Balaklava High School
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14 Gwy Terrace
Balaklava SA 5461
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Email: dl.0769.info@schools.sa.edu.au
Phone: 08 8862 0600
Fax: 08 8862 0650

Middle School News

It was a pleasure to finish Term 1 with our Middle School and whole School Assemblies to congratulate students achieving the PRIDE Awards, School Value Awards and High Achiever Awards.  

Our school values, (PRIDE - P = Positive Relationships, R = Respect, I = Integrity, D = Dedication, E = Excellence), set out our expectations of all members in this school community, including the principal, all school staff, parents/guardians, students and visitors. It respects the diversity of individuals in our school community and addresses the shared responsibilities of all members in building a safe and respectful school community. Students displaying these values will continue to be recognised and awarded with an individual Value Award presented at the end of term assembly and/or with our school PRIDE point system. 

Middle School Value Award Winners 

Year 8 

Positive Relationships 

Jayana Dos Santos 

Respect 

Joseph Futterleib 

Integrity 

Adawynn Hughes 

Dedication 

Emily Newton 

Excellence 

Elleanore Bowden 

Year 9 

Positive Relationships 

Josh Michael 

Respect 

Samuel Wakefield 

Integrity 

Baylee Jones 

Dedication 

Sarah Davies 

Excellence 

Bligh Wilson 

PRIDE Certificates 

Year 8 

Bronze Certificate 

8PIP1 

Coline BANAS   

Pepper BATTEN  

Sikachra EYRE   

Jack FAGAN   

Joseph FUTTERLEIB   

Riley MATTNER  

Charlotte MOORE   

Emily NEWTON   

Ebony REYNOLDS   

Lachlan RICKARD   

Dakota SOLBERG-STANFIELD   

Chloe WATLEN   

Zeanna WATLEN   

Tanner WRIGHT  

 

8TTS4 

Maylea CARPENTER 

Jesse HUMPHRYS 

Josh MAY   

Tess RANA 

 

8BRC1  

Brandon AMOR  

Kristy BAKER  

Elleanore BOWDEN  

Shylah DARBY  

Jayana DOS SANTOS  

Bella GRIFFITHS  

Nakita HENSTRIDGE-HEDAUX  

Adawynn HUGHES  

Sebastien HUGHES  

Connor MASON  

Molly MCARDLE  

Denise NELLAS  

Jorja PAGE  

Jack PIKE  

Jorja SCHUTT  

Zaria SPYRO-TOYE  

Jay SULLIVAN  

Krystal TAIT  

Lily TILLER  

Shae WOOD  

Flynn YOUNG  

Rihanna ZANKER

Silver Certificate 

8PIP1 

Ebony REYNOLDS  

Chloe WATLEN  

 

8BRC1  

Elleanore BOWDEN  

Shylah DARBY 

Adawynn HUGHES  

Sebastien HUGHES  

Connor MASON  

Molly MCARDLE 

Denise NELLAS 

Jorja SCHUTT 

Lily TILLER  

Year 9 

Bronze Certificate 

9SST1 

Lara DUNSTALL  

Darcy HARBROW  

Cheyanne HORNBY  

Madison LITZOW  

Brooke MCARDLE  

Asha MEAD  

Janna MOJARES  

Irish PAGADUT  

Zen TAYLOR  

Jack TILLER  

Danwel URMENITA  

Taylah WEST  

Jason WILKEY 

 

9UPA1 

Sarah DAVIES  

Emma HAMDORF 

Ryan MARCH  

Chelsea MASON 

Samuel WAKEFIELD  

Bligh WILSON 

Henry WOIDT 

 

9JIP4 

Trae BARTER 

Emily CURNOW 

Alex EVANS 

Abbey FAGAN 

Rachel FELTHAM 

Daniel HIDDEN  

Dahli JACOBSON 

Samantha LOCKWOOD 

Jackson MCARDLE 

Joshua MICHAEL 

Natthen OLIVER 

Hamish PIKE 

Jai THOMPSON  

Dylan WILLIAMS 

Silver Certificate 

9SST1 

Darcy HARBROW 

Madison LITZOW  

Brooke MCARDLE 

Irish PAGADUT 

Zen TAYLOR 

 

9JIP4 

Abbey FAGAN 

Rachel FELTHAM 

Dahli JACOBSON 

Samantha LOCKWOOD 

Joshua MICHAEL 

Dylan WILLIAMS 

Certificates of Achievement are presented to students to acknowledge their academic success at the end of each term. Middle School students who received the High Achiever Certificates to acknowledge excellence in their overall performance for the Term 1 reporting period were; 

Year 8 

High Achievers 

Maylea Carpenter 

Joseph Futterleib 

Tess Rana 

Year 9 

High Achievers

Emily Curnow 

Sarah Davies 

Abbey Fagan 

Rachel Feltham 

Dahli Jacobson 

Madison Litzow 

Samantha Lockwood 

Lucy May 

Brooke McArdle 

Janna Mojares

Irish Pagadut 

Taylah West 

Bligh Wilson 

Next term, students will again be awarded as High Achievers and can also be awarded with Improver Certificates, which are awarded to students to acknowledge a significant improvement from the previous reporting period. 

Introducing our new Middle School and Year 10 Structure in 2022 

For many years, research has shown that during the early years of secondary school, students make the least progress and have the highest level of disengagement towards their schooling. With our Year 7s starting in 2022, we thought this was an ideal time to reflect on our current Middle School structure, seeking out our strengths and looking for areas of opportunities that will lead to improvements for student learning and engagement. 

In 2020 our leadership and staff team reviewed the latest research on Teaching Middle Years, focussing our attention on the adolescent years of schooling. Pendergast (2005) states that recent studies have highlighted the importance of encouraging and sustaining young people’s effective engagement with learning, particularly during the ‘middle years of schooling’. Relevant research indicates that insightful and thoughtfully applied educational practices in ‘middle years’, can significantly affect the development of the habit of lifelong learning. The SACE Board is also examining how to help students thrive in life beyond school through educational change and student transformation (see in link below). 

https://www.sace.sa.edu.au/thrive/downloads/SACE_Board_Strategic_Plan_2020-2023.pdf 

To hear from all stakeholders, we held wide consultation processes over the year with staff, parents/guardians, feeder schools and the wider school community. Through listening to all stakeholdersacting upon suggestions and acquiring knowledge from the latest research; together we created a Middle School structure at Balaklava High School that will continue to support our school vision, SACE strategic plan and school motto. 

School Vision 

Through the highest quality teaching and in a caring learning environment, students are inspired and supported to achieve their best so they can thrive in their life beyond school.  

Motto 

Excel today to challenge the future. 

We are extremely excited to begin our new Middle School Structure in 2022 and know we have a strong foundation to continue to inspire and support our students to thrive. 

 

Year 7 & 8  

#lessons/week  

Semester One  

Semester Two  

7  

Local and Global Perspectives (English & HASS)  

Local and Global Perspectives (English & HASS)  

4  

Maths  

Maths  

4  

Science  

Science  

3  

Health & PE\SHine  

Health & PE  

3 

Food & Fibre - Ag 

Food & Fibre - Home Ec. 

3 

Digital Tech 

Tech Studies 

3 

Performing Arts 

Visual Arts 

2 

French 

French 

1 

Pastoral Care\Child Protection Curriculum 

Pastoral Care\Child Protection Curriculum 

HGP teacher for 2 subjects   

Teacher 2 – 2 subjects   

Teacher 3 – 2 subjects   

Teacher 4 – 1 subject   

 

Year 9  

#lessons/week

Semester One  

Semester Two  

4  

English  

English  

Only for 2022 and in 2023 it will become Local and Global Perspectives 

(English & HASS) 

4  

HASS  

HASS  

4  

Maths  

Maths  

4  

Science  

Science  

3  

Health & PE\SHine  

Health & PE  

3 

Studio (SACE credits) 

Studio (SACE credits) 

3 

Choice 

Choice 

3 

Choice 

Choice 

2 

Pastoral Care\ Child Protection Curriculum 

Pastoral Care\ Child Protection Curriculum 

 

YEAR 10  

#lessons/week  

Semester One  

Semester Two  

4 

English  

English   

4  

HASS  

HASS  

4  

Maths  

Maths  

4  

Science  

Science  

3 

Health & PE\Shine 

Choice 

3 

Studio (SACE credits) 

Studio (SACE credits) 

3 

PLP 

Choice 

3 

Choice 

Choice 

2 

Workplace Practices\ Child Protection Curriculum 

Research Practices\PLP catch up. 

 

Some of the changes include: 

1. Integrated subjects – Local & Global Perspectives, Food and Fibre 

Performing Arts at BHS is a perfect example of how well subjects can be integrated into one subject. Middle Years experts are close to unanimous in their support for middle years curriculum designs that move beyond the single-subject approach. In particular curriculum integration has been repeatedly recommended as especially suited to the middle years. Curriculum integration has appeal in the middle years because it holds potential for students to gain a holistic or big picture view of topics under investigation, so it harmonises with real life and avoids artificial divisions between subjects (Beane, 1990, 1997)   

Local and Global Perspectives: Through an interdisciplinary approach Local and Global Perspectives enhances the study of English, History, Geography, Business and Economics and Civics and Citizenship all underpinned by a strong focus on literacy. Students will have the unique opportunity to undertake tasks that combine content, skills and perspectives from a range of these areas of study. These integrated tasks will be undertaken alongside traditional subject specific tasks and skill building activities. This dynamic approach will build our students’ ability to successfully transfer skills from one subject to another, which according to the SACE Board of South Australia, is a key element to a thriving secondary learner. For instance, the ability to express an opinion in a structured and persuasive manner, is important not only in a range of subjects at school but is also a fundamental skill in advocating for one’s rights and being an active citizen of an ever changing local and global community.  

Through Local and Global Perspectives students will gain an awareness of their place in an interconnected world, drawing upon the lessons of the past while building student confidence to tackle the challenges of the present and future. Students will gain an awareness of self as a member of interconnected and overlapping communities and how this influences responses to local and global issues.   

Food and Fibre: In Balaklava High’s Middle School Food and Fibre subject, the combination of Agriculture and Home Economics gives opportunity to strengthen students’ knowledge and understanding of the processes involved in the whole production chain of food and fibre. Students will build strong practical connections between paddock to plate as well as understand the properties of materials through a farm to fabrics learning approach with a focus on local industries including poultry, sheep, horticulture, pigs and dairy. 

2. Studio (SACE credits)  

Students in Year 9 and 10 will choose from a number of different studios offered each year, where they will have the opportunity (in blocks of 3 lessons/per week) to develop the knowledge and skills needed to think critically and creatively to thrive in their life now and beyond school. Areas of learning will extend beyond the content delivered from the Australian Curriculum. 

Elements of a thriving learner include;  

  • Lifelong learning 
  • Deep understanding and skilful action  
  • Ability to transfer learning 
  • Agency
  • Human connectedness 
  • Belonging 

(For further information on each element visit https://www.sace.sa.edu.au/thrive/) 

3. Choice subjects from Year 9 

Students in Years 8 and 9 at BHS currently study a set selection of subjects with no individual choice.  In this new structure, they will now be given the opportunity to choose subjects that they would like to study in more depth in Year 9.  

If you have any questions about the following structure, please feel free to contact Sonia, Carena or myself. 

Sonia.Pringle235@schools.sa.edu.au 

Michelle.Pudney209@schools.sa.edu.au 

Carena.Brookes219@schools.sa.edu.au 

Michelle Pudney 

Middle School Assistant Principal