Top Schools Asia

In this week's podcast, Ruth Benny from Top Schools speaks with Joanna Hotung from Kids Gallery. They discuss school readiness, applying to schools, and being a parent in Hong Kong.

-Hong Kong is a unique place of craziness. You get a fusion of cultures, mental pressures and anxiety. You try to get the most out of each culture and give the most to your kids. 

Joanna's daughter went to six interviews before settling on the Canadian International School. They choose this school because of the sports teams, Chinese programs and the amazing support by the school.

-There’s no guarantee that a child will do well on the interview or assessment. On the interview day, they might not perform as expected. All we can do is try our best and give them every opportunity to do well.

-International schools are looking for students who can go beyond what they were trained to say. The child will not be accepted if s/he answers all the questions robotically. 

-The way your child will perform on the day of the assessment is not directly related to the training, but rather their life experiences and their day-to-day activities. 

-Don't make shyness an excuse. Make "saying Hello" a habit. 

-Set aside some time for your child and you to talk as often as possible.

In this episode, we will focus on outdoor education. We start by looking at the benefits of outdoor and wilderness education and then move on to discuss some specific schools that offer that kind of an experience. 

• Education writers have been talking for a long time about the importance of learning from nature while in the wilderness. 

Top Schools Ruth Benny talks with Renée Boey, Founder & Head of School at *Bloom KKCA Academy. About Bloom - A new school of innovation to open in Fall 2021 founded by educators, entrepreneurs and engineers. Bloom KKCA Academy will offer a progressive G1-6 bilingual, project-based education. Bloom's curriculum is built with an eye toward the future and prioritizes the mindsets and skills of adaptable innovators. Bloom's mission is to ignite and nurture students’ deepest potential to blossom into compassionate creators and social innovators.

• Character education is an important part of teaching our children to be responsible, caring citizens. Parents have a vital role in helping schools teach character education, by encouraging your child to do what is right and discouraging them from doing wrong. By working together at home and school, we can help our children develop good habits for life – habits that will make them better students today and tomorrow!

Sam arrived in colonial Hong Kong in 1996. Arriving with nothing more than a backpack, she shares about her experience as a mother of two in Hong Kong.