Please click to download the 2024/25 Hillside Calendar. You can also access the school calendar via the ESF App.

March (Fridays): K2 Chinese PTCs (K1s will take place in May)

20 March: Parent Webinar - How Do Children Make Friends?

2 April: Children’s Last Day of Term

3-21 April: Spring Break (No Classes)

22 April: First Day of Term 3

Dear Hillside Families,

It’s been another busy week filled with enriching experiences. Reflecting on the past few weeks since Lunar New Year, we’ve had either an incursion or excursion nearly every week.

We’re truly grateful for our dedicated community, which includes teachers, EAs, administrators, parents, and, of course, the children. Together, through our shared commitment to an engaging, high-quality, play-based, inquiry-driven programme, we are making a meaningful impact on the children’s learning experiences.

While we all recognise the importance of play and interaction with our children, it’s essential to understand that learning through play goes beyond simple playtime. It offers valuable opportunities for children to discover and construct their own knowledge, nurtures their imagination, and builds their self-confidence as they tackle challenges independently.

If you’re interested in exploring more resources and articles on learning through play, I highly recommend visiting the Lego Foundation's LearningThroughPlay website, which is a fantastic source of free materials.

Thank you for your ongoing support and involvement in our community.

Warm regards,
Audrey

A heartfelt thank you to Ashley Benusa, our talented music teacher from ESF Beacon Hill School and an incredible parent volunteer, for leading our recent music and movement day! The atmosphere was electric as she guided the children through singing, creative movement, and instrument exploration. Every classroom was alive with joy and enthusiasm, and it was a delight to see the children so engaged. Please check your class albums for photos :)

Ashley's passion for music truly shines through, and we’re incredibly grateful for the joy she brings to our community – we’re all feeling inspired and ready to incorporate even more musical fun into our daily activities!

The safety and wellbeing of our students remain our top priority, and we are dedicated to providing a reliable and secure transportation service. We continue to collaborate with ESF head office and KCM to monitor the bus service closely. Our representatives regularly ride the bus routes for ad-hoc checks, and we maintain ongoing communication to review procedures and protocols.

ESF is currently working through a tendering process for several ESF schools. This process commenced in January, inviting a number of bus companies across HK to join the bid. We will be gathering all feedback from the stakeholder survey to share with the bus company. We may also invite parent representatives to join in the interview process – so stay tuned for updates!

Following on from the vision screening and recognising the importance of early intervention, we have scheduled a Hearing Screening at Hillside with ENTlaser Hearing and Speech Therapy Centre. 

TEST - Otoacoustic Emissions (OAE)

What it is: OAEs are sounds given off by the inner ear in response to an auditory stimuli. These sounds are produced by the hair cells and can be measured automatically by a handheld portable device. The measured frequencies are 2k, 3k, 4k and 5k Hz. These frequencies are tested as they are most susceptible to hearing loss and crucial for speech and language development.

Duration: approximately 3-4 minutes per child

Results: If a child passes, results indicate that he/she has normal hearing (or mild hearing loss at most) and do not have any middle ear issues. If a child fails, results indicate that he/she needs to have a full diagnostic test at clinic to determine whether there is a presence of middle ear issues (which can be corrected with medication) or sensorineural hearing loss and determine whether there is a need for aural rehabilitation.

The screening is optional, and registration is via this Eventbrite link

If you want to sign your child up for this optional screening, please register by 22 April.

Parent Webinar - How Do Children Make Friends?

Thurs Mar 20, 2025 1pm

Zoom link here.

We invite parents and caregivers to attend this upcoming webinar led by our PYP Coordinator, Brenda Yuen. In this session, we will dig into the research and gain a better understanding of how children develop friendships. We aim to:

• Explore the definition of friendship for young children 

• Understand why playdates are critical for friendships

• How parents can help their child with social skills and developing friendships

There will be time for Q&A. We look forward to seeing you at the webinar.

Please keep an eye on your inbox and check your Spam or Promotions folders if you don't see the link. The email will be titled "2025 ESF Stakeholder Survey." Your feedback is invaluable, and we would greatly appreciate it if you could take a few moments to share your thoughts. The survey, which should take around ten minutes to complete, will be sent out in the next week or so. Rest assured, your responses will be anonymous unless you choose to identify yourself. Once the survey closes, we will carefully analyse the data and provide feedback on our findings.

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Please contact kinder@hillside.edu.hk for any general enquiries.