calm and positive throughout this time. 

We are already beginning to look forward to a new term after the holidays with lots of exciting events and learning to look forward to. The most anticipated event next term is our Year 5/6 camp at Billabong Ranch Camp in Echuca. A reminder that you have until the 31st of March to provide consent and pay your deposit, OR until the 150 available spaces are taken (whichever comes first). 

It was so lovely to meet with you all throughout our Student Led Conferences – we absolutely loved seeing our students radiate pride and positivity as they shared their learning journey this term with you. We look forward to continuing to build our collaborative relationship throughout the year to best support your children. 

Year 5 Team
Rachel Lindorff, Inger Bride, Ana Mitchell, Anne Louise Kiteley, Lauren Mayberry

Important Reminders

• Term 1 is a sunsmart term so students need to wear hats and bring a drink bottle every day.
• Please pack a healthy fruit or vegetable snack everyday.
• Students are reminded to fill in their reading logs books when they read and bring their satchel to school every day with their books inside.
• Students should be reading every night for at least 25 minutes.

Important Dates

Friday March 27th – Harmony Day Open Afternoon

Tuesday March 31st-  School Photos (Sibling photos will take place before school from 8:00am – 9:00am on Tuesday 31st and Wednesday 1st on both days. Please note that it is the parent/carer’s responsibility to bring their children to this session and ensure the photos are completed.)

Wednesday April 1st- House Athletics Day 3-6

Thursday April 2nd-  Easter Hat Parade & Raffle & Last day of Term 1

We are learning about…

• Maths: Adding and subtracting fractions, chance and angles
• English: Narratives and the Writers Process
• Investigations: Incomes, Savings and Budgets
• Wellbeing: Emotions and Positive Coping – Positive vs Negative Self Talk
• Auslan: School Signs and Farm Animals 

Excellence Certificates

Over the past three weeks, our Grade 6 students have been busy with a range of exciting and engaging learning experiences. A highlight was our Year 6 Summer Gala Day, where students competed against other schools in sports such as soccer, tennis, cricket, volleyball and lawn bowls. It was wonderful to see all students demonstrate outstanding teamwork and sportsmanship while representing our school with pride. A special congratulations to our cricket team for progressing to the next round of competition!

In the classroom, students have been working hard in English to create hybrid texts, combining narrative and informative writing. They have enjoyed exploring topics of personal interest while developing their writing skills. In Mathematics, we have been building a strong understanding of fractions, with a focus on students clearly explaining and demonstrating their thinking. In investigations, we have been looking at Economics and conducted a mini-marketplace simulation, where students where split into buyers and sellers and we changed market conditions involving supply and demand. Students then reflected on the changes to their decisions as a result.

Our Wellbeing focus has been on respect, with students engaging in discussions about its importance and exploring ways to show respect at school. This has helped reinforce how we can all contribute to a safe, supportive and enjoyable environment for everyone.

Key Dates:

School Photos Tuesday 31^st of March

3-6 Athletics Day Wednesday 1^st of March

Easter Hat Parade Thursday 2^nd of March

Early Dismissal Thursday 2^nd of March 1:30

Good Friday – Start of School Holidays Friday 3^rd of March

Excellence Awards:

Week 9 Update

It’s been a busy few weeks at Riverwalk, with plenty happening across the school and still a lot to look forward to as we head towards the end of term.

A big well done to all of our Year 3 and Year 5 students who recently completed NAPLAN. The effort, focus and positive attitude shown throughout the testing period was excellent. I’d also like to thank our NAPLAN Coordinators, along with our Year 3 and 5 teachers and support staff for the way they supported students and ensured everything ran smoothly.

Over the past few weeks, students have also been involved in the Stand-Up Project, an important initiative that empowers young people to become upstanders against bullying. Last week, our SUP leaders shared their plans to promote upstander behaviour across our school community. It’s great to see our students taking ownership and leadership in this space.

Thank you to all families who attended our recent Student Led Conferences. These are a really valuable opportunity for students to share their learning and reflect on their progress. We appreciate your ongoing partnership in supporting your child’s learning.

2026 School Council

I would like to take this opportunity to formally announce our 2026 School Council. Thank you to all members of our community who nominated this year. Your willingness to contribute to the school is greatly appreciated.

Following the election process, the following members will serve on School Council:

Returning Parent Member (School Council President)

• Jody Christo

Returning Staff Member

• Stephanie Marangos

Newly Elected Parent Members
Two-Year Term:

• Rhiannon Farrell
• Lauren Court
• Denise Steyn

One-Year Term:

• Nicole Appleby
• Nazim Bayrak

Newly Elected Staff Member

• Shannon Harmer

School Council plays an important role in supporting the strategic direction of the school and strengthening our community. I look forward to working with the team this year.

Upcoming – Easter Hat Parade

A reminder that our annual Easter Hat Parade will be held on Thursday 2nd April. This is always a highlight of the term and a great opportunity for students to get creative. Further details have been shared via Compass.

Thank you for your continued support as we head into the final week of Term 1.

2026 Parent Payment Arrangements

Parent payments can be made online via Compass through course confirmations, or in person at the school office/reception. If you have any questions or need support with payment arrangements, please contact the office and we’ll be happy to help.

Uniform

School hats are now available for purchase at the school office for $20, and reading satchels are available for $17. All other uniform items can be purchased from Noone Rushfords in Werribee.

Student Late Arrivals

Students who arrive at school after 9:00am must present at administration before going to their Learning Group. This ensures that their attendance is marked accordingly and they receive a Welcome Pass to provide to their learning group Teacher when they arrive at class.

Early Pick Ups

If you need to pick your child up early from school, please let us know in advance by calling the office on 9742 9700 or sending us an email at riverwalk.ps@education.vic.gov.au

This helps us ensure your child is ready to leave when you arrive and minimises disruptions to learning.

To support a calm and focused learning environment, we will be avoiding PA announcements for early pick ups.

Please note:

Children cannot be called for early pick up during break times:

o 11:00am – 11:30am

o 1:30pm – 2:15pm

If you need to collect your child during these times, please contact the office ahead of time so they can be ready and waiting.

Parents who arrive during break times without letting us know in advance will need to wait until the break is over before their child can be collected, as we are unable to locate children out in the yard.

Student Absences

In order to meet legislative requirements, we must ensure that our attendance data, which is provided daily to the Department of Education and Training, is up-to-date and accurate. We ask all families for the same day notification of student absences via compass. Instructions on how to report your child as absent on compass have been attached to this post. If unsure or unable to submit via Compass please email riverwalkps@education.vic.gov.au or call 9742 9700.

All unexplained absences will automatically receive an SMS notification at 9.45am
daily reminding you to report your child’s absence.

Unexplained Student Absences

All student absences must be logged in Compass. If your child does have absences that are unexplained, they can be seen on your Compass Parent Portal. If you are unsure how to process these on your parent portal, please reach out to administration for assistance.

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