I would like to welcome everyone back for Term 3 and I trust you all had a safe and relaxing holiday break.  I was very excited to return to the school myself this week after having the last half of last term off.  I would like to sincerely thank Michelle Pudney who was Acting Principal during my absence, Lucy Thiel who returned early from maternity leave to replace Michelle as Acting Middle School Assistant Principal and the other members of the leadership team who backed each other up during this time.  I could confidently leave the school knowing it was very safe in the hands of others.

Lucy has now returned to her role as Senior Leader Wellbeing 3 days a week and Kimberly Walker will remain in this role for the other 2 days.  Kimberly will be here full time, having picked up a teaching load in the remainder of her time.  With Lucy, Kimberly, Kym Spartley, Ash Parsons and Neil Richards, our wellbeing team has never looked stronger and they are available to speak to your child to offer support with their wellbeing when required.

Students have settled back into school routines well this term and it’s been lovely to see their smiling faces in the yard – it’s been an interesting start to the year, trying to learn names whilst only seeing students’ eyes and not their whole faces!  That said, whilst the wearing of masks in schools is not currently mandatory, it is strongly recommended, and we encourage students to wear them whilst indoors.  We have a large supply of masks at school and can provide new ones to students each day.

Reports

For a number of years now, we have used continuous reporting at BHS with feedback on individual student assignments on Daymap throughout the term, which means students in Years 7-11 receive a summary report at the end of each term without comments.  If your child is not receiving this feedback on assignments, feel free to contact the subject teacher in the first instance or a member of the leadership team if it is a repeated concern.  Students in Year 12 receive a full written report in Terms 1-3.

All student reports can be accessed through the Parent Portal of Daymap by going into the student's profile and opening the 'Report' tab on the left column. Students can also access their own reports on Daymap by clicking on 'My Portfolio' and then 'Reports'. The reports are in a pdf format, which can easily be printed if a hard copy is required.  Please contact us at the school if you would like to arrange for a hard copy to be sent home.

A couple of reminders…

• School Uniform – thank you to students who consistently wear appropriate school uniform. A list of approved uniform items can be found on our website.  If meeting our uniform expectations is a concern for families, please contact a member of the Leadership team to discuss how we can support your child to show school pride
• Sickness – thank you to families who are keeping their children home and staying away themselves if they are unwell. Please remember to get a PCR or RAT if your child is unwell and to report to the school if they test positive to COVID-19 so we can keep families informed of positive cases.

I trust all of our students will have an excellent term of learning and that they actively participate in all of the outstanding learning and extra-curricular activities Balaklava High School has to offer.

As always, I am available to speak to parents about any issues or concerns or to discuss any aspect of their child’s learning.  I can be contacted at the school via Daymap, email Sonia.Pringle235@schools.sa.edu.au or phone 8862 0600 where you can speak to me directly or make a time to come and see me.

Sonia Pringle

Principal