Geraldton Primary School students begin term one in heatwave but nothing can dampen their spirits

The nerves and excitement were almost as intense as the sun beating down on Wednesday, with thousands of school students starting the 2024 school year in Geraldton in a heatwave.

The first day back at school is never easy, let alone on a 46C day, but all students were excited for the day ahead of them.

A record number of students began term one at schools across the State, and 399 of them were at the gates of Geraldton Primary School.

Almost 489,000 students from kindergarten to Year 12 are expected to fill classrooms at WA public, private and independent schools this week.

At Geraldton Primary School, 53 Year 1 students made their debut in brand new school shoes and uniforms promised to be “grown in to”.

Principal Jacqui Quartermaine said the energy on the first day was great, with kids, parents and teachers all happy to see each other.

“It was really nice to see, and that excitement was palpable,” she said

After a few nervous hugs from mums and dads, the five and six-year-old students had brazenly taken to their coloured pencils once the bell sounded at 8.30am.

Six-year-old Emily Welch said she was excited to be back at school, but when asked why she said, “I don’t know”.

The Lee siblings came back from an action-packed holiday which involved trips to Perth and Kalbarri, enthusiastic to jump back into term one.

Inarah Lee, 8, is starting Year 3: “I’m most excited about being in the same classroom that my brother was in last year,” she said.

Birin Lee, 10, is wise beyond his years, saying: “I’m excited to meet my new teacher.”

Five-year-old Suri Antunes-Monteiro is starting Year 1, and is most excited to “learn new things”.

Charlotte Williams, 6, is also starting Year 1. “I can’t wait to play on the nature playground, we weren’t allowed to play on it in pre-primary,” she said.

For five-year-old Archer Tester, it was his first day at Geraldton Primary, and he was looking forward to making new friends. Charlotte said: “I can be your friend Archer.”

Seven-year-old Naserian Ngitoria, now a Year 2 student, is excited to see her friends after the summer holidays.

The school welcomed 30 new students on Wednesday, hosted for an orientation on Saturday and Monday so parents were able to meet each other.

“It just demystifies it a bit,” Mrs Quartermaine said.

Education Minister Tony Buti said: “Across the State — from the city to regional and remote areas — our aim is to ensure every child has access to a high-quality education, so they can reach their full potential, and become lifelong learners.”

It is also an exciting day for more than 360 graduates who will take up their first teaching jobs in public schools across Western Australia.

There are currently 60,532 registered teachers in Western Australia, which is a 2.4 per cent increase since last year and driven by an international recruitment program run by the Department of Education.