Welcome back to Term 2. I hope you had a relaxing and enjoyable holiday period. Already the term has kicked off in a fast-paced fashion with multiple activities and educational experiences taking place.

Site Learning Plan

Our Site Learning Goal at Balaklava High School is 

As a community, we will improve outcomes for every student at BHS by developing resilient and resourceful students.

Throughout Term 2, each sub-school will have a focus on a different aspect of our Site Learning Plan.

• Junior School (7-8) – Developing and improve student resilience
• Middle School (9-10) – Developing and improve student resilience
• Senior School (11-12) – Developing and improve student resourcefulness

We have seen some wonderful examples of BHS connecting with community over the past month, whether it’s from our student representation at multiple ANZAC Day Dawn services throughout our communities to serving democracy sausages and freshly made espresso coffee at the polling booth for the Federal Election. Look out for us at the BFNC v HWE game here in Balaklava on Saturday. Resilience has been on display throughout the school where students have been bouncing back from challenges faced. This was evident at Year 7 camp were students faced not only a change in activities due to a shark sighting over Easter, but also learnt more about the toxic algae bloom that is affecting marine life and activities throughout the Yorke Peninsula. We know that our young people can be highly resourceful and this needs to be continually developed through their education and academic application. Speaking of resourcefulness, I hear this was on full display at our Canberra camp were some of our young people demonstrated their ability to find matching outfits!

Please see below for more information on our Site Learning Plan.

Staffing

There were some staffing updates over the holiday period which means there have been a few timetable changes to kick off the term.

• Welcome back to Mrs Alison Parsons who is returning from Maternity Leave and steps back into Year 12 Health & Wellbeing, Year 9A Science, ELH programs and Sports Coordinator.
• Welcome also to Mrs Nicole Murphy who joins us in a SSO2 Inclusive Education Support Officer and Mrs Nicole Bowden who steps into an SSO1 position, both for the remainder of the year. You will see Mrs Murphy and Mrs Bowden supporting the teaching and learning in classrooms.
• Mr John Geddie has taken Long Service Leave for all of Term 2 and most of Term 3. The following changes have been made to classroom teachers.
• 9 Tech – Mr Richard Thomas
• 8B Tech – Mr Liam Marshall
• 8D English – Mrs Laura Hadley
• 7C Home Ec – Mrs Sally Cowan
• 10A HASS – Mr Lachlan Strudwicke (from Week 3)

Online Auction

At the end of last term, we ran an Online Auction thanks to the amazing work of Mrs Hannah Marshall and her team. The support from staff, families and community was absolutely amazing with a staggering $7042 has been raised to support various activities and improvements at BHS.

Mother’s Day

Wishing all our beautiful mothers and mother figures a wonderful Mother’s Day last Sunday. I hope you had a relaxing and enjoyable day.

Take a look at our Mother’s Day video.

BHS Happy Mother Day Video.mp4

Wellbeing Engagement Collection

The Wellbeing and Engagement Collection (WEC) will take place at Balaklava High School during Week 5 and is aimed at seeking students’ views on wellbeing and engagement with our school.

The WEC provides information to support improving and maintaining students’ health, happiness, wellbeing and relationships. It gives schools, the community and government an insight into what needs to happen to make sure students experience success and are provided with resources and opportunities to reach their full potential.

Students complete the WEC online during school time. It should take between 25 to 45 minutes. It’s not a test, there are no right or wrong answers.

Please see the parent letter below and a video explaining more about the WEC.