31 March

  • For this Week
  • Upcoming Dress-up Days
  • Staff Meeting on Thursday Morning
  • Handling Accidents and Injuries
  • Student Absences
  • Parent Survey Summary
  • Staff Calendar

Good morning! Thank you all for your hard work, it’s almost Easter break! We’re in the final stretch with just 3.5 days left! 

For this Week

Monday: Student Support Advisor Cathy McSweeny visits

Wednesday: PJ Dress-up Day | Peak School K2-Y1 transition visit (AM)

Thursday: Staff meeting 


Upcoming Dress-up Days

  • Pajama Day this Wednesday – let’s see everyone in their comfiest PJs!

  • Book-inspired Dress-up Day on 25th April – get creative and come dressed as your favourite character!


Staff Meeting on Thursday Morning

Let's make a start at 8:30am for the meeting:

  • Sharing insights from colleagues who attended the Learning Walks.

  • Reflecting on the stakeholder survey and discussing actions moving forward.

  • Planning for the upcoming academic year.

Depending on the time, we would appreciate some help putting away some outdoor equipment afterwards.

Handling Accidents and Injuries
When teachers are out of the classroom for non-contact time, CP meetings, or away that day, please ensure that the colleague in charge handles any accidents or injuries first. If needed, they can reach out to a member of the SLT for assistance. After addressing the situation, please inform the class teacher to keep them in the loop.

Student Absences
A new ESF Attendance Policy is underway. One key change is that we will begin to chase up absences more promptly. According to the new clause:
 “If any student is absent (regardless of the days of absence) without any form of notification from parents/carers, the school should take the initiative to contact the parents/carers within one hour of the commencement of the school day/session to inform parents/carers of the absence. Schools should seek to ascertain the reasons for absence and handle them according to EDB circulars/guidelines and SWD’s Guide.”


The admin team has been proactive in calling parents, and we’ve noticed some parents emailing teachers directly regarding absences. We kindly ask that you forward any absence emails you receive to kinder@hillside.edu.hk  so the admin team can follow up appropriately.

Parent Survey Summary

AI helped identify core themes echoed in multiple comments and removed any anomalies. The overall sentiment expressed in the comments is overwhelmingly positive. I'll forward any specific feedback for individual teachers in these next few days.


What We're Doing Well

Caring and Dedicated Teachers/Staff:

  • Many parents repeatedly emphasize the caring nature, dedication, and attentiveness of teachers and EAs.

  • Staff are praised for knowing each child well and providing personalized guidance.

Effective Communication with Parents:

  • Regular communication through various channels (emails, blogs, photo albums, newsletters, apps) is highly valued.

  • Parents appreciate receiving frequent updates on their children's progress, activities, and social interactions.

  • The weekly photo albums and blog updates are consistently mentioned as a valuable way to see their children's school life.

  • Parent-teacher conferences and feedback sessions are valued.

Play-Based Learning:

  • The play-based learning approach is widely appreciated, as it makes learning fun and enjoyable for children.

  • Parents note that their children are eager to go to school every day due to the engaging activities.

  • The school provides a variety of activities that cater to different learning styles and encourage exploration and curiosity.

  • Open play and outside play are noted as positive.


What We Could Do Better

School Bus Service:

  • This is a strongly recurring concern. Parents repeatedly express frustration with the bus service's reliability, safety, and communication.

Chinese Language Development:

  • Many parents desire more Chinese language instruction, including traditional Chinese characters.

  • More individual feedback from Chinese teachers.

  • Some parents would like a bilingual track.

Communication and Feedback:

  • Requests for more personalized and detailed feedback on children's progress.

  • A streamlined way to get information from the many sources the school uses.

Parent Involvement:

  • Parents want more involvement opportunities that fit their schedules.

  • More face-to-face parent-teacher meetings.

Safety and Supervision:

  • Concerns about safety and supervision, particularly during community play time.

  • Safety during pick-up and drop-off.

Upcoming Dates
Please check our internal calendar below. We might forget to remind everyone of odd dates. We will continue to add events as soon as they're confirmed. Here's the full 2024/25 Calendar and DRAFT 2025/26 Calendar.

Thank you!