Principal's message

Dear Parents and Guardians

I hope you are all well. Some good news regarding COVID with secondary school students no longer requiring daily RATs from this Wednesday, 1 March 2023. Other COVID measures, such as mask-wearing and checking temperatures on arrival, are still needed for all schools under EDB expectations.

Thank you to the 100-plus parents who attended our  "AI tools and learning at KGV" (ChatGPT as an example) parent engagement session this week. Seeing such interest in this emerging technology and its possible impacts on learning, teaching, and assessment was great. If you would like to see a recording of this 60-minute session, click here: ttps://drive.google.com/file/d/1r1WzEdwAi96ojiz2DxFJYxBGn61EEIwb/view?usp=share_link

We continue to invest strongly to upgrade our facilities. Some ongoing projects include:

• Upgrading our outside seating areas (e.g. you may have noticed the tables with umbrellas down our driveway)
• Plans to upgrade the sound and lighting in the Hall
• Upgrade the furniture in Leo’s Cafe and Library
• Our new weights and conditioning gymnasium is being constructed down the southern end of the pitch
• Replacing the sound speakers on the pitch
• Upgrading some of our changing rooms
• Remodelled our KGV stationery shop
• Putting up nets around the volleyball quad to project people walking along the corridors around the courts
• Resurfacing the basketball courts
• Placing TV monitors in walkways to display information for students

We must continually invest in our physical environment to facilitate and enable high-quality teaching and learning. These initiatives are informed by student, parent and staff feedback and managed and coordinated by our Facilities team with ESF and KGV School Council Premises Committee.

Recent events have highlighted the importance of service and good deeds in our local and global communities. Acts of kindness and goodwill are common threads that bind us. KGV Kindness Week from 27 February to 3 March promotes positive behaviour in our community and seeks to remind us that small acts of kindness can make a big difference in our lives and the lives of others. It’s a week to learn, teach and participate in kindness activities strongly connected to one of our KGV values, namely empathy.

Empathy - Be kind, understanding, and respectful.

• We listen to understand and enable compassion.
• We acknowledge and engage with diverse beliefs, values, and experiences.
• We take care of ourselves and others.

Have a good weekend.

Mark Blackshaw

Principal, KGV School

Year 11 Message

Year 11 students received their mock exam papers and scores this week. For some students, this may be challenging.

The mock summary report is now available under "Progress checks" in the  CCF section of Lionel, which you can access via the ESF App. Please go over this with your child and ensure they are setting realistic, achievable goals to work towards for their final exams. Talk about what they learned through the mock exam process and encourage them to set specific tasks to address issues identified in their mock feedback.

Tutors and the Year 11 team will be working with students who ask for help and who we identify as requiring assistance over the coming weeks.

The mock exam results will also inform option choices for Year 12. The preliminary choices have been cleared from the system, and we are asking all students to now make their final option requests. Parents, tutors and the Year 11 team will need to view and approve option choices to ensure we are all in agreement. You will receive an email requesting approval once your child has submitted their choices.

Year 10 Message

Year 10 students will have several assessments over the next few weeks. Please ask your child to think back on the revision skills we shared with them last week. Remind them that while we want them to take the assessments seriously, they are designed to provide feedback on your learning so far and are not something to feel anxious about.

This week has been Mother tongue week with a range of celebrations in different languages. Next week is kindness week.

Year 12 Message

We have thoroughly enjoyed the celebrations around Mother Tongue Week this week and are looking forward to Kindness Week next week.

Our BTEC students look forward to beginning their internships on 20th March. We will host a special briefing next week to prepare our students for what to expect when they undertake their internships. We will highlight the expectations our partners have of our KGV students. We will provide advice around issues such as social etiquette, attendance and punctuality, dress code and code of conduct.

Wishing you a great weekend.

Year 13 Message

We have thoroughly enjoyed the celebrations around Mother Tongue Week this week and are looking forward to Kindness Week next week.

With now only 5 weeks until the end of term, we are in the midst of supporting our students with their revision programmes. Some of our students require a more tailored programme of study, and we have been working with these students this week, collaborating on action plans and study timetables. Setting our students up for success is key as they prepare for life beyond KGV.

Wishing you a great weekend.

Dear Parents and Caregivers, 

This week, we have been celebrating our community and, in particular, recognising that whilst we are one community, we have a wide range of cultures, nationalities and races represented. Mother Tongue Week allowed us to celebrate the languages spoken both here and in our homes.

Next week is Kindness Week. Throughout this week, we take time to be more mindful and appreciative of the friends, staff and community members who support us, guide us and make us better people. We will specifically focus on thanking our amazing support teachers, who are often our unsung heroes.

Have a great weekend
The Year 7 Team

Year 8 Message

We resumed our face-to-face Assemblies this week and had two outstanding Piano performances. Congratulations to Hailey Sit from Year 8, who played “Barcarolle” by Tchaikovsky, and Tiffany Lai from Year 8 , who played “Nocturne” by Chopin. Students are encouraged to contact Ms Carlile (MS201, Music Department) if they would like to perform in an assembly. 

In our Assembly, Mr Blackshaw focused on what it means to have a fixed and a growth mindset, encouraging students to reflect on what fixed mindset and growth mindset conversations they may have with themselves.  Examples of a growth mindset shared were:

• I am not good at maths, but I will get better.

• If I keep working hard, I will get a 7 or 8 in English.

• I am determined to get a better mark in Chinese this year.

• I am good at sports, but I also train hard.

• I was born to be good at schoolwork, but I know I have to work to get better.

We encourage you to discuss the idea of a growth mindset with your child. A growth mindset empowers people to believe they can develop their abilities and that brains and talent are just the starting point. 

We have thoroughly enjoyed the celebrations around Mother Tongue Week this week and are looking forward to Kindness Week next week.

Year 8 Options will close at the end of the day on Sunday, 26 Feb. Please remind your child to fill in their language choices (no need to worry about Arts choices at this point as they haven’t experienced all the subjects yet this year). If they are interested in the Elite Athlete Programme, it would be helpful to tick this as well. If your child is leaving KGV,  please ask them to tick this on the choices and make no other selections. 

Have a great weekend.

Year 9 Message

We resumed our face-to-face Assemblies this week and had two outstanding Piano performances. Congratulations to Hailey Sit from Year 8, who played “Barcarolle” by Tchaikovsky, and Tiffany Lai from Year 8, who played “Nocturne” by Chopin. Year 8 and 9 students are encouraged to contact Ms Carlile (MS201, Music Department) if they would like to perform in an assembly. 

In our Assembly, Mr Blackshaw focused on what it means to have a fixed and a growth mindset, encouraging students to reflect on what fixed mindset and growth mindset conversations they may have with themselves.  Examples of a growth mindset shared were:

• I am not good at maths, but I will get better.

• If I keep working hard, I will get a 7 or 8 in English.

• I am determined to get a better mark in Chinese this year.

• I am good at sports, but I also train hard.

• I was born to be good at schoolwork, but I know I have to work to get better.

We encourage you to discuss the idea of a growth mindset with your child. A growth mindset empowers people to believe they can develop their abilities and that brains and talent are just the starting point. 

We have thoroughly enjoyed the celebrations around Mother Tongue Week this week and are looking forward to Kindness Week next week.

A second follow-up session for the Community Project will be on March 2nd. Students can collaborate with their group, reflect on their progress, and identify the most appropriate global context for their project. They will also develop their work on understanding what ACTION they can take to complete their first ‘Proposal for ACTION’ form and prepare for their next checkpoint meeting with their supervisor. 

Have a great weekend. 

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.

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

• 1-1 session with HE Counsellors. The 1-to-1 meetings are well underway. Students should have received an email with their individual appointment details and preparation before the session. If students don’t know their appointment date/time, please contact the Careers Office. There is a questionnaire for students to complete before they attend their appointment. 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. Deadline for submitting application letter and CV is on 6 Feb. A session on work etiquette and expectations is scheduled on 3 Mar.

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 at Senior Student Common Room
28 Feb: Exeter
1 Mar: Leeds / BIMM
2 Mar: EU Business School
15 Mar: Bath
17 Mar: Massey (New Zealand) & Falmouth
20 Mar: Leeds Beckett
21 Mar: Nottingham, York, Cardiff, Leicester, Durham, Exeter, York & Huddersfield
18 Apr: Calgary
19 Apr: Keele

Hong Kong
5 Mar: HK Academy of Performing Arts Open Day

Europe
Mar-Apr (various dates): Carl Benz School of Engineering webinars
10 Mar: Constructor University (Germany) webinar: Building your future in IT
14 Mar: IESEG School of Management webinar: Bachelor in International Business

Canada / U.S.
28 Feb: Toronto Metropolitan University Student Sharing Webinar: What I Spend in a Day
2 Mar: Ethos Sports & Education webinar: Lear about sports scholarships in US & Canada
11 Mar: Toronto Metropolitan University Student Sharing Webinar: Life Beyond University

Singapore
Until 6 Mar: NUS Online Open House

KGV Careers & H.E. Team

Student Wellbeing

Good Lunch Time

"Good Lunch Time" is a series of lunch activities to promote mental wellbeing among students. Our KGV School Social Workers held Zentangle art workshops during February to bring awareness to the benefits of being in the moment. Zentangle is a miniature abstract work of art created by a collection of patterns that calms an anxious mind, reducing stress and cultivates moment-to-moment awareness like mindfulness meditation.

For 27 February - 3 March