Dear all,
It is beginning to look like Christmas!
Christmas Show
This year, we bring you the spirit of the season through JCSRS Christmas Show: Giving and Receiving. The Christmas tree is up and the school is beautifully decorated thanks to Alfert and his army of helpers: staff and students. Christmas show preparations are also well on their way.
Remember to book your ticket for the show and join us as we keep the JCSRS festive traditions alive. Parents will have received an App message with a link to the form.
This is the season for giving and you can help us support our school by purchasing cards and wrapping papers or by making a donation on the day of the show. All proceeds will go towards our new playground equipment.
We hope that you will be able to share with us the magic of Christmas.
Parent Partnership
We have a strong commitment to supporting parents as partners in students' learning.
Parent Consultations Evenings and Annual Review Meetings are great opportunities to listen and engage with parents on their child's learning. We know that these opportunities are really important to our parents as we had 94% at the most recent Parent Consultation meetings. Thank you all for your contribution and invaluable feedback.
We also had a very good attendance of parents to our AAC Meet Up session run by our Speech Therapists. May and Cheryl, thank you for organising and facilitating these very popular events and I am sure parents are looking forward to future meetings.
I would like to also thank our new and old PTA Committee members for volunteering their time. JCSRS PTA serves an important role in promoting cooperation between parents and teachers and facilitating discussion on matters relating to the education offered by the school.
I would like to invite all parents to Principal Meet Ups with the first one being held on 21st of January. Each meeting will have a theme related to the School Improvement Priorities with the main aim of the sessions to listen and create mindful engagement with parents.
We hope to build on our parent partnership as we move forward in the year.
Warm regards,
Anna
Priority Area: Student Agency and Voice
The Speech Therapy Team at JCSRS have been busy this month promoting Student Voice across school and home. The School Improvement Plan supports including student voice in learning design, and examples of this can be seen across the school in the use of AAC to support students in communicating about their learning, their interests and their interactions.
We were pleased to host our second AAC meetup and this time we welcomed family members to our new meeting space in Innovation House for our first face to face practical session. This month we explored core vocabulary and different activities at home to use modelling in.
Click on the photo to see the presentation shared during the session:
We would also like to extend our thanks to colleagues and students at Beacon Hill School for a successful collaboration to produce keyguards for some of our AAC users. Keyguards are small grids that sit on top of the iPad/AAC device to support with fine motor skills. Beacon Hill School used their technical knowledge and skills of 3D printing to produce these for our students.
Save the date:
What’s available in Hong Kong for my son/daughter following graduation from JCSRS?
JCSRS families aged Year 11 and above will soon receive an e-notice invitation to our annual parent information session providing details of external agencies sharing an overview of the programs and services available to the English speaking community in Hong Kong.
We’re planning to host the event in school with confirmation closer to the date. Any questions, please contact Belinda McLaughlin.
We are committed to supporting our parents through their journey at JCSRS, therefore we want to create several opportunities for us to listen and create mindful engagement with parents.
From January 2022 we are introducing a Principal Meet Up as a new opportunity for parents to engage in a personalised, small group session to chat with the Principal, Anna Smakowska and other school leaders on various whole school topics.
Our first session will be on Friday 21st January 2022 and the theme for this session will be Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI).
The key questions for this session will be:
What is going well for your child right now in relation to DEI? What is something you feel proud of?
What should we know about your beliefs, values and culture to best support your family/ child?
What feedback do you have for us to improve your child’s experience or the school in general in relation to DEI?
Sessions will run face to face in the Innovation House (meet in the JCSRS playground) and will be limited to 15 parents.
If you would like to attend the upcoming session, please sign up on this form.
AAC Top Tips: Tell Me More! Part 2
In the last newsletter we talked about ways to build more complex utterances for learners who are gaining competence with their AAC systems. Building longer, more sophisticated utterances is a process that takes time but is an investment worth making.
One of the reasons why many AAC learners habitually use simple language is that their communication partners accept it. We use the context and our knowledge of the learner to read into their utterance and interpret what they are saying. Often (but not always), we guess correctly. But when we do that, they have no need to be clearer, more detailed, or more precise in what they say. They become dependent on the informed, familiar listeners. Instead of ‘reading into’ what your child is saying, encourage them to use more advanced language by NOT over-interpreting their message. Tell them you don’t have enough information to understand. “So, I know that you’re telling me about the mall this weekend, but I’m not sure who you were with or what really happened.”
And then we wait. Look interested, and wait expectantly. 5 seconds, 10 seconds, 15 seconds, or more. It depends on what your AAC learner needs, but the idea is that we are creating a space for them to realise that they need to say more.
Repeat what you know and pause to encourage the AAC learner to complete the sentence. “I am not happy.” “Oh, I’m sorry to hear that. I’m not happy because…”
Spotlight: International Day of Persons with Disabilities
What is International Day of Persons with Disabilities?
International Day of Persons with Disabilities falls on the 3rd of December each year, with the aim of promoting empowerment, and helping to create real opportunities for people with disabilities. This enhances their own capacities and supports them in setting their own priorities. Empowerment involves investing in people in jobs, health, nutrition, education, and social protection. When people are empowered they are better prepared to take advantage of opportunities, become agents of change and can more readily embrace their civic responsibilities.
International Day of Persons with Disabilities (IDPWD) is a day which promotes equality for people with disabilities in all areas of society.
This day was first announced by the UN in 1992 with the aim of advancing disability rights and protecting the wellbeing of people with disabilities.
According to the World Health Organisation, around 15% of the world’s population are considered to have some form of disability. But all too often, the needs of people with disabilities are not catered for by the society they live in.
The International Day of Persons with Disabilities is intended to break down barriers to inclusion and fight for the rights of individuals with disabilities.
The United Nations has designated December 3rd as the International Day of Persons with Disabilities in order to raise awareness about disability issues and mobilise support for greater equality. This day is a great opportunity for us all to take action toward making our world more inclusive for everyone.
You can share stories online using the #IDPwD hashtag or simply spread awareness by sharing the website. We hope that you will join us in celebrating this important occasion!
Further information:
International Day of People with Disabilities website