STAFFING

Josh LaGrutta has taken Long Service Leave for the remainder of 2025 to concentrate on his university studies. Connor Edwards has been appointed to an English/HASS position for the remainder of the year and we look forward to having Connor on board.

Nicole Bowden has won a permanent SSO position at another site, with her last day at the end of Week 7. We will have an SSO to replace Nicole at the start of Term 3.

Congratulations to Hudson Noack who has won a leadership role at Gawler and District College for the rest of 2025 (starting Term 3). He'll be stepping into the B2 Tailored Learning Leader position. 

While we will miss having Hudson around for the rest of the year, this is a fantastic recognition of his active work in the leadership space and participation in the Aspiring Leaders program. We currently have a HPE/Science position advertised with a start date for the beginning of Term 3.

STUDENT FREE DAYS

On Monday 23^rd June, staff ventured to sites across the state to observe best practice in a focus around of their choosing. This was a great way to collaborate with colleagues from other schools and bring back ideas to implement into our school.

Our next Student Free Day is on Friday 25^th July. This day will be dedicated to cultural responsiveness, Aboriginal history, and Ngadjuri culture.

YOUTH OPPORTUNITIES

The Youth Opportunities information sessions have now taken place with over 40 students registering interest and interviewing for the program. Over the past few days, 23 students have been offered a place in the program for Term 3. Youth Opportunities will take place on a Monday at the Balaklava Bowls Club.

SEVEN POINT PORK CLOSURE

We are saddened to hear the announcement from JBS that it will stop operating the Seven Point Pork processing facility at Pork Wakefield in January 2026.  270 jobs are set to be affected with an estimated 160 belonging to people who live within our council area.

We know that this will have an impact on Balaklava High School families with many employed by JBS. We encourage families to reach out to us for a conversation and support as required. 

Workers, suppliers and concerned community members affected by the impending closure of Seven Point Pork at Port Wakefield are encouraged to attend a community forum on July 2 to both access support services and map out their options to remain in the region. 

While the forum starts at 6pm and wraps up at 8pm, it will be open for people to attend and provide their feedback, ask questions or connect with services at any point throughout the evening.

Forum purpose:

• Provide information on the Seven Point Pork closure process
• Outline available support for employees and affected families
• Allow the community to raise concerns and ask questions
• Facilitate collaboration between local leaders, service providers, and government representatives

PUBLIC EDUCATION AWARDS

The Public Education Awards were established in 2011, to recognise the vital role our people play in helping children and young people to learn and thrive The awards offer a chance for everyone to celebrate our achievements, be proud of our work and where we are heading together.

All employees are encouraged to help recognise great practice and success in public education at your site so we can celebrate, learn and grow together. Nominate an outstanding team, colleague or yourself for an award. This year you can also nominate community members, individuals or teams, who have made a significant contribution to the site community for the Community Impact Award.

Winners and finalists receive prizes to undertake professional learning, community activities or invest in resources.

Entering the Public Education Awards

Please feel free to contact me at the school if you would like to discuss any aspect of your child’s learning.  I can be contacted via Daymap or email derek.friedrichs447@schools.sa.edu.au or you can phone the school on 8862 0600 and ask to speak with me directly. Alternatively, I would be happy to discuss your needs in person – please pre-arrange this with the Front Office Team so that I can ensure I am available when you arrive.

Enjoy the last week of school and Term 2 holidays.

Regards

Derek Friedrichs

Principal BHS

New Daymap Parent Portal - Daymap Connect

We’re excited to let families know that a new parent application, Daymap Companion, has now launched! This upgraded platform replaces the old Daymap Mobile app and provides a simpler, more intuitive way to access your child’s school information.

Daymap Companion gives you streamlined access to key information such as attendance, assessment results, Daymap Points, excursion details and school messages, all in one place. It’s available on both desktop and mobile.

Desktop: Via the BHS Website  

Android: Download on Google Play

Apple: Download on the App Store

Daymap Connect and the old Daymap Mobile app will still work for now, but they will not receive any further feature updates. We strongly encourage families to download Daymap Companion to stay up to date with school events and student progress.

Accessing Your Account

Each parent receives a unique login and password for secure access.

You can access the portal via:

The Daymap Connect link: https://balakhs.daymap.net/daymapconnect

The Balaklava High School website: https://www.balakhs.sa.edu.au/

The Daymap Companion mobile app: Available on Apple and Android  

If your account is new or has been inactive, click “Forgot Password” and enter the email address provided to the school along with your child’s student ID code (found on their Daymap portal or student ID Card). If you need more support or encounter an error, please contact the school.

Semester 1 Reports  - On Daymap

Reports for Semester 1 will be available on the final day of Term 2 (Friday, 4 July 2025). These will be published to the Daymap Parent Portal.

If you haven’t activated your Daymap account yet, now is the perfect time to do so to ensure you can access your child’s report and stay informed for the rest of the year.

The Year 12 Agriculture Productions Class's headed off to Renmark on 11-13th June for their annual 3 day Agritech tour.  The task, "Science as a Human Endeavour," provided an excellent opportunity for students to delve into diverse and emerging technologies in agriculture and how it has or willl influence the industry. 

Here is a brief overview of their 3 day tour:

Australian Grain Technology - Roseworthy

• Facility Tour: Explore automatic glasshouses.
• Hand Pollination: Demonstration of techniques.
• Trial Process: Insight into developing new grain varieties.
• Upcoming Trials: Information on future research.
• Barley and Wheat Trials: Focus on end-products like malt and flour.
• Careers: Opportunities in the grain technology sector.

PIRSA Loxton

• Soil Probes: Use for salinity, pH, and moisture management.
• Sterile Insect Technology: Innovative pest control methods.
• Economic Influence: Impact of Riverland horticulture and fruit fly issues.
• Orange Quality Control: Ensuring high standards.
• Farm Tour: Practical insights into farm operations.
• Weedseeker Technology: Spot spraying and horticultural applications.
• Inverted Irrigation: Development for espalier apricot growing.

Biosecurity SA - SA/VIC Quarantine

• Quarantine and Biosecurity: Importance for South Australia and the Riverland.
• Quarantine Search: Practical demonstration.

PIRSA Turretfield Research Centre

• Facility Tour: Overview of research facilities.
• Fertility Research: Observation of ongoing studies.
• Automatic Feeders: Precision in feed delivery.
• Methane Monitoring: Use of feeders for environmental research.
• EId Technology: Application in research and farming.
• Automatic Sheep Handler: Efficiency in livestock management.
• Methane Reducing Feed Trial: Updates on research and its generational impact.
• Tour and history of Turretfield House 

Stage 1 English: 

As part of a podcast analysis and creation unit, the Stage 1 English class have been learning about how podcasts can be used to share stories and how they create impact. In creating their own podcasts, students were tasked with finding ordinary people and finding out about parts of their lives that may be extraordinary to others. They were able to interview people they knew, research people they knew about or create a person and make up an extraordinary story. Some fantastic stories came out of this task, as well as some real creative abilities (and many with extraordinary radio voices) - have a listen! 

How awesome is this?!

Students from Room 6 & 7 at Balaklava Primary School got the surprise last week when they recognized a familiar face in their storybook, "When My Worries Get Too Big."

That’s right — it was the author himself, BHS student Harry! 

Harry didn’t just write the book… he came to school to read it aloud to the students in person!  The kids were absolutely buzzing with excitement, and what an incredible way to bring the story to life.

Big shoutout to Harry for inspiring young minds and reminding us all that stories are even more powerful when shared together.

Awesome work, Harry!

Year 12 Drama Curriculum Spotlight

Our incredible Year 12 Drama students took to the stage and absolutely delivered. From tackling complex themes of gender roles and stereotypes, to playing multiple characters (sometimes even jumping between teenager and grandma), every student showed amazing dedication, talent and versatility.

We are so proud of each and every one of them. A heartfelt thank you to everyone who came along to support the show. Your presence means the world to our students and helps make all the hard work worthwhile.

Statewide Schools Knockout Netball

During Week 8, our 7/8, 9/10 and 11/12 Girls Netball Teams competed in Round 1 of the Statewide School Knockout Netball Competition.

The 7/8 girls travelled to Nuriootpa on Wednesday the 18^th June to play against St Josephs, Riverton, Burra, Nuriootpa and Faith, finishing second overall. However, it was a slow start for the girls in the first game of the day against St Joes. Being 3 down at the end of the first half the team had to find some momentum and work together to come back. It was in the second half that the girls showed what they were made of and came off with the win 14-8. It was a great team effort and they displayed grit and determination. This was the beginning of a winning streak for the day where the girls won 42-0 against Riverton, 25-13 against Nuriootpa and 44-6 against Burra. Coming into the last round of the day the girls knew they were up for a challenge against Faith. Unfortunately, we couldn’t come away with a final win going down to Faith 23-34. Despite the end result the girls displayed great teamwork and there were some fantastic individual efforts. Hayley, Ilka, Molly and Lexie applied great defensive pressure and were composed all day. Claudia and Emilee worked well in the goal circle and weren’t afraid of a long range supershot and Alexa, Halle and India had great drive and patience down the court.

The 9/10s and 11/12s travelled to Clare on Thursday the 19^th June to face up against some fierce competition for the day. For the 9/10 girls, having to play 6 games against Clare, Riverton, Burra, Eudunda, Nuriootpa and Faith they were in for a big day. The first game of the day was against Clare who ended up progressing through to the next round. Unfortunately, Clare got the jump on us early resulting in a loss of 10-23. This did not phase the girls as we went on to win 3 games in a row. The girls won against Riverton 21-8, Burra 23-13 and Eudunda 30-7. In our 3 wins we had some strong attacking efforts from Rubi F, Ruby L and Aleisha who moved the ball efficiently in attack to help us penalise the opposition. We also had some great defensive efforts from Charlotte, Ella and Tahlia who worked tirelessly to shut down the attackers and bring the ball back out of defence. Coming into the last 2 games of the day the girls knew they were up for a challenge. We came up against Faith next and the girls were able to come together and work as a team to only be down by 3 goals at the break. There was great full court pressure and Ella, Tahlia and Brianna were able to get many turnovers with Tori and Alexa being able to convert on the scoreboard. Unfortunately, Faith was able to take the momentum into the second half and they came away with the win 22-12. In our final game of the day the girls were determined to get another win against Nuriootpa and with some hard work and good connection between all the players the girls were able to come away with the win; 21-18.

The 11/12s were too classy for their opposition, finishing the day undefeated. The girls stuck to the game plan, responded well to feedback and rolled the changes seamlessly. They demonstrated slick skills and exceptional teamwork, working tirelessly across all four games. After going goal-for-goal early in the first half of game 1 against Clare, the defensive end of Kasey Battle, Maylea Carpenter and Megan Payne worked in overdrive winning back plenty of ball for us which we were able to convert to win the match by 9, 28-19. In game 2 against a combined Riverton and Burra outfit, Jorja Schutt proved her strength and versatility, swinging from WA to WD and had a number of clean intercepts. The injection of Matilda Williamson into C at half time gave us strong drive to win the second half by 15 goals and finishing the game with a 31-11 scoreline. Down by 1 at half time in game 3 against Nuriootpa, the girls withstood the pressure from their opposition to win the second half by 11 goals, 32-22. Lucy Pym and Lily Tiller combined strongly in the goal circle and shot exceptionally well. The final game of the day saw a dominant start against Faith, leading 11-0 at one point. Zarlia White shot with high accuracy, as did Tess Rana, who was dynamic in her ability to set-up the play in our attacking end to allow us to take our final win, 37-16. Thanks to Karen Hurley for scoring our games and Hannah Marshall for umpiring.

The 11/12 team progress to Round 2, against Kadina and Gladstone and will play in Balaklava on Thursday Week 1, next term.

School Sport SA Cross Country State Championship

On Thursday the 5^th June, Bodie Seiboth, Chase McCracken and Elliot Smith competed in the School Sport SA Cross Country State Championship at Oakbank Racecourse. Bodie placed 46 out of 170 starters, Elliot 59^th and Chase 125^th. The boys had a great experience racing against some tough competition and they represented BHS proudly, read their thoughts below.

Cross Country was amazing, a really good experience. At Burra it was a bit of a tough track but when we went to Oakbank it was amazing with a really good track with good food options and the only bad thing was the drive.

Chase

Cross Country was a good time and fun. At Burra it was a pretty hard track to run on because of the big hill we had to run up, but at Oakbank it was a lot easier because of the flatter track, there was some hills but only small.

Elliot

LEVEL 1 SPORTS TRAINER COURSE FOR SECONDARY SCHOOL STUDENTS

These school holidays the SA Sports Medicine Association is pleased to be running a specialised school student Level 1 Sports Trainer Course! 

This is a fantastic opportunity for Year 10-11-12 students to gain practical skills and knowledge that can assist with their studies, within their sporting community, to support career aspirations or part-time work! 

The one-day course is delivered by our expert members and educators, covering a range of topics, including the role of the sports trainer, injury management scenarios, soft/hard tissue injuries, wound management, sport-related concussion, and much more. The course also includes the practical components of sports taping (ankle, finger and thumb) and transporting an injured athlete via stretcher.

What is required to complete your accreditation?

To complete your Level 1 Sports Trainer Accreditation, participants must be 16 years old (attendees can be 15 and complete the course, however will not receive accreditation until they turn 16), hold (or obtain) a current First Aid and CPR Certificate, complete the SASMA Sports Trainer Online Component (approx. 2 hours, can be completed at your own pace), plus attend the practical workshop on July 18th.

Wellbeing

This term, our students have had the opportunity to engage in a range of wellbeing initiatives designed to support their emotional and mental health through creative and holistic practices.

Recently, a group of students attended a wellbeing workshop where they participated in activities such as mindfulness exercises, creating medicine sticks and making calming sprays. These hands-on sessions encouraged self-reflection and supported students in developing practical tools for managing stress and improving emotional regulation.

Some students have also been involved in the Creative Calm intervention program. This initiative uses art as a medium for exploring emotions, building emotional literacy and practicing mindfulness. Through guided art activities, students have learned to express themselves more openly and to better understand their emotional responses.

We are already seeing some fantastic outcomes from these programs, with many students demonstrating a greater ability to regulate their emotions. 

Inclusive Education

This term, our Special Options class has been thriving—especially in the kitchen! Cooking has been one of the big focuses as we continue building essential life skills. Students have planned, prepared and cooked delicious meals like lasagna, carbonara and tacos. This process involves much more than just cooking—it requires thoughtful planning, ingredient selection, shopping, using maths skills and portioning to ensure each dish turns out just right. The teamwork and enthusiasm in the kitchen have been outstanding!

Beyond cooking, our students have achieved some wonderful individual milestones:

• Seth has proudly achieved his White Card—a big step towards future work opportunities.
• Eboney attended Beauty and the Beast with the Drama class and has been excelling in her driving lessons.
• Hayley has been attending RST and working independently, showing great initiative.
• Maddi and Yasmine went on the Year 10 and 11 overnight camp and were both selected for Youth Ops—an amazing opportunity!
• Mandy has been enjoying her time practicing keyboard with Mr Evans, and she’s truly thriving in the music space.
• Hayden has been hands-on in Drama, learning how to operate the lighting system—a valuable backstage skill.

We’re incredibly proud of the students’ efforts, growth and achievements across all areas. Their commitment to learning life skills and pursuing new opportunities is inspiring.

Balaklava Schools' Canteen are seeking feedback from our families on the service provided and food options available from within our canteen. We are bound by the Right Bite Food and Drink Supply Standards when it comes to selecting healthier menu items but we would love to hear from students and families on the current range and any suggestions you may have for new/future products. Please have your say by completing the survey below. The survey will close on Friday the 8^th of August (Term 3, Week 3).

https://forms.office.com/r/8AVZ0AmUs4

If you have any questions, please direct these to Elly via email Elly.Swift570@schools.sa.edu.au or phone 8862 0623