Monthly Newsletter (April 2024)
> PRINCIPAL’S MESSAGE
> RECENT HAPPENINGS
> UPCOMING EVENTS & INFORMATION
> PHASE YEAR 7-9
> PHASE YEAR 12-13
> STUDENT CELEBRATIONS
> SIS SPORTS!
> APRIL WEEKLY NEWSLETTERS
> KEY DATES & REMINDERS
Principal’s Message
Principal’s Vlog
Dear Parents and Guardians,
As we approach the end of the academic year, I want to reflect on one of the values we foster at South Island School and highlight the importance of resilience in our students. Our commitment to fostering self-awareness, resilience, and courage is at the core of our educational philosophy, and these attributes will serve our students well throughout their lives.
As our Year 11 and Year 13 students begin their formal examinations, self-awareness becomes incredibly important. Confidence in their knowledge and abilities will help them in their exams and enable them to face challenges and bounce back from disappointments. We are proud to provide numerous opportunities for our students to practice and demonstrate these vital qualities.
I would like to share a few recent examples that epitomise the spirit of self-awareness and resilience in action within our school community. Firstly, I had the privilege of celebrating with our previous Year 13 students, who gained acceptance to HKU for medicine and were also awarded scholarships. These remarkable individuals exemplify self-awareness, constantly growing in confidence and ability. We are confident they will continue to achieve great things in their future endeavours.
Secondly, during the recent badminton quarter-finals, our girls faced formidable opponents in both doubles and singles matches. Playing against stronger adversaries in front of a crowd can be daunting, and experiencing a losing streak can easily lead to feelings of defeat and the desire to quit. However, what I witnessed was truly inspiring. Although there were moments of frustration and sadness, our students quickly transformed these emotions into the motivation to persevere and use the experience as a stepping stone to become stronger players. Importantly, this resilience was not an individual effort but a collective one, as the team rallied around each other, providing support.
Finally, you will read about our fantastic Summer Concert held this week. For students to perform at such a superior level takes commitment, and we are proud of all our students. One stand out for me that you will read further down in our newsletter. Our students share their performing experiences, overcoming the fear of performing in front of others, and overcoming this fear. It truly is remarkable to have students articulate how they are building resilience.
These examples demonstrate the power of our values in action, and I could not be prouder to work in such an incredible school community. By nurturing self-awareness and resilience, we are equipping our students with the tools they need to navigate the challenges they will encounter throughout their lives.
As parents, your support and encouragement play a crucial role in fostering these qualities in our students, working together to provide students with a nurturing and empowering environment at school and home where they can develop self-awareness, embrace challenges, and learn from setbacks. Together, we can help them build the resilience necessary to overcome obstacles and thrive well beyond South Island School.
Enjoy reading the newsletter, and I hope you have a lovely weekend.
Carolyn Andrews
Interim Principal
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RECENT HAPPENINGS
(1) YEAR 11 DINNER DANCE
The stars and lights came out for our Year 11s as they primped up after a full day of school to celebrate the end of their middle phase at the Year 11 Dinner Dance. Over 160 students and 25 teachers and staff came to celebrate this incredible milestone as the Year 11s kicked off their final week of school before their GCSE examinations. The night, hosted by Year 11s Ahlia Koram & Sophie Edwards, was filled with thank you speeches to our Year 11 Tutors, hilarious awards, soulful performances from Soey So, Nicholas Wan, and Holden Luk, endless food, and, of course, dancing on the dance floor. Shoutout to the Year 11 Dinner Dance Head Team–Ahlia Koram, Shreya Gupta, and Andrea Lau– along with Mr Ian Brown, Mrs Laura Beaumont, and Ms Gloria Chui for their tireless work in making the night a dazzling success!
(2) SUMMER CONCERT
This past Tuesday, students and teachers from the music department took to the stage for our Summer Concert. With our new Head Girls hosting the show, over 200 students from the Jazz Band, Cello Ensemble, Year 7s, Year 8s, Year 9s, Year 12s, the SIS Choir, the Orchestra, and the Chinese Dance Team performed for our community 13 selections ranging from classical pieces such as ‘Eine Kleine Nachtmusik’ by Mozart to the K-Pop hit Cupid by Fifty-Fifty. This concert gives our advanced students a chance to hone and showcase their musical skills while also giving a platform to our younger students to develop their interest in the musical arts.
We were treated to a fantastic performance by four of our graduating Year 13 students, Aryan Saney, Iain Li, Palvo Cheng and Boden Cheung, taking the stage for the first time at SIS.
Shares Palvo, “We were super grateful for a chance to perform. I was supposed to perform during MusicFest this year but backed out at the last minute. Thank you to Mr [Papanastasiou] for giving us a chance to perform before we leave SIS. We are proud that we did our best and happy to have shared this with our school.”
Thank you to our music teachers, Mr Crichton, Mr Jolly, Mr Papanastasiou and all our performers for a wonderful evening!
(3) CURRICULUM EVENING – DESIGN & PE
Yesterday afternoon, we held our third and final curriculum evening of the school year, with the PE and Design department welcoming parents keen to chat with our teachers and learn more about our PE and Design curriculum. The PE department gave parents a detailed presentation on what SIS students can expect each year in PE classes. In the design rooms, parents were invited to participate in different design studio activities and chat with our teachers. Parents could choose their favourite felt pizza toppings in the textile rooms and create a pizza bookmark. In the Food and Nutrition classroom, parents were treated to pastries made by a few of our Year 10 students. Parents personalised a small souvenir made by our laser cutter in our Design Technology workshops and could take it home.
Thank you to all the parents who came out to learn more about our PE and Design curriculum. We’ll see you next time!
(4) YEAR 9 SCIENCE
In an engaging science experiment, Ms Greene’s Year 9 students took on the challenge of estimating the population size of clover in the lower ground floor area. Adding a modern twist to their methods, they utilised AI-generated random sample areas in conjunction with traditional quadrats.
With scientific curiosity driving them, they diligently counted and recorded their findings, capturing snapshots of various clover patches. The AI-generated random sample areas ensured a non-biased approach, making the data more reliable.
Our intrepid Year 9 scientists have cracked the clover code, revealing a staggering estimated population of 571—unveiling the hidden green wonders right here at South Island!
(5) YEAR 12 SPORTS SCIENCE TESTING
On Monday, our Year 12 sport science students took over a few of our morning lower years PE classes to run a series of athletics tests. Year 12 students, as part of their course of study, had to devise a test to measure various physical abilities, from speed and agility to reaction time and flexibility. Not only did they have to do work directly related to their assignment, such as background research and post-testing analysis, but the Year 12 students also had to work and ensure their instructions were correctly communicated to the PE Staff helping and the lower-year PE students taking the tests.
(5) YEAR 10 ENGLISH
Our Year 10 English class is currently going through classic literature. This week, in a lesson on Sophocles’ classic tragedy, Oedipus Rex, students were tasked to connect with their playful and creative side and create paper masks. Masks are an integral part of Oedipus Rex, as it indicates the different stages of the development of the protagonist, Oedipus the King. This in-class activity allows students to connect their learning in a fun and creative way.
UPCOMING EVENTS & INFORMATION
(1) SWIM CAP FOR PE CLASSES
The PE department would like to remind students and parents that swim caps are a required piece of the PE uniform and are mandatory during all swimming activities. Please ensure that your child comes prepared with a swim cap when they have swimming activities in PE. You may purchase the official SIS Swim Cap through the school uniform website HERE.
Additionally, per last week’s newsletter, we would like to continue to encourage students who require corrective glasses to consider purchasing a pair of sports goggles for an extra layer of protection.
(2) SLEEP GUIDANCE FOR PARENTS AND STUDENTS
Earlier this academic year, ESF hosted a webinar on the topic of sleep: Lights Out, Sweet Dreams: A Practical Webinar on Sleep for Parents and Caregivers.
ESF has created a set of notes from the webinar for the parents and students across the ESF Network. Learn more about the importance of sleep below!
– ESF Sleep Webinar Summary for Parents
– ESF Sleep Information for Young People (age 11+)
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PHASE YEAR 7-9
Message from Head of Phase Year 7-9:
As we look ahead to term 3, here are some activities Family Bauhinia will be involved in.
PLC Year 7 – A sense of excitement draws as we prepare to welcome the Year 6 students for their pastoral day in May. Having nearly completed our first year of transition to SIS, the Year 7 students have put together some videos to share with the Year 6 students. They have used their own experiences throughout the year to decide on focus areas for their videos that will welcome and provide valuable information to Year 6. The videos will be shared with their chosen class from the ESF primary feeder schools for this year. It should really make the incoming younger students feel valued and connected and help our Year 7 students prepare for their role in Year 8, supporting and guiding our new recruits. The videos made so far have been the most impressive.
PLC Year 8 –
In preparation for the reflections from the Year 8 Student Led Consultations – the Year 8s have been building various actions they can take, in collaboration with their teachers, to reach targets they set in their academic subjects and extra-curricular activities/out of school activities. We are focusing on these throughout this term to give students experience building an e-portfolio.
In addition, the Year 8s will have their first experience of the RSE morning, where they will take part in an assembly delivered by the school counsellors, in addition to smaller, tutor group-based sessions. Please read the upcoming email from Lucie Purves for more details.
The Year 8 Prefects are getting ready to hand over the responsibility to the current Year 7s. They have made a video to show the life of a Year 8 prefect to launch the recruitment process with Mr Thums. The current team has exceeded our expectations in running the Space this year and looks forward to sharing their knowledge and tips with next year’s team.
Family Bauhinia MaD Council Kindness Week – 6th – 10th May
The Family Bauhinia MaD council are busy planning the upcoming Kindness Week. A range of activities throughout the week will promote random acts of kindness for others, the school environment and ourselves. We know that being kind to others positively impacts us, and we hope to promote this throughout the week.
Ms Syrita Nicholas
Head of Phase Years 7-9
PHASE YEAR 12-13
Message from Head of Phase Year 12-13:
This last term is, in many ways, the pinnacle of the academic year for Senior School students. We had an exceptional final day for the Year 13s at The End on Friday, 12 April. The day commenced with a range of activities, where they celebrated their time at South Island School (including a final game of benchball!) and looked ahead to the future (identifying universities on a map of the world). They also had an opportunity to leave their mark through the traditional chalking of the lower playground. The day concluded with a final assembly featuring captivating performances by students and teachers, followed by a clap-out as they departed South Island as a united group for the last time.
What lies ahead? Year 13 students have already begun their final IB exams and eagerly anticipate the Commencement ceremony on Tuesday, 21 May, and the Dinner Dance on Thursday, 23 May. Year 12 students’ internal assessments will commence on May 13, an essential formative activity to prepare them for the final exams and a summative assessment of their learning thus far in the academic year.
Mr Hin-Hey Lam
Head of Phase Years 12-13
Student Celebration
(1) LIAM WILKINS (10N2) – 2024 ROLEX CHINA SEA RACE
A big shoutout to Liam Wilkins (10N2), who, over the term break, took part in the 2024 Rolex China Sea Race hosted by the Royal Hong Kong Yacht Club.
Sailing from Hong Kong to Subic Bay, Philippines, Liam, along with his father, was part of a 7-strong crew and took part in all required duties, including 2-hour night watch shifts through the dark hours of the night, meal preparations, and whatever tasks necessary to keep their cruising boat moving at a good pace.
Throughout their 6-day journey, Liam was treated to dolphin and whale sightings during the day and starry skies at night. The crew even caught a sizeable yellow-fin tuna and enjoyed a quick dip out in the South China Sea when the conditions allowed for it.
After 6-days, Liam and his crew were the first in their division to arrive in the Philippines, taking first place in the small cruising boat division. The crew hopped back into their boat the next day to make the return trip home to Hong Kong. All in all, Liam and the crew spent 11 days at sea, returning just in time for the start of Term 3.
Great job, Liam! We look forward to hearing more of your adventures out at sea!
(2) CAROLINE SKOETT (10S2) & GISELLE HUNG (10M1) – JUNIOR NETBALL LEAGUE U19 DIV. 3
Congratulations to Caroline Skoett (10S2) and Giselle Hung (10M1), who wrapped up a strong Junior Netball League season this past Sunday. Playing in the U19 Division 3 for HKU Sandy Bay RFC, the girls completed their season with a win against HK Cricket Club in the wet weather, taking home the bronze medal.
Great job, Caroline and Giselle!
(3) NICHOLAS WAN – DEBUT ALBUM RELEASE
A big shoutout to The Wavelength for the successful release of their debut album, 25! The two-man, indie-rock band, comprising Year 11 student Nicholas Wan (11N1) and former SIS student Maxi Clayton, began work on this project in January 2022, with most of the work done over long distance as Maxi is in boarding school in the UK.
As the primary songwriter and lead singer, Nicholas shares, “When our creative process for this album began, we started with the album’s final song and worked our way backwards. This approach sets the tone for the entire tracklist, which revolves around the breakdown of a relationship and internal battles within our minds. This album encapsulates the journey I’ve embarked upon over the past two years. During this time, I have faced numerous changes and hardships, all of which have contributed to my growth as I transition into young adulthood.”
As both Nicholas and Maxi are in Year 11, their next step is to dive into their GCSE exams in the coming weeks, but after that, they’ll begin work on new music. Until then, listen to 25 on Spotify, Apple Music, or wherever music is streamed. You can also follow @theofficialwavelength on Instagram to keep up with the latest news and updates from the band!
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SIS SPORTS!
(1) ISSFHK U20 GIRLS FOOTBALL
It’s an ESF battle at the ISSFHK U20 Girls Football semi-finals as the SIS took on ESF Discovery College at the North Plaza pitch in Discovery Bay last Friday. Travelling all the way to DB, the Lady Stingrays looked to knock out their undefeated ESF rivals in this match-up against the Kowloon Division number 1 seed.
TSIS lined up with 3 more debutants after 24 hours of scouting academy prospects to help with our injury-ravaged squad. Saidhb Martin, Hannah Rumble and Esther Au Yeung answered the call, “You’ll never win anything with kids”, Alan Hanson once famously said of the Man Utd class of 92. Could we too, prove him wrong?
With the Year 13s off during Exam season and the team ravaged by injuries, the team were able to pick up additional players in Saidhb Martin, Hannah Rumble and Esther Au Yeung to field a team for the pivotal semi-final match.
The Year 10 duo of Ava and Rachel, who have provided so much scoring throughout group play, missed out on multiple opportunities as both girls had shots denied by the post in the first half. A penalty save by DC also kept the Lady Stingrays off the scoreboard. Gia Brewster continued her recent run of excellent play in goal with two outstanding saves to keep DC off the board.
The second half continued to yield multiple chances, including another crossbar denial on a free kick by Rachel. For the first time in all season, the girls could not score in full-time, and it was off to penalties.
The stalemate continued between the two ESF rivals, and after 11 rounds of penalties, DC finally found the net after an SIS miss and clinched their ticket to the U20 Girls Football finals.
A big round of applause to our U20 girls, who, despite the loss, showed fantastic grit and determination throughout the season and never wavered amid adversity! Good ball, girls! The girls can still clinch a medal, as they will play in the 3rd/4th place match before wrapping up the season.
Team: Ava Jakeway, Saidhb Martin, Rachel Li (VC), Vedika Sreejesh, Gia Brewster, Aprilia Comsa, Skye Semple (C), Hannah Rumble, Esther Au Yeung
(2) C GRADE NETBALL PLAYOFFS
QUARTERFINALS V SINGAPORE INTERNATIONAL SCHOOL
C Grade Netball playoffs kicked off Monday as the SIS took on our Southside neighbours, Singapore International School, in the Quarterfinals. The undefeated Stingrays, despite multiple players unavailable due to injuries, continued their dominant season with a great team effort, controlling the game from the opening centre pass on their way to a 40-5 victory. Singapore International School chose Kourtney Lee as MVP, while the team selected Emma Soon as players player, and Louise Lindsay was chosen as the coaches’ player. The victory set the girls up for a semi-final match against ESF rival West Island School.
SEMI-FINALS V ESF WEST ISLAND SCHOOL
Fresh off their quarter-final win on Monday, the C Grade netball girls took on ESF rivals, West Island School.
The first quarter was a nail-biter, going goal for goal, and both teams immediately breaking each other’s centre pass. Going into the second quarter, after settling into the game flow, the girls played disciplined in attack along with airtight defence, allowing WIS to score only one goal. The girls continued to play superbly and pulled away from WIS, looking stronger and stronger as the match went on. The C Grade girls advance to the finals with a convincing 29-10 win. Coach Hadley declares this match the best performance of the season yet. Kourtney Lee was chosen as the MVP for the second consecutive match, with Louise Lindsay selected as players’ player by her teammates and Maggie Dowding was chosen as coaches’ player.
Team: Back row L to R: Kiana Lin, Adelaide Williamson, Zoe Villemeur, Liora Turner, Kayla McKeown, Emma Soon and Kourtney Lee. Front Row L to R: Maggie Dowding, Aprilia Comsa, Louise Lindsay and Ruby Ramsay
The C Grade finals will once again pit SIS against netball powerhouse Kellett School, with the Stingrays taking their undefeated record to Kellett, looking to come home with the gold.
(4) ISSFHK U14 MIXED ULTIMATE FRISBEE
In the first ISSFHK U14 Mixed Ultimate Frisbee match in the history of South Island School, the Stingrays took on ESF rivals West Island School. We had an eager bunch of flatballers who wanted to play every point.
With Coach and Ultimate Frisbee pro, Ms Mckeown leading SIS, the team’s game plan was to keep the offence calm and the defence aggressive, practising stalling. The team executed the game plan to perfection as the strategy caused WIS to panic huck (def: a long range throw, typically over 30 yards) the disc. The offence capitalised on turnovers, leading to an 8-0 score at the half.
In the second half, SIS continued to execute the gameplan, causing turnovers and capitalising on WIS’s mistakes. Players made smart decisions on offence, making smart long passes when players found open space and keeping things lateral when nothing developed down the field. Special mention to James Guest for his acrobatic one-handed catch from Jason Chu just outside the end zone, Rori Town, who had massive gains all day and gratuitous grabs/scores; Chloe Herminjard for finding open space with quick cuts on the field and pumping up the team with her cheers, and our girls Tze Ching Kao, Tamao Oyama, Vanessa Wong and Madison Cha being a stable option on O.
The Stingrays take the match with a 14-1 victory and look forward to their next match against Delia School of Canada in two weeks!
(5) GIRLS BADMINTON
The B and C Grade Girls Badminton teams wrapped up group play this Wednesday at the Chai Wan Sports Centre, with both teams playing for a spot in the semi-finals in their respective divisions. It’s a win, and you’re in.
C Grade
The C Grade girls took on a Cheung Chuk Shan College. With limited scouting information, Coach Lee decided to set the tone for a strong start playing Adelynn Chan in the first game. The strategy looked to be off to a rousing success as Adelynn was focused and in the groove right away, taking the first game 21:7 and giving South Island a quick 1 – 0 lead.
The first doubles game featured Bianca Iong and Genie Lo for the South Island. It was an even match-up all the way through; however, unforced errors eventually hurt SIS, and CCSC took the second game in a nail-biting 19:21 victory.
In the second singles match, year 7, Kelly Lok made a valiant effort against CCSC’s top player. Kelly showed great resilience in her matchup. However, the veteran player from CCSC was too strong to overcome, taking the game and giving CCSC a 2-1 lead heading into the 2nd doubles match.
With Adelynn and Hailey Yuen taking the court in a must-win game for the SIS, it was another nail-biter of a game as the SIS duo was able to mitigate the strong play from CCSC’s top player. As the game progressed, however, CCSC began to pull away, winning long rallies from SIS and eventually took the game 21:15 and the match 3 games to 1, knocking SIS out of the playoffs. While the results were not in our favour, the girls showed remarkable resilience throughout the match and supported one another through tough stretches. Great job girls on a fantastic season!
Looking forward to seeing you all back on the court soon!
Team: Adelynn Chan, Hailey Yuen, Genie Lo, Bianca Iong, Ashley Hui, Kelly Kok
B Grade
In court 2, the B Grade Girls took on our Nan Fung Road neighbours, HKUGA, for a spot in the semi-finals.
Utilising the same strategy as the C Grade girls, SIS sent out Evelyn Zhu to set the tone for SIS. Evelyn made quick work of her HKUGA opponent take the first game 21:1.
Next up for SIS was the duo of Cordelia Lee and Audrey Leung in the first doubles match. Despite some early game jitters, the girls eventually settled into the flow of the game and powered through after the half-game court switch, looking stronger and stronger as their game progressed. The duo finished off their HKUGA opponent by the score of 21:17 to give SIS two games to nil lead heading into the third game.
Coach Pang sent out Abigail Lee for the second singles game. Both girls played strong, as neither looked to have a clear advantage over the other. With some timely coaching from Coach Pang, Abigail came out after the court switch, looking dominant with multiple power shots that her opponent had no answers for. She finished off the game 21:16, giving SIS a match victory and a place in the semi-finals.
Team: Audrey Leung, Belmira Iong, Cordelia Lee, Evelyn Zhu, Abigail Lee
(6) U12 Football A Team
The Boys Under 12 Football A Team travelled to Discovery Bay this week for their season opener against DBIS.
The boys from Discovery Bay proved to be a well-drilled and strong opponent as they raced to a two-goal lead in the opening minutes. Captain Billy Dowding answered with a clinical finish of his own after a neat one-two pass from Caleb Turner.
However, that would be the extent of damage the boys could manage, as DBIS answered with a six-goal flurry, leaving South Island staring down the barrel of an 8-1 deficit at the half. With a renewed sense of purpose to make the game more competitive, the boys played much better in the second half, creating multiple opportunities and shots on goal from Billy, Lachie Hands, and Arjun Srivastava. However, solid goalkeeping from DBIS denied our boys from finding the net.
DBIS takes the match with an 11-1 victory, but the boys are not downbeat and look forward to their next match. MVP was Andre Cusack for excellent last-ditch tackles and powerful runs.
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APRIL WEEKLY NEWSLETTERS
- Linked below are this month’s weekly newsletters (for SIS Parents only through the ESF App):
REMINDERS & KEY DATES
APRIL
- 22 – 3 MAY: Y10 INTERNAL ASSESSMENTS
- 24 – 17 MAY: IB EXAMS
- 26 – 19 JUNE: I/GCSE EXAMS
- 26 – Y11 LAST DAY
- 26 – SISCHEF FINAL
- 29 – 3 MAY: Y9 HEAD OF HOUSE TRANSITION
MAY
- 1 MAY – PUBLIC HOLIDAY (LABOUR DAY) – NO SCHOOL
- 10 MAY – Y8 RSE MORNING
- 10 MAY – SIS Y12 BUSINESS DAY
- 13 – 24 MAY: Y12 INTERNAL ASSESSMENTS
- 15 MAY: PUBLIC HOLIDAY (BIRTHDAY OF BUDDHA) – NO SCHOOL
- 23 MAY: Y9 RSE MORNING
- 27 – 31 MAY: IGCSE ART EXHIBITION
- 31: Y6 TRANSITION DAY
Please access the latest school calendar HERE and the DRAFT of the 2024-2025 Calendar HERE
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If your child has a particular highlight or achievement you would like to share with the community, please email a short description and photo to ebulletin@sis.edu.hk
