12 Jan 2018

Newsletter 18/2017-18

Quarry Bay School’s latest newsletter is available to read now. Find out the latest news around the school and upcoming events.

 Principal’s Comments
 Start of School Day – attendance register and late arrival
 ‘ESF The First 50 Years’
 New Research Report – Social Media Use By 8-12 Year Olds
 Computer Purchases By Parents
 Athletics Events
 ESF Sports Clubs
  PTA News

Principal’s Comments

Key dates for Term 2

Please click here

Key dates for next week:

  • Tuesday the 16th of January – Year 2 Chinese Parent Teacher Consultations

Welcome back to Term 2 everyone. I hope you had a very Merry Christmas and New Year period with family. I enjoyed a ski trip in Canada with my family and quickly realised my daughters were much faster on the slopes than me! I look forward to another busy and productive term of learning and success for your child. Things have started positively and students are very settled after their three week holiday. We have even had excursions out of school – Year 6 and Year 2 went on trips related to their current units. When visiting the classrooms during the week I have been pleased to see the students are rested after their break. I would encourage parents to ensure adequate time is allowed each school night for sleep. Learning is demanding as it requires concentration and focus. Proper rest every school night is important for your child.

Your child’s happiness, well-being and success are important to me. I welcome contact from parents about any aspect of school life. Please do not hesitate to contact me about any matter.

Uniform

The weather is cool at present. We understand if students have some top coats over uniform for warmth as they travel to school. Please consider the number of layers used and try not to ‘overdo’ this aspect. The PTA have the new range of uniform stock available for winter so please visit the shop if you need to purchase items for your child. There are windbreaker jackets, track pants and fleeces available for purchase.

We do understand that QBS is in a transition period as old uniform styles are worn alongside new uniform. These are some important reminders for parents:

  • Hair ties and accessories – blue or black only
  • Girls may wear blue tights under dresses or skirts for extra warmth
  • White or colourful undershirts (ie long sleeved polo shirts or vests) are not to be visible beneath PE or school shirts. A fleece can be worn in class for warmth.
  • Black school shoes with uniform and white trainers with PE uniform

Uniform expectations are high at QBS and remain so during winter. Thank you for your cooperation.

New Teacher at QBS

Last term we farewelled Mrs Grant (2G). Mrs Sarah Moore will teach 2G for the remainder of this school year and we welcome her to QBS. Mrs Moore is well known to QBS and the community. She is not only a teacher but also a QBS parent. Please say hello to Mrs Moore when you see her around school. Please click here to read a message from Mrs Moore.

Year 1 Admissions

This week we have started the Year 1 admission process for the next academic year. This process is an assessment of the child’s expressive and receptive English and takes place in an informal and play-based setting. I always enjoy meeting prospective parents and their children during Year 1 admissions. It is also nice to see so many current QBS families bringing younger siblings along for interviews. The Year 1 admission process will run for several weeks leading up to the Chinese New Year break. It involves many staff and is a thorough process each year.

Regards,

MinaD2

Start of School Day – attendance register and late arrival

In Term 2 the school’s front gate will be closed at 8.15am daily when the bell rings. Any students arriving after the school gate has been closed at 8.15am will be required to register their attendance at Reception on the ground floor. These students will be marked in the Gateway attendance register as late. All teachers take the attendance register at 8.15am daily and students are required to be in the classroom for this so arrival before the school bell is expected.

Cooperation is sought by all parents to have their child at school before the 8.15am bell rings to ensure a smooth start to their learning each day.

‘ESF The First 50 Years’

‘ESF The First 50 Years’ is now published! This volume chronicles the ESF story, highlighting key events over the last 50 years. It also celebrates the successes and contributions of our students and staff, both past and current.

What’s in the Book?

  • Stories of ESF’s major developments and milestones over the past five decades
  • Interviews of all 22 ESF schools with key historic events and current whole school photos
  • Exclusive interviews of 22 prominent alumni
  • Interesting stories from 5 key leaders and 12 long-serving staff

The book is now available for sale via the ESF website: www.esf.edu.hk/50th-book/. Copies will also be available in major bookshops in Hong Kong by late December.

Enquiries: 50book@esfcentre.edu.hk

More details: http://www.esf.edu.hk/2017/12/11/esf50-book/

New Research Report – Social Media Use By 8-12 Year Olds

We have recently received a link from our ESF ICT Advisor to a research report by the Children’s Commissioner in the UK on the subject of social media and how it is used by 8-12 year olds, and the effect it is having on their lives.

The report is titled ‘Life in Likes‘.

It’s one of the only studies to focus on children under the age of 13 using social media, and it’s a very interesting read. Most of the findings confirm what we have all known for years: inappropriate content is readily available and makes them feel upset, YouTube celebrities and peer pressure make them concerned about their appearance, that children are taking risks with their safety to get more ‘likes’ etc. However, it also raises some new insights, such as children with extra-curricular activities have a better balance with social media, and are more likely to view social media as one aspect of their lives, rather than a dominant force.

It succinctly illustrates what Apps children of different ages are using, as well as clearly explaining why they are using them and the potential trouble points, especially during the transition from primary to secondary school. Crucially, it does a great job at highlighting the positive aspects while also raising valid concerns.

We would encourage all parents to read this document.

Computer Purchases By Parents

We have had a number of enquiries from parents about purchasing computers for their children. At school we are using Chromebooks from Y1-Y6. However, as most of our resources are now Internet/Cloud based, the platform OS is not as important as having a good Internet connection with a choice of browsers such as Google Chrome and Firefox. These are free on all platforms.

Chromebooks are not currently available for retail sale in Hong Kong. However, HP are running a limited offer for ESF parents. Please see this link for the order form

https://drive.google.com/file/d/0BwBkfmdf9RlLUUFUMWFHbi1NZHpEWHRrd0lUWkdEWXB3Nk5F/view?usp=sharing

As an ESF parent you can also obtain discounted prices on Apple products at https://www.eduoffer.com/esf/

Please note that many secondary schools including South Island School require students to purchase a specific laptop from a school appointed vendor at the start of Year 7. Parents should consider this before purchasing.

Parents should apply and make enquiries directly to companies above.

Athletics Events

A reminder to Year 3 and 4 parents to take note of the upcoming athletics events for which a separate email invite with further information will be sent out soon.

Year 4 – Tuesday 13th February (8:30 am – 12:00 pm).
Year 3 – Thursday 1st March (8:30 am – 12:00 pm).

ESF Sports Clubs

A reminder that ESF Services clubs will be on offer after school at QBS. If you have not signed up and wish to do so please click the links below.

ESF Services provide a sports program which offer sports classes for children all year round. It is also an excellent opportunity for younger students to begin learning fundamental movement skills from an early age.

PTA News

QBS CPD Day – No school

School will be closed for students on Friday 26th January 2018 for CPD Day. There will be no school busses operating on the day.


PTA SHOP

For queries on uniforms please do not hesitate to contact Amy directly on ptashop@qbs.edu.hk for any shop queries you may have. Amy will be happy to assist.

  • Uniform transition update
    (Click here for the Out of Stock / In Stock Item List.)
  • As a temporary measure you may opt to purchase, externally, a similar item (i.e. design and colour) to the uniform for your child to wear until stocks arrive.

Feedback or Suggestions

If you have any feedback or suggestions you would like to make for our events or services provided, please email them directly to: ptasuggestions@qbs.edu.hk. Your email will be received directly by our Chairman, who will reply to you at the earliest available moment.

HELP US – IN OUR DRIVE FOR A GREENER ENVIRONMENT

We request all parents to support a greener environment by BYOB “bring your own bag” when you come to purchase items from the shop.

[With immediate effect the PTA Shop will no longer provide any shopping bags].

Please contact us on 2566 4242 (ask to transfer to PTA), or 2887 1004 for further queries, or by email to pta@qbs.edu.hk, during operation hours.

“Click here for PTA Office and Shop Operation”