1 Feb 2019

01 February 2019

Jockey Club Sarah Roe School’s latest newsletter is available to read now. Find out the latest news around the school and upcoming events.

Active Shoes for Active Bodies

We love science with Sha Tin College

Your turn – Lisette and Leonie’s new company

WIS – KELY Group initiative on Mental Health & Wellness

Principal’s Message

Once a year we really enjoy going out into the community as a school and there is no better time of year to do this. Recently we all went to the new inclusive playground in Tuen Mun. Some students were brave enough to experience water play but we all loved the climbing equipment, swings, the reptile house and the space to play and run around. We also shared a picnic lunch and time with our friends. Thank you Carol for organising this event. We all felt that we wanted to go again next year.

Last Friday many students joined in the Disco in the hall after school. The music was perfect for dancing and the balloons added to the disco atmosphere. Lucky there was food and drinks to keep up the energy levels for even more dancing! A huge thank you to our parents Cecile and Oliver for organising this popular activity. Also to Kevin, our DJ and the many EAs, parents and helpers who joined in with the fun.

I know it feels like ages ago that we held our Christmas Show but we are very excited to have a video and photos (available on DVD or USB) of the show to share with you. Thanks to the media students at KGV and our wonderful ICT officer Eric, the quality is excellent. We are asking for a donation and you can see the details later in this newsletter. We will follow up with an e-notice so you can put in your order.

The weather was just perfect for the ESF Hong Kong Run on Saturday. Congratulations to William Russell who came 2nd runner up in the 3km individual junior 2 category. Also thank you to the families who helped out at the stall handing out snacks. You can see some photos later in the newsletter.

On Wednesday we were delighted to have the IB students from Sha Tin College lead Science workshops for our students. You can imagine how much fun was had with experiments called ‘Red Cabbage Indicator’, Fizz Inflator’ and ‘Lava Lamp’. Thanks to Jackie our science coordinator and Paul, Head of Science at Sha Tin College.

Our PTA is always looking for ways to support the school through fundraising and this year we will be hosting a Danceathon on Wednesday 10 April 10am -7pm in the school hall. The PTA are starting the enormous task of ensuring we are able to replace our old school bus. Jenny and our parents invite you all to join in by participating and asking family and friends to sponsor your time dancing. You are also welcome to come along a dance with friends and family. The Danceathon ties in nicely with our partnership with UNICEF as our students are participating in the Kid Power project (every step taken equals a nutrition bar for a child who is in need). You can see the poster and sponsorship form later in the newsletter. You will also get this in an email so you can start gathering sponsorship. Can I encourage you to come to the next PTA meeting on Tuesday 12th February (straight after Chinese New Year break). The wonderful group of parent volunteers are working hard on fundraising ideas and need your support.

Every day at school students are physically active (outside play, rugby, Sensory Integration, physiotherapy, PE and fit club….). It is very important that they can do their very best, be comfortable and safe. With this in mind we are asking that all students come to school in appropriate foot wear. Bianca, Daphne and Mike have made suggestions below (see Active shoes for Active Bodies) to help you ensure that your child or young adult comes to school ready to participate. If you have recently purchased new school shoes please send in some sports shoes to address this issue. We thank you in advance for supporting us with this.

We always love to celebrate Chinese New Year with our students. Thank you to the therapy team and our parent volunteers for organising a fun, creative and festive afternoon to send us all off to a happy week with family and friends. I do hope you have a safe and relaxing holiday and see you back on Monday 11 February.

Kung Hei Fat Choi

Karin

Dates for your Diary

Chinese New Year holiday – Friday 1 to Monday 11 February

PTA meeting – Tuesday 12th February at 5pm in the library

Danceathon – Wednesday 10 April

Showcase – Ruby Class

Ruby class have had a very busy start to the new year. Here are some of our highlights of the term so far:

In cooking class the students have shown a lot of progression in their cooking skills and willingness to try new foods. So far this term we have enjoyed cooking macaroni and cheese with bacon and healthy vegetable stir fry noodles. During our cooking sessions we focus on independence, food safety and hygiene. Once all the food preparation and cooking is complete the students wash up and set the table for everyone to enjoy the meal they have made together as a class.

On Friday 18th January we enjoyed going to Tuen Mun for the whole school picnic and exploring the inclusive playground. There were so many exciting sections of the park from the Egg hunter area, Reptile Paradise, the Spinning Zone, the Contour Play Zone and the Flower Dew Plaza. In the Reptile Paradise Ruby class enjoyed challenging themselves on the climbing tower and nets with different heights and difficulty levels, as well as enjoying the different types of slides. Some of our braver students enjoyed the Flower Dew Plaza which is a water play area. We also enjoyed visiting the Reptile house and looking at all the different types of snakes and lizards.

On Wednesday we took part in a science workshop run by Sha Tin College IB students. The students rotated around 3 different experiments called Red Cabbage indicator, Fizz Inflator and Lava Lamp. It was a hands on afternoon with lots of excitement filled with learning all about different chemical reactions.

On Thursday afternoon we have therapy rotations and it is definitely the class’s favourite part of the week. The students rotate between three different stations: Bianca runs our physiotherapy station, Cheryl runs the speech and language station and Daphne the OT station. We have also had two OT students join us and they have provided lots of new and fun activities for the students. With Cheryl, the class are using Stiles sets which focus on developing core grammar and punctuation, word structure and spelling and key comprehension skills. In physio with Bianca the students complete a range of exciting activities aimed at developing their fitness, balance and co-ordination skills.

This afternoon we took part in a range of Chinese New Year activities in the hall run by the therapists. The class very much enjoyed participating and getting involved in all the fun activities the therapists provided.

Ruby class wish everyone a Happy Year of the Pig. Holly Manning – Teacher

Chinese New Year Celebrations

Danceathon

Active Shoes for Active Bodies

We love science with Sha Tin College

ESF Hong Kong Run

PTA meeting – All welcome

Your turn – Lisette and Leonie’s new company

WIS – KELY Group initiative on Mental Health & Wellness

West Island School is organising in association with the KELY Support Group, on mental health and wellbeing of our youth. This forum is open to all parents/guardians (ESF/non-ESF), who would like to understand and advocate for their child’s mental health care and open up to the issues facing young people today.

A group of WIS students from Years 10 & 11 have been working closely with the KELY group (supported by the Weez Project), as part of the Talk2Me programme, and have gathered hundreds of questions and concerns from young people. At this interactive session, we will have a panel of esteemed mental health experts who will provide informative and helpful responses to these burning questions on mental health and wellness.

The event is scheduled for Wednesday February 13. Would be grateful for your help in spreading the word around in your respective parent communities, to enable this event to get a good response and support.

The link for registering and for more details can be found here – https://goo.gl/mKP6G9.

Thank you for your help! If there are any questions, please do get in touch.

Best,
Mukta

Principal’s Message

Dates for your Diary

Showcase – Ruby Class

Chinese New Year Celebrations

Danceathon

Active Shoes for Active Bodies

We love science with Sha Tin College

ESF Hong Kong Run

PTA meeting – All welcome

Your turn – Lisette and Leonie’s new company

WIS – KELY Group initiative on Mental Health & Wellness

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