Hello all,
I am quite sad to announce some bad news on my side - though there is some good news, too. Over the summer, my mother passed away. This left my stepfather alone with nobody to care for him. He is a very active and able man, so when I returned to Hong Kong at the end of summer, I believed he would be able to manage on his own, which up to this point he has. We message each other regularly and I also call and check in on him. He lives in USA, so it's not always easy for me to find the time to communicate with him because of the time difference or because I'm busy at school. I messaged him on Friday, and when he didn't reply, I figured he was busy or went somewhere with no mobile reception. I tried calling him the next day and he didn't pick up his phone again. On Tuesday, a friend messaged me with the same concerns about him not reading his messages, so I contacted one of his neighbors to check in on him. When they arrived at his home, they found him laying on the floor. He'd had a stroke and he must've been laying there for at least three days. The good news is that we found him in time and he survived! I was even able to talk to him on the phone after he spent some time in the ICU at the hospital. The not-so-good news is that I need to go back and make sure he's taken care of for the immediate future, as I'm the only person who can take care of him right now. I'm not sure how long it's going to take for me to get everything in order, but I WILL be coming back and teaching again in the (hopefully) not so distant future. Some more good news is that in the meantime, your children will be in the best hands, with Mr. Joel covering my 2A GE class, Mr. Andy covering my 2B GTE class, and Mr. duPreez covering my 6E class. I can't think of three more capable teachers than them, so please don't worry! I will continue to be involved as Panel Head concerning matters with the English team, working remotely to make sure the department continues to run smoothly, and if you have any concerns or questions, please don't hesitate to contact me at [email protected] I hope this message finds you well. Warmest regards, Mr. Leigh Hello everybody!
I hope everyone had a happy and relaxing summer holiday! Mine was full of ups and downs, but in the end it was a good one. At the end of last school year, I had planned to go to Italy for two weeks with my family. However, my mother had been sick for a few months, and I wasn't sure if I would be able to spend the whole time with my family, or if I would need to go back to USA and be with my mom. Well, I got a message from my father the day I landed in Italy, saying that I should go back to be with her because things weren't looking good. I immediately booked my flight to USA, and the next morning I went to the airport and continued my journey. In the end, I was able to spend two beautiful weeks with my mother before she passed away at the end of July. It was bittersweet, but I'm glad I got to be by her side in the end. ------------- But now, on to bigger and brighter things. After many fruitful years at G.T., my esteemed colleague and English Panel, Ms. Sue Tam has decided to cash-in on some well-deserved time to herself. The news of her leaving G.T. was not an easy pill to many of us to swallow, but we're working our hardest as a department to fill her shoes. I will be working between the two campuses as the English Panel Head, whilst teaching 2A and 2B in Mong Kok, and 6E in TKO. I am very excited to have the opportunity to work between the two campuses, as I love teaching both lower and upper primary students alike! Finally, I want to make sure that parents and students both feel comfortable to approach me with any questions or concerns you may have throughout the year. Please feel free to send me an email ([email protected]), give me a call (2535-6869), or come find me at school. I'm always happy to chat! Dear parents and students,
As you already know, I've been absent this week, and unfortunately I will remain unable to come in to teach for some time 😔 On Saturday I was playing softball and I tore my Achilles tendon. This is the tendon that attaches the calf muscle to the heel. Long story short, I can't walk now and I need to stay off my feet for about a month. After that, I will be in a walking boot for another month or two, so I can come back to teach at that time. I already miss you all so much! If you have any questions or just want to drop me a line, please don't hesitate to contact me at [email protected] I'm looking forward to seeing you all again soon! All the best, Mr. Leigh ![]() Test time is always stressful for students (and of course parents, too). Here are some tips that will help students and parents manage stress in the days leading up to and during the assessment. 1. Manage your study time wisely. If you feel exhausted, take a break. Frustration is detrimental to learning. 2. On the day of your assessment, arrive early. Your confidence will increase if you give yourself time to settle in and relax before the test. Anxiety leads to memory loss. Eat a healthy dinner the night before, don't sleep too late, and eat breakfast the day of your test. 3. Read test instructions carefully and look over the test. Test instructions and questions often offer valuable information. Always read all instructions carefully and make sure that you didn't miss any information. Look over the test before you begin to have an idea what you will be doing. 4. Look for cues. Pay attention to grammatical similarities between the question being asked and the answers. If an answer seems correct but doesn't match grammatically with the question, then it probably isn't the correct answer. 5. Answer all of the questions. You won't get any marks if you leave an answer blank, but most of the time you can get partial marks even if your answer is not the correct one. Never leave answers blank! 6. Maintain a positive attitude. Do not lose confidence or waste time if you encounter confusing or difficult questions. Answer the questions you know first. It takes time to practice and develop test-taking skills. To determine whether your test taking strategies are working, take time to evaluate your performance after each test, and be sure to take note of where you're struggling. Are you struggling with writing, comprehenssion, or multiple choice questions? If you're struggling, then arrange to meet with your teacher to deterine what you can do to improve. Keep up the hard work! You can do it! It's been a few weeks since the students have been back. A few weeks since I've been teaching. A few weeks of commuting. Commuting. Commuting...
And it's not so bad. In fact, it's pretty great! I'm learing that one of my favorite parts of the week is my Wednesday "hall duty" at the G.6 corridor. It's been a blast re-connecting with my old students. It's also a relief to see that (for the most part) they're still excited to see me, chat with me, and laugh at my bad jokes. I'm a bit sad that I don't get to teach them this year, but at least I get to say hi to them every day :) A very significant part of my teaching is centered around balance in the classroom. Mutual respect, listening and sharing, and trying not to dominate the lessons are all things that I actively try to implement in my teaching. I came across Ikigai a while back and it's been something that's been very important to me ever since. Ikigai is not someting I do, but it's something that allows me to have success in what I do. I hope to give my students an opportunity to find a reason for "being" - weather it's being a good student or being a better person - in order to help guide them down their own sucessful paths in life. On the second day of school my emotions are at an all-time high. I've been overwhelmed with a rush of happy memories as I reconnect with my old colleagues, students, and parents. My friends.
I was worried when I first agreed to teach in upper primary. The commute to work is longer. I would be leaving my comfort zone, my best friends. No more conveniences of Mong Kok. Too much to list, actually. I'm convinced now that my deciscion was the right one. I had my first lesson with 5D today. It's a different ball game over here. The children aren't really children anymore. They are independent, active learners. I've always felt like my students are my friends. Now I know my students are my friends. I am so excited to see what this year brings. |
AuthorMr. Leigh is currently the English Panel Head of the primary section at GT College. Archives
September 2023
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