Newsletter 35/2015-16
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
Celebration of Learning Day – Friday 10th June 2016
Order Your Year Book
Student Withdrawals
Summer (Book) Borrowing 2016
Year 5 and 6 Athletics Event
QBS Cricket Team
PTA News
Principal’s Comments
Important dates for your attention:
- Please click here for all the key dates in Term 3 at QBS
In April, Ms Katie Trethewy has been promoted to the senior leadership post of Curriculum Coordinator. She will take up her new role from August. Ms Trethewy is currently the Lead Teacher of Year 6 and will replace Mr Thompson when he leaves QBS to be the Vice Principal at Beacon Hill School. Please click here to read a message from Ms Trethewy.
Mr Thomas (Tom) Tobin will join QBS in August as a Lead Teacher in Year 2. Mr Tobin is an experienced teacher with middle leadership experience. He has been teaching at Peak School (ESF) for several years. We are pleased to welcome Mr Tobin to the QBS community. Please click here to read a message from Mr Tobin.
Mr Jonny McLarnon will support the leadership of Personal, Social and Physical Education (PSPE) curriculum next academic year with Mr Luke Schroder. This is an important area of the curriculum and Mr McLarnon is excited to join colleagues leading this area of learning at QBS. Mr McLarnon is currently teaching in Year 6.
Preparing your child for the 2016/2017 academic year at QBS
All students will meet their class teacher for next academic year on Wednesday the 15th of June. Please click here to view the teacher placements for 2016/2017. Education Assistant placements will be confirmed before the end of the term.
QBS 2016/2017 calendar
Please click here to view the QBS calendar for next academic year. All public holidays have now been gazetted by the Government.
Regards,
Celebration of Learning Day – Friday 10th June 2016
The QBS Celebration of Learning Day will take place on Friday the 10th of June. Normal lessons will not take place on the Celebration of Learning Day. Instead, students and parents should attend school for one of five hour-long sessions across the day. The sessions can now be booked on the Gateway through until 8.30am on Monday the 6th June. The sessions will take place at the following times: 8:15-9:15, 9:30-10:30, 10:50-11:50, 12:00-13:00, 13:40-14:40. Please click here to read more information
Order Your Year Book
The QBS Year Book 2015/2016 is ready for ordering. The price is $110 each. Please click here for more information and to place your order using the online form.
Student Withdrawals
Should you plan to withdraw your child at the end of the academic year, please download and complete the Student Withdrawal Notice and return to the Admissions Office in school via email at admissions@qbs.edu.hk before 1 June. Otherwise, we will assume that your child is returning after summer and parents are liable to pay the tuition fees for September, even if the student does not return to school.
Summer (Book) Borrowing 2016
Dear Y1 – Y5 Parents,
Research has shown that the long summer holidays can produce what is known as the summer slide. This is where children, particularly struggling readers, don’t read and actually take backwards steps due to a lack of practice. Many children forget what they have learned or slip out of practice during this time. Supplying readers with interesting and accessible books leads to improvements in reading, whilst self-selected voluntary reading leads to the greatest gains in reading achievement and other aspects of literacy (Krashen, 2004.)
At QBS we would like to take some preventative measures to ensure that our students continue to make good progress during the summer holidays, therefore we are offering Summer Borrowing to those children currently in Years 1 – 5 who will be continuing their learning with us in August 2016. Each child will be allowed to borrow up to 10 books. We have run this program for several years now and it has proved to be very popular with both children and parents. People are often concerned about the amount of books we might lose over the summer, but let us reassure you that at QBS our children value and look after Learning Centre books.
REQUIREMENTS
In order to qualify for our summer reading program your child needs to have NO OVERDUE LOANS, therefore all books will need to be returned DURING THE WEEK 6TH- 10TH JUNE.
Years 1 & 2
During our Celebration of Learning day on 10th June the Learning Centre will be open for Y1 & 2 only. Your child will be allowed to borrow up to 10 books. It is hoped that you will come with your child and help to select books of interest. It would be best if you could come along at your designated time slot for the Celebration of Learning, as we will be very busy during the day and this will help to stagger the number of children borrowing.
Please bring a waterproof bag – this will help keep the books clean, dry and together.
Years 3- 5
PARENTS MUST SIGN UP to give permission for Summer Borrowing, using the e-notice (to complete on Gateway) that will be sent via email on THURSDAY 2ND JUNE. Years 3, 4 & 5 will then have the chance to borrow their books during their regular library sessions, Monday 13th-Friday 17th June. Please give your child a waterproof bag to bring on their borrowing day, as this will help keep the books clean, dry and together.
RETURNS
The books will be returned to school during the first two weeks of term. There will be a drop box at the Reception for book collection. You or your child could return the books to the drop box or they can bring the books to return during their regular library sessions in week 2.
Please encourage your child to participate in this program as we believe it is extremely worthwhile. We are very excited about this and can’t wait to see our shelves emptying and our motivated and confident readers returning in August.
Anna Trunkfield & May Tang.
learningcentre@qbs.edu.hk
Krashen, S. (2004) The Power of Reading: Insights from the Research, 2nd edition. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann.
Year 5 and 6 Athletics Event
We are pleased to inform you that we have secured a date for the Year 5 and 6 Athletics Event to go ahead on Monday 13th June at Quarry Bay School.
There have been some necessary adjustments to the format of the day so that we are able to cater for both Year groups on the same day.
- Year 5 Rotation of Athletic Events: 10:00 am – 12.00 pm.
- Year 6 Rotation of Athletics Events: 12.20 pm – 2.20 pm.
An email detailing the event will be sent to all Year 5 and 6 Parents.
QBS Cricket Team
The QBS Cricket Team played in the Hong Kong Inter-Schools Qualifying Tournament at Happy Valley last Wednesday and are now preparing for the finals next Wednesday. Best of luck to the team.
PTA News
Events
2016/2017: PTA Events Committee
Your PTA looks forward to planning and organising more fun-filled, and exciting events in the new academic year. If you would like to join our Event Organising Team in the upcoming year, then please send an email to mona.diwan@qbs.edu.hk expressing your interest NOW!
Paddyfield’s Spring BookClub
All orders are due to be delivered before the end of this academic year.
PTA School Buses
No School Buses will be operating on the following days:
- 10th June 2016: Celebration of Learning Day
School Bus Applications for 2016/2017
The deadline for submission of bus applications for the next academic year is:
- Current Students – Today, 27th May 2016
- New Year 1 Students – Monday, 30th May 2016
[Please note all applications will be treated on a first-come first-serve basis].
[All bus payments will be banked in over the course of the next 1 week]
Please complete and submit on or before the deadline ie. 27th May 2016 to the PTA Office, No.6 Hau Yuen Path, Braemar Hill, North Point, Hong Kong.
PTA SUBSCRIPTION FEES 2016/2017
Since the inception of the ESF Ordinance (2008) – all parents have been required to join and become members of their child’s School PTA.
To facilitate ease of payment of the PTA subscription fees, parents can now pay this fees together with the bus fees as stated on the bus application form. This fee is a one fee per family annual payment.
In the event that you do not subscribe to the school bus service you will be required to send a cheque to ESF centre directly, upon receiving their invoice in June.
We will liaise closely with ESF to avoid duplicate receipt of payment. All duplicate payments will be refunded back to the parents.
PTA Shop
Shop closure for summer break
The PTA Shop will close for summer break commencing 17th June 2016. The shop will re-open 1 week prior school on: 8th August 2016 [9:00am-12:00noon]
Feedback or Suggestions
If you have any feedback or suggestions you would like to give on our event or services provided, please email directly to: ptasuggestions@qbs.edu.hk. Your email will directly be received by our Chairman who will reply 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”