Newsletter- 01/11/17
Kowloon Junior School’s latest newsletter is available to read now.
Dear Parents,
It was such a pleasure to work with the team to celebrate the achievements at KJS during 2016/17 in the form of the KJS Annual Report. I encourage you to take a few minutes to have a look here and be reminded about the incredible opportunities your children have due to the passion and dedication of the KJS team. For new families this will give you an idea of things to come.
We have the pleasure of announcing the appointment of Dawn Doucette to Vice Principal effective in January 2018. Dawn is currently our PYP coordinator and won the position against a very competitive international field of over 60 applicants. The appointment process was very comprehensive and rigorous resulting in a final day of interviews for the shortlisted candidates where they spent time in the school and were interviewed by a student council group, staff group and the appointment committee comprising senior leadership and School Council members. We are delighted about the outcome for the KJS team!
Last week Mr Paul Anderson facilitated a very informative parent workshop on Mathematics. The slides from the session will be on our website here for those who would like to know more to support your child with Maths achievement. This week we had parent meetings to support the upcoming Year 5 & 6 camps. These camps provide significant opportunity to support wellbeing, agency and develop respect for self, others and the environment. All in all exciting times at KJS!
Next Monday is a very important day for the team with our KJS Professional Development day. Following parent feedback we plan to clarify and confirm what “Success for Every Child” means. This is very important to the team. We need to be clear about what it is we are aiming for and how we best partner with you. At present the themes are “Achievement, Agency, Respect, Opportunity and Wellbeing.” (See newsletter 27.9.17) The job is to be clear about what each of these mean and then to make sure each and every learning experience develops these. We will also be working to improve our assessment practices and feedback techniques to support achievement and agency. Additionally, we will be identifying effective wellbeing strategies to support our children.
Next week’s newsletter will communicate the outcomes from the day. We are certainly very close to being able to articulate what “Success for Every Child” means and how we can work together to achieve this for your child. It will also be important to be able to communicate this to our partners at KGV to ensure a smooth and enabling transition to Y7.
Neill O’Reilly
Principal
Parents prepare for Y5 & 6 Camp!
UNICEF Day 31 October 2017
Thank you for your support in yesterday’s UNICEF Day. We have received a total of HK$18,771 for UNICEF. If you wish to know more about this charitable organisation, please visit its website http://www.unicef.org.hk/en/.
PTA Update
Thank you for everyone who turned up at Quiz Night on Friday, 27 October 2017. We had 20 teams participating with a great turnout of families and teachers as well as our Principal and Vice Principals. The buffet, catered to vegetarians, non-vegetarians, and those on a Jain diet, was a big hit. Judging from the cheers and laughter in the school gym, the event was very successful. Thank you to everyone who helped make this event possible, especially Ms Jacqueline Stewart for being our Quiz Master.
We look forward to seeing you at our next event, which will be Disco Night on Friday, 19 January 2018. The school fair will take place on Saturday, 17 March 2018. Once again, we ask you for your support as sponsors for our events by donating cash or prizes which can be used in our school raffle at the fair, and we need your support as volunteers. If you are able to help in any way, please do fill out the forms which were included in last week’s newsletter or approach the PTA office directly. Information about Disco Night will be given out shortly.
Madagascar Jr
Save the date! Our school musical ‘Madagascar Jr.’ will be performed at 6pm on the 14 and 15 November. Tickets are $50 and will be on sale to those from Tuesday 7 November from the school office. Please note that we are not able to accept cheques for the sale of tickets and DVDs of the performances. The order form (click here) and cash should be returned to the school office in a sealed envelope.
KJS Teacher Training Day
Parents please be reminded that Monday 6 November is KJS Teacher Training Day, and there will be no school for children.
Student Success
Our children performed at the ESF 50th Anniversary Marathon and Carnival on Sunday. The children showed pride and passion about their culture and helped to celebrate the diversity that is KJS and ESF.
Alicia (1T) participated in the “14th China Artist Association HKSAR Secretariat Competition” and won 3rd place in the piano session. Congratulations Alicia!
Devansh (6A) achieved a Merit Certificate in the 5th All Hong Kong Inter Primary School Tennis Competition 2017. Congratulations Devansh!
Nathan (2S) participated in a charity run to support and promote Dwarfism Awareness Month on Saturday. The charity run was co-organised by Little People of Hong Kong. As a patient with dwarfism, Nathan has been active in promoting acceptance and care for children with rare skeletal disorders in the past years. To promote Dwarfism Awareness Month, the foundation have also worked with a few famous local cartoonists to produce an animation to educate the public, especially children, about dwarfism. Nathan would like to share this meaningful video to the KJS community!
To see the movie pls click here
ESF and Other Notices
ESF 50th Anniversary Commemorative Book
To mark ESF’s half-century, we are publishing a commemorative book: ESF The First 50 Years. This volume will chronicle the ESF story, highlighting key events over the last 50 years. It will also celebrate the successes and contributions of our students and staff, both past and current.
The book will be published in November 2017. Place your online order NOW at http://www.esf.edu.hk/50th-book/
Enquiries: 50book@esfcentre.edu.hk
ESF 50th Anniversary Gala Dinner
Please click here for more information of the ESF 50th Anniversary Gala Dinner.
Dates for Your Diary
Thursday 2 November 3-6:30pm Parent Teacher Meetings (including Y1 & Y4 Chinese classes)
Monday 6 November Teacher training (no school for students)
Thursday 9 November 3-6:30pm Parent Teacher Meetings (including Y1 & Y4 Chinese classes)
14 & 15 November Madagascar, KJS Musical
20 – 22 November Y4 Camp
Thursday 23 November Kowloon Netball Tournament
Thursday 30 November Y6 Immunization
28 November – 1 December Y5 Camp
4 – 8 December Y6 Camp
Wednesday 13 December Y3 & Y4 Sports Day
Thursday 14 December Y5 & Y6 Sports Day
Friday 15 December Term ends at midday
Disclaimer:
Kowloon Junior School, English Schools Foundation and its affiliates shall take no responsibility for any activities, events and services that are organised by other organisations or individuals and are mentioned in our newsletters..