Glenealy School Newsletter
30th January 2019
Message from Brenda
Dear Parents, Caregivers and Students
What a wonderful ESF family affair it was at the ‘ESF Fun Run’ held at the Science Park last Saturday. You’ll see from the photos above that families from Glenealy participated enthusiastically and that Jonah Oldfield from 6B won third place in his age group. Congratulations to Jonah and all of the other runners who took part in the event.
Kung Hei Fat Choi and Gong Xi Fa Cai!
Happy New Year! Join us tomorrow for our school community Lion Dance. This is always a highlight of the year. The lion, a symbol of power, wisdom and good fortune, chases away evil spirits and brings happiness, longevity and good luck to our community. Students, staff and parents are invited to wear Chinese inspired clothing or to dress in bright pink or red colours on Thursday 31st January as part of the festivities. You have been notified if your child is performing in the other assemblies during the day and we look forward to sharing this wonderful occasion with you.
Health and Safety at Glenealy School
Over the last week or so, some parents have approached me about some information that has been circulating in parts of our school community. This relates to a claim made to the school before Christmas by a parent, asserting that there had been serious and inappropriate behaviour between some of our students. I know that talk like this can quickly take on a life of its own, causing speculation, fear and worry among parents.
I want to reassure you that, following our thorough investigation, we did not find evidence to support these serious allegations. We did become aware on the day that a couple of children had not behaved as well as we would have liked in their classroom, but their behaviour was not serious and was not consistent with the more extreme aspects of the claims made.
The matter was taken forward to various Government Departments and we have been liaising closely with them. Although a final decision has not been made, the general consensus appears to confirm the school’s assessment. As a school we would support any further investigation if that was deemed to be appropriate whilst ensuring the welfare and well being of our students.
Glenealy is a great school, with wonderful children, supportive parents and an amazing staff. However, from time to time, difficult situations can occur and I want you to know that when they do, we act on them quickly and effectively. We have robust policies and procedures and we have experienced staff who are well trained in dealing with even the most challenging circumstances. As always, my door is always open to discuss any concerns you may have.
Safety on the roads
You’ll note our procedures for entering and exiting the school have changed over the last week to ensure greater safety and security. The school premises will remained locked until 2.45pm each day. Entry is no longer permitted through the car park gates for drop-off and pick-up to ensure greater safety. If driving a car, please be mindful and drive with extra caution around drop-off and pick-up times. We also reminded the children in our Social and Emotional Learning (SEL) assembly this week of the procedures for crossing roads safely.
On a different subject, the flu season is upon us and at this stage, whilst we have had some students and staff away with diagnosed flu, the numbers have been small. This has been achieved to date, by parents and the school being extra cautionary and working together to ensure we minimise the spread of infection. We appreciate you monitoring your child’s health so closely - this has really made a difference!
Many parents joined us for our first Learning Walk last term which focused on Inquiry and how children learn at Glenealy School. Feedback suggested it was insightful and informative.
To find out more about the format and timings, click here.
We are excited to let you know that on Wednesday 13th February at 8:15-10:15 am we will have our second session, focusing on Mathematics; how students learn and ways to support them in their learning. To register for this event please click here.
Social and Emotional Learning (SEL Assemblies)
Monday morning SEL assemblies continue to have a major impact on well being and behaviour in the school. Parents have remarked that these assemblies have created good conversations at home. Year one students will also join the school SEL assemblies this term.
Last Monday we did a revision of many of these concepts including expected and unexpected behaviours and aspects from our Positive Relationships Policy including our essential agreements that ground respectful relationships, and ways to keep ourselves safe. You may find this content useful to use at home too.
What is bullying? Also reference to definitions in our Policy
Bystanding and Upstanding
We look forward to welcoming in the ‘Year of the Pig’. Have a wonderful CNY break with your family and friends and we look forward to seeing everyone back at school on Tuesday 12th February. Staff have a CPD (training) day on Monday 11th February, so school will not be open for lessons.
Kung Hei Fat Choi!
Brenda
Dates for your Diary
Thursday 31st January
Chinese New Year Lion Dance 8:45 am - 9:00 am
Option to wear Chinese inspired clothing
Monday 4th - Friday 8th February
School closed for Chinese New Year Mid-Term break
Monday 11th February
Glenealy CPD Day- no school for students
Wednesday 13th February
Parent Circles 8:15 am - 10:15 am
Thursday 14th February
PTA Lunchtime Disco Years 1-3
Friday 15th February
PTA Lunchtime Disco Years 4-6
Tuesday 19th February
School Council Meeting 12:45 pm - 2:00 pm
Thursday 21st February
Student-Led Conferences (afternoon)
Friday 22nd February
Student-Led Conferences (all day, no lessons for students)
Monday 4th March - Friday 8th March
CIS and IB Team Evaluation Visit
Friday 22nd March
Glenealy's Got Talent show 2:00 pm
Tuesday 26th March
School Council Meeting 12:45 pm - 2:00 pm
Thursday 4th April
ESF Choral Concert- Queen Elizabeth Stadium
Friday 5th April
Ching Ming Festival-school closed
Friday 12th April
End of Term 2 - school closes at 12:00 noon
Monday 29th April
Start of Term 3
Wednesday 1st May
Labour Day -school closed
Monday 13th May
Day following Buddha's Birthday- school closed
PTA News
Lunchtime Student Discos – Tickets Available Now!
Get ready to dress up, eat pizza and dance! The Disco for Years 1-3 will take place on Thursday 14th February and the Disco for Years 4-6 will take place on Friday 15th February. Click here for ticketing information. Ticketing payment deadline is on Wednesday 30th January.
Year 5 Fundraiser
Year 5 hosted a Chinese New Year Fundraiser in the playground last Friday 18th January. It was a huge success and the selection of treats and games on offer was enjoyed by everyone. Over $12,350 was raised. Well done and thank you to all the bakers and makers who made the event such a success.
News from the Medical Room
Parents we need your help and support:
If your child is sharing that they are not feeling well, please check your child's temperature before coming to school.
Should your child have a temperature of 37.5 or above, please do not return them to school until 24 hours after the fever has subsided without the use of medication.
Would you please inform us if your child is diagnosed with influenza (A or B) so we can monitor the situation across the school.
Please also remind your children about the importance of regular hand washing with soapy water. We will also speak to the children regarding personal hygiene.
Should you have any further questions please do not hesitate to contact me.
Sue
School Nurse
Micro:bit Processors
For this STEM challenge, we used a different learning approach as the code and the design that was needed was quite challenging.
Students were given instructions to follow and a code to download rather than trying to write their own programs.
They then worked backwards to figure out how the components of the design and the code worked.
Finally, they thought about how they could modify either the box or the code to engineer something to help in an emergency.
Some amazing and plausible suggestions included tsunami and earthquake alarms, or lock boxes, which required combination codes, to keep medical equipment safe.
The goal of these sessions has been to empower Glenealy students to understand that they can use technology to be creative and find solutions.
ESF Chinese Talent Show 2019
ESF Centre.
Kid Power Programme
Dear Parents,
In the past few weeks, we have had over 245 students signed up to participate in the UNICEF Kid Power Program. Thank you all very much for your support of this initiative.
The step tracker bands have arrived in Hong Kong and will be delivered to the school after Chinese New Year. You will receive more information regarding the distribution of the bands at that time.
Furthermore, in a bid to provide anyone who missed the December deadline with the opportunity to participate in this initiative, UNICEF have ordered a surplus of bands and are able to extend the sign up period until tomorrow, Thursday 31st January 2019.
If you would like to enrol your child, please follow the link below.
https://www.eventbrite.hk/e/kid-power-registration-registration-52296005761
Password: esf
Warm regards,
Andy Pattison
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.
from the Marvellous Media Mavericks.
Extra Curricular Activities Term 2 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