Principal's message

Dear Parents and Guardians,

It has been an exciting week at KGV leading up to the Lunar New Year. We experienced a fantastic Lunar New Year Assembly today, where I had the privilege to ‘dot the eye of the Lion’. Thank you to our Chinese Language and Music Departments for participating in the assembly.

We are all looking forward to the Year of the Rabbit. Those with a Rabbit zodiac sign are considered easy-going, polite, kind, and great with relationships. They are also flexible and adaptable, all traits that will hold us in good stead for the year ahead.

As we welcome the new year, I am reflecting on all the things to be thankful for. I feel that:

• We have a great school community, and I feel privileged that we have such a supportive parent community.
• I experience high levels of trust and openness for feedback and honest communication. This partnership can only make us a better school for our students and community.
• Our students are outstanding. They are incredibly hard-working, talented, and respectful.
• Our talented teachers work hard to bring out the best in our students.
• Our support staff are dedicated and provide the conditions for students and staff to flourish.
• Our parents are passionate about education and learning. This lays the foundation for our school to do all we can for your child and our students to be their own remarkable.

A special shout out to our Year 11 students who have their Mock Exams after the break. Many students will be balancing family and study commitments over the holiday. Congratulations again to our Year 13 IB Diploma students who completed their IB Mock exams today and will be looking forward to the holiday.

This a reminder that Semester 1 data summaries will be available from noon today for students in Years 7, 8, 9,10, and 12. These show the academic data gathered in the first half of the year and describe the learning that has taken place. This information has been drawn from the data available live at any time through the App by going to Lionel 2 VLE, then CCF. We create these summaries to conveniently place the data in a single document. We hope it stimulates conversations with your child about their academic progress and goals.

I wish all of you in our school community good health and good fortune in the year ahead. We want all our students, families, and staff a wonderful Lunar New Year break and look forward to seeing our students back on Monday, 30th January.

Kind Regards

The mock exams begin immediately after the break. Students have been sent a reminder of the exam schedule and regulations.

 You can access the exam schedule here and see the rules and regulations for exams here.

The purpose of the mocks is to motivate students to revise, give them feedback on areas for improvement and also simulate the experience of the final exams. This experience should reassure them that they can handle the preparation and process of multiple exams so they can be focused and prepared for their finals. 

Please encourage your child to revise and prepare over the Lunar New Year break and to look after themselves in terms of sleep, exercise, rest and diet so they feel ready for these exams. If you notice any signs of anxiety or undue worry, please reach out to their tutor in the first instance.

During the mocks that run from Monday, 30 Jan to Friday, 10 Feb, students only need to be in school if they have an exam. However, they are welcome to study in school as well. They should wear uniforms and use their exam pass to arrive late or leave early.

We have spent the last two weeks working closely with tutors and our Intervention support colleagues to examine the academic, pastoral and well-being data for every student in years 10 and 11. For each student, this has led to the celebration, and confirmation of existing strategies or changes in the provision to help them be successful. We do this every year. It has been enjoyable working with tutors as they talk about their tutees in detail, it is clear they know them well.

Our Y10 & 11 students were briefed about Careers Fair opportunities and registration over tutor time. The Fair is also open to parents.  Please refer to the Careers & H.E. Guidance section in the newsletter for details.

KGV Careers Fair on 15 Feb.  
The Careers Fair is returning to be a physical fair this year.  All students are invited to Hall to speak to representatives from various industries to learn about study pathways.  

ESF University Fair 2023 (virtual).
The Fair is divided into three virtual sessions:

• 2 Feb, 17:00-20:00: Europe
• 9 Feb, 17:00-19:00: Asia/Australia/New Zealand
• 16 Feb, 19:00-21:30: North America

The Year 10 Semester 1 data summary is now available for you to access. In the ESF App go to Lionel 2 VLE, then CCF and you will find it under the Progress Checks heading.
The data in the summary is available through the CCF at any time since our reporting system is live. We have summarised it into a single document for your convenience and we hope it will stimulate a conversation with your child about their academic progress and goals. Following this, if you have any questions please contact your child's tutor.

We have spent the last two weeks working closely with tutors and our Intervention support colleagues to examine the academic, pastoral and wellbeing data for every student in years 10 and 11. For each student, this has led to the celebration, and confirmation of existing strategies or changes in the provision to help them be successful. We do this every year. It has been enjoyable working with tutors as they talk about their tutees in detail, it is clear they know them well.

Our Y10 & Y11 were briefed about the Careers Fair opportunities and registration over tutor time.  The Fair is also open to parents.  Please refer to the Careers & H.E. Guidance section in the newsletter for details.

KGV Careers Fair on 15 Feb.  The Careers Fair is returning to be a physical fair this year.  All students are invited to Hall to speak to representatives from various industries to learn about study pathways.  

ESF University Fair 2023 (virtual).
The Fair is divided into three virtual sessions:

• 2 Feb, 17:00-20:00: Europe
• 9 Feb, 17:00-19:00: Asia/Australia/New Zealand
• 16 Feb, 19:00-21:30: North America

Dear Parents and Caregivers,

Today we celebrated the start of the Lunar New Year as the KGV Community came together in our whole school assembly on the field. It was wonderful to see our students perform and reflect on new beginnings as we welcome the Year of the Rabbit.  Wishing all of our Year 7 families a healthy,  happy and prosperous New Year. We hope you get some family time this week and are able to reconnect.  

The Semester 1 data summary is now available for you to access. In the ESF App go to Lionel 2 VLE, then CCF and you will find it under Semester Overviews.

The data in the summary is available through the CCF at any time since our reporting system is live. We have summarised it into a single document for your convenience and we hope it will stimulate a conversation with your child about their academic progress and goals. Following this, if you have any questions please contact your child's tutor in the first instance.

We  look forward to welcoming back Year 7 students on Monday, 30 January,  which will  be Week  2.

The Semester 1 data summary is now available for you to access. In the ESF App go to Lionel 2 VLE, then CCF and you will find it under the Progress Checks heading.
The data in the summary is available through the CCF at any time since our reporting system is live. We have summarised it into a single document for your convenience and we hope it will stimulate a conversation with your child about their academic progress and goals. Following this, if you have any questions please contact your child's tutor in the first instance.

On behalf of the KGV Year 12 team, I would like to wish all of our families a peaceful and prosperous Lunar New Year holiday.

We look forward to welcoming back our Year 12 students on Monday, 30 January.

Wishing you a great weekend.

We would like to congratulate our Year 13 students on successfully navigating their way through the past fortnight and enduring their Mock Exam experience.

On behalf of the KGV Year 13 team, I would like to wish all of our families a peaceful and prosperous Lunar New Year holiday.

We look forward to welcoming back our Year 13 students on Monday, 30 January.

Wishing you a great weekend.

Dear Parents and Caregivers,

During our Online Assembly this week, Year 9 Music Academy students Andrew, Enoch, Max, Monique and Chesney performed ‘I’m Still Standing’ by Elton John and Bernie Taupin. Mr Blackshaw and Mr Tranter focussed on the culture of KGV with a particular focus on our value of ‘Empathy', presenting what empathy is, why it’s important and how we can develop it at KGV. Mr Tranter has Challenged Year 8 & 9 students to share examples of empathy around KGV with their tutor so we can celebrate these at our next assembly. 

The Semester 1 data summary is now available for you to access. Since our reporting system is live, the summary is available through the CCF anytime. We have summarised it into a single document for your convenience, and we hope it will stimulate a conversation with your child about their academic progress and goals. If you have any questions, please get in touch with your child's tutor in the first instance.

We wish you good health and good fortune in the year ahead. 

Have a wonderful Lunar New Year break, and we look forward to seeing our Year 8 students back on Monday, 30th January.

During our Online Assembly this week, Year 9 Music Academy students, Andrew, Enoch, Max, Monique and Chesney, performed ‘I’m Still Standing’ by Elton John and Bernie Taupin. Mr Blackshaw and Mr Tranter focussed on the culture of KGV with a particular focus on our value of ‘Empathy’, presenting what empathy is, why it’s important and how we can develop it at KGV. Mr Tranter has Challenged Year 8 & 9 students to share examples of empathy around KGV with their tutor so we can celebrate these at our next assembly. 

On Wednesday, during Period 3, Mr Beard presented the Community Project. The guest speaker, Matt Friedmann (a Human Trafficking activist), was very engaging. Students should now have finalised their working groups. The next step is the Ideation Day on February 1st, Periods 1 to 4. On this day, students will be working with the CAS & Service Learning Advisors, and they will attend workshops from several NGO’s / Charities.

The Year 9 Subject Options system will re-open between January 30th and February 20th.  Students do not have to do anything if they are happy with their original choices. If they want to change one or more subjects, they must log into Lionel and make the changes where required.

As part of the option choice process, there is a Careers Fair for Year 9 students on Wednesday, 15th February, during Period 5. 

The Semester 1 data summary is now available for you to access. The summary is available through the CCF anytime since our reporting system is live. We have summarised it into a single document for your convenience, and we hope it will stimulate a conversation with your child about their academic progress and goals. If you have any questions, please contact your child's tutor in the first instance.

We wish you good health and good fortune in the year ahead. 

Have a wonderful Lunar New Year break and we look forward to seeing our Year 9 students back on Monday, 30th January.

We are committed to supporting our parents through their journey at KGV, therefore have created several opportunities for you to engage with the school.  ‘Feedback Friday‘ is one such opportunity for you to engage in a personalised, small group session on a Friday to chat with the Principal, Mark Blackshaw, on various topics or areas you would like to discuss.

Our upcoming sessions will be on
Friday, 3 February 2023, 10.30-11.15 am
Friday, 17 February 2023. 10.30-11.15 am

Once you sign up for a session/s, a link will be sent to you closer to the time of the meeting.

If you would like to attend a session this term, please sign up on this form.

Careers & H.E. Guidance

Our email address: careers.office@kgv.edu.hk.

KGV Careers Website is another platform where we share information and resources on higher education, scholarship, external events, enrichment programmes and many more.

ESF University Fair 2023 (virtual) – IMPORTANT!!
2 Feb: ESF University Fair: Europe
9 Feb: ESF University Fair: Asia/Australia/New Zealand
16 Feb: ESF University Fair: North America

The University Fair is targeted to students in Y12 (mandatory) and Y11 and their parents. Our Y12, Y11 & Y10 students were already briefed about registration procedures and preparation for the Fair. Parents of Y10-Y12 should have received a separate email with parent registration procedures.

HE Resources via Google Classroom for Y12 & Y13. All resources for higher education applications are available via Google Classroom, including internal deadlines. Students should look out for announcements & reminders. Y13s should ensure they are keeping their paces with applications.

Student official full names are used on school transcripts. We would like to ask parents to check that their children’s official full name in the school record matches that on their identity documents. This is especially so when students are known in school by their preferred names which may not be their official names. Unmatched names may cause difficulties with university offers.

Year 13

• Close communication with HE Counsellors. Apart from keeping to internal deadlines, students should work closely with their HE Counsellors and keep informed of their HE applications. Any missed communication may result is a delay in providing necessary support for applications, which may result in missed offers.
• Application Status & Offers. Applicants are starting to receive offer decisions. Students should have regular communications with their HE Counsellors on their application status.

Year 12

We hope our Year 12 students have settled in well in Term 1 with their IB/BTEC courses.

• 1-1 session with HE Counsellors. 1-1 sessions for our Y12 students to meet with their HE Counsellors will start soon after the Lunar New Year holidays. Students will receive an email with their appointment details and preparation before the session. It is important that they attend the session to discuss their post-KGV intentions.
• BTEC Internship (W1: 20-24 March; W2: 27-31 March). Correspondence on the Y12 BTEC internship went out to our BTEC students and their parents before term break. Students were briefed on 13 Jan with their placement details. They are expected to prepare an application letter and CV by early Feb. More sessions are planned for students to prepare them for the placements.
• Year 12 Parent information session after Lunar New Year break. An email will go out after we return from the LNY break. Stay tuned.

KGV School References

The KGV Careers Office is coordinating all references for students. KGV School has a closed reference policy. School references are treated with the strictest confidentiality and are sent only to the institution that makes a request. Students and their families do not get to see their school reference.

• Reference for Y13s’ higher education application: All current Y13 students have a school reference in place as one of the support school documents. There is no need for students to make a request. Students should work closely with their H.E. Counsellor for their applications.
• References for non-higher education purposes, including potential exit, summer school, scholarship, etc.: Parents should inform the Careers Office by email, providing purpose and contact for sending the reference. The normal lead time for teachers to work on school references is 4-6 working weeks.

University Events on the KGV Careers Calendar

Highlight of upcoming events:

University visit @ KGV, during lunch time
1 Mar: University of Leeds

U.K.
Jan 2023 (various dates): Cambridge: Foundation Year Applicant Support Programme
Starting 31 Jan: Think Cambridge 2023 Webinar series

Europe
Jan 2023 (various dates): Carl Benz School of Engineering webinars

KGV Careers Team

Tuesday, 14 February 2023
6:30- 8.00 pm
online

This interactive seminar provides parents with knowledge on the risks of different substances more commonly used by youth in Hong Kong, particularly, drugs such as cannabis and cocaine, vaping, and alcohol. Speakers have been invited to share and discuss techniques on how to have candid conversations with youth on these issues. Ultimately, the session aims to create empathy among participants to understand the decision-making process among youths. The session will also explore some harm reduction tips for parents to know how to reduce the risks for their children. By the end of the session, parents will be empowered to act as positive role models and trusted adults that youth can reach out to.

Please register here if you wish to attend.

The KGV shop has recently been renovated; the lost & found area is now inside the shop. Students can go inside the shop to claim items.

- For named items, an email will go out to the student if their belongings are found.

-Unnamed items will remain in the shop for claiming

-Water bottles and lunch bags will be retained for a month after which we need to dispose of them (hygiene reasons)

- All lost items will be disposed of during term breaks

*Please ensure all items are named so your child can find their belongings if lost.

*Please remind your children to take care of their belongings and use their lockers as much as possible 

For enquiries contact Tiffany Chau at tiffany.chau@kgv.edu.hk

Celebration

Congratulations to Charissa Y7, Purvi and Niyati Y9.

Niyati placed 1st for beam and overall, and Purvi is 4th overall at a recent competition at the Sportscene Academy. While Charissa was placed 4th in the floor events and 1st in the ALL AROUND category. She was awarded an overall Champion position.

These students train for many hours a week to earn these ranks. We would like to recognise them for their hard work and achievement.

Niyati and Purvi have also received an opportunity to participate in the Hong Kong Artistic Gymnastics Open Competition. It was an outstanding experience, placing them among the top 30 athletes in their category.