1 December 2017

Newsletter Articles

Logan McInerney and Ashley Wiencke at the Year 12 Formal

From Our Principal

BYOD REMINDERS

Please remember that from the beginning of 2018, all families are required to have made arrangements for their children to have a device for school.

If you are intending on purchasing one of the recommended devices, please make it a priority to order as soon as possible. Go to the BYOD section on the Kapunda High School website and follow the link to order through the LWT (Learning with Technology) portal or click the link below to go directly to the portal. Remember that you can also ‘rent to buy’ a recommended device through LWT.

If you have applied for a long-term loan of a school device on the grounds of financial hardship, you should have received a letter of confirmation in recent days. The letter also provides details of when devices will be available for collection.

If you indicated that you wanted to be considered for a long-term loan of a school device but did not complete the application form, you are urged to return this as soon as possible. There are only a limited number of devices available and priority is given to families experiencing financial hardship.

If you have indicated that you will be purchasing a device of your own choice, please consider taking advantage of the post-Christmas sales. Make sure that your purchase meets the minimum requirements as outlined on page 5 of the BYOD booklet.

YEAR 12 FORMAL

The Year 12 formal last Wednesday evening was a great way to celebrate with the graduating class of 2017. Gomersal Wines in the Barossa Valley was a terrific venue for the occasion with hosts providing excellent hospitality with fine food and a terrific ambience.

Students looked wonderful in their fine dresses and smart suits and it was fantastic to see so many parents and friends also present to see them walk down the red carpet.

I’d like to acknowledge the work of Senior School Assistant Principal, Tracy Warner and her team of Year 12 home class teachers for working with students to organise the evening. Additionally, I’d like to thank Craig Cope and Tim Jones for driving the yellow limousines (school buses) back to Kapunda, Freeling and Roseworthy at the conclusion of the evening.

PRESENTATION EVENING

All members of our school community are cordially invited to attend the annual presentation evening on Monday, December 11 in the school gymnasium. Guests are asked to be seated by 7:15pm for a prompt 7:30pm start.

The main purpose of the evening is to acknowledge and celebrate the achievements of our Year 8 to 12 students.

A significant number of students will be the recipients of certificates and prizes recognizing effort and achievement. There are also a range of prestigious awards and scholarships presented on the evening.

As one of the most important events on the school calendar, it is expected that all students receiving awards are dressed in full school uniform.

YEAR LEVEL PRIZE CRITERIA

Each year, the number of prizes available at each year level represents 10% of the term 4 enrolment. For example, if there are between 91-100 students in a year level, there will be 10 prizes; if there are 101-110, there will be 11 prizes.

Academic Excellence prizes are awarded to the student(s) with the best grades for the year – across all subjects. This is calculated using end of term data.

Additionally, teachers nominate students for the following awards which are then finalised by the Year Level Manager and class teachers:

All-Rounder: balancing sport, academic and service contribution over the year; responsible behaviour

Consistency: outstanding consistent effort over the year; responsible behaviour

Improvement: improvement in attitude, grades and involvement from previous year or start of the year; responsible behaviour

School Citizenship: co-operation, attitude, study habits, compliance with school rules and policies including uniform. Involvement in school activities, support of home group, service to the school, responsible behaviour

Generally speaking, there are a large number of students who are nominated for awards and those who ultimately receive awards are just a small proportion of the many great students who attend our school.

END OF YEAR REPORTS

Year 8 and 9 students will be issued with written reports on Friday, December 15. Due to our timelines, these will not be available any earlier.

Due to their earlier finish to the school year, Year 10 and 11 students will have their reports mailed home in the week following the end of school. Alternatively, they can attend the end of year assembly on the final day or collect their report directly from Reception on Monday, December 18 or Tuesday, December 19.

For students undertaking South Australian Certificate of Education (SACE) studies, grades are assigned according to the performance standards that are stipulated for each individual subject. Copies of these performance standards can be found on the SACE Board website. For Year 8-10 students, the Australia wide common definitions apply:

A Excellent achievement of what is expected at this year level
B Good achievement of what is expected at this year level
C Satisfactory achievement of what is expected at this year level
D Partial achievement of what is expected at this year level
E Minimal achievement of what is expected at this year level

I believe that the ‘effort’ grade is equally important and as such award Personal Best awards at the end of each term. These recognise students who have achieved excellent effort in all or most subjects.

PUPIL FREE DAY

Friday, 1 December – Week 7

School Zone

No Parking, Please!

The school bus zone is situated along the school side of West Terrace, fronting the oval and up to the main entrance of the school.

Parking is not permitted in the bus zone - at any time.

Our school community is reminded that this area must be kept clear at all times. Buses returning from their morning and afternoon runs have found vehicles parked in the area or being used to 'pick up' or 'drop off' for school or sporting events such as basketball training.

Caution

The beginning and end of the school day is a busy time, particularly on West Terrace and drivers are urged to drive with caution at the limited speed of 25 km/hr in the school zone. Any accidents must be reported to the police and also the Principal. The Bus Coordinator is on hand in the bus parking area at the beginning and end of the school day and support can be sought, if required. Incidents of vandalism may be reported to the police, and the Principal should be alerted to the situation.

Be SunSmart!

Ezra, Lane, Brayden, Michaela & Nicholas, ready for summer sun

Kapunda Combined Schools Art Exhibition

The Kapunda Combined Schools Art Exhibition is now on display at the Kapunda Gallery. The exhibition opened on Thursday, 16 November by Art teacher, Miss Ahrens. This year’s senior students and the Kapunda Primary School have put on a beautiful exhibit that highlights the talent and abilities of these individuals.

The exhibition has a positive vibe, with the focus on overcoming diversity and challenging oneself. Mental health has featured this year as a focus for some students and their art projects have given them an opportunity to explore and understand the world, a way to challenge thoughts and ideas as well as acting as a safe or meditative space. For each student, their passions shine through. The exhibition will run until Sunday, 3 December. Thank you to all involved for contributing to a successful opening event.

Year 9s visit the Jam Factory

The Year 9 Art class visited the Jam Factory at Seppeltsfield in week 5. The students viewed the Clay Stories: Contemporary Indigenous Ceramics From Remote Australia exhibition. Then they viewed the various artist studios in the facility including the glass artist, leather worker and knife maker. A good day was had by all, even with the soggy weather!

Jennifer Ahrens
Art teacher

Seeing this exhibition has opened up a new world of art to me. Learning about the glass, knife making, leather-craft belts and shoes, the pottery and its history has me wanting to go back and stay for days on end! I want to learn all of the skills, techniques and the history that's been passed down. My favourite exhibits were the Damascus blades, made by knife maker and artist, Dave Gardener.

Corey Raine

Year 11 Visual Art

Year 11 students have completed their non-physical self-portraits in Visual Art. Students create either a two or three dimensional piece of art that communicates things about themselves without being a physical likeness.

Art work by Ariana Schiller, Cara Campain and Maya O’Riley

Knockout Basketball

On Wednesday, 15 November, the Year 8/9 girls Knockout Basketball team played in the state semi-finals in Port Adelaide.

The team players were:

In their first game, the girls came out firing against St. Francis de Sales, keeping the score level until half time, with some tight zone defence. Lillie kept control of the top, whilst Darcie scooped up every rebound and was quick on every fast break. The first game ended as a 14 point loss; despite many shooting opportunities, the girls struggled to make them drop.

The second game against Samaritan, the eventual winners, proved tough for the girls, but again with tight defence, the girls limited the points made against them. The game saw some strong defensive hustle from Zoe, as she proved to have a strong leap over much taller girls, and Kayla, who showed a strong voice in defence, can be powerful.

The third game saw the girls work well as a team, as they blew out a ten point lead in the first three minutes against Yorke Peninsula. They retained this lead across the game to win by ten. Great post work by Ruby, assisted by Lillie quickly beat the opposition’s defence, despite them having much taller players. Tess clearly wanted the win, as she strongly contested at every opportunity.

The final play-off for third position proved challenging, as the Yorke Peninsula switched their defence to close down the easy middle post moves. Despite being exhausted after three tough games, the girls pulled together in the second half to reduce the eight point lead to two. Sophie’s defensive hustle stopped several scores by the Peninsula’s centre. Unfortunately, after a three point shot in the last minute, the girls were not able to secure third position.

Overall, the girls played really well as a team and were an absolute pleasure to coach.

Special thanks to Joey Brown for supporting the event with scoring.

Lara McCarthy
8/9 Basketball Coach

Girls Cricket Carnival

On Friday we had our inaugural girls cricket carnival. The carnival was held at numerous locations with over 300 girls getting involved. South Australia Cricket Association staff were present as well as representatives from Cricket Australia. The year 8 students played at Saddleworth, Year 9s at Balaklava and Year 10s at Kapunda. Kapunda Primary School year 6/7s also participated at Clare.

Although most of the girls hadn’t played cricket before, their skills did improve throughout the day. The sportsmanship on the day was fantastic, encouraging each other to do their best.

A big thank you to Katie Liebelt at Clare High School for organising the massive carnival, the largest in Australia! Thank you to Tom Godfrey for umpiring and scoring at the Saddleworth event.

The girls will get another experience during week 9 when participating in a Strikers league competition here at school. We could end up with numerous girls in the WBBL playing for the Strikers!

I enjoyed it more than I thought I would! Ruby
I learnt a lot of new skills. Lillie
Teams were helping each other throughout the day. Sharni
All teams were supportive and encouraging, which was great! Kaileigh
I was nervous when it was my turn to bat. It was a rewarding day. Ella
My cricket career is coming along! Grace
The day was set up really well. The Strikers mascot was fun and inspiring. Kayla

PE Uniform Reminder

KHS Physical Education Policy:

Our Kapunda High School our Physical Education Policy aims for students to achieve success in a safe, productive and enjoyable learning environment. A procedure that helps achieve this is:

Changing for PE - change out of school clothes into PE uniform.

• Students may wear their PE top to school if they have a practical lesson during lesson 1.
• Students are expected to change BACK into school uniform at the end of lessons 1 – 6.
• Warmer weather: sports shorts and PE shirt.
• No underwear on display.
• Cooler weather: tracksuit pants/sports shorts and a school PE shirt.
• NO DENIM at any time.
• Non-marking sandshoes or bare feet. NO sandals or boots. Inappropriate footwear is a hazard to both the student and others. It is important to reduce the risk of accidents.

The PE T-Shirt is a way to promote good hygiene and create an atmosphere that is inclusive for all.

Things to remember:

• PE T-Shirts are for PE lessons only – not general uniform
• They can be worn to school if you have a practical PE lesson, Lesson 1
• They can be worn home from school if you have a practical PE lesson, L7.

Body Odour Fun Facts:

The human body has 50 thousand sweat glands that can produce up to one litre of sweat a day and release harmful toxins.

The groin and the armpits are the areas that produce the majority of odour.

Megan Samain
Sports Coordinator

Year 10 camp week

Port Vincent Aquatics Camp

Some Year 10 students ventured to Port Vincent in week 5 and participated in an aquatics program that included kayaking, sailing and surfing.

City Camp

A number of other year 10 students enjoyed staying in Adelaide, visiting various venues, including a tour of Adelaide Oval.

Drew’s Friday Activities

Drew’s activities last Friday were: Twister Ball and The Price is Right. In the latter, Josh Whimpress won the prize by choosing the correct order from cheapest to dearest in a range of groceries.