The King David School - Academic excellence & Jewish connection

"King David’s superpower is its ability to guide and support you to empower yourself. King David shaped me. Helping me realise my own potential and providing me opportunities and help wherever I wanted it, KDS cultivated my self-growth and instilled in us a strong sense of Jewish identity - peoplehood, history, culture, and tradition."
Trixie Bustin-Irwin, Class of 2024

"What I will miss most is the culture of King David. This culture separates us from other schools. A culture that allows me to confidently walk through the hallways with no fear of being judged, instead it embraces friendliness and conversations across all year levels. A culture where you are all truly cared for, where the school is always invested in your best interest.”
Poppy Rauchberger, Class of 2024

Abi's Story - Grow with Us

Welcome! Bruchim Habaim

We invite you to discover for yourself why more families are choosing King David.

With core values of community-mindedness, equity and social justice, King David students thrive in a warm and caring educational environment with a focus on academic excellence, strong Jewish identity, student wellbeing, and creative thinking skills for the future.

Principal's Welcome

Bruchim Habaim and welcome to The King David School.
Schooling is an integral part of our lives, establishing the foundation for our future success. I am proud that at King David, we prepare our students to thrive in the world they will graduate into, ensuring they are collaborative, critical and creative thinkers. Our values of community mindedness, equity, and social justice ensure that students develop emotional intelligence. Students are encouraged to use their achievements to create a better Australia.

From celebrating our Chagim (holidays) to debating Jewish ethics to researching Jewish history, our students experience Judaism as a rich and moving tradition that is relevant to their lives. Our Jewish Life team facilitates hands-on learning that strengthens our students' Jewish and Zionist identities.

As you look on the website, I encourage you to discover our educational philosophy and the extraordinary opportunities on offer both in and out of the classroom. From exceptional outdoor education, to musicals, debating, coding contests and more, our students are able to challenge themselves in a range of environments.

Our School's founders, Isador Magid AO and Rabbi Dr John Levi AC, stand as role models for our students and teachers alike by virtue of their dedication to learning and enlightenment. The school environment they created continues to this day, promoting critical inquiry, positive relationships and the embracing of difference.

It is a privilege to lead Australia's only Progressive Jewish school. I invite you to book a tour and learn more about the King David difference.

discover king david

Early Learning

Our Early Learning Centre offers play-based learning experiences with a focus on developing executive function skills and a love of Jewish traditions. Children learn in a warm environment where their natural curiosity is nurtured.

Senior School

Our Years 10 - 12 students become citizens who contribute to Australian society & the wider Jewish community. They embody our values of inclusivity, love of learning, tikkun olam, & a meaningful relationship with Israel, They are supported throughout their VCE journey to thrive.

Wellbeing

Emotional intelligence, friendship and the importance of mindfulness are taught to students across the whole school with our dedicated wellbeing classes and curriculum which develop the whole student.

Junior School

From Prep to Year 5, our students develop a love of learning with strong foundation skills and the opportunity to ask questions and challenge themselves in a nurturing environment.

Jewish Life and Learning

King David welcomes families from a diverse range of Jewish backgrounds. Our highly engaging and interactive Jewish Life program provides students with comprehensive tools to decide how they would like to live their Jewish lives.

Our Curriculum

Emphasising the importance of thinking skills, our curriculum maximises student engagement, teaching creativity, collaboration & critical thinking through core curriculum.

Middle School

In Years 6 to 9, students become independent learners with a focus on creativity and collaboration. Students explore their passions with an extensive range of co-curricular opportunities.

Teaching and Learning

Emphasising the importance of thinking skills, our teaching & learning framework draws on pedagogical best practice to maximise student engagement. The framework aims to develop the whole child and teach creativity, collaboration & critical thinking.

Outdoor Education

Our camp programs develop students who are confident decision makers, work well in teams, and can navigate new situations. Our camps are a vital part of life and learning at King David.

Upcoming Events

Storytime with Savta is back

Children aged 3-5 years old and their families are welcome to join us for Storytime with Savta, where stories are read b’Ivrit (in Hebrew). When:

This advertises the Senior School musical, Mamma Mia. It features a Greek style house with a blue domed roof, overlooking the sea. The musical is on 6-8 April.

Mamma Mia – Coming Soon!

Our Years 9-12 students are busy preparing to take us to Greece with ABBA for the Mamma Mia Musical! Save the dates: Sunday 6 April

Senior students study Talmud with Ilan Bloch, Director of Jewish Life and Learning. They are wearing school uniform and holding paper that they are reading. They are glad to be learning. One student looks at the camera and smiles.

KDS Advantage Scholarship

Enabled by a generous donation to The King David School Foundation, this Scholarship is designed to remove financial barriers, making an immersive Jewish education accessible to students who might otherwise miss out.

Three Senior School students are smiling, two are holding chrome trophies, one is signalling 'winner' with his hands. They are wearing navy sports uniforms. they are happy because we have come 3rd place in the EISM Swimming Carnival.

Excellent EISM Swim Carnival result

What an incredible result for King David at the EISM Interschool Swimming Carnival this week. Our students competed brilliantly to win a very impressive 3rd place overall and the trophy

Adulats and children have their faces painted and are in disco costumes as they celebrate Purim early with a family fun disco

A fabulous Family Fun Purimfest Disco

Our Junior School students and families got into the groove at our Parents’ Association’s inaugural Family Fun Purimfest Disco. A perfect opportunity to increase our joy as we begin the

Principal Marc Light is cutting a red ribbon with a Year 5 student. they are officially opening the Hebrew section of the Dandenong Rd Campus library.

New dedicated Hebrew books section in our Junior Library

This week, we proudly launched an expanded dedicated Hebrew books section in the Junior School Library! This exciting addition features a fantastic collection of Hebrew books, including beloved titles like

Each week our Principal, Marc Light shares his insights into current events and educational pedagogy, highlighting how these inform the educational programs and culture at The King David School.

Mitzvot as a map for happiness

Mishenichnas Adar marbin b’simcha. When the Hebrew month of Adar comes it is said that we increase our joy in the lead up to the delights of Purim. This makes it an opportune time to discuss happiness and what we can do to ensure that our young people are experiencing

All of Israel is responsible for one another

Since the horrors of October 7 2023 and the ensuing devastating war, we have all experienced the full gamut of human emotions. There has been shock, rage and despair, as well as the brief moments of hope and jubilation, such as when we have seen hostages reunited with their families.

From Lomza to Melbourne

I hope that you will allow me the indulgence of using this column for something personal this week. Tomorrow is my Bubby (grandmother), Helen Light Senior’s 100th birthday [To avoid any confusion, my late mother, Dr Helen Light, and paternal grandmother Helen Light shared the same name]. While we celebrate

Call us

ELC & Junior School (03) 9291 7979
Middle & Senior School Office: (03) 9291 7900
Admissions (03) 9527 0102

Email us

The King David School is a forward-thinking school that fosters a love of learning, egalitarianism and a proud connection to Jewish identity.

The King David School acknowledges the Bunurong/Boon Wurrung and the Wurundjeri peoples of the Kulin nation as Traditional Owners of the land on which we are fortunate to teach and learn. We also acknowledge Traditional Owners of country throughout Australia and their continuing connection to land, sea and community. In the spirit of tikkun olam, we seek to ‘learn and understand’ the history, struggle and culture of our First Nations People. We pay our respects to them and to their Elders past and present.