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Issue No. 5 (13 September 2019)

13 Sep 2019

Open Day 2019 – Principal’s Message

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Dear Parents,

It was wonderful to see so many of you at South Island School today for our annual Open Day! We very much hope you have enjoyed the mixture of informative presentations, tours, classroom visits, displays and informal discussions that we have offered you.

As usual, the biggest highlight has been our students! We must recognise the superb work of our Prefect Team, of our friendly Tour Guides, of our Student Subject Reps in the Atrium, and of our #YouMatter Charity Team with their special concert in the Space – and we must also recognise the overwhelmingly positive way in which every student has engaged with their classroom studies, and the work of our dedicated teachers and support staff who help to make it all possible. You have made us all so proud to be members of the South Island School community.

Please take some time this weekend to congratulate your sons and daughters on their work today. It has been a very special day and we hope to see you again soon.

With best wishes,

Mr Tom Vignoles
Principal, South Island School

13 Sep 2019

Important Vaping Information

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Dear Parents, Guardians and Students,

The health and well-being of our students is always a top priority for us. You may be aware that we recently received some concerns about students using e-cigarettes. In our conversations with our students and parents/guardians, we have discovered a lack of clarity around the possible adverse health effects of e-cigarettes and vaping. We would like to take this opportunity to inform parents/guardians that vaping is not permitted in school. In terms of school rules, using e-cigarettes/vaping would be categorised together with smoking and alcohol. As such, students should not bring any type of e-cigarettes in to school or use them on the way to or from school.

It seems that students are currently easily able to buy e-cigarettes. There are a variety of different styles available and some are no bigger in size than a thumb-drive; others resemble a small hard drive or power bank. The liquid used in e-cigarettes appeals to children as there are lots of different flavours available. While these e-cigarettes may therefore seem harmless, some liquid for e-cigarettes does involve inhaling nicotine. As these products are being manufactured at a rapid rate, the science on the devices and liquids have not been able to keep up. Therefore, regulations on the components of these e-devices and liquids are not stringent. For example, we know very little about the effects of inhalation of some of the chemicals.

We encourage parents to speak with their children about e-cigarettes. The pastoral team at SIS will be speaking to all year levels to highlight the negative impact on health and to remind students of our school rules.

Any paraphernalia associated with vaping found in school will be confiscated and parents will be required to come to school to collect items, if they wish to retain them.

We very much appreciate the support of our parents in raising this with us. It can often be difficult to keep up-to-date with everything that our children are being exposed to. Working together is definitely the best way to ensure we keep them safe and well informed about their lifestyle choices.

We have included some information below for those parents interested in knowing more about these products.

Listen to this podcast to learn what you should know about vaping and e-cigarettes.

https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/what-you-should-know-about-vaping-e-cigarettes-suchitra/id470623173?i=1000439242701

The American Lung Association has various resources for parents, students and staff members on e-cigarettes. Here are some articles:

https://www.lung.org/assets/documents/stop-smoking/e-cigarettes-teens.pdf

https://www.lung.org/assets/documents/stop-smoking/e-cigarettes-parents.pdf

https://www.lung.org/assets/documents/stop-smoking/e-cigarettes-schools.pdf

SCMP also has a comprehensive article which discusses the future of e-cigarettes in terms of Hong Kong’s legislation.

12 Sep 2019

Shtepi MaD Week – 23 Sep to 4 Oct 2019

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Hello everyone!

Welcome to the first House MaD Week of the year!

Every year, each house runs an event week to raise awareness and money for their chosen charity or cause to MAKE a DIFFERENCE!

SHTEPI MAD WEEK is right around the corner, and we want YOU to participate from 23 September to 4 October. This year, not only will we be collaborating with ‘Love Reading Campaign Association’, but we will also be raising funds for our House charity, ‘Room to Read’.

‘Room to Read’ is a non-profit organisation for improving literacy and gender equality in education in the developing world, whilst ‘Love Reading Campaign Association’ is a local non-profit charity reading association dedicated to raising awareness and increasing literacy in Hong Kong and South East Asia developing countries.

We have three exciting events for our Shtepi MaD Week this year:

  1. Monday 23 September to Friday 4 October – ‘Donate A Book’ Drive
  2. Wednesday 25 September – Shtepi Bookworm Bingo
  3. Friday 4 October – ‘Dress as your Favourite Book Character’ Day

From 23 September to 4 October, we will be holding a Book Drive to collect books in the Foyer. ‘Love Reading Campaign Association’ is currently constructing an orphanage, and they will need our donated books to construct a library in this orphanage. If you have any unwanted ENGLISH language primary level books (picture books are needed!), please drop them off at the Foyer into your HOUSE box, anytime during this period. Interhouse points will be awarded to the House that donates the most books. Remember – only picture storybooks please!

On 25 September, we will be hosting our first Shtepi Bookworm Bingo. This year’s Bingo DOES NOT require extensive knowledge of books and stories, so YOU will definitely have a chance of winning. Furthermore, the winning team will be getting a FREE PIZZA LUNCH! So be sure to gather your friends along to create a team of 2-4, and come to THE HALL at 12:40pm as we will be starting promptly. We ask that each team also pays an entry fee of $20, as all proceeds will go to ‘Room to Read’.

Finally, on 4 October, we will be having our annual ‘Dress Up As Your Favourite Book Character’ Day. This year, prizes (sponsored by ‘Love Reading Campaign Association) will be awarded to the…

  1. Most Outstanding
  2. Most Creative/Best Constructed
  3. Most Unique
  4. Best Group Effort

We also hope that everyone brings in a minimum of $10, where all donations will go to ‘Room to Read’ to support their organisation. There will be a parade and photo session during BREAK TIME at the Lower Playground and we look forward to seeing you all dressed up as your favourite book character for a chance to be featured on our Instagram!

Thank you and we strongly encourage all of you to participate in our Shtepi MaD Week to MAKE A DIFFERENCE! (All prizes have been sponsored by ‘Love Reading Campaign Association’).

Sarah Shum and Michele Liu (Shtepi MaD Council) and the Shtepi Head Team

12 Sep 2019

Sports Bulletin – 13 September 2019

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On Tuesday, our A Grade Boys kick started their Rugby and Football seasons. The A Grade Rugby team beat Island School 45-0. Player of the game was Will Rees. It was a great win to kick start the first XV’s game for this academic year.

After the rugby match which was held in Happy Valley, some of our A grade boys had to rush to the football game on the pitch next to the rugby pitch for their match against WIS. After 90 minutes, it came to a draw, 0-0. Man of the match was Tomo Nagai. Great effort to all the boys especially to the ones who played both rugby and football!

Next week sees the start of our ESF A & B Grade Boys and Girls Basketball seasons. The boys host Island school next Thursday from 4pm and the girls host West Island on Tuesday.

We hope as many parents and students as possible will come and support the players.

Go Stingrays!

12 Sep 2019

Box of Hope SIS 2019

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Dear SIS Community,

Box of Hope is back this year, so please start collecting your empty shoeboxes now. First day for box collection will be 21 October 2019, last day 11 November 2019. More information to come. Help Casa and SIS bring a smile to under-privileged children!

 Casa Student Leadership Team 2019 – 2020

 

File photo

12 Sep 2019

SCMP School Subscription 2019-2020

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The PTA is coordinating the subscription of the SCMP 2019-2020 for SIS students. Please download the following SCMP subscription details and form and submit with a cheque payment to the PTA office before the deadline.

The subscription deadline is now extended to 23 Sep 2019. Please note that late applications will not be accepted.

During school days, the newspaper can be picked up from the PTA Office starting 14 Oct 2019. Holiday and Sunday issues may be collected at selected Convenience Store Outlets with your redemption passport starting from 3 Nov 2019.

For more information about this special package, please go to the school website Communications >> Parent Teacher Association Ltd >> PTA Events (SCMP Subscription).

12 Sep 2019

NIGHTFEST – 22 Nov 2019

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What’s better than a social and supporting the PTA annual fundraising at the same time?

NIGHTFEST welcomes everyone in the South Island community, your friends and family. Please join us for a fun-filled evening. Stay tuned for more details.

Commercial Marketplace Stall Application and Event Brochure Advertising are now open. This is a good opportunity for vendors to promote their products or service. Please click here to download the application form. For enquiries, please feel free to contact us at sisptafair@gmail.com.

Parent Volunteers wanted! Please click here to choose the area(s) you wish to help out.

International Food Stalls will be there! We will need parents to help plan and organise these. Japanese, Korean, Chinese, Southeast Asian, Indian, British, Australian, Dutch, North American, South American, etc. – EVERYONE! Please let us know if you are willing to either act as PARENT CONTACT or contribute FOOD on the night. Please click here to sign-up and we will contact you.

9 Sep 2019

Music News – 13 September 2019

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Music scholarship

Congratulations to Faith Yeung who has been awarded the 2019 Daniel Lawton Scholarship for her brilliant flute playing! You will be able to hear Faith perform at the end of the year at Family Learning Celebrations.

 

Hong Kong Music Festival

Each year we have a number of students entering competitions at the HKSMSA Music Festival. If you wish to compete this year, please note that the deadline for getting your applications to SIS is Monday 11 October. No further applications can be accepted after this date.

Please see below all the dates relevant to this festival and if you need the log-in details for the website to download the syllabus and application forms, please email Ms Jones: djones@sis.edu.hk

9 Sep 2019

Treatment and Prevention of Head Lice

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Dear Parents,

A case of head lice was reported at school. Therefore, we thought this would be a good time to send you advice on how to identify and treat this common problem.

Head lice are not serious but do need immediate attention, as they do give discomfort and are easily spread. It is recommended that you examine your child’s head so that, if necessary, immediate treatment can be started.

If your child has head lice, all household members should be checked and treated, if necessary. You do not need to go extraordinarily extensive with housecleaning because head lice will not survive long if they fall off a person and cannot feed. To prevent reinfestation, concentrate on cleaning the things that your child’s head came into direct contact with in the past few days.

Outbreaks of head lice are common in schools, especially when the weather gets warmer.

 

How to Identify Head Lice

Head lice, or pediculus capitis, are very small insects that live on the human scalp. They are whitish-grey in colour, but they turn reddish brown after feeding on blood from the scalp. They regularly lay clusters of eggs, called nits, on the roots of hair, which appear yellowish-white in colour. The young ones are almost translucent until they have had their first meal, when they turn red. These small insects are fast-moving but cannot jump or fly.

The most common symptom is an itchy head. Tiny red bite marks may also be visible around the hair line, and head lice may be visible behind the child’s ear, or on the nape of their neck.

 

Treatment and Prevention

Wash or dry clothing and bed linens at temperatures above 130°F (54.4°C). This will kill stray lice and nits. Seal clothing or other items that are not washable in a plastic bag for two weeks, or put them in the dryer. Soak combs and brushes in very hot water for 5 to 10 minutes. Remind your children not to share combs, hair ornaments, or hats, and ask them to stuff their jackets into their backpacks at school, rather than hang them on a communal hook.

 

Try a Simpler Approach Instead

The experts say that the best approach is also the easiest: using a wet comb.

Coat your child’s hair and scalp with conditioner or a safe lubricant such as olive oil. Use a wide-tooth comb to separate hair into sections. Follow with a metal nit or flea comb, concentrating on the area close to the scalp. After each comb-through, wipe the comb on a paper tower and inspect for lice. Continue combing until no lice are found. A single session can take 15 to 60 minutes depending on the length and thickness of hair.

Repeat every three to four days for several weeks, and continue regular combings for two weeks after any session where an adult louse is found.

Jeanette Hui
School Health Professional
6 September 2019

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