Meet our Principal

Wominjeka! Konnichiwa (こんにちは)! Welcome to Huntingdale Primary School! I am proud to be Principal of this wonderful Victorian Government school which provides an extraordinary education for all our students. Huntingdale Primary School is a vibrant place that encourages learning, laughter and play in a friendly and warm environment.

Our school is built on the lands of the Wurundjeri Woi Wurrung and Bunurong people of the Kulin Nation. I acknowledge their Elders past, present and emerging and recognise that learning took place for thousands of years before our school was built. I am also proud that we weave indigenous perspectives throughout our school curriculum so that our students understand the rich cultural history of our First Nations Peoples.

Our school is widely recognised both in Australia and internationally as a leader in bilingual education through the success of the outstanding Japanese Bilingual Language Immersion Education.

Learning a language is the greatest gift we give our children at Huntingdale Primary School. Through our exceptional bilingual learning all our children are immersed in Japanese language. Research has long recognised immersion as the most natural way for young children to learn language.

Our school motto is- Engaging Minds Together.

‘Engaging’ children each and every day in a safe and secure environment is a key focus. We know that without children feeling safe they are unable to engage fully with their learning.  The key to engagement is curiosity and creativity and these are key elements in the children’s explorations and learnings each day at school.

‘Minds’ are what benefit from our unique bilingual education.  The academic rigour and the power of how we work at Huntingdale is in the careful curriculum planning that underpins the learning as one whole.  Research shows that learning another language stimulates brain development, enhances English literacy skills and improves memory, concentration and numeracy skills.

‘Together’ we achieve more.  The students in isolation will explore but require guidance and scaffolding to excel.  More can be achieved with a partnership between the child, teacher and parents which truly achieves the greatest outcomes.

Through our bilingual education each day our students develop critical and creative thinking, personal and social skills and intercultural understandings. Our students are challenged to see their world using an ‘international lens’ and the experiences offered at the school support this.

As a teaching team we are committed to providing all children with the opportunity to achieve through our highly differentiated curriculum. Extensive use of technology, thinking tools and a wide range of extra curricula activities extend and enrich their learning.

The culture of our school is underpinned by our deep belief that childhood is a precious and unique moment in time. Children need to be nurtured in a quiet yet stimulating environment. Childhood is a time to be exposed to a wide range of cultural and artistic experiences to discover talents, ignite curiosity, passion and optimism. The ‘Early Years’ of schooling are when a child develops their self-esteem as a learner and this growth needs to be nurtured and developed with care and dedication. This crucial time is also when strong foundations in literacy and numeracy are built to ensure future success.

Thank you for your interest in our school.

Ruth Biddle
Principal

3A – Miss Kumiko Nagata & Mrs Maria Perrella
3B – Mrs Maria Perrella & Miss Kumiko Nagata
34C – Ms Keiko Harada & Mr Nick Tolliday
4A – Miss Joanne Ewart & Mrs Hisae Hatigan
4B – Mrs Hisae Hatigan & Miss Joanne Ewart

56A – Ms Lauren Chung & Ms Yukiko Shoya
56B – Mrs Maria Mathews & Ms Yukiko Shoya
56C – Mrs Linda Ooi-Chan & Mr Eiji Nishikubo
56D – Mr Peter Magart & Mr Eiji Nishikubo

Specialist  Teachers
Ms Ryoko Yamaoka – eLearning
Ms Audra Simkus – Tutor
Mrs Yuki Liddell – Tutor

Teaching Assistants 
Mrs Honami Ando
Mrs Mayumi Cake
Mrs Mayu Harada
Mrs Wakana Karchnak
Mrs Kaoru Kruithof
Mrs Junko Nakazawa

Chaplain – Mrs Susan Hanger

Meet our Student Leaders

 School Vision & Values

Huntingdale Primary School’ vision is to be a lighthouse school for language acquisition by providing a quality Japanese – English bilingual education. In defining our Vision and Values for our school community it is essential we look to the future and the world and workplace our students will be entering as adults. Huntingdale’s vision is future oriented providing:

• Excellent literacy and numeracy skills
• Authentic language competency in an additional language (Japanese) and deep intercultural understandings
• Thinking skills to access, synthesise and transfer information in a 21st century knowledge economy
• High level personal and interpersonal skills to facilitate strong social connectedness and personal wellbeing

The following Values are central to the life of our school and all members of the school community are required to demonstrate:

• Kindness
• Courage
• Personal Best
• Creativity

As a school community, we apply these attributes in our everyday interactions with one another and in the development of our programs and policies.

Our School Motto ‘Engaging Minds Together’ underpins the quality of our teaching and learning.  When these three powerful words come together we have a way of working whilst also explaining why we all call Huntingdale ‘our school’.

‘Engaging’ the children each and every day in a safe and secure environment is a key focus for each and every one of us. We know that if the children are not feeling safe they are unable to engage fully with their learning.  The key to engagement is curiosity and creativity and these are key elements in the children’s explorations and learnings each day at school.

‘Minds’ are what benefit from our unique bilingual education.  Without the Japanese program there is a monolingual education but without the English program there is also a monolingual program.  The academic rigour and the power of how we work at Huntingdale is in the careful curriculum planning that underpins the program as one whole.  The neuroscience that lies behind our wellbeing and academic programs and the benefits of our bilingual education bring the ‘mind’ element.

‘Together’ we achieve more.  The children in isolation will explore but require guidance and scaffolding.  The children with a teacher achieve more through a gradual release of responsibility stemming from modelling through to independent application in a real life setting. The children, teacher, parents and families however are what truly achieve the greatest outcomes.

Our commitment to preparing our students for success in a global 21st century, through innovative teaching and learning programs, attracts students from both the local neighbourhood and a wide range of suburbs. The educational experience provided for students is multi-dimensional extending well beyond the physical parameters of the school. This is embodied in a diverse range of educational and cultural events in the broader community through excursions, in-school visits, family involvement, camps, overseas trip, international visitors and a range of individual, group and whole school performances.

Our students are taught through two languages, English and Japanese and view the world through an international lens. Our school has a reputation for strong academic achievement, authentic bilingual education, happy and engaged students, a dedicated, enthusiastic and professional staff and a highly supportive parent community.

You can learn more about our school by reading our Statement Of Values And School Philosophy. The school has a Lighthouse vision which can be accessed here. This was developed with input from School Council, parents, teachers and students. A document explaining each Lighthouse moments can be found here.  A one-page document showing our vision, values and behaviours can be found  here.