Category: Our School

At Ħamrun Primary GP we offer Complimentary Lessons to children who are referred by their respective teachers.  These are primarily students who encounter varies difficulties in reading.

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Each student’s reading level is assessed by means of tests.  There are three levels (subdivided into levels  A, B and C).  Each referred child is assessed from Level 1C upwards. When a child scores the appropriate mark he is assigned a “level”.  This helps us to identify the appropriate literature for each student.  Infact we use the Oxford Reading Scheme.  This assessment can also identify other difficulties in writing skills (hand co-ordination, spacing, size of letters, etc.)

We seek to help each student to improve on his reading, diction and understanding of words and texts both in English and Maltese.

We also make use of IT resources.  E-books of different levels are used in lessons.  These books give an audio-visual experience to the student.   Other on-line platforms include interactive worksheets for both the English and Maltese language

Lessons may be held in small groups or individually.

My role at Hamrun Primary GP is to assist the school in providing language support teaching for migrant learners. I collaborate closely with the mainstream class teachers to support them in the best possible way when faced with the challenges of teaching students form a diverse background. I share my expertise with mainstream class teachers and assist in developing and disseminating good practice to support the development of students’ linguistic needs. At the beginning of the scholastic year I identify pupils requiring additional language support, assess pupils’ proficiency in English and Maltese languages and evaluate whether they need support in one of the said languages or in both languages. Students that are referred for language support are assessed to examine their competence in the language. I deliver the appropriate language programmes according to their needs and abilities. I record and monitor pupils’ progress by conducting formative assessment through the various tasks given in class.

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Prior to teaching my students I understand their cultural background, personality, interests, learning profile, readiness levels and make sure that they feel safe. Then, teaching and learning can actualize itself and students can give their full potential. During foreign language teaching (in this case English and Maltese languages) I make sure to address and utilize activities that integrate all four skills of the language since each skill reinforces the other.   

It is my duty to create an inclusive school community that reflects values and affirms linguistic, ethnic and cultural diversity. In collaboration with the INCO I make sure to promote and facilitate the inclusion of all children. Language acquisition and development are important but I also make sure that during my lessons pupils are encouraged and facilitated to maintain a connection with their own culture and language.

Isabel Mifsud

The Nurture Group supports learners who present with Social, Emotional and Behaviour Difficulties (SEBD). It is a contemporary approach to inclusive education as it enhances access to learning for children who are often segregated due to their behaviour. Research has demonstrated positive outcomes when learners with social, emotional, and behavioural challenges are supported in schools by means of appropriate programmes such as those offered in our Nurture Group.

Learners can display a range of challenging behaviours as they may feel ‘deskilled, angry, anxious, depressed or isolated’ (Ayers et al., 2000). As these behaviours can increase the stress and anxiety of certain learners, we provide a structured and safe environment, thereby providing our learners with ‘nurturing opportunities’ that they may have missed upon during their lives. The principles and practices that we apply are based on the attachment theory (Bishop, 2008).

The various sessions that are carried out in our Nurture Group include:

• appropriate language and communication skills;
• modelling of, and developing positive relationships;
• dealing with social, emotional and behavioural challenges;
• a resilient approach;
• developing emotional literacy skills; and
• developing self-efficacy and positive self-esteem.

Through these sessions, the learners will develop good practices in their behaviour during learning situations, when coping with peers, and improve their relationship with the teacher. The school environment will benefit, and every child will succeed. Our positive school atmosphere encourages student attendance and boosts a more positive mindset in everyone involved.

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Reading Recovery is an English literacy intervention for the lowest achieving five to six year old children who have problems in reading English. This will help out the identified children overcome their problems over a period of 20 weeks. Reading Recovery will accelerate learning so that the child will catch up to his/her peers and will benefit from classroom instruction without supplementary help. The chosen child will attend a one to one session for 30 minutes daily with a Reading Recovery teacher. Children will use levelled PM books. The lessons will be catered for the individual child needs starting from what the child knows and what the child needs to learn.

During the lessons the child will read a familiar book where he/she will practice reading books already read. Then the child will independently read previous day’s new story, where teacher will take a running record of exactly what the child reads which will make her aware of what to teach next. Every lesson incorporates learning about letter/sound relationships where the child will sort magnetic letters and words which will eventually lead to learning new words having the same pattern. The child will compose and write a story starting from writing a sentence. The teacher will help the child by helping the child with letters and words that he is encountering difficulties with. The same story is written on a teacher’s strip which is cut into individual words and the child will re assemble the story himself/herself.

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The child will attempt to read a new book carefully selected by the teacher according to the child’s level. The teacher will choose parts to teach so that the child will be able to read the book independently. The cut out story will be given to be re-read at home and stuck on the scrap book. All the lessons will follow this pattern with higher levelled books as time goes by. After 20 weeks the child she will stop attending the Reading Recovery lessons as he/she will be capable of reading and writing independently.

Bhal l-iskejjel kollha tal-gvern, barra it-tagħlim li jirċievu t-tfal, l-iskola tal-Ħamrun ĠP toffri servizz ta’ ‘counselling’. Dan qiegħed maħsub sabiex nieħdu ħsieb li t-tfal ikunu ferħanin, li jħossuhom kuntenti bihom infushom u jkollhom relazzjoni tajba ma’ sħabhom u ma’ l-għalliema. Ukoll, il-‘counselling’ jista jgħin lit-tfal u lill-familji tagħhom jaffaċjaw l-isfidi li ġġarreb il-ħajja ta’ llum.

Illum, il familji qedgħin jaffaċjaw sfidi bħal meta jkun hemm inkwiet fid-dar u tikber l-ansjeta, forsi jkun hemm xi mard serju jew saħansitra anki mewt. Sfida li t-tfal qed jiltaqgħu magħha ta’spiss hija dik tal-‘bullying’, tas-separażżjoni tal-ġenituri u l-ħafna kambjamenti li din iġġib magħha u tal-Covid-19. Dawn id-diffikultajiet jistaw jaffetwaw l-imġieba tat-tfal, kemm ihħossuhom tajbin u kapaċi, jista jkunu imdejjqin jew jġorru xi biżgħa jew rabja kbira.

Għalhekk, l-iskola toffri servizz ta’ ‘counselling’, jiġifieri, jkun hemm persuna, il-‘counsellor’, li tara dawk it-tfal fil-bżonn u titkellem magħhom biex tagħti sapport u tgħinhom jarfu u jifhmu lilhom nnfushom u ssibu solluzjonijiet għad-diffikultajiet tagħhom. Jista jkun li l-‘counsellor’ titkellem mal-ġenituri biex flimkien jgħinu lit-tfal.

Il-‘counsellor’ tara lit-tfal waqt l-iskola, għal-‘sessions’ ta’ madwar siegħa xi darbtejn fix-xahar jew iktar skont il-bżonn. It-tfal jiġu rifferuti mis-surmast, teachers jew edukaturi oħra ġewwa l-iskola.

B’hekk, dan huwa serviżż ieħor ta’ għajnuna u sapport għat-tfal. Hekk, inkunu qedgħin insaħħu lit-tfal ħalli jikbru fit-tagħlim u fl-iżvilupp personali kollu tagħhom.