We acknowledge the traditional Aboriginal custodians of the lands, waterways and skies of the Bunurong Peoples of the Kulin Nation where we gather, learn and grow at Aspendale Primary School.

We pay our respects to past and present Traditional Custodians and Elders of all nations,  and their ongoing cultural, spiritual and educational practices.  


We extend this respect to all Torres Strait Islanders and any First Nations peoples who learn or visit these grounds. We thank you for sharing and caring for the land we are learning on.

New version of the Acknowedgement of Country
Above is an updated Acknowledgment of Country that has been written in consultation with staff, students and members of our community. We recieved positive feedback and approval from our friends at the Bunurong Land Council in 2023. 

Dear parents and carers,

Welcome to the 2026 school year. It has been pleasing to see our 431 students walk through our school gates and settle into calm, orderly learning environments. The smiles, laughs and reconnection between students, their parents and carers and our staff further our sense of community.

This morning we welcomed our 47 Foundation students and their families as they launched into their first day of primary school. We are proud of the way they made their way into their classrooms, took a photo or two with their families and settled into their day. Thanks to everyone involved in our transition process, parrticulary our parents and carers, our staff and the staff of our local kindergartens, for helping each of our students to feel prepared for today.

Welcome back to all of our staff. Thank you for your work in the lead up to this week to help all of our students transition to the 2026 school year. A special welcome to Sammy Vella, who will teach Year Four on Thursdays and Fridays, and welcome back to Caitlin Beer and Lisa Phillips. The calm, orderly learning environments you have cultivated, both through the physical environment and the teaching of routines across the school, will mean that more of our students’ working memory will be available to engage with the intended learning of each lesson.

Compass Parent Portal

This year we have moved to Compass. A letter with instructions for each parent or carer to access the Parent Portal were distributed yesterday. If you haven’t received your letter yet it is most likely with your child’s classroom teacher. You can request another letter from the school office.

Curriculum contributions and other payments are now on the Compass Parent Portal. These payments allow us to support the high-quality teaching and learning programs.

1000 year forest

Thank you to our foresters, especially Robyn Craig, for their care of our 1000 Year Forest over the summer break. Your commitment to nurturing our seedlings has our forest ready to thrive in 2026.

Year 5 & 6 Portables Refresh

Over the summer break our Year 5 & 6 portables were repainted and new pinboards were installed. Thanks to Amelia Mastorakos and Amber Demmler for organising this work. It’s been great to see these classrooms refreshed for our senior students.

Night on the Green

Our annual welcome event, our Night on the Green, will take place on Friday 20th February. We look forward to welcoming our school community with a relaxed picnic atmosphere in our school courtyard on this evening.

We look forward to working with our school community across the year to achieve strong wellbeing and learning outcomes for all of our students.

Enjoy the rest of the first week,

Tom Pearce

Principal

Global School Play Day – Wednesday February 4^th

Global School Play Day is observed annually every first Wednesday in February. This day promotes the importance of unstructured, regular play for children. The campaign was started by a group of six educators in 2015 because they felt playtime for children was decreasing both at home and in school, which was impacting children’s development.

As with previous years we will be devoting the whole day to this initiative. On this day students will have the opportunity to have a play session with their buddy, play time within their own year level and also participating in some whole class games. Students are invited to bring in objects such as toys or craft materials from home that they would like to use on the day. We do ask that items are clearly named, do not require batteries, and that they are not expensive or IT items such as phones or ipads, etc…

Canteen ordering is in the process of transitioning from Qkr! to Compass, with the new system expected to be fully operational by Week 2. Students were given Compass logon details on Wednesday 28^th January. If families have not received these details, please contact your child’s teacher or the school office.

The canteen will be open each Thursday and Friday. Orders for same-day delivery must be placed by 9:00am.

Please note:

• Sushi is available on Fridays only
• Sushi orders must be placed by 9:00am on the Thursday prior to delivery

The onsite canteen service relies heavily on the generous support of volunteers. Our wonderful volunteer team includes parents, carers, and grandparents from across the school community, and new parents/carers are always welcome. Volunteering is a great way to make connections, and students love seeing familiar faces at the canteen window!

No experience is necessary—even one shift per term makes a huge difference and helps keep the canteen operating at full capacity.

For enquiries or to get involved, please contact Canteen Manager Megan Wheelhouse at
? canteen@aspendaleps.vic.edu.au, or feel free to pop into the canteen on Thursday or Friday and introduce yourself.