9 Jan 2017

Newsletter- 01/09/17

 

Kowloon Junior School’s latest newsletter is available to read now.

Message from Dr. Wickins
SCHOLASTIC ORDERS
UNIFORM
Lost and Found
CLUBS
STUDENT ACHIEVEMENT
BAKING CLASSES
Dates for your Dairy
2017-18 PROVISIONAL DATES

 

 

 

Dear All,

A very warm welcome back! I trust you all had a great holiday and enjoyed your time together – the children have certainly come back full of energy and huge smiles.  Our new term is packed with exciting opportunities beyond the excellent teaching and learning in the classrooms starting of course with Sports Days for children in Y3-6 this week. Please mark the following dates in your diaries:

January 26, 9am: As always we will be celebrating Chinese New Year with an assembly. Students who would like to be considered to perform in this assembly are asked to sign up on the following link:

https://docs.google.com/a/kjs.hk/forms/d/1O1-ZI_M_5sV7yjIoWjS2h8aoKmwx-ZMeMcq_vbpsvlk/edit?usp=sharing

I am looking for presenters, singers, musicians and dancers to help the community celebrate this important time of year.  All auditions should reflect the Chinese New Year theme.

February 9, 9am: Following a successful presentation to parents concerning children’s health and nutrition last term we are running a subsequent workshop for Domestic Helpers.  Registration is open now on Gateway.

February 15, 4pm:  A Maths workshop for parents will be facilitated by Peter Sullivan, an expert who has been working with our teachers this year.  Come and find out how we are developing Mathematics in the school so you will be able to further support your children at home.  Online registration on Gateway is open now.

March 18:  Save the date! Our annual school fair is always a highlight in the school year, providing us with an incredible event which is not only great fun for the entire family but also raises a significant amount of money for school development. We will be looking for parents to help on stalls for short periods of time.  I hope to see lots of support this year – many hands make light work.

March 27:  Our annual music concert will be held on March 27th – more information will be shared nearer the time.

We are currently in the middle of our Y1 admissions process. I have been meeting lots of parents who hope to join the school. This is a time consuming but worthwhile process and always a wonderful opportunity for me to reflect on how lucky we are with our facilities, resources and community as I see the school afresh through their eyes.  Don’t forget to ‘like’ our Facebook page for insights into some of the great learning happening in and around school.

Here’s to a wonderful second term!

Karen Thomas

Head of School

 

A MESSAGE FROM DR. WICKINS

Dear Parents,

Happy New Year and I trust you have enjoyed an excellent holiday season. Some of you may be wondering what we will be doing in the KLC this term following the ESF Board decision to cease the pilot at the end of the school year. My first priority is to support the appointment process for new Principals in KGV and KJS and our hope is that these appointments will be made before the end of this term. We also want to ensure the momentum behind the inclusion agenda and the innovative developmental work on curriculum planning and pedagogical approaches across the three schools continues. I am also interested to do some research about the KLC to better understand what has happened and I would be very interested to hear any views you may have.

I hope the term starts well for all of you and I look forward to continuing our work together in the time remaining.

Best wishes

Dr Ed Wickins
Executive Principal of the ESF Kowloon Learning Campus
(King George V School, Kowloon Junior School, Jockey Club Sarah Roe School)

 

SCHOLASTIC ORDERS

By now you may have noticed that the format of the Scholastic Reading Club flyers has changed from previous years. They have combined several flyers into one catalog but each flyer still has its own ordering form. When you are ordering, please make sure to fill out each order form that you are using, remove them from the catalogue, and staple them together with one cheque for all of the forms. As per the instructions, please make the cheque out to SCHOLASTIC HK LTD and write the student name, school (KJS), class and phone number on the back of the cheque. Thank you for your assistance.
Kind Regards – The Library Team

 

UNIFORM

Please note that all students should be wearing black shoes with their school uniform. Socks should reach above the ankle and non-religious jewellery should not be worn. Hair ties should be blue and discreet.

 

LOST AND FOUND

Lost and found items are currently displayed outside the school office. Please note that unclaimed items will be removed at the end of January. In order to avoid lost items please remember that all clothing and property should be clearly named.

 

CLUBS this term

Information about the music and sports activities has already been to you. In addition to these the following clubs will be running this term. Registration will be on Gateway for those clubs noted in bold while others are already running or are by invitation only. Registration for these new clubs will be open from Tuesday 10th January at 4pm. As always, places are limited. A brief description of the clubs which will be open on Gateway is outlined below.

 

Ceramic Art:  Designing and making art in a range of ceramic materials. Students should have an aptitude and interest in 3D art. Pieces completed will form part of the schools permanent environmental art display.
Studio Pop: This is a dance club which primarily focuses on on the style of Street Dance to pop music. It supports the children’s gross motor development, along with their co-ordination, balance and memory. A fun, active club which is a great form of exercise!

Kids Yoga: This provides an opportunity for your children find the time to recharge and refocus during the busy school day.

Design Engineering: An opportunity to gain an understanding of design and measurement skills through the development of designs for 3D printing and woodwork techniques.

STEM at Play: This is a hands on approach to solving real life problems by applying a range of knowledge and skills from the areas of Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics. Children will investigate how to solve practical problems in a collaborative setting by using a range of skills such as constructing, measuring, recording, analysing and reflecting. Children who would enjoy this will like leaning through practical activities and be able to value failure and reflection as an essential learning tool

Sensory Art: This is a chance for children to engage with all their senses as they explore the creative potential of highly tactile and versatile everyday materials to create unusually textured art. Extremely therapeutic and satisfying!

Family Yoga: Calling all little yogis (and their caregivers)! Ms. Wallace and Mrs. Doucette will be running an after school yoga session for students of year 1, 2, and 3 and their caregivers. In the weekly session we will incorporate all of the traditional aspects of yoga; meditation, yoga poses, breathing exercises and deep relaxation and of course… LOTS and LOTS of fun! The sessions are for both students and their caregivers so please be prepared to participate. You will need to wear appropriate clothing and bring a water bottle…no need for shoes. We will provide the rest.

Chess Club: An opportunity to have fun and improve your chess playing abilities! Chess has been around for 1500 years and is recognized internationally as one of the best ways to develop one’s thinking, planning, strategy and social skills. Instructed by professional FIDE rated coaches, the Chess Club will be for absolute beginners right through to intermediate and advanced players. Beginners will get individual mentoring to bring the players knowledge up to a level of playing in actual city wide chess tournaments. Players who already know the game will play against others in the club while being taught the finer points of the game every session.
Students attending this club (including late comers) are required to pay the total (HK$600). There will be no refunds for absences.

 

STUDENT ACHIEVEMENT

Well done Emily for achieving a merit in her ABT Ballet exam! I know your exam preparation was happening at the same time as many other events in school so we are particularly proud of you.

Kobe participated in the Co-swimming Gala organized by Hoi Tin Athletic Association and Chi Pui Swimming Club on 26 Dec.  He won the 1st place in 25m kick board, and 3rd place in freestyle in his age group. Great swimming Kobe,you have been rewarded for all the time you put in to practising!

It was great to hear that Kovidh received the advanced study certificate in Kumon Maths, a certificate for three years continuous studies AND a bronze medal! Great work Kovidh!

Deniz took fourth place in the 2016 JingYing Child Model contest in Shenzen during the holidays – it looked like a fun event!

Kousei participated in Kinder+sports Kidathon 2017 on Saturday. He was 2nd runner‐up in his age group individual category. Great job Kousei!

Yesterday Sian and Hannah both won medals at the Sportscene Inter-school Gymnastics Competition. Congratulations on your achievement girls!

 

Please let us know if your child takes action or has a special achievement.  Emails should be sent to Ms Thomas and have the heading ‘Student Achievement’.

BAKING CLASSES

For more information, please see the attached brochure. To reserve a place or arrange for a free trial class, please email Ms. Hong: flourhk@hotmail.com

See the Junior Bakers in action by clicking on the link below:

Video

Flour Unlimited is an independent organisation and Kowloon Junior School (“KJS”) takes no responsibility for any services or goods provided by Flour Unlimited or any other organisations that are not affiliated to KJS or English Schools Foundation.

DATES FOR YOUR DIARY

10 January: Sports Day Y3 (am)  and Y4 (pm)

12 January:  Sports  Day Y5 (am), Y6 (pm)

12 January: Y3 Theatre Trip

13 January: Y4 Trip to Kowloon Park

16 January: 2M & 2G Trip to Lai Chi Kok Park

18 January: 2B, 2P & 2T Trip to Lai Chi Kok Park

25 January: Y1 Special Assembly 9am

26 January: Chinese New Year Assembly 9am

27 January – 3 February: Chinese New Year Holiday

6 February: Back to school

10 February: Y1 Immunisation

15 February: Maths Workshop for parents

23 February: Y3 & Y4 Parent Meetings with Mandarin, P.E. & Music teachers

13 March: Maths Week

17 March: ESF Choral Concert

18 March: KJS School Fair

23 March: Student Led Conferences 3-6pm

24 March: Classes suspended for Student Led Conferences

27 March: KJS Music Concert

28 March: Y1 and Y2 Sports Day 9am

31 March: Term 2 ends at midday

 

 

We will inform you if there are any changes to these dates in the coming weeks.

2017-18 PROVISIONAL DATES

Although the ESF calendar is always in draft form until Public Holiday dates are confirmed, the provisional holiday and staff training dates for next year are as follows:

15 August: Start of Term 1
1-6 October: Half term holiday
9 October: Back to school
20 October: School closed for staff training
6 November: School closed for staff training
15 December: School closes at midday
18 December – 5 January: Christmas holiday
8 January: Back to school
16 February – 26 February: Chinese New Year holiday
February 27: Back to school
March 29: End of term, school closes at midday
March 30 – April 13: Easter holiday
April 16: Back to school
April 30: School closed for staff training
May 1: Public Holiday
May 22: Public Holiday
June 18: Public Holiday
June 29: End of term, school closes at midday