Message from the principal - December 2023

May the grace and peace of the Lord Jesus be with you always!

"As a 'Dream Factory' for children, our school constantly optimizes its curriculum. In the current academic year, apart from reallocating the time, we have also reorganized and merged existing subjects in response to curriculum development. We have actively prepared for the separation of science and humanities subjects within the General Studies curriculum and discussed innovative assessment methods for Religious Studies. Our aim is to effectively integrate theoretical knowledge, biblical truths, and the character strengths of positive education, providing children with more opportunities to transform knowledge into practical skills, rather than relying solely on written assessments.

Furthermore, teachers continuously equip themselves by staying informed about curriculum developments and further establishing student-centered classrooms. We strive to make children the protagonists of the classroom, creating more space for them to flourish.

On the other hand, we deeply understand the importance of lunch for children. Therefore, we have been working hard to improve the dining environment and monitor food quality. Due to the pandemic, lunch arrangements at school were suspended for several years until gradually returning to normal in the previous academic year. The bidding period for lunch service providers is typically two to three years. Due to the pandemic, the lunch service provider extended the service contract until the previous academic year based on the guidelines of the Education Bureau. Therefore, last year's lunch prices were set based on the 2018 bidding prices. However, for this academic year, we had to re-bid for lunch supply, and all suppliers faced a certain degree of inflation, reflecting the cost adjustments that have not been made since 2018. We would like to share with parents the reasons for the significant increase in lunch fees compared to the previous year.

Moreover, Primary 3 to Primary 6 students have been arranged to have lunch in the covered playground this academic year. We are grateful for the support received in the 25th-anniversary fundraising event last year, which provided sufficient funds for improving the environment of the covered playground (now known as H.C. Chan Complex) by installing glass sliding doors and air conditioning. We will also replace the air conditioning equipment in the Assembly Hall to provide a better dining, learning, and activity environment for the children. However, there may be some changes to the arrangements for having lunch in the underground area later. This is mainly due to the fact that school teams and interest classes are now being conducted during lunchtime, and physical education classes also need to use relevant venues on rainy days. The usage of venues is tight, so we will continue to observe the arrangements and restrictions on venue usage. After the first summative assessment, we will review the arrangement of having lunch in the covered playground for Primary 3 to 6 students or arrange for other level students to take turns having lunch in the playground. Please stay tuned for further information on any changes to the arrangements.

In addition, we are deeply concerned about the issue of heavy school bags for children.

During the early October Family Day, class teachers inspected each child's school bag and taught them to pack their belongings according to the schedule, avoid carrying a large number of storybooks, and make good use of the lockers in the classrooms. Of course, parents should also be careful when selecting school bags for their children. Some school bags have complicated structures and materials, and even without books, they can be quite heavy. Parents can refer to page 17 of the Student Handbook for information on carrying appropriate textbooks to school. We will also regularly review related issues to help children develop good habits of organizing their school bags.

Furthermore, our school has always valued communication and contact between home and school. In addition to face-to-face meetings during Parent Weekends, Parent-Teacher Meetings, and Assessment Paper Reading Day, each teacher has a personal voicemail system for contact. The phone numbers for the teachers' voicemail systems will be listed in the appendix and Campus News column on the intranet. After leaving a message, the respective teacher will reply to parents within three working days.

Wishing everyone good physical, mental, and spiritual health! See you on campus later!"