Victorian families hit by the floods will be able to send their three and four-year-old children to kinder for free for the remainder of the year, the government has announced.
Premier Daniel Andrews also announced support for VCE students affected by the crisis, which has caused devastation in regional hubs in the state's north, including Shepparton, Echuca, Seymour and Rochester.
Mr Andrews said money would be refunded for those who had already paid kinder fees.
He also announced $2 million in grants for kinder services damaged by floods.
VCE students affected by the floods will be eligible for a derived examination score, where a final score is calculated using the student's earlier results.
"It means your result will reflect your level of achievement, your hard work, your skill, not these challenges that you're facing right now," he said.
Mr Andrews said 81 schools and 59 early childhood centres were currently closed across the state.
A hotline has been set up for VCE students affected by flooding on 1800 717 588.
The premier also said the government was funding a $5.5 million food relief package and providing $1 million for regional food services.
"I think flood [affected] communities know this, but for the broader Victorian community, this is far from over," he said.
"We're going to see more rain, thousands of people with homes full of water, others who cannot go back because they have left and are now parted from their home."
While Echuca prepares for a second wave of flooding, the Bureau of Meteorology's Michael Efron said floodwaters were slowly receding across most of the state.
He said a thunderstorm was developing over the Mallee region which was expected to hit on Wednesday afternoon.
"The rainfall with that activity is not as heavy or widespread as what we saw last week," he said.
Mr Efron said the rains would extend to the rest of the state on Friday, with north-east Victoria to be hit hardest.
More rains were expected over the weekend and early next week, so he said it will still be "some time before we see these conditions easing".
Emergency commissioner Andrew Crisp said the SES had carried our 700 rescues and received 7,000 calls for assistance since the flooding began.
"So 10 per cent of the work of the work of the SES and our emergency services has been rescuing people in situations that were very much preventable," he said.
Echuca bracing for second flood
Authorities have warned Echuca residents they may become isolated for days if they do not evacuate immediately.
The latest evacuation warnings are available on the VicEmergency website.
Jessica Moyle drove up to Echuca from Bendigo to help out, and to move her 83-year-old mother out of Echuca.
"It's really surreal to see that river that I've known for my whole life come up higher than I've ever seen it," she said.
"It's a little bit confronting, but it's very reassuring to know that there are people helping out in Echuca.
"We've got the army here, we've got the SES, we've got the CFA volunteers, we've got people not here in any official capacity but just helping out and that's why you live in a community like this."
'One-in-1000-year' flood event
Echuca fared better than expected when the Campaspe River peaked — despite 1,200 homes being affected — but the next threat is already near.
Authorities predict the Murray River will peak on Wednesday, and have described the conditions the northern Victorian town faces as a one-in-1000-year flood event.
As the expected peak draws closer, residents are banding together to build a kilometres-long flood levee through the town centre.
"We've got to do basically 2.5 kilometres of levee in 48 hours to make sure we protect the majority of the town," Campaspe Shire Mayor Chrissy Weller said.
"It's a one-in-1000 [year] event, they're now calling it."
Supermarket stocks of certain goods were in short supply in Echuca, as remaining residents prepared for isolation.
The mammoth task at hand in Echuca is just one facing Victorians across the state.
More than 11,000 people have so far been displaced by the floods, and a similar number of applications for emergency payments have been submitted.
Hundreds of roads remain closed, with the extent of damage still concealed under floodwater in many areas.
The Victorian government has pledged $165 million to begin the repair work.
In Kerang, residents have been warned the town could be isolated for up to two weeks as the swollen Loddon River reaches its predicted peak there on Wednesday night.
The nearby town of Boort was predicted to be isolated for a week, similar to the 2011 floods.
Authorities said leaving now is the safest option, and warned residents who stayed behind to ensure they had enough supplies to take them through the isolation period.
SES chief operations officer Tim Wiebusch said despite 4,000 properties at the regional hub of Shepparton either being isolated or inundated by the floods, there was a "light at the end of the tunnel" after the Goulburn River peaked on Monday morning at 12.05 metres — below the 12.2 metres predicted.
Shepparton is currently under a too-late-to-leave warning.
In Maribyrnong, the Melbourne suburb where some residents woke to water lapping at their streets early Friday morning, residents have begun sifting through their sodden homes.
Those in Rochester, a small community south of Echuca, have also begun the enormous task of cleaning up after an estimated 85 per cent of the town was flooded.
A major flood warning was in place on Tuesday morning, with authorities warning that Rochester remained unsafe.
Authorities said it may take six to eight weeks to restore the town's damaged sewerage system.
Victoria's emergency management commissioner Andrew Crisp urged residents to heed the warnings and stay alert for updates as flooding continued.
He said some residents were choosing not to evacuate their properties.
"Please, please, please heed the warnings," Commissioner Crisp told News Breakfast.
"You're putting yourself at risk, you're putting our emergency services at risk, you're distracting our emergency services from doing what they should be doing."
Financial support available in more areas
Emergency Management Minister Murray Watt told ABC Radio Melbourne on Tuesday that residents in nine extra Victorian council areas were now eligible for Commonwealth financial support of $1,000 per eligible adult and $400 per eligible child.
The payment will be available from 2pm Tuesday for the council areas of Benalla, Boroondara, Central Goldfields, Greater Bendigo, Loddon, Moonee Valley, Mount Alexander, Murrindindi and Yarra.
This is in addition to Campaspe, Greater Shepparton, Maribyrnong, Mitchell and Strathbogie which were announced on Sunday.
"We are aware that there are a number of other council areas that are affected and we are looking to activate those payments in extra areas over the next 24 hours or so," Mr Watt said.
A disaster recovery allowance was also available in a wider range of areas, particularly for those losing income due to the floods, as a 13-week payment at the level of JobSeeker.
The Victorian government earlier announced payments of about $2,000 per family, which were available through the Department of Families, Fairness and Housing.
