CONTENTS
- Principal's Column
- Schoolwide News
- German International Stream
- English International Stream
- Highlights of the Week
Connect with GSIS
Our Y13 leavers took to the roof for a friendly, yet competitive, football match ⚽ against a team of cross-stream faculty. There were goals and tackles, but most importantly, laughter and handshakes all around. Best of luck to our Y13 final-year students as their journey in Secondary soon comes to an end.
#GSIS #GermanSwissInternationalSchool #InternationalSchool #HongKong #EducationalExcellence
GSIS Gazette – Issue #96
17th March 2023Principal's Column
Dear School Community
I am happy to have received news from the EDB on Monday that the last Covid restrictions have now been lifted from Thursday, 16 March.
Annual General Meeting - AGM
On Thursday, 9 March, the AGM took place, and four new members were elected to the Board. In addition, the Chairman of the Boards and some existing Board members were re-elected. The election process was productive and efficient, which confirms the excellent work the Board is doing, and that the school is on the right track. I was particularly pleased that the Chairman of the Boards received an excellent voting result. I want to thank the outgoing Board members for their work and congratulate the new Board on the result achieved.
SCMP - International School Fair
On Saturday, 11 March, GSIS was represented by a strong team at the International School Fair. I was impressed by the number of parents approaching our stand to show their interest in GSIS. At the same time, I was surprised that many were unaware that GSIS offers two equal-standing degrees in the two international streams, the DIA (German International Abitur) and IBDP (International Baccalaureate Diploma). At first, most conversations focussed on the IBDP. However, in the end, the conversations mainly centred around the unique features and opportunities that lead to the DIA degree. Please help us to support the school when having conversations with your friends and contacts and inform them about the possibility of obtaining an excellent degree in the German International Stream, where the acquisition of the German language is guaranteed by the GSIS teaching staff, as it is at all German Schools Abroad. We will ensure your child will prosper and feel responsible for their success at school.
With best regards
| Dr Dirk Bennhardt Principal |
Schoolwide News
Cafeteria Lunch Menu (April 2023)
Please find attached the April 2023 lunch menus for our Secondary and Primary Students. Alternatively, you can also find further information on our website.
Each day Secondary students can choose between four different hot dishes, including a vegetarian option and a noodle soup option. To complement the main courses, students can also add a dessert for an additional HK$10 and/or add an additional portion of protein for an additional HK$15. The prices per meal remain at HK$35, HK$ 37 and HK$39 respectively for this academic year 2022/2023 and are payable by Octopus card only when lunch is collected. No cash payment will be accepted. In addition to hot lunches, Secondary students can also choose from a wide range of ciabattas, croissants and other snacks including smoothies and soft drinks at our Coffee Corner.
Primary parents are welcome to pre-order hot lunches for their child/children who are participating in activities in lessons 9 and 10. Pre-ordered lunches for Primary Students will be delivered to the Upper Building each day at 1:15 pm. The AA/ECA Term 3 2022/23 (Primary Peak students only) will start directly after our Easter holidays on Monday, 17 April 2023.
Primary Pre-Order Form April 2023 (deadline is Wednesday, 29 March 2023)
For further questions please feel free to contact directly Mr. Ariel Chan, Operations Manager, Compass Group Hong Kong Limited, or Mr. Baric So, Unit Manager Chartwells / Compass Group Hong Kong Limited via email: gsis@compass-hk.com.
|
Angelin, Emily, Minerva and Conny Student Services Team |
Attachments
https://www.gsis.edu.hk/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/GSIS_Lunch_Primary_April-2023.pdf, https://www.gsis.edu.hk/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/GSIS_Lunch_Secondary_April-2023.pdf
Enjoy Spring Sunshine
Winter is officially over, and days are brighter and warmer. Although we are in the middle of the school year with lots of exams and tests ahead, it is worth taking a break and going outside. Sunlight can positively impact your mental and physical health. Here are a few reasons why a regular dip in spring sunshine is good for us.
Boost your mood - Serotonin is a hormone that plays an important role in regulating mood, emotions, appetite, and digestion. Low levels of it are associated with a higher risk of major depression. Daily exposure to sunlight can trigger a release of serotonin.*
Improve your sleep - Circadian rhythm is an internal clock that controls a wide range of processes in the body, including sleep. Light plays a vital role in its regulating. Research says that getting one hour of sunlight every morning helps to reset the inner clock and improves sleeping quality.
Get more vitamins - Vitamin D is essential for optimal health that most people don’t get enough of. Regular sun exposure is, so far, the best way to boost vitamin D levels.
* Limit sun exposure between 10:00 am and 4:00 pm when UV rays are the strongest. Don’t forget to use sunscreen when staying outside.
| Karina Elwert |
A Letter From The University Guidance Team
ADMISSION INFORMATION SESSIONS
1) Education Suisse: Study in Switzerland (ONLINE)
Date: Tuesday, 21 March 2023, 5:00 pm
2) German Consulate General Hong Kong: Study In Germany II (ONLINE)
Date: Tuesday, 28 March 2023, 5:00 pm
3) Manchester University Taster Lecture in Biosciences (in person)
Professor Nicky High from the University of Manchester will deliver a taster lecture at GSIS.
Date: Thursday, 30 March, 12:35 - 1.15 pm
Students should register their interests using this form.
More details about the above events can be found here.
4) CIS University Virtual Fair
Parents and students are invited to the 2023 CIS University Exploration Day, in China incl. Hong Kong & Macau.
Date: Wednesday, 3 May 2023, 2:00 - 4:30 pm
To register please click here.
5) King's College London - LAUNCH OF new BSc/MSci Natural Sciences
An exciting new suite of undergraduate degree programmes in Natural Sciences is set to launch at King’s for the first entry in September 2024.
Please see the attached flyer and register here.
6) CASTRIPS GLOBAL STUDENT CONFERENCE 2023
Castrips regional Global Student Conference series will be held on 3 stunning IB World School Campuses in Boston, Edinburgh and Malaysia-Singapore to unpack the global issue of ‘The Future of Food’.
To know more please click here (deadline to apply: 1 May 2023)
ENRICHMENT & ADVANCEMENT OPPORTUNITIES
1) King's College London Summer School
Offering three sessions, and seven subjects on campus in 2023, King's Pre-University Summer School is open to high-achieving students who are about to start or who are enrolled in their final two years of high school.
Please find the details for all events in the attached PDF.
 Claire Wilkins |
 Beatrice Ugolini |
Attachments
https://www.gsis.edu.hk/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/KCL-NMES-NATURAL-SCIENCES-FLYER.pdf, https://www.gsis.edu.hk/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/University-Guidance-Gazette-96.pdf
A Community of Giving
The GSIS Annual Fund
Our goal is to create a 'community of giving' which can come in many different ways. Because every contribution counts, we are grateful for the support thus far towards our GSIS Annual Fund.
In addition to personal donations where we continue to welcome your generosity, alternative ways to show your support is by incorporating a GSIS education into your corporate philanthropy efforts. Many community members have successful careers and businesses, and we ask that you join us in this shared commitment to help raise money for the school. We are looking for partners in any of the following ways:
- Corporate Donations - cash or in-kind donations of goods or services which would go towards fundraising initiatives such as the Christmas Bazaar
- Giving Campaign - a percentage on service or retail products to go to the school
- School Grant - proceeds to help upgrade the facilities
No matter how big or small, your invaluable support would make a tremendous impact on the GSIS community. Please reach out to the Advancement team at advancement@gsis.edu.hk or 2825 8116.
Easter Camps 2023 - Enrollment Open
GSIS EASTER CAMP 2023
GSIS students book here and GSIS students’ siblings & staff children here.
EASTER SWIMMING CAMP (BY JET WAVE SOLUTION)
For more information and camp fees, please scan the QR code or contact jetwavesolution2021@gmail.com.
EASTER CAMP ‘Voice Acting & Sound Effects, Comedy Edition’ (BY BABEL FILM WORKSHOP LIMITED)
Please book via SchoolsBuddy.
GSIS - ALBA BERLIN EASTER BASKETBALL CAMP
„Perfect the Basics“ Camp for Primary School
“King of the Court” Camp for Secondary School (previous basketball experience recommended)
Enrolment for all groups will be open until Friday, 24 March 2023, 10:00 am through SchoolsBuddy.
Please feel free to contact us at ecacoordinator@gsis.edu.hk or afternoonactivities@gsis.edu.hk if you have any further questions. Please find more details about all events here.
|
Angelin, Emily, Minerva and Conny STUDENT SERVICES TEAM |
Attachments
https://www.gsis.edu.hk/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/GSIS-Easter-Camp-2023_daily-schedule-example.pdf, https://www.gsis.edu.hk/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/Easter-Camp-Babel-Film-Workshop_2023-1.pdf
German International Stream
From Head of Stream
Last week, Ms. McNeill and I had the pleasure of representing our school at the didacta in Stuttgart. It is one of Germany's most important education fairs and provides a comprehensive overview of opportunities and trends in the education sector. For several years now, the Central Agency for German Schools Abroad (ZfA) has organised a joint representation of all their schools at didacta, thus offering interested teachers the opportunity to learn more about the Germans Schools Abroad and the application process. In addition to short- and medium-term staff recruitment, didacta is an important exchange and networking forum where representatives of the ZfA and KMK, School Management, and School Boards are available for various talks and workshops.
As one of the 110 schools represented in Stuttgart this year, didacta proved an excellent opportunity for us to introduce GSIS and Hong Kong as a place to live. We witnessed in many of our conversations that even after Covid, many teachers still dream of living and working abroad. A highlight was hearing that Hong Kong is returning to the focus of prospective teachers as a desirable school location, a positive sign to guarantee a sufficient supply of teachers in the future. The special bond created when working at a school abroad also became evident by the warm encounters with former staff members who used didacta to reconnect with "their" GSIS: Ms. Kleine-Pollmann (Director of HR), Mr. Scholz (Head of GSD), Mr. Schreiber (GSD) und Mr. Kim (GSD).
. 
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| Grit Cichon Deputy Principal / Head of German International Stream |
Kindergarten Corner
We finally saw the last Covid preventive measures lifted for all Kindergarten children in Hong Kong. We would like to strongly remind all parents to observe their children's health, and if your child is sick, please keep them home until they fully recover.
After three years, these two events that took place this week are a testament that our Kindergarten has returned to normality. On Wednesday, the Year 10 drama students from the Peak performed "The Gingerbread Man" to our children at Pok Fu Lam. Today, we celebrated that every child is a winner at Stanley Ho Sports Day with parents. In addition, we look forward to the start of the Afternoon Activities on Monday, 20 March.
More events for the children will take place before the Easter holidays:
- Wednesday, 29 March: Easter Celebration and Easter Egg Hunt (the Easter Bunny is back in town!)
- Thursday, 30 March: Pok Fu Lam Easter Assembly, followed by the Easter Bonnet Parade
Our second Kindergarten KPR Meeting will take place on Thursday, 30 March. If you have suggestions or any topics for discussion, please email them to your class parent representatives in time for the agenda.
 Sophie Burdel |
 Eileen Mah |
Departmental News and Announcements
No updates / announcements this week
Primary Corner
What a lovely week we had! It was just wonderful to see the community together again at the Sports Days. The children had so much fun and it looked like the parents did too - we were all so happy to be able to hold this event together again. Huge thanks to the PE team, Mr. Champion and Mr. Deingruber for organising the days for us.
Wandertag
Wandertag is an old tradition from Germany where learning is taken outside. Children learn about nature and culture on their hike. In addition, they experience class community and have lots of fun! This year's Wandertag will take place on Friday, 31 March 2023.
School newspaper
We are pleased to present the next edition of "Wir Schlaumeier". Many thanks to all the pupils who wrote the report. We hope you enjoy reading issue 9.
 Priska Erni |
 Beate Weinhardt |
Departmental News and Announcements
No updates / announcements this week
Looking for what's been going on in class this month?
Secondary Corner
The last few weeks have been busy with the completion of several critical exams, such as the written exam for the German International Abitur (DIA) for the K12 students, the "Zentrale Klassenarbeiten (ZKA)" for the K10 students and parts of the "Thüringer Kompetenztests" for the K06 and K08 students. In addition, we also held our Parent Information Days this week.
Next week our German Primary and Secondary Departments will be in focus. As part of the continuous quality development of the GIS, the so-called "Peer-Review" will take place from 20 - 22 March 2023. Three experts who also work at German Schools Abroad will visit the school. During these three days, the "Peers" will visit different lessons and speak to the students and the teachers. The "Peer-Review" is a part of the quality development measures for German Schools Abroad. It is, therefore, a mandatory part of the preparation for the upcoming Bund-Länder-Inspektion (BLI - Federal State Inspection) in the autumn of 2023.
Other events on the calendar before the Easter holidays are the CPD Day, the finals of 'Jugend Debattiert' and the Spring Concert.
 Udo Krebs |
 Arnold Leitner |
Departmental News and Announcements
English International Stream
From Head of Stream
I very much hope you have been able to join one of the many public events at the school recently whether sports days, music concerts or parents’ information days. It is wonderful to see all members of our community back on campus. One of my highlights last week was visiting the joint GSD & ESD Visual Arts Exhibition at the gallery adjacent to Artland in Wan Chai. The range of portraits from students from K05 to Y13 was spectacular and our thanks go to Hannah Lentz, Andy Hull and Emily Hill for curating the event.
Discovery Week 2023
Thank you to all those who replied to the recent parent survey about Discovery Week 2023 in which you were given four options: Overseas Europe, Overseas Asia, Hong Kong and School. Here is a breakdown of the total number of replies we received:
K06 - 17/29 - 58.6%
Y07 - 77/81 - 95.1%
K07 - 15/26 - 57.7%
Y08 - 52/81 - 64.2%
K08 - 23/27 - 85.2%
Y09 - 51/75 - 68.0%
K10 - 5/12 - 41.7%
Y10 - 45/71 - 63.3%
Y11 - 52/69 - 75.4%
As we have not been able to run overseas trips for three years, this year’s focus will be Germany, Austria and Switzerland and these options proved most popular. There was also a strong level of interest in our service trips in Asia, particularly the coral preservation trip to Anilao and the house-building project in Cambodia, which we are keen to rekindle to maintain our commitment to meaningful service learning. The most popular trip destinations were as follows:
Germany: Bavaria & Salzburg - 29
Germany: Berlin Art - 17
Germany: Berlin Language Enrichment - 25
Germany: Freiburg & Black Forest - 39
Germany: Munich - 15
Austria: Vienna & Salzburg - 66
Switzerland: 42
These numbers have given us a clear guide and represent choices from across all year groups in GSD & ESD. Please bear in mind that it will not be possible to send all students to these countries in terms of logistics, but we shall try to get as close as possible! We are now working with external providers to cost the trips and will present some options to parents after the Easter break.
| Simon Misso-Veness Deputy Principal / Head of English International Stream |
Kindergarten Corner
We finally saw the last Covid preventive measures lifted for all Kindergarten children in Hong Kong. We would like to strongly remind all parents to observe their children's health, and if your child is sick, please keep them home until they fully recover.
After three years, these two events that took place this week are a testament that our Kindergarten has returned to normality. On Wednesday, the Year 10 drama students from the Peak performed "The Gingerbread Man" to our children at Pok Fu Lam. Today, we celebrated that every child is a winner at Stanley Ho Sports Day with parents. In addition, we look forward to the start of the Afternoon Activities on Monday, 20 March.
More events for the children will take place before the Easter holidays:
- Wednesday, 29 March: Easter Celebration and Easter Egg Hunt (the Easter Bunny is back in town!)
- Thursday, 30 March: Pok Fu Lam Easter Assembly, followed by the Easter Bonnet Parade
Our second Kindergarten KPR Meeting will take place on Thursday, 30 March. If you have suggestions or any topics for discussion, please email them to your class parent representatives in time for the agenda.
|
Sophie Burdel |
Eileen Mah |
Departmental News and Announcements
No updates / announcements this week
Primary Corner
What a lovely week we had! It was wonderful to see the community again at the Sports Days. The children had so much fun, and it looked like the parents did, too - we were all so happy to be able to hold this event together again. Huge thanks to the PE team, Mr. Champion and Mr. Deingruber, for organising the days for us.
We were also treated to several excellent author visits organised by our English Leader, Ms. Marsh, as part of the Hong Kong Literary Festival. Another wonderful return to normal for EPD! Photographs of both events will be available on the class's Google Sites.
This week and next, we have our Parent information meetings in person or online. If you are coming to school, please be reminded that you should not go around the school unaccompanied for safeguarding reasons.
Coming up on Friday, 31 March, we are delighted to be able to bring back another Primary Department favourite: Wandertag. Full details will be shared by email, but please save the date and get your hiking shoes ready for a fun family event before the Easter holiday.
 Donna Morley |
 Eleanor Cowling |
Departmental News and Announcements
No updates / announcements this week
