Newsletter #2
Beacon Hill School latest newsletter available to read now. Find out the latest news around the school and upcoming events.
Principal’s Words
Important Dates
SEN News
PTA News
Other News
Dear Parents,
We have had another great week with much better weather, although it has been hot on the playground. Most of the children have had hats with them at school. A reminder that without a school hat, the children cannot play outside in the sun.
Last night I was fortunate enough to attend the ESF Chairman’s Awards 2016 at Island School which recognised the outstanding academic and non-academic achievements of the IB / BTec Diploma Graduates of 2016. As we have been helping our new Year 1 students settle into life at Beacon Hill School it was terrific to see former BHS students being honoured last night after years of hard work and dedication. For me, what was really fascinating, was hearing about where they are going next in their lives – often to further their studies in universities all across the world and hopefully making a positive impact. I can only imagine what our Year 1s will be doing in 13 years time. Congratulations to all ESF graduates and particularly to former BHS students – we are immensely proud of you.
Yesterday Ms Chung hosted three information sessions for prospective year 1 parents. A lot of information about Beacon Hill School and the application process was shared. Some of our Year 6 students then gave the parents a tour around the school. If you are wishing to apply for a Year 1 placement for the 2017-18 academic year, you must complete the online application. Please note this important information:
Central Applications – Year 1(2012 Birth) for August 2017-2018 admission – Online Admissions System (OS) Application for New Year 1 (2012 Birth)
If you are applying for Year 1 for August 2017 entry for a sibling born in 2012, the application period is from 1-30 September 2016. Applications received after 30 September 2016 are considered LATE and placed on the waiting list with the date received recorded. Applications are submitted through the ESF Online Application System.
For application guidelines and details please refer to ESF website at www.esf.edu.hk under admissions. If you have any enquiry or questions regarding the ESF primary application process, please email: admissions@esfcentre.edu.hk or call the ESF Admissions hotline at 3762-2411.
The ESF application fee is HK$2000. (Effective from 1 September 2013) This is a non-refundable, non-transferable administration fee which covers the cost of processing the application. Parents must apply and pay the application fee using the Online Admissions System.
Your application must be sent by ‘registered mail’ to the English Schools Foundation, Central Admissions for Year 1 ,25/F, 1063 King's Road, Quarry Bay, Hong Kong for application to be completed. Supporting documents listed below should be received by the English Schools Foundation no later than 7 October 2016 for Central Application processing.
- Copy of completed ‘Online Application’ form or the Application slip/ acknowledgement email;
- Copy of application fee online payment result;
- Copy of child’s school/kindergarten reports for the last two years;
- Copy of student’s birth certificate;
- Copy of student’s passport (including the current visa status for Hong Kong);
- Copy of parent’s passports (including current visa status in Hong Kong);
- Copy of parent’s and child’s identity cards, if applicable as residing in Hong Kong;
- Details of parent attendance at ESF primary/secondary school (if applicable)
- Two proof of HK address documents – a stamped copy of tenancy or purchase agreement plus a utility bill or bank statement;
- Two student’s passport quality photographs showing his/her frontal face with clear facial features,
- measuring 4cm (width) x 5cm (height);
**An application with insufficient supporting documents or non-payment of fee will not be processed.
Should you have any enquiries, please contact ESF by the following methods:
- Email to admissions@esfcentre.edu.hk with the subject REQUEST FOR ESF APPLICATION FORM
- Hotline on 3762 2411 during office hours
Applications for year Year 7 Places
Parents of our Year 6 students need to submit an application for a Year 7 ESF place via The Gateway between 5th September and 16th September 2016.
Information available on the ESF website at http://www.esf.edu.hk/node/5470 for key dates and http://www.esf.edu.hk/esf-zones for school zones.
Meet the Teacher Night and New Parents’ Cheese and Wine Welcome
Next Tuesday the PTA is hosting a Cheese and Wine event to welcome the new Year 1 parents and those parents of all other students new to BHS. This will be from 5pm-6pm in the Staffroom on the 7/F. We will also have our regular ‘Meet the Teacher’ event the same evening beginning at 6pm in the hall for parents of children in Years 1 to 3. The session for those of you with children in Years 4 to 6 will begin at 6.30pm in the hall. I look forward to seeing many of you then!
PTA Bowling Social
Our annual PTA Bowling event is coming up very soon – Friday 9th September. The teachers will be there too and are looking forward to seeing many of their students at the event. It promises to be an enjoyable evening for our BHS families and will be a great way to socialize and meet fellow parents and teachers in a relaxed and fun environment. If you haven’t got tickets yet for the whole family, please get in touch with the PTA.…wristbands are limited!
Uniform
Once again, the children have been adhering to the BHS uniform requirements, thanks to parents at home. I have noticed one or two children who are not yet wearing the correct foot wear. Please endeavour to make sure that they do – remembering that the black shoes should not be sports shoes. I am sure you will appreciate that to have a uniform policy that works means that everyone should follow it, without exception.
A quick reminder of the company Karaso: https://www.karasoflex.com/ who do provide suitable foot wear, although other suitable shoes are available throughout Hong Kong. There are some samples available to look at outside our PTA Shop. Please note that this is an option available to parents and that the PTA is not able to provide assistance with any orders or questions about the shoes.
Karaso has kindly agreed to donate 10% of the proceeds to the BHS PTA meaning you can get school shoes for your child whilst supporting the school. A special promo code needs to be used when ordering: BHSKARASO. (Please note that this is an external company not affiliated to BHS or the BHS PTA).
Healthy Snacks
I am really encouraged to report that the vast majority of the children are bringing delicious, healthy options for their morning snacks. I am hopeful that we can get everyone on board with this.
Parent Information Workshops
As I mentioned last week, we will have a series of Parent Information Workshops throughout the year. Some dates are yet to be decided. We will send out reminders of each one nearer the time with a link to register for attendance. Here is the provisional list:
| ALL MEETINGS TO START AT 6.30pm unless indicated otherwise | |
| Date | Workshop |
| 29 Aug | Meet the Teacher & Sharing Vision |
| 2 Sep | Risk Assessment Workshop |
| Date to be confirmed | Introduction to PYP (Year 1 parents and new parents) |
| Date to be confirmed | English Reading Workshop for Helpers |
| Date to be confirmed | English Reading Workshop for Parents |
| 27 & 29 Sep | Parent Teacher Conferences |
| 3 Oct | Gifted & Talented – John Hopkins Centre for Talented Youth |
| 4 & 5 Oct | Camp Information Evenings |
| Date to be confirmed | Year 1 Maths |
| Year 3 Maths | |
| Year 5 Maths | |
| Oct 18th | Marie Marchand – Sibling Rivalry |
| 26 Oct | The Power of Play |
| Wed Feb 8th | Marie Marchand
Developing a positive relationship with your pre-teen |
| Date to be confirmed | Learning Spaces – Visit model classroom |
| Date to be confirmed | English -Writing |
| 7th June | Mother Daughter & Father Son |
| Dates to be confirmed | What is Inquiry? |
| SEN Programmes e.g. FRIENDS, Social Thinking, Zones of Regulation, Theory of Mind | |
| Learning Technology | |
| Assessment Recording and Reporting | |
| Mandarin – Supporting children with Mandarin | |
| Growth Mindset (date to be confirmed) | |
BHS Teacher-Led After School Clubs
Teachers will announce when these will start over the next few weeks and letters will be sent home to those children who express an interest in joining them. Please encourage your child to join one or two that they are interested in.
BHS Community Choir
Last January we held the inaugural meeting of the BHS Community Choir and went on to perform at the International Food Fair, the Chinese New Year show and the Summer Music Concert. The choir will re-form this year, starting on Thursday October 20th at 7pm. Everyone is welcome – no experience necessary! New and existing members are very welcome. Please click on this link to register: https://goo.gl/forms/fERvdJNghaaC1YYa2
Student Success Beyond School
Zoie Chan (4F) has had a wonderful summer as she participated in two golf tournaments in San Diego, US and two major tournaments in Hong Kong. She won 3rd place in FCG Junior World Championship in San Diego and she also qualified to participate in the highest Junior Golf Tournament, IMG Junior World Championship this year. Zoie won the Champion in KSC Junior Open in which she played three days, nine holes gaining the best score in the 10 years and under group. Zoie maintained a very good score and got the 2nd runner up in HK Junior Open. After these two big events Zoie’s parents reported that they saw a fundamental change in Zoie’s mindset and she demonstrated her passion for golf. They are happy to see her great improvement and that she has built up a lot of confidence during this summer
Zoie’s sister, Chloe who studied at BHS also continued her great performance in golf. Chloe was promoted to be the National Team Player early this year and she is the youngest member to represent Hong Kong for overseas tournaments. Chloe also had a great opportunity to participate into the 2nd Hong Kong Ladies Open in this June, which is a Rolex World Ranking for LPGA Internationally. Chloe was the youngest amateur player to join into this event. Well done to both girls – I hope you keep enjoying your golf and have continued success.
IMPORTANT DATES
| AUGUST | |
| 29th | Year 1s begin whole day schooling |
| 30th | New Parents Wine and Cheese – 5pm-6pm (organised by the PTA) |
| 30th | Meet the Teacher Evening
6.00 – 6.45 – Years 1 to 3 6.30 – 7.15 – Years 4 to 6 |
| SEPTEMBER | |
| 2nd | Year 2 excursion to LEAP |
| 2nd | Parent Information Workshop – Risk Assessments (for those wishing to volunteer for class excursions) – 2pm |
| 5th | Year 1 PIPS baseline assessments; Year 3 InCAS assessments |
| 7th | Year 6 swimming |
| 8th | PTA Meeting, 3.30pm |
| 9th | 3D Class Assembly, 9am |
| 9th | PTA Social Event – Bowling |
| 10th (Saturday) | BHS CPD Day for teachers |
| 12th | Year 2 excursion to Inspiration Lake |
| 12th | School Council Meeting, 5pm |
| 14th | Year 6 swimming |
| 15th | PTA Mid-Autumn Market |
| 16th | Public Holiday (Day after Mid-Autumn Festival) – School Closed |
| 21st | Year 6 Swimming |
| 23rd | Year 4 Sharing for Parents, 9am |
| 27th and 29th | Parent-Teacher Consultations |
| 28th | Year 6 Swimming |
| 28th | ESF Environmental Conference |
The Year Group Weekly Updates and Single Subject Monthly Updates are available on the school website – so please remember to refer to the website each week to be informed about what is happening in your child’s class.
Best wishes,
_
James Harrison
Principal
Parent Workshop with Michelle Garcia
ESF will be hosting a free parent workshop with Michelle Garcia Winner, founder of Social Thinking. An opportunity not to be missed.
Date: Thursday 8 September
Time: 6.30-8.00pm
Venue: ESF Centre, 25/F 1063 King’s Road, Quarry Bay
Cost: Free for ESF parents
Workshop description:
The Social – Academic Connection Through The Lens Of Social Thinking
We will explore how social cognition lays the foundation for the development of critical thinking and our social competencies. Having social emotional learning challenges is not just a problem of making and keeping friends but can also impact a student’s ability to engage in reading comprehension of literature, written expression, narrative language, organisational skills and working as part of a group.
Lessons in perspective taking and executive functioning can be helpful to guide a student’s better understanding of others’ points of view as well as to self-manage their own assignments. Today’s challenge of our students’ desire to engage in screen time will also be touched upon. We will discuss a few ideas on teaching students about how they can set goals, explore related action plans and what it means to self-regulate their behaviour in order to achieve their goals.
Find more information about Social Thinking at www.socialthinking.com
Sign up is via a Google Form via the following link:
Please note that places are limited and sign up is first come first served.
Reminders:
- DeliFresh hot lunches will start in the month of September. Therefore, home packed lunches will be required for the month of August. The September 2016 lunch order deadline has lapse, thus please contact DeliFresh directly for lunch order plus payment receipt and their direct order confirmation for your child before September. There will not be extra lunches provided without paid orders.
- Uniform Shop will be open Monday – Friday until Friday September 2 2016, 8:15am-10:00am, thereafter Normal Uniform Shop hours apply.
- For New Parents, if you have returned RSVP for the BHS PTA Wine & Cheese Welcome invitation, we’ll see you on Tuesday 30 August 2016 5:00-6:30pm . This event will coincide with your Meet the Teacher evening for all year groups.
- BHS Welcome Social Bowling evening on Friday 9 September 2016 will sure to be an enjoyable evening for our BHS families. This is a great way to socialize and meet fellow parents & teachers in a relaxed & fun environment. Don’t hesitate to RSVP & order for the whole family!…wristbands are limited ! All children need to attend with a guardian adult.
- 2016/17 BHS PTA fees of $350 per family will be collected by BHS office, together with excursion fees. Appreciate your support of the BHS PTA.
To find out more about what we do and how you can get involved or support us to enrich your child’s experience at BHS, please visit www.beaconhill.edu.hk/pta-2/. Our Annual General Meeting for voting of the 2016/17 Executive Committee members will occur on Tuesday 4 October 2016.
Enjoy your weekend,
Rowena Chow
Chair, BHS PTA
Important Information for Year 6 Parents
Prospective Parents of KGV 2017-18
Prospective parents are invited to attend the KGV Year 6 Parent Information and Middle School Curriculum Evening, 5-6pm on the 7th of September.
It will be held in the Hall at KGV School.
Please note there is no visitor parking on the school site. For any enquiries, please contact sarah.jones@kgv.edu.hk
Chad Pheasant
Vice Principal
Supply Educational Assistants
Dear Parents,
Are you interested in working as an Educational Assistant at Beacon Hill School? We need enthusiastic, energetic people who are prepared to be called on (sometimes at short notice) to cover in the event of staff absence. If you enjoy working with young children and would like to be part of our team, please send a short letter along with your CV and contact details to susan.chung@bhs.edu.hk
Working as a supply educational assistant is a good way to gain the experience required to be considered for any positions advertised in the future.
All applicants must be holders of a valid work visa in Hong Kong and have a good standard of spoken English.
Susan Chung
Vice Principal
Health
STUDENT HEALTH SERVICE (SHS) / SCHOOL DENTAL CARE SERVICE (SDCS) 2016/2017
The joint enrolment forms for SHS / SDCS have arrived.
We have passed them to your child’s class teacher.
If, you have not received one, please could you let me know ASAP
Reminder:
- If, you enrol for the dental service, you need to return the completed joint application and consent form together with “a cheque” made payable to Beacon Hill School of HK$20.00 (twenty) with your child’s name and class at the back of the cheque, please.
- Please “omit the Student Reference Number” on this form.
ESF DRUG ADMINISTRATION POLICY
If, your child requires prescribed medication during school hours, please follow the guidelines which can be found via www.beaconhill.edu.hk
- Go to About Us
- Other information.
Thank you.
Ms Chen
School Nurse
Junior Chess Star Invitational Competition 2016
We are pleased to announce that Quarry Bay School PTA LTD will be hosting the 5th Junior Chess Star Invitational Competition 2016, sponsored by Quarry Bay School, on Sunday, 25th September 2016. We invite all students studying in ESF & PIS primary schools, for the academic year 2016-17, to join the event.
Please click here for online registration.
68th Hong Kong Schools Speech Festival
The application form for entering 68th Hong Kong School Speech Festival will be ready for you to pick up at the school front desk from Monday 29th August. If your child/(ren) wants to participate in this competition, please return the application form and application fee in a cheque payable to “Beacon Hill School” to the school office on or before Friday 9th September, 2016. Any late application received after the deadline will not be accepted.
Please note that ESF school education level is not equivalent to the local school system. If you enrol in the year group programme, please cross check with the following table for the correct age group. HKSMSA is based on the local school system for enrolment.
Should you have any queries, please contact Ms Shiree Yam at the office.
| ESF Level | Local School System |
| Y1 | K3 |
| Y2 | Y1 |
| Y3 | Y2 |
| Y4 | Y3 |
| Y5 | Y4 |
| Y6 | Y5 |
Disclaimer: Beacon Hill School and the English School Foundation do not recommend or endorse any external events in this newsletter. There is no contractual arrangement between BHS/ESF and the event organisers.
