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It is an unprecedented time in which we are living and it is a time of great uncertainty and loss for many. People are impacted by the COVID-19 virus in multiple ways and not only by potentially getting the virus itself. Students are being impacted with worry about what the virus might bring to them physically, by sporting and other social activities being cancelled and changes in how their schooling is being delivered. Families are making decisions to keep their children home and continue their learning remotely, some have been impacted by losing their jobs and income and we are all learning new rules around social distancing and other changes in our day to day activities.
At school we are facing a most significant change in how we continue to deliver a quality education remotely. We are aware that not all students have access to a computer or reliable internet and this presents challenges beyond those of trying to navigate online learning. We as a school, and the Department for Education as a system, are looking at ways to best work through this so no child is disadvantaged by their personal circumstances and this virus. We will work with families to get through this difficult time.
I would like to acknowledge the work of our teachers this term as they have been providing work for students still attending at school and providing work via Daymap or hard copies being sent at home, whilst also facing the changes of moving our learning to a fully online format. Teachers are, once again, being asked to go above and beyond what is normally expected here at school. It is also important to remember that teachers have their own families, commitments and health considerations to balance with their responsibilities here. It is an extremely challenging time and I value and appreciate the work the teachers are doing for our children.
I have included two documents that might be useful for families about how to navigate the myriad of information about COVID-19 and how to talk to our children about it. Both documents have practical tips such as limiting the amount of exposure to news and social media and about the importance of self-care for us, as adults, to be able to support our families to the best of our abilities.
End of Term
Last week, the Minister for Education announced there will be 4 student free days at the end of this term, before Easter (6, 7, 8 and 9 April), which means that for students, the last day of attendance for the term is Friday 3rd April. These student free days will allow staff to focus on, and prepare for, transitioning to flexible teaching and learning ready for Term 2. This move to online learning requires staff to reconsider how they deliver their content, how they maintain positive relationships with their students and how to ensure positive learning outcomes for them all. At this stage, teachers have already provided work for students via Daymap and we encourage students to regularly check this platform and contact their teachers directly if clarification is required.
Senior School Assistant Principal, Carena Brookes provided very sound advice to senior students and their families last week on Daymap and I thought it important to share it here as much of it is relevant to all students:
Expectations when working from home
- Follow your timetable daily - log into Daymap every weekday morning at 8.45am and follow your class notes for each of your lessons (if these notes are not there, please contact Carena Brookes (Year 10-12 classes), Michelle Pudney (Year 8 & 9 classes) or Sonia Pringle to follow up)
- Keep to a routine - note that this is NOT an extended holiday; we are still expected to deliver the curriculum by both the Department for Education and the SACE Board. Assessment deadlines are still in place and we are still expected to report student achievements in both reports and to the SACE Board. If you become unwell at home and this impairs your ability to complete school work expectations, please notify your teachers
- It is extremely important to maintain communication with your teachers via Daymap. We are all still on site every day during the term, so we are here to help
- Make sure you gather all the physical resources you need before you leave school - if you have missed this opportunity, get in touch with the Front Office and we can gather them for you and make them available for pick up from school.
All students should also ensure they have their LearnLink login and password details. If students are unsure of these details, they can find their LearnLink email address by looking at their own contact information on Daymap. Parents should also use Daymap (available on a mobile phone as well as a computer or other device) as it is a great way to keep up with information as it arises and to keep track of what the expectations are for your child(ren) and their classes.
Office365
Students are able to download Office365 for free if they sign in with their LearnLink account. They can install this full suite on up to 5 devices so it can be shared with their immediate family if needed. Part of Office 365 includes access to OneDrive, with 1TB of free cloud storage for each student. To access this, go to https://portal.office.com/account on the computer you wish to install it on. Log in using the student's LearnLink account, and you can download various versions of the Microsoft Office. This includes:
Microsoft Word
Microsoft Excel
Microsoft OneNote
Microsoft Access
Microsoft PowerPoint
Microsoft Outlook
Microsoft Publisher (Windows Only)
All applications are supported on Windows and most of the Office365 suite are also supported on MacOS/iOS/Android. Alternatively, students can use the version of Office365 via a Web Browser (Edge/Firefox/Chrome) https://www.office.com/apps without installation of any products but this is not as full-featured as an installed version. Now is the time to make use of all of these options to continue learning from home.
Currently, many students choose to save files and resources onto their H drive on the school network. This means that the files are only accessible to students while they are at school. It would be very useful for students to familiarise themselves with using OneDrive for file storage instead. This form of cloud storage allows students to access files from any computer, in any location, when they sign in to Office365.
It is advised, if they haven’t done so yet, that students copy all files currently stored on the school network to a USB or their OneDrive storage to ensure continuity of learning.
Reports
Reports are still being written and grades are being finalised by staff. As per last year, we will continue with grades only and no comments for Years 8-11 with more relevant and real time feedback being provided to students and parents through each individual assessment on Daymap in place of comments in reports when there is little time left for students to act on the feedback and make improvements. Year 12s will continue to have full written reports for Terms 1-3. As students will not be at school in Week 11, we will publish their reports on Daymap for students and parents to access before the end of term. For those families who request it next term, we will print reports to be collected.
Staffing
Sadly, we have one staff member to farewell this term as James Mussared has made the decision to take some leave for the remainder of the year. Rebecca Crowe has been appointed to take over James’ classes for Terms 2-4. Rebecca visited the school yesterday where she had the opportunity to meet a number of students and spend some time with James to ensure a smooth changeover and continuity for the classes. I welcome Rebecca and wish James well for his leave and look forward to seeing him back at school in 2021.
As I said at the beginning of this newsletter, it is an uncertain time and, as always, I invite parents to contact me at the school if you would like to discuss any aspect of your child’s learning or if you have questions about how we are responding to the COVID-19 situation. I can be contacted via Daymap or email Sonia.Pringle235@schools.sa.edu.au or you can phone the School on 8862 0600 to speak to me directly. I wish you all good health and hope you manage to stay safe in these uncertain times.
Sonia Pringle
Principal
Do Now Activities – If kindness was an object
If kindness was an object it would be a heart, standing on its tip. The heart would be the perfect shade of pastel pink. It’s so shiny that you can see your face in it. Looking at the heart would make you feel like you're floating on a cloud and all your worries blow away. It would make almost no sound, like the sound of you sitting in the middle of a daisy field with the wind slightly blowing on a warm spring day.
Sarah Davies
Sizzling Starts for our Horror Narratives
I wake up in the middle of the night to the twinkle of a thousand stars, lighting up the night sky, I can hear the breeze blowing through the tress as I try to fall back asleep. All of a sudden I feel my whole body stiffen. I can hear footsteps creaking on the floorboards getting closer and closer by the second.
Chelsea Michalanney
It was a very dark and gloomy night, the wind was howling around me. Everything was moving except for this massive castle. I swore it was touching the clouds. It smelt like something had died. The smell was so strong I could taste it. It was disgusting.
Riley Hannaford
Edwina Marshman
In Week 6, Whyalla was the host of the first SAASTA workshop for 2020. It ran for the whole week and it was filled with assignment work and activities. Each day the students would go off to Whyalla TAFE; over the week they completed two tasks of their Stage 1 Aboriginal Studies course. Each night was filled with activities. On Monday night they watched a Welcome to Country DVD whilst enjoying the facilities at the Foreshore Caravan Park. Tuesday night the students enjoyed a night of shopping. Wednesday they went out for dinner at one of the local football clubs. Thursday night was filled with 10 pin bowling, sport at the Rec Centre, and a night swim. On Friday morning students went to watch the Port Power team train. Some of the Port players then ran a workshop where the students looked at identity and connections.
A great time was had by all and a big congratulations to all our students for showing excellent commitment and participation.
Lucy Thiel
*** CANCELLATION NOTICE ***
24th Balaklava Eisteddfod 2020
It is with regret that the Balaklava Eisteddfod Society has made the decision to CANCEL the 2020 Balaklava Eisteddfod in light of restrictions imposed due to the COVID-19 (Coronavirus) pandemic.
Postponing until later also is NOT an option given the uncertainty surrounding COVID-19. During this down time, we will be uploading the updated Rules & Conditions of Entry and Syllabus to the website in due course, so that everyone will be able to become thoroughly acquainted with them ahead of time.
We apologise for any inconvenience or disappointment but assure you we are already working on preparations for an exciting 2021 Eisteddfod on
30th, 31st July & 1st August 2021
Thank you for your past participation and see you all again in 2021.