15 Jan
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For this Week
Sports Fun Day
Tuesday 16 & Wednesday 17 January K2 ARP visit
ACTION: ESF Early Years Conference
PD Opportunities
PD Opportunities
- Staff Calendar
Hi everyone, I'm sending the staff comms early this week to share an update on Sports Day. We also have several visitors for next week.
For this Week
Monday AM - Fiona, EY Lecturer from Yew Chung, to visit (to see play-based learning)
Tuesday - Whole staff lunch meeting
Tuesday AM - Katy, Teacher from Abacus Kindergarten, to visit (she's never been)
Tuesday PM & Wednesday AM - ARP team visits
Friday AM - CEO Belinda Greer visits, PM- Claire (VP from Wu Kai Sha Kindergarten) visits
Sports Fun Day
As you know, securing a venue for Sports Day has been a huge challenge. Places either charge us an exorbitant amount or cannot accommodate us. A few of the class parents have been involved to help us explore options and we've finally secured the Indian Recreation Club (IRC) for our Sports Fun Day on Thursday, 8 Feb.
Katie (Gecko Class Percy's mum) is a PE teacher and has kindly offered her time and expertise to help us with this day. Due to the size of IRC, we will have to split AM & PM, so the timings are similar to the beach day (9:30-11:30/ 12:30-14:30).
Initial thoughts:
- 8 stations (4 K1 and 4 K2) plus a water/rest station
- Split into a K1 rotation and a K2 rotation, meaning there are 5 stations to rotate around for each year level.
- Each station should get one rest per rotation, as there are 5 stations and only 4 groups
- Water rest station - We could provide water to fill up a water bottle at this station and a few pieces of equipment for kids to play with their parents or friends.
- 2 class EAs to lead a station, and the class teacher will lead their class and help at each station
- IRC can arrange a light lunch for us to save us time
We're also waiting to hear back from ESF Explore as they are keen to send some coaches to promote their programmes.
Let's meet on Tuesday to discuss the plans further. Here's what we did way back years ago - old Sports Day. We are allowed to use the space within the red.
Tuesday 16 & Wednesday 17 January K2 ARP visit
The Admissions and Review process (ARP) for children being considered for a Learning Support place in Year 1 will take place for our K2 children this week. The primary purpose of the ARP school visit is to gather information about the student's learning and development. This will inform the panel's recommendation for the most appropriate level of support in ESF.
During the school visit, one or two panel representatives will:
- Observe the student in class with his/her usual class teacher
- Meet with the student's class teacher/Student Support Coordinator
- Meet with the student’s parent(s)/guardian(s)
Observation
In order for ARP representatives to gather the most relevant evidence about the student, it is helpful to see a variety of learning engagements that demonstrate the student's strengths and challenges. Please ensure the student is observed in a learning environment that reflects his/her current level of support. If support is usually provided please keep it in place.
Please note that children can become anxious if they know that they are being observed. It is, therefore, suggested that you do not tell them about the scheduled ARP visit.
ACTION: ESF Early Years Conference
Every staff member attending the EY Conference on 19 Feb (that's all of us!) is required to confirm their attendance by filling out this form. For the following question in the form, ensure you've selected the EY Conference option.
The deadline for confirming your attendance is next Friday, 19 January.
PD Opportunities
The Science of Teaching with Peps Mccrea
24 Jan 4:30-5:45pm online. Register on Gateway.
Peps will be sharing insights about evidence-informed teaching, interactive learning, and key skills development including optimizing student attention.
The Science of Pedagogy with Kirun Goy
30 Jan 4:30-5:30pm online. Register on Gateway.
Kirun will dive into habit formation, the neural circuitry of emotions and stress management, and the science of communication.
Fiona Zinn - Documentation in Inquiry Classrooms: A Strategy for Leveraging Learning with Young Children, Educators, and Families
The wonderful Fiona Zinn is running an online workshop across Feburary and March. She will support educators to unpack some of the key strategies and challenges associated with documenting young children's learning. More info here. If you're interested, please come have a chat with Brenda.
OPRS Dates
Please note that all OPRS therapy sessions at Hillside will be suspended during the below three weeks.
Mon 22nd Jan to Fri 26th Jan 2024- Internal case meeting week
Mon 29th Jan to Fri 2nd Feb 2024- Parents meeting
Mon 12th Feb to Fri 16th Feb 2024- Lunar New Year Holiday
OPRS will resume therapy sessions from Monday 5th February - Thursday 8th February.
Upcoming Dates
Please check our internal calendar below, as we might forget to remind everyone of odd dates. We will continue to add events to the calendar as soon as it's confirmed. Here's the full 2023/24 Calendar
Thank you!
