Junior School (Reception – Year 6)

This refinement strengthens our ability to deliver learning with rigour and precision. By strategically spacing the seven lessons across the day, we reduce cognitive overload and introduce three lessons before the longer break, when students are most alert and ready to engage deeply, particularly in core subjects.

Aligned with the Reggio Emilia philosophy, which views time as flexible and responsive to a child’s needs, the new model prioritises cognitive, emotional and social rhythms. Research and staff practice confirm that children learn best when the day includes time for focused learning, movement, exploration, collaboration and self-regulation, rather than extended afternoon blocks which may lead to disengagement or regulation challenges.

In addition, moving the longer break earlier in the day and adopting a “play then eat” approach supports emotional regulation, smoother re-entry into learning and improved consumption of nutritious foods. Evidence shows that students return to class calmer and more focused when they play before eating, and that sustained energy earlier in the day improves concentration in afternoon learning.

Importantly, the revised timetable is tailored specifically to meet the developmental needs of children in Reception to Year 6 and will create a smoother, more developmentally aligned learning flow for our students.

• Adoption of the 3–2–2 lesson structure (see Table 1) (three lessons before the longer break, two lessons, then two in the afternoon)
• Longer break moved earlier in the day, using a ‘play then eat’ approach
• Safely reducing eating time in classrooms, with duty rosters adjusted to maintain care and supervision
• Junior School dismissal at 3.20 pm supporting safer traffic flow at pick-up time

• No loss of teaching and learning time, with instructional minutes remaining the same
• Continued focus on high expectations relating to academic rigour, ensuring core and specialist subject allocations are maintained
• Care and supervision hours remain aligned with current provisions
• Scheduled start or finish times of co-curricular programs remains the same.

Please advise the School via the absentee form on the Parent App by 9.15am if your child is unwell or will not be attending school for other reasons. Alternatively, you can notify the School via email absentees@pulteney.sa.edu.au or telephone the Absentees line on 8216 5555. If a student is absent and the school has not been notified, the School will make contact with parents to ensure that all is well.

Students who arrive after 9am or who need to leave the School for an appointment or other reason throughout the day must be signed in/out via the Main Reception (Allan Wheaton House) by a parent or caregiver. If a student does need to leave the School grounds during the day to attend an appointment, please also advise the class teacher with a note in the diary or via email.

The School day commences at 8.30am and concludes at 3.25pm (2025) but from Term 1 2026, will conclude at 3.20pm.
Arrival
The start of every school day is significant, as it enables classroom teachers to welcome students, establish the routines of the day and set in place learning expectations.

We ask that children are at School and ready to commence the daily program by 8.30am. Children do need time prior to this to organise their belongings and, therefore, should be at School no later than 8.30am. The outdoor play equipment areas are supervised by a teacher each school day morning from 8.15am – 8.30am

Before School Care is available between 7.30am and 8.30am, should you require this service. Please visit the OSHC/Vacation Care section on the website for more information.

Dismissal
Students are to be collected from their designated area (R-2) or Gilles Street gates (Years 3-6) where teachers are on duty from 3.20pm until 3.40pm. Students who are still waiting at 3.40pm will be taken to OSHC (Out of School Hours Care) and must be collected from there. Please note, a fee will be charged for this service. If you are running late, please telephone the school on 8216 5555 so we can ensure the safety of your child. Please inform your child’s teacher if someone other than you will be collecting your child on any nominated day.
Please note: children must not play on the play equipment after school.

The beginning and end of the day are important as these times enable children to settle and reflect on the their learning for the day. Therefore, parents are asked to adhere to School start (8.30am) and finish (3.20pm) times.

Assembly
Assemblies are held fortnightly for all students Reception – Year 6.

These assemblies are run by the Year 6 leaders.

Chapel
Pulteney is affiliated with the Anglican Church. Students attend Chapel service in year levels at designated times each week.

Each class sets a small number of classroom rules together in a democratic fashion which are in place to ensure a harmonious learning environment and the safety of your child. Naturally, parents will be informed of appropriate as well as inappropriate behaviour. If a child reaches certain steps of the Junior School Behaviour Support Policy, parents will be involved in collaboratively forming a positive action plan with the child and the teacher. We also have playground rules, which are outlined at the beginning of each year in assembly.

Everyone has the right to feel safe and happy while at school. Any form of harassment is abhorrent and unacceptable. The School is committed to minimising it. Pulteney has an Anti-bullying and Harassment Policy as well as the Behaviour Management Policy, which are accessible via the Policies page of the Parent Portal.

We ask that parents post or email birthday party invitations to children rather than giving them out at School. The Buzz Book is available via the secure Parent Portal, with a list of contact details of families that have consented to be included.

If the weather is forecast for 35 degrees or more, parents may collect their child or children from their classroom at 12.45pm. After school sport will also be cancelled as per the Hot Weather Policy if the forecast is 35 degree or above, or if severe rain or weather is forecast.

To protect all children at Pulteney who have a severe allergy to peanuts and nuts, it is a School policy that foods containing peanut and nut products are not brought to School or events. These products may include peanut and nut flavoured crackers, sweets and other foods (eg satay crackers, fruit and nut chocolate, muesli bars containing nuts). Please assist us to protect children who may have aa severe allergy, sometimes leading to an anaphylactic reaction, by checking the ingredients in the products you pack in your child’s lunch box.

We want to ensure all students are sun safe. Students must wear their formal hat to and from School. Students must wear their play hat in Terms 1 and 4 to protect themselves from the harmful effects of UV exposure. Students are required to wear their play hat in Terms 2 and 3 when the UV rating is high. The hat is optional during cooler weather.

Sunscreen is available in all classrooms.

Technology is embedded within the curriculum at Pulteney and is integral to everyday learning in Junior School. From Reception – Year 5, students are supplied with a School owned and based iPad to support their learning. iPads are utilised on a daily basis to access information and to supplement and enrich learning activities across the many subjects available. Students also have the opportunity to engage with a wide range of evolving technologies from web applications to leading-edge software and innovative tools.

It is the student’s responsibility to make sure that they adhere to the iPad/ICTY Policy (available to view in the Policies section on the Parent Portal) and that their iPad is kept securely during the School day within the classroom.

Parents of students in Year 6 are asked to provide a laptop for their child to utilise at School in line with the BYOD (Bring Your Own Device) program in the Middle/Senior School.

Pulteney’s uniform is symbolic of our School’s traditions and values. Each student is expected to take pride in and care of their uniform.

Please ensure your child wears the correct uniform each day, and that each item of your child’s uniform is clearly labelled. Named items are returned to their owner and any unnamed items are stored in the lost property box.

Full details of the uniform requirements for Junior School are available via our online Uniform Shop (link). Parents are asked to clearly label each individual item of their child’s clothing. Named items are returned to their owner and any unnamed items are stored in the lost property box.

We do not encourage students to bring toys or personal items to school (unless requested by your teacher for curriculum related activities) because loss or damage can cause much distress.

Recess and Lunch should be packed into your child’s lunch box.  Tuck orders are also available to order through the Qkr! App.  Any recess and lunch orders on the Qkr! App website must be completed by 8.00am on the day.

Pulteney runs a dedicated Out of School Hours Care (OSHC) program and Vacation Care, aimed to provide a high quality leisure program centred on children’s interests that complements the care provided within the family and supports the values of the School and the community.

For information about OSHC and Vacation Care, please click here.

If you need to communicate with your child’s teacher, please do so either in person or via email.

The Parent App is the main hub for parent communication, consolidating multiple functions in one place:

• Notices (real-time updates, urgent notifications)
• Push notifications
• Content filtering & personalisation
• School calendar integration
• PRW/newsletter integration
• Directory/contact list
• Co-curricular function
• Absence reporting (integrated with School’s database)
• Co-curricular schedules, results, and notifications (integrated with Clipboard)

Please download the app and subscribe to the appropriate Year levels.

For more information about the Parent App and a user guide, visit the Parent App page

Pulteney’s Parent Portal is the School’s main conduit of housing information for parents.

It provides a central repository for all school-related information including Uniform information, polices and procedures, sub-school information and more.

Where parental response is required, or information is time sensitive, the School will communicate this to parents via email and/or the Pulteney Parent App.

The Pulteney Review Weekly (PRW) is Pulteney’s regular e-newsletter, emailed to families every Tuesday during Term time. This pertains important information, so please ensure you take the time to read this every week. Other important information will be shared via the Parent Portal, so please continuously check this page.

In Junior School, Seesaw is the primary way we share with you what your child is learning at School. Seesaw gives your child a place to document their learning, be creative and learn how to use technology. Each child has their own individual journal and we will periodically add entries to it, such as photos, videos, drawings, notes or learning examples. It allows you to see and hear your child learning the moment they post it to their portfolio. It is also intended to document student learning and make visible the powerful learning occurring each and every day, particularly in Reception – Year 2.

To make sure you have access to this information, please download the App and connect to Seesaw.

Students in Years 3, 4, 5 and 6 all have a homework diary. Diaries are a useful avenue of communication between teachers and parents. Each entry is to be signed daily by a parent to ensure that homework has been completed and messages have been seen. Should there be the need, parents are encouraged to write brief notes to the teacher in the diary. Parents are asked to sign their child’s diary each night after they have completed their homework.

The diary is used as an organisational tool for students to record their homework and school activities in and can be used as a regular and direct communication link between parents and teachers.

From 2024, Receptions – Year 2s will receive a diary, in which they can record their reading.

Parents will receive a curriculum outline for the year as the first term commences. This document will also list key events and dates. Classroom visits to meet the teacher, followed by a welcome function, will be held on the first Thursday of the School year.

Many special events take place within our School community throughout the year. Please complete the photo permission form via the secure Parent Portal to indicate if you consent to your child being photographed or filmed by the School, and where you permit the School to use photos, video or audio of your child. Permission must be completed at the commencement of each School year but can be updated by parents at any time via the Portal.
Should you be photographing and/or filming at an event yourself, the School asks that you are mindful and respectful of other families when photographing or videoing events.

JRP Photographers attend a number of Pulteney events such as Sports Day, Grandparents Day, performances and more. The School will communicate to parents how they can access these photos following the event.

Class and individual photographs are taken annually by JRP Photographers. Details of the dates and requirements of class, individual and sibling photos will be advised during the year.

All information Pulteney Grammar School collects and holds relating to students and families is gathered to enable us to provide schooling for your child. The purposes for which the School uses such information is in line with Pulteney Grammar School’s Privacy Policy based upon the national privacy principles contained in the Commonwealth Privacy Act. Please visit the Policies section to view the Privacy Policy.

• Languages
  • Mandarin (Reception – Year 6)
  • Japanese (Year 6)
  • German (Year 6)
• Visual Arts
• Performing Arts
• Science
• Physical Education & Health

A wide variety of after school co-curricular activities are also offered throughout the year as we strive to encourage students’ learning beyond the classroom. Find out more via the Sports and Extra-Curricular pages.

Pulteney is fortunate to have age-appropriate Resource Centres on its campus. These Resource Centres are a vibrant part of our School with books, pictures, kits, videos and technology.

Teachers and librarians collaboratively broaden the students’ research and literary skills through a weekly lesson. As well as this lesson, each week the class has a browsing and borrowing session. Students are encouraged to exchange books often.

Outdoor Education is an integral part of life at Pulteney, beginning in Reception and continuing through to Year 12. All excursions, camps and expeditions are designed to promote personal growth, social interaction and environmental awareness while complementing the traditional school experience.

School camps are an important part of the Pulteney curriculum. Each camp is carefully planned and designed to foster personal growth, to build resilience, self-knowledge and confidence. Camps also present a new environment for students to connect with their peers and to gain a deeper appreciation of the natural environment.

Students often return to School with a sense of achievement and a better understanding of their capacities as individuals, leaders and teammates, and a stronger connection with the natural environment.

Throughout the year, students in each year level enjoy a number of educationally beneficial excursions. As a city school there are many opportunities for students to access a wide range of resources in the city. Parents will be notified of excursion details throughout the year.

Year 3 Douglas Scrub (McLaren Value)

Year 4 Woodhouse (Adelaide Hills)

Year 5 Sos at Clayton Bay

Year 6 Douglas Scrub and Canberra Trip