Term 1

Wednesday 4^th February – No school for Foundation students

Friday 6th February - Swimming Carnival 

Monday 9^th February – 1/2T Parent information night 4pm

Monday 9^th February- 5/6B 5/6L Parent information night 4:30pm

Wednesday 11^th February - No school for Foundation student

Wednesday 11^th  February- F/1E F/1K Parent information night 3:40pm

Wednesday 11^th  February- 2/3R 3/4A 3/4E Parent Information night 4:30pm

Friday 13^th February – Book Club Closes

Wednesday 18th February – No school for Foundation students

Thursday 19^th February – District Swimming Sports Beechworth

Wednesday 25^th February - No school for Foundation students

Friday 27^th  February – Division Swimming Sports Waves

Monday 9^th March-  Labour Day Public Holiday

Wednesday 18^th  March – Regional Swimming Sports Wangaratta

Friday 20^th March- Folk Festival Parade 6pm

Thursday 2^nd April – Last Day of Term 1

Friday 3^rd April- Good Friday Public Holiday

And just like that, Week 1 is done!

Despite the heat, we have started the year bouncing straight into learning. It’s been lovely to walk through classrooms and hear lots of talk and see great collaboration between teachers and students around our school values- We Show Respect, We are Fair, We are Learners (Fair, Respectful Learners). Classrooms are like little communities, and at Yackandandah Primary School, we believe it is important to spend the first part of Term 1 building up expectations and routines for learning, positive behaviour and respectful relationships.

Communication
During the year, teachers will communicate with you through either email or Compass. They will share important reminders/dates and what is happening in classrooms and specialist subjects. The school newsletter is also a valuable tool for information as well. Hot tip: if your child is ready, you might like to get them to read it to you in the car on the way to school. This way, it keeps parents up to date and allows students to practise their reading—a win-win.

Parent Information Nights
Our annual year level Parent Information Nights are another source of school information for families. These will occur during Week 3 of Term 1 this year. Please see dates, times, locations below:

F/1K  F/1RE-  Wednesday 11^th  Feb 3:40pm (in the F/1 classrooms)

1/2T- Monday 9^th Feb 4pm (in Tina’s classroom)

2/3R  3/4A  3/4E- Wednesday 11^th Feb 4:30pm (in Angie & Earle’s classroom)

5/6L  5/6B- Monday 9^th Feb 4:30pm (in Lauren’s classroom)

Parent/Teacher Check In Meetings
There will be an opportunity later in the term for you to meet with your child’s teacher. Teachers will send out available time slots for parents to select so stay tuned to information from them. These check in meetings are a great chance to share any valuable information and see how your child has settled in to learning for 2026.

Privacy
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 Department of Education’s Privacy Policy. The policy can be read here: https://www.education.vic.gov.au/Pages/schoolsprivacypolicy.aspx.

Bushfire Ratings
Another reminder, as we are in a high-risk bushfire area the school, OSHC and Kindergarten will not operate on Catastrophic bushfire rating days. We will notify families as soon as we get notification of an upcoming school closure due to a Catastrophic bushfire rating day.

School Start Times
Just a reminder that our school yard isn’t supervised until 8:40am in the mornings. For your child’s safety, it is best to drop them off to school at this time. Thank you.

**There will be no assembly this week due to the extreme heat.

Stay cool and enjoy some down time over the weekend.

Stace Hogan
Acting Principal

Welcome to the new school year. We hope you all had a relaxing Christmas and New Year.

Office Hours
The Office hours are from 8.30am to 4pm.

Sandra’s days are Monday, Tuesday & Wednesday for any finance queries.  Email: sandra.mckibbin@education.vic.gov.au

Kerryn’s days are Monday, Wednesday, Thursday & Friday for student administration, newsletter items and uniform sales.  Email: Kerryn.Wright2@edcuation.vic.gov.au

Student Details
On Wednesday the eldest student in each family took home an envelope with a copy of the Student Details that we have on file at school.  Please check these forms carefully, make any changes and return the form to school.  Please also check your family occupation code – if you are unsure please call into the office as we have a more comprehensive list at school.  It is very important that all your contact details are up to date.

Student Medical Details
If your child has any medical conditions that are not on the student detail form that has been sent home, please add it to the form with details when you return it to school.  This could include allergies, being prone to blood noses or any other type of minor medical problems.  It is very important that the school is aware of all medical conditions no matter how minor.

Also enclosed  in the envelope is :

• Photographing, Filming & Recording Students consent form – one for each child to be returned to school.  There are three boxes on the consent form as below -please ensure you tick the boxes that you are consenting to.

I consent to the use of images of my child within the physical school environment

I consent to the use of images of my child within the school community

I consent to the use of images of my child beyond the school community/publicly, i.e. the school’s website and social media accounts (This includes the school newsletter where we celebrate sporting events etc)

• A letter from Jules Millward our school counsellor.

Compass
If your child is absent from school you need to enter it on Compass with the reason. If children are absent and the school hasn’t been notified, parents will receive a generated text message at 9:30am.   If your child is late to school or being picked up early you need to call into the office so they can be signed in or out. 

If you don’t have a log in or it isn’t working, please call into the office.  It is important that all families have access to Compass.

Below is a link which will take you to the parent guide.

CompassParentGuide.pdf  

Local Excursion Permission Form
The Local Excursion Permission Form is on Compass.  Could parents please log in and provide consent by Monday to enable your child is able to walk across to the town library next week if their class is going.

Local excursions that your child may participate in throughout 2026 could include:

• Fortnightly visit to the Town Library
• Visits to the Yackandandah Kindergarten, Yack Health, CFA and other places in High Street
• Excursions to the Sports Park

Family Voluntary Contributions
The Department of Education and Training  reviewed parent contribution practices a few years ago and made changes to how schools seek contributions. This means that we can no longer send statements out to families for Curriculum and Other Contributions.  Parents will still receive statements for Extra-Curricular Items and activities such as camps and excursions.
Our school relies on the ongoing support of our families to ensure that we can offer the best possible education and support for our students.  Your financial contributions assist us in doing this.  Within our school this support has allowed us to provide an enriched learning and teaching program for every student and is highly valued by our school community.  The commitment from parents to contribute benefits students and results in improved achievement outcomes, wellbeing and engagement in learning.  At Yackandandah Primary School, we design and develop learning and teaching programs drawing on the best educational knowledge and practices and strive to offer broad and enriched opportunities to students that are above and beyond what is required in the standard curriculum and what is provided for by Government Funding.

The Contributions can be made via Compass or directly into the School Bank account.   Bank account details are

Bank:  Westpac

BSB:  033 222

Account Number 018848

Name of account.:  Yackandandah Primary School

Families are welcome to pay in instalments if they wish – please let Sandra know if you intend to do this.

A summary of the suggested voluntary financial contributions per child is below:

The pricing structure reflects the school resources consumed/provided at each year level.

Camps, Sports and Excursions Fund (CSEF)
The Camps, Sports and Excursions Fund helps eligible families to cover the costs of school trips, camps and sporting activities.

If you have a valid means-tested concession card, such as a Veterans Affairs Gold Card, Centrelink Health Care Card or Pensioner Concession Card, or are a temporary foster parent, you may be eligible. There is also a special consideration category for asylum seeker and refugee families.

Payment amounts this year are $400 for eligible primary school students.  Payments are made direct to the school to use towards expenses relating to camps, excursions and sporting activities for the benefit of your child.

If you applied for CSEF through our school last year, you do not need to complete an application form this year, unless there has been a change in your family circumstances or you have a new enrolment at the school.

Forms are available from the school office.

For more information about CSEF visit:
https://www.vic.gov.au/camps-sports-and-excursions-fund

Enjoy your weekend and try to keep cool

Sandra & Kerryn

This week:  No Assembly

Next Week: Sara Davison and Willis Hogg

Congratulations to all our award recipients.

WE ARE FAIR

Stella Hillier, for quietly helping your peers when you noticed they needed it. Thank you for being such a kind classmate!

WE ARE LEARNERS

Otis Grogan, for recognising when a task is challenging and giving it a go anyway.

WE SHOW RESPECT

Jimmy Ralph, for being a  calm, positive and kind friend to his classmates.

Ned Burston, for being a superstar role model, following all of our school values and putting in your best effort with everything.

Welcome to the Term 1 Hot Lunch Menu

A 'Hot Lunch' option is offered to students on Fridays from week 2 onwards during each school term. The lunch is served at 11 am and includes an individually served hot meal and a fruit platter to share. Please note that the cost of each Hot Lunch meal has now increased to $6.

Parents, carers and senior students volunteer their time (9am until approximately 11.15am) to prepare, serve and clean up after the hot meal. The meals are delivered to the classroom, where the class teacher will hand them out to the students that have ordered them.  

We have some delicious Hot Lunches on the menu for this term!

If you would like to place an order, please use the link below to complete a separate Google form for each of your children by FRIDAY 6th FEBRUARY, 2026. Please note that you will receive an email to confirm that each order has been placed successfully. If you do not receive one, please place the order again or reach out for assistance.

**We do our best to cater for students with alternative dietary needs (e.g. allergies/intolerances, vegetarian/vegan, etc.). Please indicate these on the order form**

We also need and welcome kitchen helpers, so please indicate on the form if you are able to assist. No experience needed, we love to have new faces in the kitchen! 

T1 Hot Lunch Order Form - 
https://forms.gle/cRCk1ZebQ9ysyBg56

Mary Blair’s Unique Flair Inspires the Opening Street Parade of Fairytales in 2026!

Save the Date: Folk Festival Fairytale Opening Street Parade
6:00pm Friday 2oth March 2026

The theme of Fairytales for the Opening Street Parade this year will be inspired by Mary Blair. This year will be sensational for dusting off some of those fabulous book character parade costumes from past or dressing up in the colourful style of Mary Blair!!

It’s going to be super busy in the Art room this Term!  Caz would like all the Year 2/3R, 3/4A, 3/4E and the Year 5/6L and 5/6B students to please bring a black or white cotton t-shirt (no logos or graphics on them please) to school by Week 3 – MONDAY 9TH FEB! Please have your name and class clearly written on the T-shirt label.

Caz & Mandy

Artworks by Mary Blair

Hello everybody and welcome to a new year of school sport!
For those of you who are new to the school, my name is Robyn Wilson, and I am the Sport Teacher and Sport Co-ordinator for the school. It’s my job to organise a number of sporting events throughout the year. Some events, such as cross-country and athletics, are for the whole school, while others, such as the swimming carnival, winter sports, cricket and tennis, are just for students in years 3-6. All students in the school also belong to one of four ‘houses’: Hammond (blue), Kars (green), Wellsford (red), and Windham (yellow). If you’re not sure what ‘house’ your child belongs to, don’t stress, they will become familiar with it in the first few weeks of Term 1. I’ll also put out occasional calls for assistance in the running of events (athletics is a biggie), so please put your hand up if you are able to help. The success of these events often hinges on the generosity of volunteers.

For now, we look towards the House Swimming Carnival (see below) and the whole school Cross-Country which will take place at the end of Term 1.

2026 House Swimming Carnival
The House Swimming Carnival will now be taking place next Friday, 6^th February, at the Yackandandah Swimming Pool. We will begin at 9.30am, with all events finished by approximately 12.00pm.

Students will swim in the age group relating to the age they will be by December 31, 2026. The event is open to students turning (or have already turned) 9 years or older by December 31, 2026. The age groups are:

9/10-year-old girls
9/10-year-old boys
11-year-old girls
11-year-old-boys
12/13-year-old girls
12/13-year-old boys

Students have the option of trying out for freestyle, backstroke, breaststroke and butterfly, with students representing and earning points for their ‘House’. All events are 50m (up and back of the Yack pool). We will be walking down to the pool and students are encouraged to come dressed in their house colours. Students still need to dress in line with our SunSmart policy, including a school broad brimmed hat and a shirt that covers their shoulders. They do not have to wear a ‘rashie’ when racing, but will need one if there is a free swim after the events. Students should also bring plenty to drink and eat, including their lunch. Students won’t be able to purchase things from the kiosk at the pool, so please don’t send along any extra money. Even if some students are not swimming, they are encouraged to come along and cheer on others and take part in the free swim.

District and Division Events
Qualifying for the next level of competition is based on time. The table below gives an idea of the approximate qualifying times needed for students to advance to the next level.

District is the next level, and this event will be held at the Beechworth Pool on Thursday 19^th February. The Upper Hume Division event will be held at Waves Wodonga on Friday, 27^th February. Regional swimming is scheduled to take place in Wangaratta on Wednesday, 18^th March.

Please note: Generally, the school organises transport for students to District and Division level sporting events (depending on numbers). If a child qualifies for Regional events and beyond, it becomes the family’s responsibility to organise transport etc.

Scoring

5 = 1st

4 = 2^nd

3 = 3^rd

2 – 4^th

1 to everyone else

Swimming Schedule
There is no timetable for swimming, however there is an order of events and age groups like previous years. The event will start at 9:30am and finish around 12:00pm, starting with the 12/13 age group through to the 9/10 age group.

OSHC Fee Update – 2026

We would like to inform families that OSHC fees will be increasing in 2026 for both Before School Care and After School Care. As a School Council–run service, this change was carefully considered and approved at the last School Council meeting.

From 2026, fees will be:

• Before School Care: $22 a session 
• After School Care: $30 a session

We appreciate your understanding and ongoing support. If you have any questions or would like to discuss this further, please contact the school office.

2^nd  January           Edward

4^th  January            Halle

4^th  January            Eliza

6^th  January            Oscar

8^th  January            Bernie

8^th January             Grace

13^th January          Elle

19^th January          Penelope

19^th January          Jed

22^nd January          Frankie  

24^th January          Audrey

25^th January          Heidi      

28^th January          George

29^th January          Hugo

29th January         Zack

1^st February          Richie

4^th February          Beau

U12s are back! Pre-season training kicks off

Thursday 5th Feb, 4:30–5:30pm @Butson Park 
Players born 2014 & 2015 welcome 

Bring a drink bottle & hat and come have some fun!