Dear Parents and Caregivers,

This week we have been focusing on the theme of kindness, with our Wellbeing team providing a range of activities aimed at showing appreciation for each other and building our sense of belonging. By demonstrating kindness our children will continue to flourish and develop holistically as they strive to be the best they can be.

On the theme of kindness, I would like to recognise the work of our wonderful PTSA. Their organisation of the Staff Appreciation lunch, amongst a whole range of other activities, is very much appreciated by our staff community. It is these home-school partnerships that make a difference for our children, and we are fortunate to have such an engaged and proactive parent population. Thank you.

As we move towards the end of term, we will also take the opportunity to recognise how KGV is an inclusive school with Neurodiversity Celebration Week. At KGV we understand the importance of accommodating our diverse learners in everyday life and providing the best experience possible for them.. Next week will provide the opportunity for our teachers to reflect on how we make our classrooms accessible and where needed, introduce new strategies and adaptations that enhance what we are already doing and further develop our consistent approaches. 

As you will be aware, next week will be the last week before the end of term. School finishes at the usual time of 3.20 pm and it will be a dress casual day. Students return to school on Tuesday 9th April, at which point we will move to summer uniform. This means students do not need to wear a tie when we return from the break.

Thank you for your ongoing support and have a great weekend ahead.

Best regards,

Mark Poulsum

Our Year 12 BTEC students have now successfully completed their internship and we look forward to welcoming them back to school on Monday.

Year 12 IB students have benefitted greatly from their Consolidation Week and have made great strides in key areas such as Theory Of Knowledge and Extended Essay as well as collecting key data for their Internal Assessments.

Our Year 13 students held their last official assembly on Wednesday and the below schedule was shared with our students in relation to their last official days at KGV on April 9 and 10.

Leaving Arrangements for Y13

• Tue Apr 9 Normal lessons: non-uniform theme of Future Careers
• Wed Apr 10 No lessons: optional early arrival, breakfast with SLT, walk of honour, dismissed 12 noon.

• Thu May 30 Graduation Ceremony at KGV School Hall 6 – 7.30 pm
• Fri May 31 Graduation Dinner at Hotel Icon – Drinks reception for students and parents from 5.30 pm. Meal for students only at 7 pm

Wishing you a great weekend.

When your child completed their option choices, you will have received a confirmation email with a link to approve the choices. If you do approve, please click this link. If you do not approve, please discuss this with your child and if necessary their tutor.

Next week we look forward to the Year 11 formal here at school on Tuesday evening starting 5.30 pm and finishing at 8.30 pm.

Next Friday is the end of term 2. Classes run as normal until 3.20 pm that day, but it is a dress casual and "Wear a Hat" day. Following the break, students no longer need to wear a school tie.

Year 11 students have only three more weeks of school lessons. The last day of timetabled classes is Friday April 19th.

From that point, they only need to be in school for their exams. They are welcome to be in school during regular hours if they wish to use the LRC to study or want to get help from one of their teachers. Their classroom teachers will be available for help either in person or online during their regular class times. We will ask students to let their teachers know in advance if they will meet them.
Here is the list of all exams and the dates they will be held. I have shared this previously. A more detailed exam timetable with exact timings and venues will be available this month.

Year 10 students will be looking forward to break after many assessments and much hard work this term.

Next Friday is the end of term 2. Classes run as normal until 3.20 pm that day, but it is a dress casual and "Wear a Hat" day.

Following the break, students no longer need to wear their school tie.

Our Year 8 & 9 students have had a productive week in the classroom, participating in their CAS activities, and engaging in Kindness Week and Maths Week activities.

Congratulations to all students participating in the Maths Week activities, including the Individual and Interhouse Relay Competitions. Did you know that March 14th marks the anniversary of the first known Pi Day celebration? Yes, it's true! Pi Day celebrates the mathematical constant π (pi), the ratio of a circle's circumference to its diameter. And to add a little fun twist, pi starts with 3.14, matching the date March 14th (3/14)!

Kindness Week is an important week on the KGV calendar as it promotes our school's value of empathy, fosters a positive and inclusive environment, and inspires individuals to engage in acts of kindness, cultivating a more compassionate and caring community. By prioritising kindness, we can create a ripple effect of positivity, enhancing emotional wellbeing and building stronger relationships within our community. Kindness Week activities included writing thank you cards to students and staff, contributing to a kindness wall in the LRC, making friendship bracelets, and having movie screenings at lunchtime.

A reminder that we are continuing with a termly Honours Award focusing on the KGV expectations for students’ attendance, punctuality, uniform and behaviour. Students who achieve the expectations stated below in will receive an Honours Award certificate.

At least 95% Attendance

No more than two lates to school

No uniform slips

No behaviour concerns

KGV School promotes an excellent punctuality record across all years to ensure students and staff have the maximum possible time to enable effective teaching and learning. As we enter the last week of Term 2, some students are accumulating many lates to school. A reminder that every student needs to swipe in when they arrive at school. Students who swipe into school after 8.10 am are considered late. Please see our KGV Punctuality Guidelines for more information and our tiered response.

MYP Approaches to Learning (ATL) Focus for our Parent Newsletter:

Critical Thinking

Critical thinking skills are of paramount importance for students in the MYP programme.

These skills enable students to analyse information, evaluate arguments, and make informed decisions. By fostering critical thinking, students develop the ability to think independently, question assumptions, and consider multiple perspectives. This empowers them to become active and engaged learners who can navigate the complexities of the modern world.

Critical thinking enhances students' problem-solving abilities, promotes creativity, and cultivates intellectual curiosity. It equips them with the tools to navigate a rapidly changing and increasingly interconnected global society, enabling them to adapt, innovate, and contribute meaningfully to their communities.

In the MYP, the emphasis on critical thinking prepares students to become lifelong learners who confidently engage with complex issues and make well-reasoned judgments based on evidence and logical reasoning.

Parent Actions:

Ask your child - What are some examples of situations or problems you've encountered in school where you had to use critical thinking skills? How did you approach those situations, and what did you learn from them?

Have a great weekend!

Dear Parents and Caregivers,

This week, we have been holding our Kindness Week; with activities ranging from kindness postcards to 'free hugs',  we certainly gave the community time to put one of our 3 values into action...Empathy.

Year 7 students also participated in our  Maths Relays and had a lot of fun competing against one another.

Next week, we have our Neurodiversity Celebration Week, with students looking specifically at how we include all members of our community. 

Next Friday we have a dress casual day, with students encouraged to 'Wear a Hat' to raise money for Brain Cancer research. We will run normal lessons on this final day of term and finish at the normal time of 3.20 pm.

Following the Spring Break we will move to our Summer Uniform. This means we simply say goodbye to the tie for a few months.

Have a great weekend

School References

School reference (non-higher education purposes) (Link to policy on Lionel)

The KGV Careers Office coordinates all our student references including exit & summer schools.

For students’ privacy, parents must give KGV their permission to release their child’s reference to a specific list of schools they are applying to. KGV only liaise directly with those schools with parents' permission.

To facilitate a smooth reference process, parents are suggested to contact the Careers Office (careers.office@kgv.edu.hk) with a list of institutions and names of teachers nominated to write references. Please allow at least 4-6 working weeks for teachers to work on school references. School references for higher education applications are done in a separate process.

If students are pursuing gifted and talented programmes outside of KGV, they should contact Mr. Krishin Hotwani directly.

KGV Careers & H.E. Team

Careers & H.E. Guidance

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

Parents’ Support for KGV Careers Fair and Careers Exposure
The Careers Office organises various opportunities for our students to explore careers options. The annual September Careers Fair and various work experiences are some of them. These could not have happened without our wonderful parent’s support. We are hoping to introduce more opportunities for our students.

For parents who would like to collaborate with KGV, please take two minutes to complete this form here. Our team will get in touch with you to discuss further the opportunities that you may bring to community.

We really appreciate your support. Thank you!

Year 13
- Universities have started sending out offers. Students are most welcome to chat with their HE Counsellors any time.
- If students plan to take a gap year or apply to Australia after graduation, we would appreciate it if they can inform their HE Counsellors about their plans so that we can support them when it’s time for them to make their applications.
- In the coming months, we will be doing an exit presentation for students and parents highlighting important action points.

Year 12
- Y12s’ 1-to-1 meeting with their HE Counsellors. The meetings are going on well. Students should have received email with their individual appointments.
- Y12 Parents Presentation on 14 March.  Slides of the presentation will be shared to all parents soon.

- Google Classrooms. Our HE Team has set up Google Classrooms for Y12 students for communication on higher education issues.

Enrichment/Summer Programmes
- Students may start thinking about their plans for enrichment/summer. Our Careers website has a page that lists known opportunities by region. Check this page for ideas.
- KGV does not take responsibility for the content or quality of external events and courses.
- If students need school references to support their application to enrichment/summer programmes, they should email careers.office@kgv.edu.hk. Our normal lead time for teachers to work on recommendations is 4-6 working weeks.

KGV Careers Calendar
Check our KGV Careers Calendar for known H.E. events. Some highlighted events are:

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

Visits @ KGV, SSC1&2, 1.30-2.15 pm
19 Mar: Keele University + University of Leeds + UCalgary
20 Mar: HKU @ GLT
21 Mar: BIMM
10 Apr: McGill

Hong Kong
Every Tuesday: University of Hong Kong - Online Talks starting 13.00

U.K.
Various Dates in March: University of Essex – Hidden Gems Webinar Series
19-21 Mar: World Class Study in London Subject Webinars
22 Mar: UAL – Group Portfolio Review Session (in Hong Kong)

Canada
Various dates: Toronto Metropolitan University International Student Chats Series

Europe
22-23 Mar: Dutch University College Webinar
22 Mar: Hanze UAS Online Open Day

Japan
6 Apr: Ritsumeikan University webinar: Why Choose Ritsumeikan & What Undergraduate Programs are Offered

KGV Careers & H.E. Team

CAS Activity Program - Term 3

It’s been another fun packed term for CAS Activities with more students than ever participating in CAS. With term two being quite short, activities end on Friday 22nd March. 

It has been great to see so many students embrace the opportunities on offer, see our creative arts groups perform and watch our sports teams compete. A few numbers in brief covering the year to date:

• Number of CAS activities this year: 250+
• Number of students engaged in CAS: Approximately 1500 students 
• Most active Year group: Year 7 with over 1250 activity sign ups made by Year 7 students (which is great)
• Number of Student Led CAS Activities: 67, so a huge thank you to KGV student leaders

Parents and students will have received an App message this week explaining the timeline and process for Term 3. Students will be able to sign up for Term 3 activities from Monday 18th March, and this will remain open until Friday 5th April. During this time, students can enroll and withdraw from activities to plan their program. Following this, we will go through the allocation process and students/parents will be informed via App message if they have been successfully placed and if not allocated, they will remain on the waitlist and be notified when a space becomes available. Term 3 activities will commence from Monday 15th April.

Information about signing up, withdrawal, allocation and parental approval click here.

Finally, I would like to thank parents for your support with allowing students to take part in the CAS program. I would also welcome any feedback or suggestions you have to both improve the CAS Program by identifying particular activities that you would like to see offered at KGV.

Dean Beard

CAS, Service Learning and Activities Coordinator

On Thursday the 14th of March, students, parents and teachers took part in an event to support ‘My Freedom Day’ in a big way with its annual Sweatshop Challenge. King George V International School participated in a unique challenge that tested their endurance and bring awareness to a critical issue. The challenge involved spending one hour performing a repetitive task - putting nuts on bolts and taking them off - while simulating the harsh realities of working for no pay.

The experience was a powerful one for the particpants, who then joined a feedback session to reflect on their emotions and share their experiences.  Throughout the experience we were joined by CNN who did three live broadcasts on CNN in conjunction with their #myfreedomday project.

• CNN article (Starts at 58 seconds): https://edition.cnn.com/videos/world/2024/03/14/exp-krisite-lu-stout-my-freedom-day-031401aseg2-cnni-world.cnn

The message from the day is certainly about spreading awareness and looking at our own behaviours and what we can do as consumers. If students wish to continue promoting their engagement in this event, for social engagements, tag KGV school's social media account (kgv_hk for Instagram, and ESF King George V School for Facebook) with the following hashtags to be counted as one entry in the competition:

• #EndSlavery 
• #SlaveFreeWorld 
• #MyFreedomDay 
• #SweatshopChallenge 
• #ItsTime4Change

It was fantastic to see so many students getting involved in all the Kindness Week activities run by our student wellbeing leaders and staff:

• More than 2000 thank you cards have been written by our community and will be delivered next week. 

• We had Friendship Bracelet workshops, Kindness Cup making, Film screenings and a team giving out Free Hugs during lunchtime this week. 

• We welcomed students and staff from Jockey Club Sarah Roe to join us for a Community Heart photo on the KGV field.

• Our Kindness Wall is Leos is full of messages of gratitude and encouragement.

• To celebrate World Sleep Day we encouraged students to be kind to themselves and put on guided meditation and nap sessions during tutor time and lunchtime. 

A big thank you to everyone who helped run Kindness Week activities and to everyone who took part. 

18 - 22 March