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Kowloon Junior School - ESF https://www.kjs.edu.hk/newsletter-270917/ Export date: Fri Apr 19 12:51:19 2024 / +0000 GMT |
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Newsletter- 27/09/17 Kowloon Junior School's latest newsletter is available to read now. Dear Parents, It was an absolute delight to see so many of you at the Lantern Festival on Friday night. It was my first ever involvement in this celebration and what a lovely event it was. I want to pay particular tribute to the KJS PTA who held their AGM on the night. This group of passionate parents and staff give so much of their time, energy, and resources so that your children can have the best possible learning environment and experiences at KJS. In particular I would like to acknowledge the tireless efforts of William Wong (Chairperson) and Sheila Gridley (Treasurer) who both stood down after many dedicated years of service to the school community through the PTA. As we come to the end of the first half of the term it is a good time to pause and reflect on our work to take KJS from good to great (let's say ‘successful') as we aim for ‘Success for Every Child' at KJS. Over the last 6 ½ weeks I have been ‘looking, listening, and learning'. I have asked many questions like “Why do we do this?” and “How will this improve the learning outcomes, well being and agency (self regulation) of our children?” This inquiry phase of tuning into the culture of KJS, finding and sorting has generated an immense amount of information and data from online surveys, parent meetings, student interviews, teacher and support staff feedback, and feedback from the PTA, School Counci,l and ESF. Among the many questions asked was “What does success for every child mean and how would you know if your child has had a successful year?” I provided feedback on these last week and asked for your feedback and the responses were very strong, 97% of respondents agreed that Success for Every Child means children:
This process has been important for the whole team as we go further to clarify our 2020 vision and develop strategies to ensure ‘Success for Every Child'. It is also important as we work to improve as an organisation. The data collected suggests we do have room for improvement, especially in relation to achievement, agency, and the collaborative work we do as a team from the moment a child begins the transition to KJS to the moment they graduate to KGV or elsewhere. My interest is how we as a school work more collaboratively to achieve our goals. We now know we can do better to ensure that every child is achieving to the best of his or her ability, and that they are developing agency and becoming more responsible and self regulated as learners. We are also aware we need more up to date information on student well being and plans to enhance this given the evident links between well being and achievement. What is also apparent is we can make the value of respect for self other and the environment more prominent and explicit in our school and in doing so enhance the culture of our school and community and the well being of our children. Areas of strength for the school include the broad range of extracurricular opportunities for KJS students (the demand is almost overwhelming at times!). Perhaps the most important strength identified over the last 6 ½ weeks is the staff at KJS. The determination and motivation of the teachers to be better than before and to work tirelessly for your children is very evident. I have been so impressed by the willingness to reflect on the progress to date and consider ways of working more effectively to achieve our goal of success for every child. Early next term our 2020 strategic plan and our annual plan will be completed. These documents (which will be available to you) will be the blueprint for how we will work together to make KJS the most successful it can be for our children, staff and community. Thank you to the many of you who have taken the time to email me, complete surveys, come to meetings, and be part of the exciting future of KJS. I am always keen to hear from you if you have suggestions about any aspect of school life. Please do contact me at neill.oreilly@kjs.edu.hk at any time. Enjoy the break with your children, the most important and enduring gift you can give them is time. Neill O'Reilly Principal Absence from SchoolParents please note that the school does not recommend parents withdrawing students during term time, especially for extended periods. Taking children out of school during term time for extended periods can have a negative impact on their education. If your child needs to be out of school for medical reason, a doctor's note is required for the school's record. We would appreciate families maintain regular communication with the school on this matter. Bringing in and Collecting ChildrenParents please be reminded school gate is opened at 8.00am in the morning, and children must be collected from school by 3.00pm. If your child participates in after school activities, he/she must be collected immediately when the activity is finished. If you are delayed in collecting your child, you must call the school. If for any reason you have to drop your child earlier than 8.00am or have to pick up your child after 3.00pm on a regular basis, approval from the principal is required. Chess ClubChess Club by our external coaches from Scholastic Chess will start after the mid term break. Registration will be on a first come, first served basis. The sign-up page will be ready on Gateway (Activities) from 9am tomorrow (Thursday 28 September 2017). Student Success |
| Thursday 28 September 8:45am | Parents Workshop: Wonderful and Terrifying: Helping our students stay safe online |
| 2 - 6 October | School closed – Half term holiday |
| 9 - 10 October | Y6 Trip to Kowloon Walled City |
| Thursday 12 October | Dress Casual Day |
| Friday 13 October 8:45am | Parents Workshop: Introduction to the Primary Years Programme (PYP) Y2 & Y3 Chinese class parent consultations |
| Monday 16 October | Y1 Immunization |
| Wednesday 18 October 9am | Diwali Assembly |
| Friday 20 October | Teacher training (no school for students) |
| 24 - 27 October | School photographer in |
| Friday 27 October | Quiz Night for all the family |
| Tuesday 31 October 3pm Tuesday 31 October 3:45pm | Y5 Camp Meeting Y6 Camp Meeting |
| 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 | KJS Musical |
| Wednesday 15 November | Chinese INSET (no Chinese class) |
| 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..
