Glenealy School Newsletter
28th November 2018
Message from Dave
Dear Parents, Caregivers and Students,
As Brenda is away with ESF annual recruitment all week, it is my pleasure to write this section of the Newsletter this week.
What an amazing night at the school Fair!
Thank you to everyone who helped make the Fair such a huge success. It was a really positive evening of smiles and laughter, as well as the odd tear (from proud parents hearing their children sing!).
The atmosphere makes for a truly wonderful community event where students (both current and past), parents, staff and their families all come together and have a great time.
A huge thanks to our PTA Chair, Fatema Jangbarwala, for her leadership and successful coordination of the event alongside Becky Steel, our PTA Coordinator.
The event was very smoothly run and that comes from meticulous planning and attention to detail in preparation for the evening. During the day of the Fair, and throughout the evening, there was also a phenomenal amount of hard work from a superb team of PTA volunteers.
It was great to see so many parents who are new to the school helping out this year alongside our longstanding parent volunteers. Their contribution was massive and all done with a smile!
We were also fortunate to have a team of Glenealy Alumni come back to support the games. It is always a pleasure to see these students return and still feel such a strong connection to the school and it’s community.
Here at Glenealy we are very proud of our community spirit. We know that this would not exist to the degree that it does without the phenomenal input, support and hard work of our amazing PTA!
Glenealy’s Great 21 Day Benefit Mindset Challenge
In our SEL assembly this Monday we launched Glenealy’s 21 Day Benefit Mindset Challenge. During this challenge all students, staff and families are invited to demonstrate a Benefit Mindset by practising small acts that make a positive difference (such as expressing gratitude or an act of kindness).
The only catch with the Challenge is that every day, the action chosen must be something new. In each class the children will record these acts, reflecting on the following questions:
How did my positive action make others feel?
How did my positive action make me feel?
How did my actions create a better world?
Providing opportunities for the children to share these experiences with each other.
We would love it if you could support this initiative at home, and we encourage you to share with us and your children your own examples of small acts that make a positive difference.
The assembly itself was started by this inspirational video created by our very own Year 3 students who demonstrated multiple ways in which we can show a Benefit Mindset in our daily interactions with each other in school.
If you’re looking for extra inspiration, there are great action suggestion lists, such as this one from Actions for Happiness.
“You cannot get through a single day without having an impact on the world around you. What you do makes a difference, and you have to decide what kind of difference you want to make.” — Jane Goodall
Sports Day on Friday
Please check Andy Pattison's item further down in the Newsletter for more details, we look forward to seeing everyone there.
Kind Regards,
Dave Buckley
Dates for your Diary
Friday 30th November
Sports Day
Tuesday 4 December
School Council Meeting 12:45 pm - 2:00 pm
Thursday 6th December
Honk the Musical 1st performance 7:00 pm
Saturday 8th December
Honk the Musical 2nd performance 6:00 pm
Tuesday 11th December
Junior Choir Christmas Performance for Parents 8:30 am -9:00 am
Thursday 13th December
Christmas Carol Concert 2:00 pm - 3:00 pm Families welcome
Friday 14th December
End of Term 1- school closes at 12:00 noon
Monday 7th January 2019
School resumes for the start of Term 2
Saturday 26th January 2019
ESF Fun Run - Hong Kong Science Park
Thursday 31st January 2019
Chinese New Year Lion Dance
Monday 4th - Friday 8th February 2019
School closes for Chinese New Year Mid-Term break
PTA News
School Fair
We hope everyone enjoyed the Fair on Friday night as much as we did. We are thankful to all the parents and caregivers that volunteered on the night to make it such a fun-filled evening. Whether it was baking, cooking or helping at stalls, your help was invaluable. The success of the Fair only happens with the collaboration and enthusiasm of our school community.
Playground Sale coming soon!
If you didn’t get a chance to browse the Kitchenware stall or buy the Glenealy tote bags on the night of the Fair, don’t worry, we will be holding a playground sale very soon - there’s still a chance to snap up a bargain. More details in next week’s Newsletter!
Update from Glenealy School Council
Our School Council has been exploring ways to share the work we do to ensure that we are more open and transparent with the wider school community. Recently we have updated our school website to include a governance section which outlines the work of sub committees which I'm sure you will find interesting.
Below you will find an update from Sam Guthrie , our Chair of The Facilities / Health and Safety Committee.
Regards,
Brenda
It has been a busy start to the year for the Facilities / Health and Safety Committee and we thought it timely to give you an update on our recent activities.
As you know, one of the key roles of this Committee is to ensure Glenealy is aware and prepared for risks that may impact the school, its staff, students or the broader community. A key tool for us to do this is the school’s Risk Register, which is a document developed in conjunction with ESF’s Facilities team. The Risk Register lists out all the possible risks that may confront the school from typhoons and fire, through to hot coffee urns and ovens.
Prior to the new school year the Committee, the School Leadership Team and colleagues from ESF took a day to work through the risk register, stepping through all conceivable risks. The purpose was not only to identify where potential hazards may exist, but also to detail how the school is mitigating against these risks. Some key areas we focused on included:
Managing visitor access to the school
The school’s emergency evacuation procedures
Safety associated with the school’s high traffic areas (staircases & balconies)
Safe storage of cleaning products
The Committee is pleased with the comprehensive review represented in the Register and satisfied that the school is well prepared to manage these risks as a result of this exercise.
Risk of course is ever changing and evolving and it’s impossible to plan for all possible circumstances. It’s important for us therefore to constantly review our performance when our risk preparations are put to the test. A great example of this occurred after Typhoon Mangkhut hit Hong Kong earlier this term. The School Leadership Team did an outstanding job ensuring the safety of students by quickly identifying risk and working with local authorities to make the school safe for students to return. Risk management did not end there however. After this event the Committee asked the Executive to develop a “Lessons Learned” document which detailed what we thought worked well, and what could be done better next time. Findings from this report have now been incorporated within the School’s Risk Register – so we can be even better prepared in the future!
Of course, the Facilities / Health and Safety Committee does not just spend its entire time addressing risk. We also get to support the School as we continue to enhance the facilities available to our students. Brenda has mentioned in a recent newsletter the exciting announcement that “new playgrounds are coming”. The Committee has been delighted to work with the Executive and ESF colleagues to draft a plan for the redevelopment of our two upstairs playgrounds. Our role here is both as advocate for the works, as well as ensuring the developments are pursued with an eye to good governance and sensible risk management. We were delighted that last month our ESF Facilities team colleagues and the School Executive were able to lock in an ambitious 3 phase schedule to complete the new playground by late 2019.
So, that’s the Committee in a nutshell. We encourage you to get in touch if you have any thoughts on our activities, or believe there are areas which should be brought to our attention. The Committee is here to work in support of our wonderful Glenealy community, so please don’t hesitate to get in touch if you have an interest.
Sam Guthrie
Glenealy School Sports Day 2018
Almost there!
Friday 30th November is our annual Sports Day and will be held at the Kowloon Cricket Club (KCC) on Cox's Rd.
Parents will have received information already on this, but here are a few
Important notes for parents on Sports Day:
- Arrival times at the venue at KCC
- Years 3 - 6 - from 9:45 am
- Year 1 & 2 - from 10:45 am
- Parents joining us, please use the side entrance to the KCC Cricket Pitch on Cox's Road upon arrival.
- Sports Day is expected to finish at 1:30 pm and all students are expected to stay until the end.
- At dismissal time, please accompany your child's class to their dismissal point and only take them home when the teacher has checked them off their list.
- There will be high quality photos of the event shared in the following weeks.
- For health and safety purposes, please maintain a respectful distance from the children's activities and do not bring hot beverages into the activity areas.
We look forward to seeing you at the KCC on Friday!
Warm regards,
Andy (PE Teacher)
West Island School Open Day
Please see the invitation letter below from Mr Christopher Simmons, Principal.
Click here to register your attendance, all parents are welcome to attend.
ESF Fun Run
More details can be found here
Important Reminder
Has your child's visa status changed?
As a reminder, all children attending an ESF school need the appropriate and valid visa status to do so. Please inform the school if your child's visa status changes. For more information refer to the Immigration section on the ESF website.
Useful School Forms
Medical Authorisation Form - required should your child need to take medication whilst at school, on a school trip or camp
ESF/Glenealy Calendar for 2018/19
Please refer closely to this calendar for any important events, (e.g . booking your holidays) for the next academic year.
Read more in the Hall of Fame.
Extra Curricular Activities Term 1 2018-19
Disclaimer Notice: Glenealy School does not endorse or represent the accuracy, truthfulness or reliability of these advertisements placed by outside agencies.
- ESF EDUCATIONAL SERVICES - Soccer
2711 1280
- BANANA ART CLUB (Art)
Michelle - 6020 5476
- FOUNDATION ACADEMY (Film Makers)
Namrata Bindra -3107 8810
namrata.bindra@foundationge.com
- Creative Dance
TUESDAY
- ESF EDUCATIONAL SERVICES - Sports Clubs & Tennis
2711 1280
Website: http://www.esf.org.hk/index.asp
- Brownies
Penny Donowho - 9181 7318
- CHESS CLUB
Yin Ping Ho 2884 1420 / 9215 2682
- CENTER STAGE STUDIOS (Musical Theatre)
Imogen Taylor - 5236 7960
admin@centrestagestudioshk.com
WEDNESDAY
- ESF EDUCATIONAL SERVICES - Basketball
2711 1280
website: http://www.esf.org.hk/index.asp
- CENTER STAGE STUDIOS (Drama)
Imogen Taylor - 5236 7960
admin@centrestagestudioshk.com
- THE CLASSROOM BY MG (Litteracy)
Mary Godridge - 9103 4378
THURSDAY
- ESF EDUCATIONAL SERVICES - Tennis
2711 1280
Website: http://www.esf.org.hk/index.asp
- APPDEV-X (Coding)
- ACTIVE KIDS (Stormy Chefs)
Elsie - 3480 4199
FRIDAY
- ESF EDUCATIONAL SERVICES - Tennis & Gymnastics
2711 1280
Website: http://www.esf.org.hk/index.asp
- MOK'S TAEKWONDO SELF-DEFENCE (Tae Kwon Do)
Charles Mok - 9494 7636
- ACTIVE KIDS (Science Adventures)
Elsie - 3480 4199
- BRILLIANT LEARNING (Sanskrit)
Geetnajali Dhar - 9830 0612
geetanjali@sanskritiglobal.org
SATURDAY
- ESF EDUCATIONAL SERVICES - Tennis & Gymnastics
2711 1280
Website: http://www.esf.org.hk/index.asp
- READ FOR MEANING (Reading)
Mary Barker - 2523 0062 / 9401 4559