Celebrating 40 Years: A Look Inside ICHK Kindergarten and Primary – World-Leading Forest School Education

Forty years ago, a small group of parents in a beautiful leafy area of Hong Kong united with a shared vision to create a school at the heart of their green and spacious community, a world away from the bustle and crowds of the city.

Today, International College Hong Kong Hong Lok Yuen (ICHK HLY) is an IB World School accredited by worldwide bodies for the strength of its education programme and for attracting children from all over the world.

Sense of Community

With around 400 students, ICHK Kindergarten & Primary is more than just another international school – it is a community of learners. It’s small enough that everyone knows each other by name yet big enough to offer incredible opportunities for children to flourish throughout their learning journey. 

Students can join the Kindergarten programme unaccompanied from 2 years 8 months old and most children continue through their Primary years. ICHK HLY students get priority places at their partner school International College Hong Kong Secondary located in Sha Tau Kok (New Territories). 

The sense of community is tangible. There are regular opportunities for families to bond and get to know each other through BBQs, movie nights, overnight camping experiences and community-wide events such as a very popular ‘Party in the Park’. There is also plenty planned for the 40th anniversary celebrations including a party for the students and a gala for adults. 

World-leading Site for Forest School Education

Located in a valley in an accessible part of the New Territories, ICHK HLY offers the kind of outdoor learning opportunities that most families in Hong Kong can only dream of. 

As Hong Kong’s first Forest Schools Leadership Centre, ICHK HLY is a world-leading site for Forest School education. There is abundant space and fresh air for children to thrive. The giant natural playing field offers Primary students unrivalled opportunities for active play and sports. There’s also an allotment where children grow their own herbs, vegetables and flowers, a mini forest, a school playground, an outdoor forest classroom and a nature area called “The Woods”. The Kindergarten benefits from spacious gardens at the front and back and outdoor play apparatus.

“Regular time in natural environments brings immense benefits to mental and physical health and is an essential part of wellbeing.”

Children enjoy sessions in the outdoor forest classroom; shelter building, gardening, outdoor science, fire lighting and woodworking are just a few special skills children will acquire during these sessions. Activities are planned in conjunction with each year level’s units of inquiry so students can make meaningful connections with their indoor class learning.

Derek Pinchbeck has been Head of School for three years. Originally from the UK, Derek has over 30 years of teaching experience having worked at international schools worldwide, including the Dominican Republic, Papua New Guinea, Brunei, Italy, China and Singapore. 

He says, “Our approach is to give students the best outdoor learning environment available in Hong Kong so they can learn happily and flourish. Regular time in natural environments brings immense benefits to mental and physical health and is an essential part of wellbeing, and a wealth of research recognises this”.

“If it’s raining, we simply put on our raincoats,” says Head of School Derek Pinchbeck.

Children are encouraged to get outside and get muddy, “If it’s raining, we simply put on our raincoats,” he adds.

There are plenty of opportunities to explore the New Territories with age-appropriate day and overnight camping trips. “These memorable outdoor excursions connect a wide range of subject areas, such as geography, history and natural sciences, and further opportunities to develop independence and encourage children to stretch outside their comfort zone,” says Derek.

Bilingual and Multilingual Learners Smart School

As an accredited IB Primary Years Programme (PYP) school since 2010, ICHK HLY follows the PYP framework (read more about the PYP here). 

The curriculum is emergent, meaningful, engaging and delivered through play-based methods in Kindergarten, setting the stage for inquiry-based learning throughout the Primary years and beyond. 

Lessons are conducted in English, alongside a strong Chinese programme, and all students learn Mandarin as a language using traditional characters.

ICHK HLY is also the only Bilingual and Multilingual Learners (BML) Smart School in Hong Kong and, impressively, one of just six worldwide. This recognition means that the school is committed to better understanding and supporting bilingual and multilingual learners; all teaching staff are trained in best practices and approaches for bilingual and multilingual students. 

Renovations to the Kindergarten

As part of the school’s 40th anniversary commitments, the Kindergarten recently underwent extensive renovation. Kindergarten students now benefit from additional space to learn and play; there is also increased movement from the outdoors with the installation of sliding walls, so even indoors, children are better connected with nature.  

The Kindergarten renovations mark an ongoing commitment by the school to ensure that children are always given the best possible environment to learn in.

Sustainability Award 2023

Part of the outdoor learning programme involves caring for the school’s mini forest, which contains over 350 local trees planted by students using the Miyawaki method, a type of forest that grows up to ten times the natural rate. 

Earlier this year, ICHK HLY was awarded the Sustainability Award at the 2023 International School Awards in recognition of its Miyawaki tree planting scheme, which helps students take ownership of the natural world and understand their role in sustainability. 

How To Get There

Located in the leafy village of Hong Lok Yuen, ICHK HLY is well-connected to the city by MTR (the closest station is Tai Wo). The village is just a few minutes off the Fanling Highway, making the drive from areas such as Sai Kung and Clear Water Bay just over 30-minutes. The school is also well-served by nine bus routes that frequent places such as Kowloon, Sai Kung, Gold Coast, Tuen Mun, Tai Po and Kowloon Tong (school bus information can be found here).  

Looking Ahead

As ICHK HLY approaches its milestone anniversary, we’ve got no doubt it will continue leading the way for other kindergartens and primary schools in Hong Kong throughout the next 40 years. 

It’s a community school, not-for-profit, and the staff see themselves as custodians of the traditions that have seen ICHK HLY thrive over the past almost half a century. 

ICHK HLY offers something unique – it is not just another international school. Our advice is to see for yourself; it’s breathtaking in more ways than one. 

ICHK Hong Lok Yuen (Kindergarten and Primary) 3, Twentieth Street, Hong Lok Yuen, Tai Po, New Territories, 3955 3000, info@ichkhly.edu.hk, admissions@ichkhly.edu.hk, ichkhly.edu.hk