HK BABY

A helping hand

With children spending more time at home, call on these trusty services when you need a little time for yourself

Nanny & Me

Run by a team of expats with extensive childcare experience, Nanny & Me understands that no two families are the same. They aim to cater to every family’s needs with a range of services including full and part-time nannies, maternity nurses and babysitters. nannyand.me

Babysitter.hk

Babysitter.hk is one of the largest childcare networks in the city with over 3,000 professional full and part time nannies and tutors - this service is particularly useful in an emergency. Babysitter.hk also offers a childcare support scheme for low-income families. babysitter.hk

Rent-A-Mum

Rent-A-Mum offers English-speaking nannies on a temporary or permanent basis. Ideal for an evening of babysitting or for mum’s returning to work. The team also offers maternity services such as 24-hour maternity nurses and sleep troubleshooting.

rent-a-mum.com

Mumz

For parents who miss swiping, this Tinderlike app helps you find your tribe. Scroll through the app and make friends with Mumz (or Dadz) in your area to create your own play dates. The App was created by Ekta Tejwani who also runs a Facebook group: Meet Mumz - Let’s build it together.

meetmumz.com

Safari Kid International

This is the first international unaccompanied day care centre for children under the age of two in Hong Kong. Programs are offered in Mandarin, English and Cantonese at their Happy Valley and Repulse Bay campuses.

safarikidinternational.com

Hong Kong Teen Sitters

This Facebook group is specifically for under 18-year-olds who have an interest in childcare and are looking for babysitting jobs. They’ll have the energy to run around and entertain the kids. Availability limited around school hours. facebook.com/groups/TeenSitters

Take a break

These luxury hotels cater to your childcare needs too

The St. Regis Hong Kong

Children are thoughtfully considered at The St. Regis Hong Kong with the hotel currently offering complimentary breakfast for under 12’s. Rooms are stocked with high-end amenities such as Mustela baby products and a chargeable outside babysitting service is also available. Details of an Easter-themed afternoon tea pop-up will be announced shortly. stregishongkong.com

Four Seasons Hotel Hong Kong

The Four Seasons Hotel Hong Kong offers an excellent in-house babysitting service as well as a range of complimentary infant amenities. The hotel also hosts children’s activities including nail art and cooking classes to keep little ones entertained.

fourseasons.com

The Ritz-Carlton, Hong Kong

In partnership with Junior Aviator Academy (JAA), The Ritz Carlton, Hong Kong is offering a Fly High Dream High Junior Aviator Program for its young guests where they can experience a flight simulator, try on pilot uniforms and attend an aircraft model making session. This experience is available until April 15. ritzcarlton.com

Loving life at St. Regis

education awards Hong Kong Education

Awards

Celebrating Hong Kong’s top education establishments

There’s no denying 2020 was an extraordinary year for international schools across Hong Kong. Facing long term closures, many were forced to re-evaluate how they engaged students, staff, parents, government and the wider academic community.

But in many ways, the industry has come out of 2020 prepared for the future like never before. Out of sheer necessity, technology became a central pillar of education, as did the value and importance of understanding students’ wellbeing.

For us here at Expat Parent, we believe it is now time to recognise this immense change. Today, we are proud to announce the launch of the Hong Kong Education Awards, a new initiative to celebrate the outstanding achievements of Hong Kong’s top international schools, principals, teachers and the wider education community.

The Hong Kong Education Awards will evaluate the performance of international schools across four key pillars: Academic Performance, People & Ethos, Vision and Student Experience.

For the past six months, we have worked with teachers, consultants and education experts to put together a comprehensive program that reflects the changing nature of education and its importance in the community.

Among the 25 categories are Most Socially Responsible School, Best Technology Program, Best School Strategic Plan, Best Student-Centered School, Teacher of the Year, Primary School of the Year, Secondary School of the Year and All-Through School of the Year. The awards will culminate in the prestigious Hong Kong International School of the Year.

The Hong Kong Education will be decided by an independent panel of education experts, academics and consultants covering the 2020 academic year. Several categories, including Hong Kong International School of the Year, Teacher of the Year, Boarding School of the Year and Principal of the Year will be open for a readers choice award until the end of May. Have your say: hongkongliving.com/

education

German Swiss International School

Gemma Shaw takes a look at German Swiss International School’s Bilingual Kindergarten in Pokfulam

Established in 1969 by German and Swiss families looking for a bilingual German/ Swiss education for their children, German Swiss International School (GSIS) first opened in a residential house at 1 Barker Road on the Peak. It grew and in 1975, it opened its first ‘proper’ school building on Guildford Road. In 2007, the government awarded the school a second campus on Pokfulam Road which in 2010, became a permanent home to the kindergarten.

The school prides itself on its outstanding and enviable academic reputation and is unique in that from kindergarten, two streams of education are offered – one taught in German and reflecting the German curriculum. A second international stream is taught in English and follows the British curriculum.

Why choose the German International Stream?

Apart from being the only kindergarten in Hong Kong where German is offered either

together with English or Mandarin in a bilingual immersion programme, there is also an emphasis on learning through play and the kindergarten follows a child-centred and holistic approach. “As each child is individual and learns at his or her own pace our focus lies on their strength and abilities instead of a problem or concern,” says Grit Cichon, Deputy Principal and Head of German International Stream.

The kindergarten proudly stands for equal opportunities and as such, every child is welcome and provided with opportunities to reach their full potential. The German International Stream (GIS) is also a through train stream from kindergarten to secondary and the international abitur opens the gateway to universities in Germany and worldwide.

A bilingual learning environment

According to the Head of Kindergarten, “Bilingual education provides children not only with a basic language acquisition skill, but also with an appreciation of other cultures.” Studies show that bilingual children have more creativity and competence in problem solving, as well as a greater ability to concentrate. A second language also enables children to strengthen reading, writing and comprehension skills in their own mother tongue. “It gives them a head start for university language requirements and offers improved international education and career opportunities. Given the fact that young children learn languages best by interacting with others, the stimulating learning environment at GIS Kindergarten offers numerous opportunities to do so,” says Burdel.

Learning together

GIS Kindergarten is the only department at GSIS where both streams are combined under one roof. Although the different streams follow different curricular, both streams work closely together and follow a similar timetable throughout the morning. The same values are also emphasised and best practices shared. The classroom arrangement at the Pokfulam campus is such that one German International Stream (GIS) class is situated with one English International Stream (EIS) class together on one floor with a common shared area in between. This area allows students from each stream to mingle during free play time and to have joint activities throughout the year. Beside weekly buddy class activities, festivals are also celebrated together. “The most important part is to accept and appreciate the different educational aims and methods of teaching of each stream and benefit from the likely synergy effects,” says Sophie Burdel, Head of Kindergarten.

A typical day in the German International Stream

A school day at GIS Kindergarten offers a balanced mix of teacher-led activities and free play which also includes elements of Montessori and Reggio Emilia Pedagogy. Throughout the year, theme and projectbased learning is alternated in order to take the children’s interests into account. Each class follows a weekly timetable which includes, PE, library, music and language lessons. Beside that daily activities include circle time, arts and crafts, stories, snack and playground time.

An Afternoon Activities Programme allows parents to choose at least two activities for their child which are not included in the annual school fees. The variety of activities on offer include sports, language, creativity and science and the general enrolment age starts at four years while some of the German language activities are already available for younger children.

Getting a foot in the door

When applying to the GIS kindergarten, no entrance assessments are required. However, it is part of the school’s admissions procedure to meet with the Head of Department, Ms Burdel, before a place can be offered. During the last year in kindergarten German language assessments and developmental assessments are conducted to detect areas, where further support might be necessary to make the transition to primary as smooth as possible.

Parental involvement

In the German stream, parents are encouraged to value the German school system and support their child’s language development. “Children whose parents are bilingual learn both languages more easily if both languages are cultivated at home,” says Cichon. However, GIS Kindergarten welcomes all students regardless of the language spoken at home or their cultural background. German as a second language lessons are timetabled and extra German language support classes are part of the school’s Afternoon Activity Programme.

Fostering values

Children are encouraged to be confident, independent learners right from the word ‘go’. Learning is supported through a broad and balanced curriculum with the aim of preparing little learners for the future. Resilience, self awareness, empathy, independence and responsibility are encouraged through daily teaching. “The approach is holistic and carefully strikes a balance between science-oriented and fact-based learning, creativity and ethicallygrounded reflection. Critical thinking, social responsibility, independent thinking and team-oriented action are considered particularly important,” adds Burdel.

Looking ahead

The bilingual kindergarten classes in the German International Stream are constantly being assessed and further developed. GSIS is also dedicated to improving the promotion of the German language within Hong Kong. In addition, the school is also working on the further development of the already successfully implemented Fast Track Programme, which enables children without German language skills to enter the sixth grade of the German International Stream.

gsis.edu.hk

School Report

Established date: 1969 Number of students: Around 1,220 Class size: Max. 20 per class Curriculum: German curriculum (Thüringer Bildungsplan) for the GIS Kindergarten Fees 2020/2021: Annual fee for Kindergarten $156,110 Non refundable capital levy: N/A Debenture: Standard Debenture $500,000 Address: 162 Pok Fu Lam Rd, Pok Fu Lam Admissions Tel: 2180 0511 - Ms Eva Ubowski