Hillside Newsletter 17th March 2017
Hillside Kindergarten’s latest newsletter available to read now. Find out the latest news from around the school and upcoming events.
Important Dates
Click HERE for the Full School Calendar
| 17 March | ESF 50th Anniversary Primary Choral Concert |
| 20 and 21 March | Hillside Book Fair |
| 30 March | Last Day of Term (2) |
| 31 March – 17 April | Easter Break |
| 18 April | School Resumes |
Principal’s Message
Dear Parents
Hillside Book Fair (Monday 20th & Tuesday 21st March 2017)
As parents and educators it is important for us to foster a love of reading. With such a focus and reliance on Information Technology in our current world, it is important that we provide ample opportunities for children to connect with books (with words and pictures) rather than just text on a screen. On this note, Hillside will be hosting our fourth book fair in partnership with Bookazine this coming Monday and Tuesday.
Each class has been allocated a time slot on their given book fair day and about seven children at a time from that class. Accompanied by the Class Teachers and Educational Assistants, the children will come down to the Resource Room on the ground floor (this will be the venue for our Book Fair). They will have the opportunity to browse the books on offer, and if they have money to make a book purchase, the adults in the room will assist the children to do this.
Parents are invited to join your child’s class to assist children with choosing suitable books (please see the schedule below for when classes groups will be taken to the Book Fair). Parents are also very welcome to collect their child from class at a time that is convenient during the school day to purchase books. A wide range of age-appropriate fiction and non-fiction books will be available for purchase. 15% of the total books purchased will be returned to Hillside in the form of book credits, allowing us to obtain more new books for our Hillside library. Please note that it is not compulsory for your child to purchase a book – the choice is up to you.
Please feel free to visit Bookazine site to look at some of the books that might be available at our Book Fair and also to look at the price range for these children’s books. Click HERE for Bookazine link.
Funds raised through the Book fair will be spent purchasing new titles, along with buying those everyday classic and favourite story books as our Kindergarten is now over 18 years old, many of our well-loved books in our collection really do need to be refreshed and replaced. Last year our book fair enabled us to purchase over $10,000 worth of books from Bookazine for our school library and we are hoping, through your much-appreciated support, that our Hillside book fair this year will be just as successful!!!
2017 Hillside Book Fair – Class visit schedule
Monday 20th March 2017
| AM Session | Class | PM Session |
| 9:00-9:20 | Dolphin> | 12:45-1:05 |
| 9:25-9:45 | Monkey | 1:10-1:30 |
| 9:45 -10:30 | Open Play | 1:30- 2:15 |
| 10:35-10:55 | Dragon | 2:20-2:40 |
| 11:00-11:20 | Turtle | :45 – 3:05 |
Tuesday 21st March 2017
| AM Session | Class | PM Session |
| 9:00-9:20 | Frog | 12:45-1:05 |
| 9:25-9:45 | Panda | 1:10-1:30 |
| 9:45 -10:30 | Open Play | 1:30- 2:15 |
| 10:35-10:55 | Gecko | 2:20-2:40 |
| 11:00-11:20 | Tiger | 2:45 – 3:05 |
Other ESF events of interest
The ESF 50th Anniversary Primary Concert will be held tonight 17 March 2017 (Friday) at Queen Elizabeth Stadium. Please click HERE for more information on the Primary Concert.
Please be informed that ESF has organised two Information Seminars in March. The objectives of the seminars are to help prospective and interested current parents gain a deeper understanding on the philosophy of ESF education and the curriculum we offer so that they can make the right choice for their child. Last week Rebecca Clements (ESF Senior School Development Officer) and I presented to around 200 attendees the following information seminar: An education worth having at the kindergarten and primary stages.
The next ESF Information Seminar has a secondary focus with the topic being: How personalised learning in ESF secondary schools paves the way to success. The speakers will be ESF Education Director David Whalley and ESF Admissions Manager Julie Wong. This information session will take place at ESF Centre commencing at 6.00pm on Thursday 23rd March 2017. Interested parents should go to http://www.esf.edu.hk/seminars-mar2017/ for more information and to make a reservation for a seat at the next information session.
General Reminders
Sending money into school
When money is sent to school via your child’s school bag, it would be greatly appreciated for overall safety and general security reasons, if all money is placed in a sealed envelope (clearly labelled with your child’s name and class). This process ensures that our Educational Assistants and Teachers do not have to physically handle/count money as your sealed envelope containing payment will go to our Administrative office for processing
Health
Please remember to inform the kindergarten if your child is absent due to illness. Many childhood illnesses such as chicken pox, HFMD, Scarlett fever, conjunctivitis are highly contagious and have recommended exclusion periods from school to protect all students. Please note exclusion periods as below. These are important and based on Department of Health guidelines.
K1 Leavers Withdrawal Notice
If your child is currently in K1 and you have decided that your child will not be continuing at Hillside for K2, it would be appreciated if you could let us know as soon as possible to assist us with our planning. Please submit a completed Withdrawal Notice Form (available HERE) to the kindergarten at least two months prior to your child’s last day of school. The debenture will not be redeemed without the two-month advance notice of withdrawal. It is the parents’ responsibility to confirm with individual kindergartens the receipt of the Withdrawal Notice Form.
If you do have any questions please do not hesitate to contact our Admissions Manager, Jasmine Lau, by phone or by email admissions@hs.esf.org.hk for assistance.
For K2 students who are graduating by the end of June, there is no need to submit the withdrawal notice and the debenture certificate.
Have a wonderful weekend
Regards Chris
Principal
K1 News
Please visit our class blogs on the Hillside Learning Hub for your child’s latest class news and photo gallery. Please contact kinder@hs.esf.org.hk if you cannot access the Learning Hub.
K2 News
Please visit our class blogs on the Hillside Learning Hub for your child’s latest class news and photo gallery. Please contact kinder@hs.esf.org.hk if you cannot access the Learning Hub.
