Welcome to our School Newsletter for Week 7, Term 1 2025.

The recent weeks have been very productive and positive for our students and families. We are continuing to collaborate to strengthen cohesion within our school and create an environment where every student can excel and achieve their best. Recent events have included:

• SRC & Prefect Induction – to acknowledge and celebrate elected student representatives for 2025. This is a great tradition of our school, stretching back many generations and involving our parents/caregivers and community.
• Berry Street Training Day 3: Trauma-informed practice – aligned with our Wellbeing and Engagement strategy to lift student engagement, wellbeing and attendance.
• Sports Day 2025 - Congratulations Kidman! It was evident on the day that attendance by Kidman students was higher than Hawke and Hughes, and this I am sure had a big part to play in their success.
• Whole School Assembly: Focus on positive recognition, house points and supporting all students in our school through a focus on Respect, Diversity, Excellence and being Honest and true to yourself. Student Positive Recognition points contribute to the overall house points tally for the year with a total of 487 recognitions given to students across week's 1-6.

Students can continue to accrue individual points for their School House throughout the term and year, to recognise and reward them for displaying growth, achievement and modelling our school values. 

Berry Street Training

On Friday 7th March, all staff undertook the first workshop on the Berry Street Education Model for 2025.

Berry Street describe the program as: “shaped by 140 years of experience, decades of research and thousands of dedicated teachers, the Berry Street Education Model helps educators gain new perspectives, strategies and skills to build safer, healthier and more engaging classrooms for all students. This is one of several comprehensive strategies outlined in our School Improvement Plan for growing student wellbeing and engagement. If you would like further information on the BSEM, see here.

A key message from the Berry Street Educational Model (BSEM) is maintaining a school environment that is safe and predictable while building the resilience of students.

See an outline of our Conditions for Learning below:

Conditions for Learning

Working in partnership with students, staff and parents/caregivers, our Conditions for Learning set an optimal school environment for learning where students feel safe and can perform at their best. In 2025 we have continued a focus on:

• Responsible Behaviour expectations – including positive recognitions and responsive practices.
• Sun Smart Protection –to ensure students are sun safe, in line with our Sun Protection Policy and Sun Smart policy.
• Mobile Phone and Personal Electronic Devices – to ensure students are safe and our school is a Mobile Phone impact and distraction-free environment, in line with Government legislation.

I’ve been impressed with students’ efforts and congratulate them on rising to the occasion over the first half of Term 1. Ultimately this has a positive impact on teaching and learning in the classroom. I would like to thank all families for their ongoing support as we continue to strive for a safe, engaging and enjoyable place for all students to thrive.

NAPLAN

Over Weeks 7 and 8, we are undertaking the National Assessment Program Literacy and Numeracy. The tests look at how well students are learning core skills of reading, writing and mathematics, which are vital life-long skills. Information has been circulated to all families, including the purpose of the tests and how data is used at a local level for student feedback, as well as a state and national level to measure trends in educational outcomes. If you have any questions about the NAPLAN assessment for Year 7 and 9 students, please reach out and contact the school.

At Kapunda High School we are committed to providing a Sun Smart environment. Over the past few years we have worked to ensure all students are wearing broad brimmed hats consistently when outside during the times of the year where UV exposure is high.

Overexposure to UV radiation during childhood and adolescence is known to be a major risk factor in the development of skin cancer. Students are at school five days each week, 40 weeks each year during the peak UV radiation times. It is essential for our school community to not only have practices in place to protect students in their care but also to educate and role model the importance of sun protection.

In the past 18 months we have introduced a "Hat Infringement" process alongside our Sun Protection Policy to track and monitor students across a term. This has provided valuable data to not only the students who are not consistently wearing hats but it is also a valuable measure of improvement in this space.

HATS and Sun Protection Policy

At the end of this term our Sun Protection Policy is scheduled for review. This will involve feedback from our students, SRC, staff and wider community. Our aim is to provide an environment where students are informed of the risks associated with UV exposure and make positive choices by actively and independently protecting themselves from harm.

I have provided a link to our current policy which will be reviewed in Term 2.

Final Weeks Term 1

As we progress through Term 1 at Kapunda High School, our focus will be on every student striving for their personal best. I am committed to fostering an environment where effort and achievement are celebrated and recognised. Our staff are here to support and guide students in reaching their goals, ensuring they have the tools and encouragement needed to achieve their best. Please note that parent-teacher interviews will be scheduled early in Term Two with information provided to families later this term. We look forward to collaborating with you to support your child's educational journey.

Tim Jones

Principal