Principal's message

Dear Parents and Guardians,

I hope you are well, and it was great to complete a whole week of face-to-face learning without any weather interruptions! We have some great feedback about our Swimming Gala last Friday at the indoor venue at Kowloon. Our students enjoyed the day, packed full of competition and house spirit.

I can confirm that Mark Poulsum will commence as KGV Interim Principal after the public holiday on Tuesday, 3 October. This means that Friday, 29 September, will be my last day as Principal before heading to the ESF Director of Education role. I am planning meetings across the coming week with Mr Poulsum to ensure a smooth transition to his new role and his return to KGV.

Finally, thank you to our Higher Education Careers team for organising the recent KGV University Fair 2023. It was wonderful to see over 127 Universities from around the world come to KGV and present to our students and parents. Thank you to the over 200 KGV parents who could attend the event. Seeing the diversity and calibre of universities our KGV students attend is so exciting. A shoutout to Elaine Fung for all her work organising this incredible event.

I hope you all have a great weekend. I look forward to spending time with students and staff in my final week!

Kind Regards

Mark Blackshaw

Principal, KGV School

Congratulations to Vicky Chow from Y8R10, who played “Suzhou River Fantasy for Harp” by Composer Phil Young at the Year 8 & 9 Assembly on Wednesday. 

During our Year 8 & 9 Assembly, Mr Tranter (Senior Head of Year) presented ways we can all play our part in making KGV a positive community. This week, we focussed on our KGV value of ‘Respect’ and how we can be respectful when we talk to one another. Some essential words and phrases we can all use are:

• Hello/Good Morning/Good Afternoon

• Please and Thank you

• You’re welcome

• Excuse me

• Using the other person’s name

• Goodbye

Additionally, Mr Turner (MYP Co-ordinator) presented on the MYP Approaches to Learning (ATLs) and asked the Year 8 and 9’s to connect Mr Tranter’s presentation to the five categories of ATLs. The students chose Management Skills, Communication Skills and Social Skills. Taking the definition of the selected MYP ATL categories, students collectively came up with a sentence on respectful communication within our community using ATLs:  “To form positive relationships with our community, we need to interact effectively by sharing our emotions, ideas and thoughts respectfully”.  

Next week is the first of our biannually administered KGV Student Wellbeing Survey. By participating, your child contributes to creating a supportive learning environment that addresses their social and emotional needs. The survey data helps us prioritise your child's wellbeing needs and cultivate a positive learning environment for all students.

Please review how to register for the Parent Workshop: Cyber Safety in today's newsletter. Join Mr. Lewis Glover, the Learning Technology Coordinator at KGV, for an online workshop focused on cyber safety on Tuesday, 3 Oct at 9.45 am.

Friday, 29 September, will be an Australian-themed, green and gold Casual Dress Day for students and staff, as it is Mr Blackshaw’s last day as Principal of KGV.

We look forward to more respectful and positive communications with our Year 8 & 9’s as we start Week 7 of Term 1. 

MYP Approaches to Learning (ATL) Focus for our Parent Newsletter: Self-Management Skills - Prioritising

Your child will always have activities that require their time. The secret is for them to organise everything in order of importance. This is called prioritising. 

Ask your child to list all their activities for the upcoming week and indicate whether they are musts or options. 

Musts may include - Study and home learning, household jobs, family commitments, sporting commitments, etc. 

Options may include - TV, video games, social media, socialising, leisure pursuits, etc. 

Ask your child to put their options in order of importance, ensuring they prioritise what is best for them. Remind them to include time for leisure and relaxation. 

Give your child the responsibility to choose how to spend their options time. Remind them they can’t do everything, so be sensible with their options time, ensuring a good balance of activities. 

Students can lose large chunks of time between their musts. If your child stays goal-orientated, the time potentially lost between their musts is minimised. 

Encourage your child to strive to avoid distractions. Ask them to list their main distractions and devise a strategy to help them overcome them.

Ask them to put their MUSTS in their planner and keep to their schedule. 

Additional Actions for Parents: Ask your child what two things they will start doing to improve prioritising their activities. 

Have a great weekend.

Year 7 Message

Dear Parents and Caregivers,

This week we have been talking about Challenge Week and starting to prepare students for the activities planned for them from Monday, 30 October to Friday, 3 November.

Amanda Lockie (Head of Year 7) and Carole Beer (Vice Principal Year 7) will lead an online Year 7 Parents Session on Thursday, 28 September at 5 pm, where we will run through all the details for this week. We are working with a company to provide a camping experience (https://www.higherground.com.au/), and the website here will provide you with an overview of the experiences they currently offer. Ms Pang (Year 7-9 Administrator) will send out a Zoom link early next week for you to access this session.

During the online session, we will also explain the MIDYIS data from the assessments your child sat recently. On Friday, 29 September, we will be sending home your child's score along with follow-up activities and support you can offer outside of school.

Have a great weekend, and see you online on Thursday, 28 September at 5 pm.

The Year 7 Team.

Year 12 & 13 Message

We held an assembly this week for all of our Year 12 and 13 students and reiterated the importance of mutual respect being shown throughout our community and the need for everyone to feel safe everywhere on our school campus.

Our Head Prefects, Carina and Shashvat, spoke to the community about our school values of Honesty, Courage and Empathy and our responsibility to uphold these values in all of our interactions with peers and colleagues in school.

We continue to be impressed by our students in their determination to make KGV a safe and inclusive learning environment for everyone.

Wishing you a great weekend.

Year 10 Message

The Yellis results summary is available now. I got to half of the Year 10 tutor groups today to hand them to tutors and will get to the rest on Monday. It is a one page summary that explains the different section scores and then shows your child's results. They should bring it home for you on paper today or Monday. 

We had our first Challenge Week meeting yesterday where students met the leaders of their chosen trip and learned many of the details. There will be another meeting closer to the time. Between now and Challenge Week, the website will be updated with all the details you need to know about your child's activity.

Year 11 Message

Some assessments are happening this week and next. Please keep an eye on your child to ensure they are not feeling anxious. These assessments provide valuable feedback and should be taken seriously, but do not count towards their final grades.

We had our first Challenge Week meeting yesterday where students met the leaders of their chosen trip and learned many of the details. There will be another meeting closer to the time. Between now and Challenge Week, the website will be updated with all the details you need to know about your child's activity.

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

A very exciting September in KGV!

KGV University Fair, 18 Sep (12.30-15.30). The Fair was a great hit! Click here for a glimpse. We look forward to the next big university fair: ESF University Fair 2024 @ South Island School.

H.E. Visits @ KGV School (13.30-14.15). Due to the short duration, H.E. visits are open to students only.

26 Sep, Lunch @ GLT: London School of Economics & Political Science (LSE)
27 Sep, Lunch @ GLT: CUHK Faculty of Medicine
28 Sep, morning break @ SSC1-2: Boston U
28 Sep, lunch @ SSC1-2: McMaster University

Year 13

• Y13 1-1 HE Session. We would appreciate parents’ help to remind students to attend the session on time. If students had their timetables changed where their appointment are no longer during their non-contacts, they should inform their HE Counsellors immediately. They cannot miss lessons to meet with HE Counsellors.

Year 12

Students are welcome to find us in the Year 12-13 Office, if they would like any help from the Careers & H.E. Team.

• Google Classrooms. Our HE Team is setting up Google Classrooms for Y12 students for communication on higher education issues. Links should be sent out to students in the week of 28 August.

Our KGV Careers Calendar lists known H.E. events.

KGV is not responsible for the quality of any external events. All information is subject to change by event organisers.

Check our Careers Calendar for event details. Some highlighted events:

H.K.
7 Oct: CityU Undergraduate Info Day
14 Oct: EdUHK Info Day
14 Oct: HKAP Info Day
14 Oct: HKUST Info Day for Undergrad Admissions

U.K.
23 Sep: UK Unifest (Hong Kong info day)
25 Sep: Imperial College London info session @ VSA
27 Sep: Imperial College London info session for students @ Singapore International School

U.S.
28 Sep: NYU/Northeastern Info Session for ESF Students @ Sha Tin College
5 Oct: EduUSA 101: Intro to U.S. Higher Education (Cantonese)

Canada
7-8 Oct: EduCanada Fair 2023

KGV Careers & H.E. Team

Dear parents and guardians,

You are invited to join Mr. Lewis Glover, the Learning Technology Coordinator at KGV, for a workshop focused on cyber safety. During this session, Mr. Glover will share his expert insights and valuable tips regarding cyber safety, specifically tailored for students and parents. We believe that these practical pointers will empower parents and guardians to actively engage with their children and provide the necessary support as they navigate the ever-evolving landscape of technology.

Time and place:

Tuesday, 3 October 2023 at 9.45 am, ONLINE

Please sign up here. Registration deadline is Wednesday, 27 September 2023.

Student Photos 2023/24

Dear Parents and Students,

Tutor Group teachers will be distributing the Techni-Photo students' photo proofs with the order form this week.

How to order:

1 Order online @ http://www.techni-photo.com with your "unique code" (on your photo proof), and pay by credit card.

2 Return order form to school Reception on or before 16 October 2023, with a cheque (please see details on form).

All photos ordered on or before 16 October 2023 will be available by 20 November 2023.

Thank you for your attention.

Student Health Service Form 2023/24

Dear Parents and Students,

We have accepted all forms handed in on or before 19 September 2023; and they will be processed through to the Student Health Service Clinic.

We are not accepting the Student Health Service Form at school from 20 September onwards. You need to return the forms directly to the Kowloon City Lion Club Student Health Centre by mail or by fax.

Make sure you put your YEAR and TUTOR GROUP on the form!

From now to 13 October 2023 (They will move to west Kowloon later in October):

Kowloon City Lion Club Student Health Centre

1/F, 80 Hau Wong Road, Kowloon City, Kowloon

Tel 2382 2220   Fax 2716 5949

From 1 November onwards:

Student Health Services

West Kowloon Government Office South Block

2/F, 11 Hoi Ting Road, Yaumatei, Kowloon

Tel 2382 2220   Fax 2716 5949

Thank you for your attention and sorry for your inconvenience.

25 - 29 September