Peak View – 23 September 2016

Peak School’s latest newsletter is available to read now. Find out the latest news around the school and upcoming events.

[wc_fa icon=”angle-right” margin_left=”” margin_right=””][/wc_fa]  Principal’s Message

[wc_fa icon=”angle-right” margin_left=”” margin_right=””][/wc_fa]  PYP News

[wc_fa icon=”angle-right” margin_left=”” margin_right=””][/wc_fa]  Chinese News

[wc_fa icon=”angle-right” margin_left=”” margin_right=””][/wc_fa]  Green Group News

[wc_fa icon=”angle-right” margin_left=”” margin_right=””][/wc_fa]  Message from the School Nurse

[wc_fa icon=”angle-right” margin_left=”” margin_right=””][/wc_fa]  Lost and Found

[wc_fa icon=”angle-right” margin_left=”” margin_right=””][/wc_fa]  Key Dates

[wc_fa icon=”angle-right” margin_left=”” margin_right=””][/wc_fa]  Disclaimer

Principal’s Message

PYP News

This week marks our first full month in school and we are now truly in full swing.  All the classes have shown commitment in their learning, most especially through their units of inquiry. As you walk around the school, you will see children putting themselves in the ‘stretchy zone’ and improving their skills in all areas of learning.  You will find evidence of the children’s learning through the many displays around the school.  Of note are our Y6s, who have been busily researching and preparing for this year’s Day of the Notables.  We look forward to their presentations on Thursday, 29 September at 11:15am.

The Peak School staff have also shown commitment towards their own learning.  Teachers and EAs have attended professional development opportunities in school and around HK.  Various teachers and EAs have attended workshops on Leadership, Social Thinking, Mathematics, Planning in the PYP, First Aid, EAL and Growth Mindset.

The attitude of empathy is currently a focus in the units of inquiry in Y2, Y5 and Y6. Through the Y2 Who we are unit, the children are beginning to understand the concept of relationships, how our actions have an impact on others and how theirs have an impact on us.  The Y5s’ inquiry into children’s rights have allowed them to reflect on situations where some children do not enjoy the same rights and privileges as they do.  In Y6, the inquiry into peace and conflict have given way to discussions on challenges to and success stories on conflict resolution.  On a personal level, they are also learning how to resolve conflict amongst peers.  There are a number of books in the library and Big Universe that can help children have a better understanding of empathy.  Here are some of them:

International Day of Peace

Peak Students commemorated the International Day of Peace on September 21st. Our Y6 student council members put together a powerpoint presentation asking the question “What does peace mean to you?”. Children from different classes made their own posters and cards showing the meaning of peace. These beautiful works of art are now on display in school.  We would like to encourage everyone to continue to make posters so we can fill our wall with messages of peace.

Thank you to all the children who contributed to the display and congratulations to our student council members and Ms. Bloomfield for their first successful project this year!

Chiqui Colet
Vice Principal and PYP Coordinator

Chinese News

Parent Workshop:  Learning Chinese at Home

We are offering a workshop for parents on Thursday, 29 September at 8:45 – 9:45 am at the hall.  The workshop will focus on how you support your child at home by learning how to use different learning tools.  We will be introducing the different apps that are used in class and other ways you can enhance your child’s Chinese language learning.  You can sign up to this event by clicking HERE.

The Chinese Team

Green Group News

Zero Waste Events

This year will be the first time Peak School will be operating recycling and composting systems at PTA events as we move towards hosting Zero Waste events. The Green Group is designing posters to help people with waste separation at the Lantern Festival Event on Friday 30 September. We welcome volunteers to sign up on the PTA sign up document as Zero Waste Facilitators to help direct the recycling and composting process and help us reach our Zero Waste goal.

Environmental Conference

Also taking place shortly is this year’s ESF Environmental Conference at Discovery College on Friday 30 September. Twelve Year 4, 5 and 6 students from the Green Group have been invited to attend the conference where they will attend a variety of outdoor workshops on sustainability led by international and ESF educators and ESF Secondary School students.

Jo Bryce
Sustainability / Environment

Message from the School Nurse

Mosquito Update September 2016

Introduction

At Peak School we are very aware of the risks surrounding Mosquito bites particularly the growing concern around Zika Virus and Dengue Fever.  Although the only confirmed case of Zika Virus in Hong Kong was from someone who had been travelling and got infected abroad the risk of it reaching Hong Kong cannot be ignored.  It is now established in Singapore so has the ability to spread across Asia.

Dengue Fever is confirmed in Hong Kong and there have been several cases reported in recent weeks and the infections are Hong Kong wide including Central.

What is Zika Virus and Dengue Fever?

Zika virus is related to other virus’ such as dengue and yellow fever and is spread by daytime-active mosquitoes.  The infection, known as Zika fever or Zika virus disease, often causes no or only mild symptoms, similar to a very mild form of dengue fever. No specific treatment is recommended presently but paracetamol and rest. The risk is that it can spread from a pregnant woman to her fetus. A number of local cases presently in Singapore and one case in Hong Kong, this woman had recent travel to the Caribbean.

Dengue fever is a mosquito-borne tropical disease caused by the dengue virus.  Symptoms typically begin three to fourteen days after infection. This may include a high fever, headache, vomiting, muscle and joint pains, and a characteristic skin rash. Recovery generally takes less than two to seven days. The dengue viruses encompass 4 different serotypes, each of which can lead to dengue fever and severe dengue, also known as ‘dengue haemorrhagic fever’. The Department of Health has issued a report that there are some local cases of Dengue fever found. They had no recent travel history but one case did occasionally venture to the Hong Kong Zoological and Botanical Gardens.

We are not prepared to spray

Whilst, many schools are turning to chemical sprays as a solution to control their Mosquito population, Peak School is not.

Why we are not prepared to spray

• There are potential health concerns related to the insecticides that have been recommended.  There is research to suggest the sprays are safe but there is also as much research to suggest that they are not safe.
• It is not a well known fact that blanket spraying actually kills all insects.  The problem with this is that Mosquitos are the first to recover so they typically come back stronger.  Spraying is a short term solution and has to be repeated regularly to ensure it works on an ongoing basis.  This of course means that children are exposed to the sprays on an ongoing basis.
• There is also concerns about the residue left over from the spraying and the potential for children to come into contact with the chemicals in the days after spraying.  This is a risk that we are not prepared to take.
• One of our strategic goals is for Peak School to establish a permaculture and spraying does not fit in with our philosophy of becoming responsible and sustainable.

What are we doing instead of Spraying?

The PTA and the school are jointly looking at the different devices that are on the market and doing research into their effectiveness.  The PTA already provide the school with Co2 machines which attract and capture the mosquitos but they are only partially effective and certainly do not kill 100% of the mosquitos at Peak School.

We are in the process of organising a different type of device to compliment the machines we already have in school.  It is hoped that the combination of these different devices will help control the Mosquito population at the school.

With support from Jo Bryce we are identifying potential breeding grounds acting accordingly to minimize the risk of Mosquitos breeding on our school grounds.  This is the approach recommended by the World Health Organisation (WHO).

What can you do to help?

Here are some preventative measures that can be taken by the family

• Mosquito Patches
• Mosquito spray repellent
• Mosquito roll on repellent
• Skin care products.  It may sound a bit silly but apparently creamy baby oil has been shown to suffocate the mosquito’s and it is less harsh to the skin than deet products
• Cover up as much as possible if children have a high risk of being bitten (it is amazing how one child can be prone to be bitten but their brother/sister is not).
• Children are permitted to bring insect repellant to school if it is roll-on and not a spray. Due to student allergies it must be deet free or alternatively low in deet. The repellant should be labelled with the student’s name, kept in their school bag and not shared with other students.

Below is a recent letter we received from Ms Emilie Tong, the Chief School Development Officer from the Education Bureau with some information on the prevention of Dengue fever which we have been asked to share with parents.

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Prevention of Dengue Fever

In the view of the three confirmed local cases of dengue fever relating to Central and Western district, your school is reminded to stay vigilant and follow the recommendations below from the Centre for Health Protection (CHP) to strengthen the anti-mosquito measures:

(1)    Inspect immediately the school environment and remove any potential mosquito breeding sites, for example, cover all water containers and leave no water in plates or trays underneath flower pots.

(2)    Suggest your staff, parents and student apply a DEET containing insect repellant, which is effective in preventing mosquito bites to exposed parts of the body and clothing during outdoor activities. Please rest assured that DEET containing insect repellants can be used by children ages 6 months or above and parents are suggested to choose a lower concentration of DEET (up to 10%) for their child. Please refer to http:/www.chp.gov.hk/en/view_content/38927.html for other key points to be observed when using the insect repellants.

(3)    Remind your staff, parents and students to seek early medical attention if they have symptoms of dengue fever such as fever, rash, pain behind the eyes, muscle and joint pain etc.

Regarding CHP’s letter dated 7 September 2016 to all schools and child care centers regarding  a confirmed local case of dengue fever, please refer to http://www.edb.gov.hk/attachment/en/sch-admin/admin/about-sch/diseases-prevention/chp_20160907_eng.pdf. If you have any queries on the prevention of dengue fever, please contact the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department at 2868 0000.

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Michelle Buckley
School Nurse

Lost and Found

Please ensure that all hats, water & food containers and belongings are named.

Key Dates

Disclaimer

Peak School (PS) reserves the right to accept or reject any advertisement submitted for PS publications and on its websites. However, PS does not attempt to investigate or verify advertisements appearing in PS´s publications and on its websites. The appearance of advertising in PS´s publications and on its websites in no way implies endorsement or approval by PS of any advertising claims or of the advertiser, its product, or services. PS disclaims any liability whatsoever in connection with advertising appearing in PS´s publications and on its websites.