Primary Principals' Newsletter

The 4th Issue of the 2024-2025 Principals’ Newsletter is a reflection of both December and January, with each month being shortened slightly by school holidays. There were plenty of events and learning engagements packed into each month and we hope you enjoy reading about some of them!

Thank you for joining us on Sports Day, a lively celebration of teamwork and athleticism that brought our school community together for a beautiful day of events. The diverse range of activities, from relay races to tug-of-war, showcased not only individual skills but also the importance of collaboration among peers. Cheers and support for one another truly reflected the strong sense of community we cherish.

As the day progressed, it was inspiring to see the determination displayed by our students, with smiles and cheers all around as they crossed the finish line or completed their challenges. Each event highlighted the spirit of competition and camaraderie that makes our school special.

Congratulations to the Red Team for winning the Spirit Cup and to the Green Team for winning the Championship Cup!

On Friday, December 13, 2024 the staff and students from Lower and Upper Primary gathered together for a beautiful Grade Level Caroling, Orchestra/Choir and Speech concert. We sang songs and had a visit from Santa and his Elves, who distributed presents to all Kingston students in attendance.

It was a fun morning filled with music and laughter! Please have a look at the extensive photo collection provided by Kingston Parents Man Chi Ho and Melody Mok.

Chi Ho Photos

Melody Photos

We are delighted to share that Kingston hosted a wonderful Chinese New Year Festival performance on Friday January 24, 2025. The dragon dance was spectacular, and the school was filled with melodious music. Our students joyfully performed songs celebrating the New Year, showcasing their talent and enthusiasm.

We would like to extend our heartfelt gratitude to the following individuals:

• Aiden Chan (Y4.2), Mia Lee (Y5.1), and Amelia Chu (Y5.2) for expertly hosting the Chinese New Year Talent Show.

• Agnes Wu (Y4.1) for her beautiful Guzheng performance.

• The parents of Kyle Chu (Y1.1), Lucas Tse (Y1.1), Marcus Sin (Y2.2), Kingsley Chu (Y3.2), George Poon (Y5.1), Jasper Kwok (Y5.2), and Anna Li (Y5.2) for their generous volunteering.

• The father of Elizabeth Man (Y5.2) for capturing wonderful photos of the Flower Market.

• Horace Lin’s (Y4.1) mother for creating Fai Chun.

• Ms. Yannice Chen, our Chinese teacher for Y3.1, for preparing tea.

It was also fantastic to see the Student Representative Council (SRC) selling postcards and the newspaper team showcasing the special Chinese New Year edition. Thank you to the entire Kingston community for your collaborative efforts in making the Snake Fair a resounding success. We truly wish everyone a healthy, wealthy and lucky year!

With parent-teacher conferences and report cards on everyone's minds, I believe it's important to take a moment to share how the IB-PYP approaches assessment, as this philosophy directly influences how we assess students at Kingston.

Assessment in the IB Primary Years Programme (PYP) is a crucial component of the learning process that goes beyond traditional testing methods. It is designed to gather information about students' understanding, skills, and attitudes, allowing teachers to tailor their instruction to meet the individual needs of each child. The PYP emphasizes a holistic approach to assessment, focusing not only on academic achievements but also on the development of the whole child, including social, emotional, and physical growth.

In the PYP, assessment is continuous and formative, meaning that it occurs regularly throughout the year rather than just at the end of a unit or term. Teachers employ a variety of strategies to assess student learning, including observations, discussions, and student reflections. This ongoing feedback helps identify areas where students excel and where they may need additional support. It encourages a growth mindset, allowing children to see learning as a journey and understand that mistakes are part of that process.

Additionally, the PYP utilizes summative assessments. These assessments provide a more comprehensive view of what students have learned and how they can apply their knowledge to real-world situations. They often involve student presentations, portfolios, or exhibitions, where learners can showcase their understanding in creative ways. This not only assesses their academic progress but also fosters skills such as communication, collaboration, and critical thinking.

Parents play an essential role in the assessment process as well. Regular communication between teachers and families helps ensure that parents are informed about their child's progress and can support their learning at home. The PYP encourages parents to engage with their children about what they are learning, fostering a partnership that enhances the educational experience. By understanding the assessment methods used in the PYP, parents can better support their children’s development and celebrate their achievements along the way.

On January 21, the Girls Football Team had their first match in the 2025 Tai Po Football League, in which 5 schools (including KIS) are participating. The girls played well but came up a little short against Japanese International School in this first outing.

The Kingston Girls’ next game is against Norwegian International School. It will take place in mid-February. Between now and then, the girls will be practicing 7-aside tactics in order to establish themselves as a force in the league! There are photos taken by KIS parent Melody Mok linked here, please take some time to have a look!

Kingston’s Boys Football Team also had their first match in the 2025 Tai Po Football League on January 21. Although the Kingston boys played well, JIS managed to control the midfield and create more opportunities for their strikers during the match and were a bit more than the KIS was able to handle. Despite the rocky start, we look forward to the next match in early February, when they will take on ASHK. Jaime's mom Melody Mok also shared some wonderful photos of the boys game!

The Competitive Floor Hockey season has started on a high note, with both the Kingston Blue Team and Yellow Team showcasing impressive skills and teamwork. In their recent game against Think Primary, the KIS Blue Team secured a dominant 13-1 victory, while the KIS Yellow Team followed suit with a strong 7-0 win. Players demonstrated excellent positional awareness and effectively utilized space on the court, leading to some remarkable goals.

Earlier in January, our players also delivered strong performances in our first away game this season against ASHK. The Blue Team triumphed with a 7-0 win, and the Yellow Team secured a 6-4 victory. We extend our gratitude to the parents who contributed photos and videos of the games, allowing us to celebrate our players' efforts. As we look forward to our next home game on February 20th, we encourage families to continue their incredible support for our teams and enjoy the highlights from this exciting season.

Plenty of game photos may be found here:

KIS vs THINK from Elizabeth Man’s Dad

KIS vs ASHK from Elizabeth Man’s Dad and Amelia Chu’s Dad.

The Chinese New Year Edition of the Kingston Student Newspaper is a whopping 84 pages long and features student reviews of school trips, recipe sharing, book reviews, gaming reviews, Chinese New Year articles and much much more. It sold out quickly at the markets, so the students in charge of selling them took orders for later deliveries! The Newspaper was sold at our Lower and Upper Campuses and proceeds will be donated to Feeding Hong Kong.

Our very active 2024-2025 SRC had a successful fundraising drive in December and they have followed up with a Chinese New Year postcard competition and sales at this year’s Kingston Flower Market. The postcards are beautiful and are expected to be in high demand at the Kingston markets on January 24!

The Upper Primary KEG is working with our Year 6 PYP Exhibition learners to explore the Native American "Three Sisters" planting concept, sharing this knowledge across the KEG community while transforming our garden space into an interconnected growing system. This ancient agricultural wisdom of companion planting beans, corn, and squash demonstrates natural symbiotic relationships, which our Year 6 learners are investigating through hands-on experimentation. In preparation for this, they are implementing innovative soil enrichment techniques using cardboard decomposition.

Our garden space continues to flourish with a diverse range of vegetables including peas (which are thriving!), carrots, radishes, and sunflowers. Our new succulent garden demonstrates adaptation and resource efficiency in plant systems. The learning has extended beyond gardening, as our learners demonstrated their understanding of sustainability by repurposing Chinese New Year red packets into decorative fish, showing how cultural celebration materials can be creatively reused. These hands-on experiences are helping our learners grasp key concepts about environmental stewardship, plant life cycles, and sustainable practices.

On December 3rd, 2024 (Tuesday), we held a parent workshop titled “Preparation for the Putonghua Proficiency Test for Parents” to introduce the details of the Putonghua Proficiency Test that Y4 to Y6 students will take in February 2025. Thank you to all the parents who participated in the workshop.

On January 22nd (Wednesday), our Y2 students made glutinous rice balls and dumplings, and everyone had a joyful New Year celebration together. They also enjoyed making New Year crafts. Students sold New Year cards at the school, uniting everyone in a happy celebration!

Our Year 1 students recently enjoyed a series of vibrant workshops with The Ballroom Bees, and we are thrilled to report that they were a tremendous success! These workshops were integral to our 'How We Express Ourselves' unit, which delved into the various ways we communicate ideas and emotions, the techniques used in different forms of expression, and the impact these expressions have on us.

Through dance, our students explored this dynamic medium, guided by the talented dancers and choreographers from Ballroom Bees. They not only unleashed their creativity but also developed gross and fine motor skills through coordinated movements and rhythmic repetition. It was a valuable experience that positively contributed to the Y1s learning.

Resilience has become an important topic of conversation and concern for educators around the world. There seems to be a consensus that students, in general, are less resilient than they have been in the past. At Kingston, our goal is to support students in building resilience. To best support our students, we believe it's essential to work as a team with families. We are sharing the information below to help us collaborate in fostering resilience together.

What is Resilience?

Resilience is the ability to adapt, recover, and thrive in the face of difficulties. It empowers people to overcome obstacles, cope with stress, and emerge stronger from their experiences, laying a solid foundation for their future success and well-being.

Why Resilience is Important

• Coping with Challenges: Resilient children are better equipped to handle obstacles, whether academic, social, or emotional. They learn to bounce back from disappointments and maintain a positive outlook.

• Emotional Regulation: Building resilience helps children manage their emotions effectively, reducing anxiety and stress in challenging situations.

• Growth Mindset: Resilient children develop a growth mindset, understanding that effort and perseverance can lead to improvement and success. They see challenges as opportunities for growth rather than insurmountable barriers.

How to Build Resilience at Home

• Encourage Problem-Solving: When your child encounters difficulties, guide them in brainstorming solutions rather than providing immediate answers. This fosters critical thinking and independence.

• Promote a Growth Mindset: Teach your child that mistakes are opportunities for learning. Praise their efforts and persistence, emphasizing the importance of trying again after setbacks.

• Set Realistic Goals: Help your child set achievable goals and celebrate their progress. This builds confidence and a sense of accomplishment, encouraging them to tackle bigger challenges.

• Model Resilience: Share your own experiences with overcoming difficulties. Discuss how you faced challenges and what you learned from them, demonstrating that setbacks are a normal part of life.

• Encourage Healthy Relationships: Foster connections with family and friends. Strong social support helps children feel secure and provides a network they can rely on during tough times.

• Teach Coping Strategies: Introduce your child to healthy coping mechanisms, such as deep breathing, journaling, or talking about their feelings. These tools can help them manage stress and emotions effectively.

• Allow Safe Risks: Encourage your child to take age-appropriate risks, whether trying a new activity or making new friends. This helps them learn to navigate uncertainty and build confidence in their abilities.

Resilience is an important component of our social emotional learning program, Second Steps, which is taught at all grade levels. By working together to instill resilience, we can help our children develop the skills they need to face life's challenges with strength and determination. Thank you for your support in nurturing their growth.

During Kingston’s Annual Open Day (held in November) and at other times of the school year, Kingston Alumni visit our campuses to see their old teachers and share what they have been up to. This month we are highlighting two students who have taken very different paths towards their goals. Please note that due to technical difficulties the accompanying photos are unavailable at the moment. They will be inserted later if we are able to retrieve them.

Adrian Ma (Class of 2021)

Adrian and his parents dropped by on Open Day and it was a pleasure to hear that he is doing well in Year 9 at ISF. He is a songwriter and he is interested in design. He is currently weighing options for completing his secondary schooling in Canada.

Runlin Ji (Class of 2024)

Runlin attended Open Day with a group of friends from her graduating class. Currently in Y7 at Nord Anglia, she proudly shared that she is keeping her grades up in secondary school - something that we are not surprised by in the least!