Hi! My dear primary school- almost 50 years. In 1963, the school opened to poor students. How…read morelucky I was! I just moved from Lo Fu Ngan government school to Bishop Walsh primary school. There I had my happy childhood. I got up early for mass in the small chapel. I remember how much I concentrated in bible lessons. I always listened to bible stories with my mouth opened. I enjoyed fathers ( father Lu & father Yam) came to visit us because we knew we would have ice cream or some goodies. My mother was admired by neighbors because we, her five children got accepted to study in this nice elementary school. Mom is 88 years old now. When she talked about this, she is proud of us. Every year I visited Hong Kong, I had an urge to see Saint Mary statute in the playground with flowers around her. I remember how we prayed to her in May. I wish.... I pray to Saint Mary : please let my mom with us for another twelve years! I love my mom! So as our bishop Walsh Primary school! God blessed! Wong Ying Ngai (Priscilla Fung) Graduated in 1967

The Maker Bay is a multi disciplinary workshop which provides tools and space for people to come…read moreand work on their own projects, from pure recreation to new startup ideas and companies. I really can't do justice to the place here, it's basically for anybody who wants to do their own projects but as space in Hong Kong is so limited is prohibited. They have tools to work on wood, metal and also have a laser cutter. You rent a space for the day etc, they offer lots of different options. The staff are so friendly and will answer any questions you have. Get creative and go check it out!

Children have so much fun at the school! Their program is…read morevery creative and is catered to the individuals special interests and needs! On my visit at the Open House, the theme was mini society. The children were able to explore the certain rooms that were transformed into different societies such as the Miles Opera House, supermarket, Bakery, and Science Museum. In each room the teachers organized activities that involved the children. For example, in the opera house the were taught how to be a conductor and performer, then role played the parts! In the bakery, they baked play dough and made cracker sandwiches with honey! In the science room, they explored ice painting! I can see that this school believes that involving the children will be the best way for them to learn. As opposed to rote teaching. They also have music enhancement programs for music and Art! I didn't go to a music class yet, but from experiencing the music class at the open house, I think the children love it! A plus is that they are right next to the beach!

I love ESF Hillside! The principal, Chris Duncan, is great and so are all the teachers. My…read moredaughter attended K1 and K2 there. Every day, she is excited to go to school and loves her classmates and teachers. As part of the IB program, the students here learn in units of inquiries and they get exposed to a lot of topics such as the nature and social responsibility. If you want Chinese program, this is not the place for you. Mandarin is taught only once a week, and about 20 minutes each. The primary language is English. The teachers do an excellent job preparing the kids for Primary. They learn a lot of basic skills and are all confident young individuals when they graduate. I have only great things to say about ESF Hillside!

The English School Foundation (ESF) was formed in 1967 to cater for children of local expatriates,…read morepredominantly English and a lot of them were civil servants working out here at the time. They have developed since then, growing to some 20 -odd schools at all levels at this moment. I was lucky enough to have attended Shatin College for some time and I would say that the ESF is an education body that really does care for its students. Without getting all teary eyed, my school years were filled with opportunities that could not be had if the school was a local one. The ESF invests heavily on extra curriculum activities and it affords its student many different facilities that would simply out of the question if it had not been for the immense resources of the education body (the ESF had been funded by the government during all these years; being withdrawn gradually now). Every year there seems to be more facilities being made available to students and given the British curriculum (as well as the IB now being introduced) being taught, it gives students more time and flexibility to develop their interests and I truly believe that it does provide children with a more dynamic childhood. The fees are being raise every year as government funding is being cut back and understandably there will be heavier burden on parents to chip in where the government had paid the bill before. I believe though (and I'm not the only one given the rumoured 3 year waiting list); that for your child this is still worth it.

At night it's always easier to spot shops located in high rises around Hong Kong. Whether it's the…read morelights or the quietness that makes you look up, it's a cool way to discover places that you wouldn't have noticed at day time. I had walked past this area of Queen's Road East possibly every single day and never checked out this place. Last night I finally did. I came into the building (and had to wait for the lift for about 15 minutes...) and got up to the second floor. It was late and the place was about to close, but a very friendly guy welcomed me in. I had picked up a leaflet downstairs and knew they were about art classes but I wasn't sure they also run classes for adults as well as kids (8 months to 5 years) and juniors (6 to 10 years). The studio is ample enough to accommodate for big groups (maybe ten people on one side and 10 other on the other) and it doesn't lack decoration. Indeed, the pieces of art by the students made for a great deco. There are also nice small fish pictures made by one of the teachers who later showed me some of his works and he's a real artist. What a talent. He explained to me how classes work: you go for a trial lesson (normally they last for two hours) and pay half the normal price (360HKD) and you pick the canvas, use their materials and apron and get all the guidance from them (there's another teacher). They would help you with painting techniques, perspectives and so on...They have only been operating in this studio since January but the place already got that character that makes artisty spaces so authentic. If you are planning on develop your creative skills or you simply want to let loose your imagination you may want to try them!

I'm super happy to write a review of my elementary school. GSIS is where I grew up for the first…read more11 years of my life. Many life long friends, and mentors were made in this school. I will never forget my days here which is why I am very excited to write a review for this school. Obviously I am a little biased since I attended this school. But honestly speaking, it isn't considered one of the best international schools in Hong Kong for nothing. It is now even harder to get in than it was when I attended. It's crazy how the mothers I meet in Hong Kong go through so much to send their kids to the best schools. It's almost like survival of the fittest and who wins mother of the club award is the queen b of their children's school. Super competitive, its crazy! I have nothing but good things to say about GSIS. The teachers are exceptional. Every single teacher I had, pushed me to learn the best I could. All the classes, subjects, and facilities provided by the school were top notch and implemented with the best intentions to provide the best learning environment for the students here. There is an English stream and a German Stream. This means that students who were in the English stream are mainly English students who learned German and classes were taught in English. The German stream students were taught in German and had English classes. I was obviously put in the English stream so I had to take mandatory German classes. After school activities were very vast. Students could learn anything from chess, to ballet, to jazz dancing to tennis. There was a wide spectrum for students to gravitate what interested them and learn whatever they wanted after school. Elementary school was from 7.45 - 12.30 PM and after school activities were offered at 2PM. Many of my friends who continued in secondary school at GSIS ended up graduating from Ivy leagues. That speaks for itself.

A sleek, clean educational building conveniently located in Causeway Bay? Oh, yes. There are plenty…read moreof food options in the area, so if you're taking a late-night class, you can still grab some food before you go home. There are small break-out areas on most floors, which are great for studying or holding group meetings. Be weary of when you need to get to class -- lines for the elevator can get quite long during peak hours. Similarly, don't be surprised if you need to wait for a few elevators to go by after class is over to take you back downstairs.

Gigamind English Primary School was established in 2001. It is a private whole-day school located…read morein Tin Shui Wai, nearby Kingswood Villa, Maywood Court. Gigamind is the very first whole-day English private school in Tin Shui Wai. Gigamind is a bi-lingual (English/Mandarin) Christian school with child-centred interactive programs. Gigamind also has a Christian based kindergarten and the location is right next to the Primary school. I have all 3 children going to Gigamind as we don't want them to travel to Kowloon to get quality English/Mandarin education aiming to stimulate the development of children's "Multiple Intelligences" through pedagogically sound teaching methods. There is not any international primary school in this area of New Territories. You need to travel to Shatin for EFS or Gold Coast and pay $5M debenture for Harrow International. For those who don't want to send your kids to local schools. Gigamind is a good alternative in the local community. The tuition fee (Primary 1 to 6) is HK$57,310 per annum for 2012-2013 academic year, payable in 11 installments of HK$5,210 each. Miscellaneous charges (for library services and other utilities) are HK$1,800 per term, to be paid in September and February. Additional fees for school bus service, lunch orders, uniforms and field trip expense will be charged where applicable.