Today marks the end of our 2025 Preshil calendar year. What an immense year this has been for all of us! As a community, we’ve experienced truly special moments as we’ve navigated the unique learning journeys of our young people. It has been a time of growth, connection, and purpose, and we now look ahead with excitement to a fresh new year.
As I reflect on the year, I do so with deep pride and gratitude for all that we have achieved together. It has been a year filled with meaningful successes, both large and small, that have shaped who we are and where we are headed.
One of the greatest joys this year has been witnessing the growing connection between our programs and campuses. This has brought a sense of harmony and joy, and a stronger cultural thread that now runs more deeply through every part of the school.
Across all teams, there has been a strengthening of relationships and a deepening sense of unity. While we teach at different ages and stages, and naturally bring different approaches to our practice, we are united by a shared philosophy. Much like parenting a toddler versus a teenager, our strategies may be applied differently, but the essence remains the same: a deep respect for each learner and a commitment to their individual journey.
At Preshil, we continue to strive for a distinct approach: education done differently, education with purpose. This throughline begins in the earliest years and carries all the way through to Year 12. While it may look different in the Early Learning Centre than in the Senior Years, where we meet the demands of external assessment, the child-centred, thinking-focused, creative and compassionate foundation remains ever-present. Each stage of learning is beautiful in its own way because it reflects each young person’s unique way of connecting with the world, becoming more attuned to their identity, their impact, and their place within the rich tapestry of humanity. It is our role to provide young people with a grounding, formative experience during this remarkable period of self-actualisation.
Our children are not “off the shelf,” and neither is our school. We are proudly autonomous in what we do, shaping learning experiences that our young people truly deserve. Pillars grounded in social learning, inquiry, participatory democracy, purpose, relationships and community, creativity and self expression, passion and interest will continue to guide the evolution of our school in 2026 and beyond. What we do as a school shapes and influences each child’s sense of self within the community. We know they will carry this sense of belonging and responsibility into their adult lives.
From our beginnings in Greta Lyttle’s backyard on Barkers Road, Preshil was never designed to retrofit an existing model of education. It was founded to pioneer a new one. Our roots are, and always have been, progressive. The belief that children are individuals with unique pathways is not something we’ve had to adapt to; it is the very fabric of our school.
This is the heritage we continue to honour, not by preserving it unchanged, but by amplifying and evolving it, and aligning it with the needs of our time in thoughtful, meaningful ways. It is why Preshil has endured, and why I believe we are entering a renaissance: a new era of strength, purpose and possibility.
The next decade holds so much promise. I believe Preshil will continue to be a beacon, a light that shows what education can be when it is centred around the individual, grounded in community, and built on a belief in lifelong, holistic growth.
To our teachers: thank you. You lead with such care, attuned to our children’s needs and strengths, and work in close partnership with families to support their growth. Your dedication is the heartbeat of this school.
To our families: thank you for your continued support, your trust, and your willingness to walk with us through moments of growth and renewal. You are an essential part of our shared journey.
And to our students: you are extraordinary, for who you are and for who you are becoming. It is a joy and privilege to walk alongside you as you learn, grow and contribute to the world.
As we close the year, I wish all our families a peaceful and restorative break. May the holidays bring you joy, rest and renewal. I look forward to welcoming you back in the new year for another exciting chapter in the life of our school.
Warmly, Aaron Mackinnon Principal
VCE, VCE VM, VPC Completion
Congratulations to our VCE, VCE VM, VPC graduates!
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Summer Sol at the Kindergarten Program
Children and families came together to celebrate Summer Sol and a beautiful year filled with meaningful relationships, learning adventures, and growth. Thank you for your ongoing support, this year would not have been the same without families placing their trust in us and children feeling safe to be themselves, explore, and discover in this learning space.
We look forward to another year full of wonder, nature, play-based exploration, discovery, and the meaningful interactions that support children to be and become caring citizens of this world.
All students and families are welcome to join us at our Welcome Picnic.
Friday 20 Feb 2026, 3:30-5:30pm. On the lawn at Blackhall campus. BYO picnic.
Save the Date: Preshil Primary Reunion
An early invitation to all primary school ex-students, their parents and teachers for Open House at Arlington. March 2026.
Thank you to our donors
A special thank you to these local businesses for their generous contributions to our school events.
A shout out to;
Going Gourmet for catering at Valedictory.
And for Summer Sol; Bennets Quality meats for donating sausages, Bakers Delight for bread,
Toscano’s for fruit.
These donations help our community celebrate milestones to their fullest potential.
A Year in Review
Preshil Receives Highly Commended at Sydney Opera House Play Awards
We’re proud to close out the year in announcing Preshil received a Highly Commended for the Sydney Opera House Play Awards.
The Play Award is an annual award for a primary school with a learning program, class or an individual student or teacher, that has made a remarkable and ongoing contribution to ‘play in learning’ with demonstrated positive impacts.
Highlighting Preshil’s play program “A Backyard for our Children” invites self-led, unprescribed outdoor play, so that children can activate their imagination, and grow their conceptual thinking, through creating their own games and scenarios. There is a forest of bamboo, trees to climb and swing from, dirt mounds to dig and hoses to create dams. Dense shrubberies to hide within, ponds to splash about with, and cubbies and huts that the children build with recycled wood and tools from the school’s outdoor workshop. Indoor spaces are also freely accessible so children can choose how and when they engage in play or in spending time to rest and recentre “A Backyard for our Children” acknowledges that play and recreation is as diverse as children, and prescribed playgrounds often preference sporting play over other styles of recreation. Differentiation in play is inclusive of all children, is open to accepting play in all its forms, is built on the premise of ownership of space, and meets the children where they are, on any given day.
Central Australia Camp
In June, Year 9 students and accompanying staff visited central Australia. Participants hiked Kings Canyon, enjoyed a guided tour of Uluru, visited Kata Tjuṯa, were immersed in the local Pitjantjatjara language, cooked roo tails, made damper bread, found witchetty grubs and admired the Field of Light at Yulara.
The penultimate morning of the trip was a sunrise camel ride. It was such an honour to be able to visit Central Australia and to deepen our understanding of Country, culture and connection.
