The picturesque rural city of Swan Hill (population 10,000) enjoys a warm and sunny climate, and is situated on the Murray River, 360 kilometres north-west of Melbourne. The area hosts a diversity of agricultural pursuits, along with secondary industries, commerce, hospitality and tourism.

Swan Hill Primary School was established in 1876 in central Swan Hill, and relocated to the current site at 123 Gray Street in 1987. This site has extensive landscaped grounds, featuring grassed and paved playing areas, a large oval, basketball and netball courts, adventure playgrounds, plenty of tree-shaded areas and a central courtyard reserved for quiet activities. The site is very large (4.4 hectares), giving students ample space to play at break times.

Facilities include Art, Computer, Science & Technology and Music rooms, a Library and a Gymnasium.

Current enrolment is 550 students, and we run 26 straight classes. The school has an outstanding teacher team who work closely together to plan and deliver quality programs. Our teachers have high expectations, which is apparent to anyone who visits the school. They are supported to build their skills by our Literacy Coach and Numeracy Coach. Our teachers are also well supported by an enthusiastic team of teacher aides.

The focus for all staff is on doing our best for the students and we are proud of the fact that we have a settled, happy and safe environment where children are excited about their learning.

Specialist teachers deliver weekly sessions in Science Technology, Physical Education, Information & Communications Technology (ICT) and Music for all year levels. We have an Art Room Assistant who plans with classroom teachers, prepares each lesson and works with the classroom teacher to deliver each lesson – this works very well. Each class also has a block of 90-120 minutes each week to take their class to the library. Our students are also involved in a wide range of extra-curricula activities (too many to mention here). We think we cover all areas of the curriculum very well.

In recent years we have worked hard to ensure students are in touch with their learning. This has seen the introduction of student-led conferences and student portfolios and has required students to set goals and complete self-assessments.  Currently our year 4 students complete their portfolios in digital format, and we are looking at implementing this with other year levels in the future.  It has also led to our teachers being much more explicit with their teaching, making sure students know what they are learning and why.

We are also working hard to make sure we use information and communication technologies to improve student engagement and promote learning. This year Our grade 6s lease netbooks that are used in rooms. Each room has 4 laptop computers a smartboard. Our library/computer room also have smartboards.

A Koorie Education Support Officer, KESO and Koorie Homework Program also support Koorie students (approximately 10% of our student population), with cultural awareness of all students enhanced by a Koorie Studies Program.

The school is dedicated to a partnership between parents and teachers in the learning process, and an ‘open-door’ policy encourages parents and friends to become actively involved in the school’s programs.

Swan Hill Primary School is a great place for children, parents and staff and will continue to provide positive education outcomes for the students so that they can achieve to their full potential and become productive members of the community.