One of the many things we pride ourselves on at Balaklava High School is our Arts education.  This occurs in Performing Arts through Drama and Music and the Visual Arts in Art and Design.  The broader benefits of an arts education are well-known and include developing a young person’s ability to collaborate, communicate, create and problem solve.  This week our Arts program was showcased through the school musical, CATS Young Actors’ Edition, which was a spectacular production of amazing singing, dancing and camaraderie.  The choreography and vocal talents of our students was very impressive and showed a level of professionalism beyond their years.  Miss Umapathysivam, the cast and crew are to be commended on their presentation of this musical.  Our students’ Visual Art and Design skills will be showcased at our upcoming Art Exhibition at the Balaklava Courthouse Gallery running for the entirety of November with the formal opening on Wednesday 1^st November at 6.30pm.  I encourage you to go to the Gallery during this time and see the quality student work Mrs Tilbrook has curated.

Year 12 Farewell

Today is the last day of scheduled lessons for our Year 12 students and tomorrow at 9 am we will hold a formal assembly to wish them well as they complete final assessment tasks and/or prepare for exams and embark on the next exciting steps of life beyond the school gates.  The SACE Board have announced that Year 12 results will be available via Students Online from 8.30 am on Monday 18 December with hard copy documentation arriving from this date onwards.  Parents of Year 12 students will have received information about the upcoming celebrations of the graduating dinner and Presentation Night and we look forward to each of these events.

Staffing

As is often the case, there have been some changes to staffing for this term.  Josh Jenner has accepted a role in the Aboriginal Education Directorate of the Department for Education until the end of June next year and we have also welcomed back Mrs Alana Sharman from her maternity leave.  This required some shuffling of teachers and classes and we look forward to the remainder of Term 4.

As families will be aware from correspondence sent out last week, I have accepted the position of Principal at Ocean View College in Taperoo for the next 5 years, beginning in January 2024.  The process to fill the BHS Principal position for Term 1 next year has started with the role currently being advertised and we will keep you up to date with any news relating to this as we are able to.  I am extremely proud of all that we have achieved at BHS over the past 5 years, including the introduction of restorative practices, the extensive work on grounds and facilities, welcoming Year 7s to High School, revitalising our curriculum and developing a strong school culture.  There is much to be proud of at BHS and I know the school is in an excellent position for the next Principal to lead from.  Thank you all for your support over this time and I know students from BHS will continue to do great things.

Student Free Days

We have two Student Free Days scheduled this term with the first one this coming Monday, 30^th October, and the final one on Friday 24^th November.  A number of our feeder schools, including Balaklava Primary School are also having a student free day on this date in November so no buses will run on this day.

It is a busy time of the year with students finishing their studies at various times throughout the term and many activities throughout.  We are looking forward to a strong finish to the year for all of our young people. As always, I am available to speak to parents about any issues or concerns or to discuss any aspect of your 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

On the last day of Term 3 our Student Council team hosted the inaugural BHS Kick Off event that saw students divide into House groups to participate in an afternoon of activities, a staff vs student football match and a BBQ lunch before the day culminated in a rainbow explosion with a colour run. The day was an excellent example of what the students can do when they work as a team and have a common goal.  Part of the proceeds of the day are going to Childhood Cancer in support of Holly Zerk and her family.

• Pikes Wines for sponsoring the wine.
• Meg's Bookshop for all your book needs.
• Rising Sun Hotel and Wendy's Cafe n Cakes for our catering needs.
• Sandra for selling her book sleeves.
• The Balaklava High School students who helped with sound and lighting.
• Daisy Lane Flowers for the gorgeous flowers.
• Thank you to all those who attended our first Author panel, and those who helped make it possible. 

We are excited to announced our new Pastoral Care Worker, Josh Benge. Josh will start at BHS early this term and will be working with both staff and students in a range of support roles. One part of Josh's role will be to maintain and strengthening our connection with the community and we look forward to expanding this. Josh will be on site Wednesdays and Thursdays and we know students will make him feel welcome.

Kimberly Walker  

On Wednesday 20th September we held our annual Public Speaking Competition. It was a great night hearing from a variety of speakers in Years 7 to 11. The finalists all showed great courage in presenting and were commended on their ability to push through if they stumbled. BHS would like to thank our judges for the evening Michelle Barnes, Jenni Hewett, Sally Wilson and Rodney Reid for their support of the event. 

A big thank you also goes out to our fabulous MC for the night, Colbey Bowden who did a brilliant job. 

Congratulations to the winners!

Year 9/10 Cricket Report

On Wednesday of Week 1 the Cricket Studio ventured to Maitland for Round 1 of the Year 9/10 Boys Cricket Tournament against Maitland Lutheran School. There was plenty of excitement in the air as the team were presented with their inaugural ‘baggy blue’ cricket caps.

The lads started the day in the field with early success, Adawynn Hughes destroyed the stumps for our first wicket. Wickets fell steadily before a mammoth 70 run partnership changed the game in Maitland’s favour. Corbin Branson was the pick of the bowlers with 2 wickets whilst Will McArdle and Iggy Stoddart also picked up one a piece. Credit to Connor Mason who proved to be our most economical bowler. Maitland finished their 30 overs with 8/166.

With willow in hand, wickets fell in regular intervals to a sharp Maitland attack. Enter the Hughes brothers. Adawynn and Seb put on a quickfire 40 run partnership before Ads made his way back to the sheds for a well made 12. Flynn Young entered the arena to a roaring cheer from the crowd and put on a 30 run partnership with Seb. Flynn fell for 9 which included a cracking 4 down the ground.

With the score sitting at 8/99 it was time for our spiritual leader, Jack ‘Tuna’ Pike, to enter the crease. Tuna was an able partner to support Seb as the score snuck ever closer to Maitland’s target. Unfortunately for Tuna, he fell victim to the Maitland stump eater which brought Connor Mason to the crease, much to the crowd’s delight. Connor stuck around for 2 not out whilst Seb finished on 82 not out which featured an array of boundaries and flair. Ultimately, the team fell 24 runs short in a tight contest.

Despite the result, the team showed fantastic sportsmanship and encouragement to one another and the opposition. A special mention to Greg Hughes and Mr Parsons for scoring and driving the bus.

Mr Noack

YEAR 10 SPORTS TRAINERS

Our Year 10 Elective PE class became qualified Sports Trainers! Throughout Term 3 the class has completed First Aid training and late last term they finalised the Level 1 Sports Trainer Accreditation Course.

Once completed the students toured the South Australian Sports Institute and were lucky enough to spend a moment watching the Australian Men and Women’s Volleyball teams train. A successful day for all and an amazing experience.

The day was topped off with a McDonald’s stop for Zoe’s birthday

Thanks to Mr Parsons for organising this opportunity for our students.

Australia will celebrate teachers on World Teachers’ Day on Friday 27 October 2023.

Let’s celebrate Australia’s teachers for their skilled work in educating, inspiring and supporting our students.

Hats off to teachers this World Teachers’ Day!  Share your “hats off” selfie to celebrate teachers and tell us what they mean to you. This is your chance to join Australia in celebrating teachers.

At Balaklava High School we will celebrate and recognise our amazing team of teachers with a special morning tea.

You can show your appreciation by posting a “hats off” selfie on social media, either on your own or with family or friends. Grab your hat – beret, beanie, bucket, bowler – and remember to tag #WorldTeachersDay @aitsl 

You can also find out more at www.worldteachersday.edu.au

Wishing all educators a day filled with appreciation and smiles. Happy Teachers’ Day!

In preparation for our camp (practical assessment) we had a practice camp overnight on the 21st of September at school so we could make sure everything was prepared for the camp at Burra. After setting up our tents at school and making sure they were all in good condition, we did a 5km trek near The Rocks, arriving back at school just before sunset. We then set up the fire and cooked our spaghetti dinner.

As the date got closer to our camp to Burra, we gathered the hiking packs to put all of our gear in. As well as having the basic packing list, as a group, we also packed an emergency shelter, a medical kit and a satellite phone. On Day 1, we left school at 9:20am and arrived at Burra at 11:30am for a quick pit stop at the park before heading to the camp site, World’s End, Burra Gorge around lunchtime.  After we set up all of our tents, keeping in mind not to set them up under a gum tree, and had something to eat, we gathered around to talk about what to take on the walk and what roles we would have while walking. The first role is the navigator who looks at the map and makes sure we are going in the right direction and the other roles are the front and back marker, where no one can go in front of the front marker and no one can go behind the back leader. The markers help set the pace and make sure no one gets lost.

We walked all afternoon doing, 6km there and back, along the Heysen trail. Just before we turned around to go back to camp there was a hill where we stopped, which we climbed to look at the view before walking back down the hill and back to camp completing around 12km. We each had a ration, which included our dinner, breakfast and lunch that we cooked on the tangiers.

On Day 2 we left our camp site by 7:30am after we making our breakfasts and cleaning up around the campsite while Mrs Thiel and Tamelia organised what we were doing for the day. Once the campsite was clean we headed into Burra, where we went for a walk as a group and read some historical signs. We got to the main street and were given half an hour to do what we liked around the town, with most people heading to the bakery or Foodland for more food for the bus trip home. After this we met at the front of the Information Centre and got back on the bus to drive around and look at some historic sites. The first one we went to was the old Burra mine followed by the old railway station, which was our favourite as we went inside an old railway carriage and dressed like we were from that era. Inside the station we looked at an old giant wombat skull and an old model train. That was our last stop and we headed back to school.

Chloe, Tilly, and Zeanna

Have you thought about a career as a qualified tradesman?

Balaklava Stitch Joint is a small family business in Balaklava. We specialise in all manner of flooring including carpet, floating floor, vinyl, vinyl planks in both residential and commercial setting.

We have a position available for a flooring apprentice to gain a Certificate 3 in Flooring Technology to join our team.

To be successful you will need to have the following:

• Basic knowledge of hand tools
• Enthusiasm, be punctual and reliable
• A willingness to learn

Preferred but not essential:

• Drivers License
• A White Card

Please email your resume and cover letter to jtjenner@gmail.com

For more information please call Jack Jenner on 0430 063 747