FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
Frequently Asked Questions
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) for New Students
Below are some of the questions that are asked frequently by our new parents. While we have tried to make this a fairly exhaustive list, there may be some questions which are not addressed in this FAQ. Please contact the Admissions Office at admissions@isf.edu.hk if your query is not included in this list.
School Bus
Our transport vendor is Kwoon Chung Bus Company and they can be contacted at 2578 1178.
Yes, students can choose one-way or two-way service. Please contact our service provider for detailed arrangements.
The Kwoon Chung Bus Co. will provide return bus services at three different times, namely:
- at 2:20 p.m. for Foundation Year students
- at 3:30 p.m. for Grade 1 to 12 students who do not have Co-Curricular Activities (CCA) and for Foundation Year students participating in CCA
- at 4:30 p.m. for Grade 1 to 12 students who have CCA
Please contact Kwoon Chung Bus Co. at 2578 1178 to inform them of your preference.
School Lunch
Yes, our lunch vendor, Sodexo (HK) Limited, prepares food on campus. Menus are changed periodically and parents can choose to purchase monthly or daily meal plans. At present Sodexo (HK) has three menu choices available each day.
Yes, students may either bring lunch with them when they come to school in the morning, or have lunch delivered to them between 10:00 a.m. and 11:00 a.m. for Primary students and between 11:30 a.m. and 12:30 p.m. for Secondary students. There are refrigerators and microwave ovens to store and heat up meals.
Menus for each month are sent out around a fortnight before the first of each month through the weekly Friday Circulars. Parents complete the form and return it with a check for the requisite amount to the School Office before the due date stated on the notice or portal.
There are teaching staff or parent volunteers on hand to supervise the students during lunch time. The ratio of adults supervising students is higher for the lower grades than for the upper grades.
Homework and Parents’ Home Support
Homework is a valuable aid to help students make the most of their school experience. Homework strengthens academic skills, reinforces concepts learned in class, encourages students to develop responsibility and good study habits. Teachers will assign homework based on the ability level of students in a given class. The following chart suggests the average amounts of homework students can expect:
| Primary School | |
|---|---|
| Foundation Year: | Approximately 40 minutes every school night inclusive of reading; no written homework during the first semester |
| Grade 1 | Approximately 60 minutes every school night |
| Grade 2 | Approximately 60 minutes every school night |
| Grade 3 | Approximately 60 minutes every school night |
| Grade 4 | Approximately 60 minutes every school night |
| Grade 5 | Approximately 80 minutes every school night |
| Secondary School | |
| Grade 6 | Approximately 90 minutes daily |
| Grade 7 | Approximately 90 minutes daily |
| Grade 8 | Approximately 90 minutes daily |
| Grade 9 | Approximately 150 minutes daily, including non-contact time during the school day |
| Grade 10 | Approximately 150 minutes daily, including non-contact time during the school day |
| Grade 11 | Approximately 180 minutes daily, including non-contact time during the school day |
| Grade 12 | Approximately 180 minutes daily, including non-contact time during the school day |
Reading is an integral part of students’ language development; the times indicated above are not inclusive of 15 to 20 minutes of home reading in either language. Students should also be encouraged to read over the weekends and holidays.
Parents are not expected to help students with their homework. However, parents of younger students are encouraged to read with their child as it forms an integral part of their child’s language development.
Parental support is always very important for a child’s learning and parents are encouraged to provide an environment at home which encourages their child to use both English and Putonghua at home.
Parents are also encouraged to maintain close contact with their child’s homeroom teachers as well as attend our workshops which we conduct from time to time to better understand their child’s learning.
Communication
There are many different channels for parents to communicate with the school. The school sends out weekly circular every Friday informing parents of announcements concerning their child and the school. Parents are also free to contact their child’s teachers by email or over the phone through the School Office. Various meeting sessions are also arranged during the course of the year such as Principal’s Coffee Mornings and parent-teacher conferences. Please refer to the latest version of the Parent Student Handbook which will be distributed at the beginning of the school year.
Parents may speak to the School Office or refer to the Parent Student Handbook for further information.
General
| Regular School Hours | Co-Curricular Activities | |
|---|---|---|
| Foundation Year | 7:50 a.m. – 2:00 p.m. | 2:30 p.m. – 3:30 p.m. |
| Grade 1 to 5 | 7:50 a.m. – 3:15 p.m. | 3:30 p.m. – 4:30 p.m. |
| Grade 6 to 10 | 7:50 a.m. – 3:30 p.m. | 3:30 p.m. – 4:30 p.m. |
Please refer to At-A-Glance for a profile of the school.
The Academy encourages parents to be involved in school activities and has many volunteer opportunities available. Parents can volunteer by contacting the school directly or by contacting the Parent-Teacher Association (PTA). Please contact the School Office to indicate the area(s) that you would be interested in volunteering such as helping out in the library, field trips, mentoring etc. and the office will direct you to the person in charge of that activity.
The Orientation Week is an excellent opportunity for students joining in August to socialize and make new friends. For students joining in the middle of the school year, we have a “Buddy System” where the Homeroom teacher / Tutor will assign a classmate to each new student as a “buddy” and take care of the new student.
