In August, Hong Kong Academy launched The Maker’s Atelier, an extended-day programme for the Pre-Kindergarten cohort. We sat down with HKA’s Primary School Principal VIRGINIA LOCKMAN HUNT to find out more about it.
“The Maker’s Atelier was really the brainchild of the Pre-Kindergarten teachers,” says Virginia. “They were thinking about how they could extend the work they do with the IB PYP programme in their Reggio-inspired classrooms here at HKA.”
The result is an optional new extended-day programme that gives children more time to explore project-based, hands-on learning and apply the skills and knowledge developed during the morning programme.
“Pre-Kindergarten children will continue to come to school from 8am to 12.30pm, but the Maker’s Atelier cohort will stay on until the end of the day,” says Virginia. “After lunch and rest, they’ll have a short play outside and then a group story to get them ready for the afternoon session. They’ll then finish up at the same time as the rest of the school.”
Six Inquiry Modules for Pre-Kindergarten at The Maker’s Atelier
Virginia explains that The Maker’s Atelier complements the discovery and exploration that the Pre-Kindergarten cohort already undertakes in the IB PYP programme by offering six different modules over the course of the year.
“This is an opportunity for them to dig a little deeper and dive into project-based work that is very much Reggio-inspired. It’s about children discovering their world and being curious, capable and confident.”
Virginia shares a few details of the different modules below.
#1 Primitive Pottery & Earth Glazes
“Children work with clay in this module, from squishing it in their hands to seeing it being fired in a kiln. They’ll build fine motor skills, get a tactile awareness of a natural resource and gain a better understanding of the world and the different forms that things like sand, mud and clay can take.”
#2 Regeneration Gardening
“In this unit, children will be out in our organic gardens, looking at how plants grow, from seed to harvest, and developing the patience that gardening requires. They’ll also be digging in the soil and discovering all the life that lies just beyond the plants.”
#3 Culinary Arts & Food Science
“Building on the wonderful planting in the previous project, this module asks, ‘How do we harvest that and create food from it?’ Children will be based in a kitchen lab, looking at different foods and learning about cooking. They also develop their palates to expose them to some different tastes than they might get at home.”
#4 Outdoor Education & Nature-based Inquiry
“We’re very well located for a nature-based inquiry, from the beach across the road to access to the Sai Kung Country Park. We do a lot of trail walks and stream walks, with a big emphasis on teaching how to observe and discover nature and wildlife. We want to develop in children a reverence for the environment, so they feel like they are taking care of a friend.”
#5 Fibre Arts, Textiles & Heritage Weaving
“Here, they’ll be learning all about yarn, textiles, cloth, weaving and looms. There’s lots of hands-on activity to hone those fine motor skills, but also the exciting richness of weaving different colours together – and weaving with a friend, to see what you can create. Like the other units, this is very much in step with the Reggio approach. It fosters kids’ capabilities and competence, showing that they can do real-world things.”
#6 Woodworking & Tinkering
“The children will be working safely with real tools in this module – hammering, measuring, sawing and creating. Sometimes they’ll create objects that look more like a sculpture. Other times they’ll create things that are very functional. They’ll also be responsible for sanding wood, measuring and cutting it, and using nails and screws. Again, it’s about exposure to real-world experiences, from trial-and-error to creation.”
What else?
Each module runs for six weeks. Virginia says this gives the children plenty of opportunity for experimenting, exploring, testing and refining – trying differing approaches to see a different outcome. While much of the learning will take place at HKA, there will also be off-campus experiences, from field trips to museum visits.
“Children are very capable, and we want them to have agency and be self-directed, taking the knowledge they’ve gained during the day and applying it in situations that are sometimes familiar and sometimes unfamiliar.”
Children who are admitted to the half-day Pre-Kindergarten programme at HKA also have the option of choosing the extended-day programme, The Maker’s Atelier.
Coming up at Hong Kong Academy: Exploration Day
Hong Kong Academy is hosting its next Exploration Day on Saturday 24 October, from 9am to 2pm. It provides families with an insight into the school’s teaching, programmes and facilities. Virginia sheds some light on what to expect.
“It’s a really fun day where parents and children can come along and see some of the magic of HKA. It includes some ‘taster sessions’ run by our teachers: Playgroup Wonderers, an accompanied programme for two-year-olds; Little Explorers, for children aged three to six, who experience a mini version of a day at school; and a design challenge for our upper primary students.
Parents are invited to join in as partners, so they can get a real sense of our dynamic programme, how we teach, and the powerful relationships our teachers have with students. It’s a point of difference from the usual school open day, in that you have parents and children learning together.
We also run tours of the campus, and we bring in our community of current parents to talk about their experiences at the school and answer any questions from families. Our student ambassadors are there to assist as well.
And, because we want newcomers to have the full school experience, we open up our cafeteria – we’re the only school in Hong Kong with our own chef – and we also have our after-school providers and specialist teachers running classes so children get a feel for our specialist and co-curricular programmes.”
Event details:
Exploration Day is free for families to attend. Register at hkacademy.edu.hk/admissions.
Hong Kong Academy is at 33 Wai Man Road, Sai Kung.
2655 1111 | hkacademy.edu.hk
This article on HKA’s extended-day programme for Pre-Kindergarten first appeared in the Autumn 2026 issue of Expat Living magazine. You can buy the latest mag or an annual subscription, or read the digital version for free now.
