Newsletter-Friday, 31 May 2024

Table of Contents

Principal's Message

Dear West Island community,

The Interdisciplinary Learning experiences this week have brought our students creative ways to engage their senses and minds. Thank you to all the hard work our staff have put forth to make it happen. Please read on to see the variety of experiences that have taken place over the week.

The risk-taking spirit of our students has also been strong through our interview of a few of this year’s graduates. Many of them have said that they would tell their younger selves to go out of their comfort zones, have fun and not be afraid of making mistakes. While we celebrate their success in reaching their higher education goals, we hope their stories and their commitment to making themselves and the world better speak louder than their exam scores or university acceptance letters.

We applaud all our students’ embracing taking risks to grow and look forward to all the exciting fruits of their learning next week.

Have a lovely weekend!

Vicki Hallatt

Principal

WIS Annual Sports Awards Ceremony 

Time: Tues, 18th June 2024 15:45-17:15

The West Island School Sports Award Ceremony will take place on Tues 18th June 15:45-17:15.  

 In the world of competitive sports, difficult decisions have to be made in regards to awards and accolades. Congratulations to all  award winners. You can click here to access the awards' program. Whilst it is impossible to recognise every individual's success, the PHE department would like to take a moment to thank  all of our sports participants, your involvement and participation in our sports programme is appreciated. Your commitment to personal growth, teamwork, and pushing the boundaries of your abilities is inspirational. Keep striving, and know that your contributions to our Sports community are valued. 

Remember ‘Champions are made when no-one is watching’-we hope you are setting your goals for your next season.

Please note: All successful award recipients should have received a personal email invite to the Ceremony.

Year 8 student granted A1 DELE diploma in Spanish

Year 8 student Cheryl Kowk obtained her A1 DELE diploma in Spanish, certifying her degree of competence and mastery of the Spanish language, granted by Spain's Ministry of Education, Culture and Sport. 

Interdisciplinary Learning experiences

Photos by Multimedia Display&Events Coordinator Ivo Lipanovic

Lord of the Skies - Year 8

Students learnt about the science behind paper aeroplane design and competed in a Dynasty challenge to make and test their flying skills against their peers. The winning Dynasty was Yuan with an impressive combined distance of 38.4 metres. The student crowned Lord of Skies was Brian Kai in S1 who's paper plane design travelled 16.9 meters!  

Disneyland Trip - Year 8

Students spent the day at Disneyland HK, participating in STEM workshops, and learning about the world of Physics and Global Perspectives in a theme park setting. Despite the heat, students had fantastic learning attitudes and thoroughly enjoyed themselves, with time to socialise and have fun as a year group. Thank you to the team of DT, Maths & IN Staff that attended and led each group. 

MYP Design Workshops - Year 8

Students rotated around a series of Design workshops linked to their visit to Disneyland theme park, this included working in teams to build a marble run roller coaster, decorating cookies, crafting their own park design using Minecraft and creating Kawaii-style park mascot characters in Procreate. A huge thank you to the Design & Technology faculty for planning and leading these fun and educational activities! 

Year 12 Geography conference

On Monday, WIS hosted the first ESF Year 12 Geography conference since Covid. We had a total of 60 students ranging from 5 ESF schools, and it was great for students to discuss and make new friends with other IB geographers. On this day the geographers attended workshops on geographical skills, geographical concepts, exam technique and a Guest speaker from the Royal Geographical Society gave a speech on the topic of climate change and sustainable tourism. 

Students said the event gave them the ability to branch out and work with students whom they were not familiar with and connect over common knowledge of Geography. 

Three WIS students' paper on computer peripheral device published in journal

After a lengthy peer review process, James Li, Mat De Lange and Aaron Pan had their paper published in the Journal of Student Research (High School Edition). The intention of this project was to create an alternative computer peripheral device to fit the needs of those with dexterity issues or other similar limitations. 

You can click here to view the paper.

Student represents Hong Kong in The Women's Gymnastics Asian Championships 2024

From May 21st to 28th, Year 9 student Ila Chan participated in The Women's Gymnastics Asian Championships 2024 which was held in Tashkent, Uzbekistan. Representing Hong Kong, Ila participated in the Junior All-Around events, which included Vault, Uneven bars, Balance Beam and Floor Exercise. Competing against approximately 45 gymnasts from various Asian countries, including China, Japan, Korean, North Korea, Taiwan, Singapore, Malaysia, Mongolia, India, Qatar, Sri Lanka, Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan. Ila demonstrated her skills on the international stage. Her performance in the Vault event earned her a spot as the 1st Reserve in the Final.

Student swimmer wins medals at swimming club's competition

Year 8 student Marcus Kor has been awarded the following medals in Go24 Fitness Stringrays Last Splash Swim Meet 2024, Boys 13-14 group which held between 24-26 May 2024.


100m backstokes - Silver

50m backstokes -  Bronze 

200m backstokes  - Bronze

Boys basketball teams won HKSSF awards

The A, B, and C grade basketball teams collected their prizes at the HKSSF awards ceremony on Monday. The B&C grade boys teams were the outright winners, whilst the A grade boys made the semi-finals before narrowly missing out on a place in the finals due to the majority of the squad being overseas on Horizon's Week. Next year will be incredibly exciting as we achieved promotion to Division 1 where we will play the strongest schools and highest level basketball in the city. 

Year 10 student awarded honourable mention in HKUST’s “Science in Lyrics” Writing competition

Year 10 student Chor Xi Tang was awarded honourable mention in HKUST’s “Science in Lyrics” Writing competition. 

Please see his lyrics entry in the accompanying image, and below is his analysis of the lyrics.

The general population perceives the earth as upright and spinning, but the third verse of “The Moss” describes “The world spins round on an axis of twenty-three degrees”. How did this come to be? It is unknown but a highly speculated theory is that a Mars-sized object slammed into the Earth, tilting it and forming what we now know as the moon. Without the tilt, seasons would not exist causing humanity to perish.


The first verse, stating that “moss grows on the north side of the trees” is another byproduct of the Earth’s tilt. We now know seasons exist due to the Earth’s tilt, but it also causes the northern and southern hemispheres. This influences the sun's distance from the Earth, causing the northern hemisphere to receive less sun in the north and vice versa. Moss prefers shaded places, and due to the lack of sunlight, we can observe moss growing on the north face of trees.


The final stanza I will be analysing is “when the sunbeams come all the plants, they eat them with their leaves” It is common knowledge that all animals need food to live, but plants instead. “eat sunlight”, otherwise known as photosynthesis. This event occurs when a plant has enough water, CO2, and sunlight, causing the plants to make glucose through photosynthesis. 

22 Year 7 to 11 students receive HKAGE membership

Founded in 2007, the Hong Kong Academy for Gifted Education (HKAGE) is a non-profit organisation funded by the EDB. It offers a variety of free, out-of-school extension courses to students with high academic abilities and potential. Following a nine-month selection process, which includes self-nomination, a screening program, personal profile submissions, and school recommendations, twenty-two of our students have successfully gained membership this year. We extend our congratulations to these students, who now have access to a broad range of lectures, workshops, and mentoring programs in subjects such as STEAM, languages, leadership, and the humanities. 

Year 9 students create website for community project

Year 9 students Candice Chen, Max Cornell and Nadia Lee created a website for their community project outcome.  You can click here for the website.

Nadia said: "The website was created as a response to the Community project assignment- where we had to take action to support a chosen community and a charity organisation that helps this community, in which we chose to do an indirect response (the website) of spreading awareness, informing others and thus changing behaviours. The purpose was to address the crisis of homelessness in HK, with an article describing how the issue is linked to housing unaffordability and struggles faced, along with a section that defines ways we can help those experiencing homelessness, and another section introducing the NGO, Sunshine Action."

Horizons Week local trips' information now available

The Horizons Week website has been updated and the local trips are now live for students and parents to view. Trips are categorised by different year groups; ensure you look at the year group that your child will be in next academic year. Please note that sign-up will not open until August. There is limited space available on some overseas trips; please contact gigi.cheung@wis.edu.hk for overseas enquiries. 

Higher Education & Careers

Year 7 to Year 13 

On Thursday, May 30th, the HE Department conducted the third session of "Coffee and College." This session focused on providing valuable information on the application process to HK and the UK. Following the informative session, a Q&A session was conducted, allowing attendees to ask questions and seek clarification on any concerns they may have had. Please find the link to the  slides and the video 

The Higher Education Team will be conducting the last parent information session this term on

June 12th: Introduction to the US and Canadian application process 

Please sign up via the link HERE if you have not already done so.


Year 9

On June 7th, the Higher Education team will be hosting a Careers Fair for all students in Year 9. This is a great opportunity for our Year 9 students to explore different career pathways as they start to think about their future.

The Careers Fair will feature 22 guests from a variety of industries and different career paths. Students will be able to speak directly with these representatives and learn about the qualifications and skills needed for different careers. 

All students will be off timetable to participate in this event. It's never too early to start thinking about your future career, and this event can help provide valuable insights and information. 

Year 12 

On June 6th, the Alumni and Networking Committee made up of current Year 12 students at the school have organized an alumni event specifically for the Year 12 cohort. The purpose of this event is to connect the current Year 12 students with former WIS students, who can provide them with valuable insights and advice about the process of transitioning to post-secondary education and future pathways.

The Higher Education team is now in the process of completing meetings with Year 12 students and parents with regard to their university applications and desired educational paths.

Careers Lessons:

Cycle 1 - we introduced the students to the department, provided them with the timeline for Years 12 and 13, outlined the objectives of the course, and discussed how to research universities and courses. The slides have been shared with students via Google Classroom and to parents by email.

Cycle 2 - we gave an overview of international applications, the application procedure, and

platforms and ways to research for countries such as The UK, US, Hong Kong, and Canada. 


Cycle 3 - we introduced students to choosing universities and factors to consider when

choosing one. We also introduced them to the Reach-Match-Safety strategy.


Cycle 4 - students used the Reach-Match-Safety strategy and worked on their university list.


Cycle 5, 6 and 7 - students have been introduced to the concept of a brag sheet and its

various elements.


Cycle 8, 9 and 10- students were introduced to how to write a personal statement and essay for their university applications. They were also provided with an explanation of the UAG (university application grade).


Cycle 11 - Continuation of how to write a personal statement and students were provided instructions on how to write effective CVs.


The Higher Education team supports students with applications to all countries. Students are requested to reach out to their Higher Education Counsellors for any advice or support required.

University Applications: Please find below a tentative deadline for the Class of 2025 

BTEC Performing Arts Technical Rehearsal

Year 12 BTEC Performing Arts students will perform to an invited audience of Kennedy School year 5 students who will come and watch their Theatre in Education piece exploring themes of friendship, confidence, and kindness. 


Theatre in Education is a style of theatre that uses performance techniques to highlight an issue, community problem, or theme with the hope of educating the audience to make better choices and empower them with solutions to challenges in life that we all face.


This week was all about technical elements of performance. They worked on their sound, lighting, and projection cues and, most importantly, completed a technical run-through, transferring their production ideas into performance realities. 


The Theatre Department is very proud of the work of this combined cohort from West Island School (Kai Veilleux), Renaissance College and South Island School. 

Another student nominated for SCMP's Student of the Year award

In addition to all the nominations announced in last week's newsletter, another student has been nominted for SCMP's Student of the Year award. Hillary Sit was nominated in "Best Improvement".

ESF gives away 800 free tickets for two concerts

800 Free Tickets for Two Music Concerts in June

 

We have 800 tickets to giveaway to two music concerts next month.

 

These tickets have been donated for ESF staff, students and our families.

 

Simply click on the complimentary tickets link below the concert description to confirm and receive your tickets.

 

Tickets are available on a first-come first served basis and we suggest a maximum of 5 per person.

 

CONCERT ONE

 

What: Pulse of Change - Contemporary Percussion and Sustainable Soundscapes. Performed by Toolbox Percussion as part of HKUST Summer Festival 2024  The programme of compositions includes: Philip Glass - The Hours, Nathaniel Stookey – Junkestra; Ken Ueno - Arashiyama (Hong Kong PREMIERE); David Skidmore - Torched and Wrecked and Austin Yip - Urban Construction

 

When: 7:45pm on Friday 7 June

 

Where: Shaw Auditorium at the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST)

 

Why: Through masterful compositions for marimba, vibraphone, bamboo, and various found and upcycled objects, Toolbox Percussion will transport audiences on a sonic journey exploring themes of cultural diversity, sustainability, and social change.

 

Who: The concert is aimed at everyone aged 6 years old and above.

 

Details: Read more here.

 

CLICK THE BELOW LINK FOR FREE ESF TICKETS

 

https://www.eventbrite.hk/e/hkust-summer-festival-2024pulse-...

 

CONCERT TWO

 

What: Pianist KJ Wong and musicians of the Gustav Mahler Orchestra and the University Philharmonic Orchestra performing Beethoven, Mozart and Bach

 

Why: A classical concert at part of Music Lab Festival as part of HKUST Summer Festival 2024.

 

When: 7.45pm on Wednesday 12 June

 

Where: Shaw Auditorium at the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST)

 

Who: The concert is aimed at everyone aged 6 years old and above

 

CLICK THE BELOW LINK FOR FREE ESF TICKETS

 

https://www.eventbrite.hk/e/hkust-summer-festival-2024-music...

 

General Information

 

 

*Please note that this is not an ESF event and ESF has no liability or responsibility for any aspect of the event including the content, cancellation and so on.