Formation and Recreational Day for our non-teaching Staff

After a busy summer where various maintenance and cleaning works were carried out at school,  we thought of treating our non-teaching staff for a formation and recreational day at Dar Lourdes,  Għajnsielem in Gozo.  After a short talk about the school ethos we had time for discussion.  After we played some games and had lunch together.

We would like to take this opportunity to thank these members of staff who work with dedication throughout the whole summer holidays to prepare everything for the new scholastic year.

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Voluntary Work at School

During the summer holidays every Tuesday, a group of students came to school to help out.  They cleaned the garden, the basement stores and also helped in the school library.

On Tuesday, 13th September these students were treated to some time at the beach for a swim.  Back to school they ate pizza and an ice-cream.  We would like to thank these students who took time from their holidays to carry out this work at school.  A thank you also goes to Mr Aquilina who co-ordinated this group.

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Mid-Summer Information

We hope that you are fine and enjoying restful summer holidays.

Like previous years, this summer was a busy one with maintenance work and cleaning process going on at school.  The French, German and Italian classrooms have been painted and also the Graphical Communications room and the small Mathematics class.  The large window of Computer Lab 2 was also changed.  This was the last remaining window of the façade.

In September we shall be adding more seating in the ground and for this purpose the hole of the ‘awrikarja’ was filled with concrete to make space for the steel frame of the seats.  Our hard-working cleaners take the opportunity to give a good spring clean to the school during the summer holidays.

On the other hand, administrative school preparations are well underway too.  In the beginning of September, we shall be publishing the calendar of events, the classrooms and other useful information.

We would like to thank the non-academic staff for their hard work not only during the summer holidays but throughout the whole year.

Thanks also to you parents for your kind donations which help us carry out such maintenance work.  Without your support this could not be possible.

We wish you happy holidays for the rest of summer.

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Summer Holidays – One month of holidays is already over!

Dear students, how are you? How are you spending this time?  I understand that you might be taking it a bit easy and its only fair, after all it is summer.  But having said that, we cannot return to school in September after three idle months.  A diligent student should make sure to spend time reading a book or two, do some revision, help around with house chores and attend a group which can help him grow.  Education does not take a holiday in summer…because education is not only schooling,  but it is much more than that.

We wish you restful, fruitful and happy remaining summer holidays.

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Chess Slogan, Drawing and Logo Competition

On the occasion of the 11th anniversary of the introduction of chess as part of the curriculum at St Michael School a competition was organized to have an official slogan for the school’s Chess Club. Year 7 and 8 students proposed several slogans and all Year 7 and 8 students, together with all the staff members, voted for the best one. The winner was Jake Sciberras’ of Year 7 Faith slogan: “Chess is the key to an open mind.” This is now the school’s Chess Club official slogan. Year 9 and 10 students who are studying Art and Graphic Communication made a drawing and a logo related to this slogan. Another vote was held, and the best drawing and slogan were also chosen. The best drawing was that of Terrence Camilleri of Year 10 Hope while Kayne Mercieca of Year 9 Charity won the best logo. They were rewarded at the school’s social gathering on Tuesday, July 5.

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Social Gathering

Tuesday, 5th May – This evening we organised the last activity for parents and students for this scholastic year.  The activity was held in the school ground were parents and students were invited to volunteer to take part in a funny quiz or to sing along.  Mr J P Parascandolo has once again interpreted the funny character of Prassede, from the comedy “Is-Sultan u l-Kaptan”.  This time ‘she’ was interviewed by Mr Robert Aloisio.

During this evening the students who took part in the chess competition were awarded for the best slogan, drawing and logo.  Afterwards everyone enjoyed a delicious piece of baked pasta and a refreshing drink together with a piece of watermelon!

We would like to thank Mr Aloisio for coordinating this evening, Mr Mario Debattista who takes care of ordering food and drinks throughout the whole year and other members of staff who gave a helping hand to distribute the food.  Thanks also to Mr Neville Galea Pirotta for capturing these special occasions by taking photos and Mr Peter Paul Calleja and his brother Stephen for taking care of the sound.  A heartfelt thanks to parents and students who always appreciate the activities organised by the school.

We wish a happy and restful summer holidays to everyone.

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EcoSchool Parliament

The sixteenth meeting of the EcoSchool Parliament was held on Thursday, 30th July.  The topic chosen for this year was about the changes in the climate. Ten schools were invited to present studies and actions regarding the climate and ongoing changes of the environment.

Jerome Carabott and Matthew Sammut, two Year 9 students representing the EcoSchool committee of our school presented a study of how our school is being affected by the quality of air around us considering that our school is situated in an industrial area. Our students had the opportunity to talk about their views on the subject with the Members of Parliament.

The Members of Parliament will be presented with a copy of the publication ‘We Care About Our Present and Our Future’.  This publication contains suggestions which were discussed during the mini summits by students from 107 schools. These summits were organised as a follow-up of the conference of the United Nations about climate change 2022 (COP 26 in Glasgow).

We would like to thank Mr Joseph Savona and all the members of the EcoSchool committee for their hard work throughout this scholastic year.  We congratulate Jerome and Matthew for the detailed presentation they presented in Parliament.

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Year 10 Live-In

Between Monday 26th and Wednesday 29th June we held the Year 10 live-in in Dar Lourdes Għajnsielem, Gozo.  This was the second live-in the school organised in Dar Lourdes which has been recently renovated and run by the Dominican nuns.

After mass celebration our Year 10 students left school to catch the Gozo ferry by coach.  Once arrived and settled they had the first session entitled “Nies ta’ Sinsla” to compliment the topic of this live-in “Ħajja ta’ Valur”.  After lunch they watched the film “The Ride” (2020), a story about a boy who had childhood problems but eventually found his way forward in life.  They then headed for a swim which ended with a barbeque by the sea.

The next day started by mass at the Għajnsielem parish and soon after our students watched the second part of the film.  Later, Joseph and Shaun, two MUSEUM members from Gozo shared their experience.  Mr Lelio Spiteri, Headmaster of Happy School, and Mr Oliver Aquilina our new school chaplain also shared experiences with our students.

In the afternoon, our Year 10 students spent time swimming in the pool of Dar Lourdes.  They had a wonderful time together! Later on in the evening they were treated to a delicious pizza prepared by the sisters and a piece of cake sent by Ms Alison Spiteri. It was indeed a day well spent!

Wednesday, 29th June was the third and last day of the live-in.  A mass to celebrate the feast of St Peter and St Paul was held in the chapel of Dar Lourdes by Fr Daniel Galea O.Carm.  The rest of the morning was left free for the students to swim or play board games in the yard.  After lunch which consisted of lasagna prepared by the sisters, everyone gathered in the hall for an exercise of evaluation about the live-in.  It was an emotional moment to see how much the students appreciated all that the teachers had done to make this live-in an unforgettable and special one!

We would like to thank Mr Johann Tabone, Assistant Head, Mr Robert Aloisio, Guidance Teacher, Mr Warren Busuttil, Mr Gafa and Mr Jean Paul Parascandolo, teachers from our school who attended the live-in and other teachers and members of staff who came to Gozo to spend time with our students.  For sure we shall all remember fondly the Year 10, 2022 live-in!

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