It-Tlettax-Il Leġiżlatura Pl 2902

IT-TLETTAX-IL LEĠIŻLATURA

P.L. 2902

Dokument imqiegħed fuq il-Mejda tal-Kamra tad-Deputati fis-Seduta Numru 196 tat-12 ta’ Frar 2019 mill-Ministru għall-Enerġija u l- Immaniġġar tal-Ilma, f’isem il-Ministru għall-Edukazzjoni u x-Xogħol.

______Raymond Scicluna Skrivan tal-Kamra

The National Literacy Agency

Annual Report 2018

Ministry for Education and Employment

Contents

1. Introduction ...... 4

2. Programmes ...... 4 2.1 Aqra Miegħi/Read with Me ...... 4 2.1.1 Information sessions for Parents/Caregivers about Early Literacy ...... 9 2.2 Seħer l-Istejjer/The Magic of Stories ...... 10 2.3 Gost il-Qari/The Pleasure of Reading ...... 13 2.4 Naqraw Flimkien/Let’s Read Together ...... 13 2.5 The Nwar Family Literacy Programme ...... 15 2.6 Klabb Naħla ...... 17 2.7 Reading Ambassadors/L-Ambaxxaturi tal-Qari...... 19 2.8 Aqra Kemm Tiflaħ – Enhancing Classroom Libraries ...... 21 2.9 The Malta Writing Programme (MWP)/Il-Programm tal-Kitba ta’ Malta ...... 25 2.10 Footballers’ Read and Write Programme (FRWP)/Bil-Qari u l-Kitba Niskorja ...... 26 2.10.1 FRWP one-off fixtures ...... 29 2.11 Reading Champions/Il-Promoturi tal-Qari...... 29 2.12 Għidli Storja/Tell Me a Story ...... 30 2.13 Storytelling Schools ...... 31

3. NLA Summer Programmes ...... 32 3.1 Aqra fis-Sajf…...... 32 3.1.1 Celebration Ceremonies ...... 34 3.2 Minister’s Challenge ...... 34 3.3 Bookmark Design Challenge ...... 34 3.4 Klabbsajf ...... 35 3.5 Skolasajf – Footballers’ Read and Write Programme/Bil-Qari u l-Kitba Niskorja Summer ...... 35

4. New Programmes launched in 2018 ...... 36 4.1 Reading Recovery ...... 36

5. Projects ...... 38 5.1 Brillantini tal-Qari/Reading Stars ...... 38 5.2 Rakkonti ...... 40 5.3 Spellili/Spell It Out...... 44 5.4 Children in Social Difficulties, Scheme 9 - Home Libraries/Librerija f’Kull Dar ...... 44 5.5 The Symbol Literacy Project ...... 47

6. New Projects launched in 2018 ...... 48 6.1 Brillantini tal-Kitba/Writing Stars - Primary Schools ...... 48 6.1.1 Brillantini tal-Kitba/Writing Stars - Middle Schools ...... 49 6.2 Ismagħni Naqra/Talking Books Project ...... 50 6.3 The Power of Storytelling ...... 51

7. Schemes ...... 51 7.1 L-Għodda f’Idejk ...... 51 2

7.2 Bil-Ħila Tagħkom ...... 52 7.3 Bis-Sehem Tagħkom/Promoting Good Practice ...... 54 7.4 Sky Kids Library ...... 58

8. New Schemes ...... 58 8.1 Libreriji fl-Apert/Open Libraries ...... 58 8.2 Mobile Library at Mater Dei Hospital ...... 58

9. Units ...... 58 9.1 The Literacy and Support Unit (LISU) ...... 58 9.1.1 World Book Day ...... 59 9.1.2 Consolation Prizes ...... 63 9.1.3 Book Champion Schools ...... 63 9.1.4 Teacher-Librarian Meetings ...... 65 9.2 The Language in Education Policy Unit ...... 66 9.3 Literacy Resource Centres ...... 67

10. Initiatives ...... 68 10.1 Readathon/Qaritona ...... 68

11. Continuous Professional Development (CPD) sessions ...... 70 11.1 At National Level ...... 70 11.2 At College and School Level ...... 71 11.3 Aqra Miegħi/Read with Me Programme Training Sessions ...... 71 11.4 Training Course in the Methodology of the Nwar Literacy Programme ...... 72 11.5 Seminars for Childcare Educators ...... 72

12. New Training Courses ...... 72 12.1 Ġenituri l-Ewwel Għalliema/Parents the First Teachers ...... 72

13. Conclusion ...... 74

1. Introduction

The National Literacy Agency (NLA), of the Ministry for Education and Employment, seeks to promote and sustain lifelong and life wide, high quality, literacy practices among children, youth, adults, migrants and persons with learning difficulties. It strives also to improve literacy outcomes, resulting in inclusive practices, higher educational qualifications, and better job prospects. The Agency was established in September 2014 to promote and ensure the delivery of the different aspects of the National Literacy Strategy for All in Malta and Gozo, and serve as a main driver in the field of literacy (Legal Notice 192/2014).

The Agency promotes:  Social inclusion;  Literate communities;  Participatory democracy;  Bilingualism;  Biliteracy;  Parental empowerment;  Literacy across the curriculum and  Balanced Literacy teaching and learning.

The main initiatives undertaken by the National Literacy Agency since the launch of the Strategy in June 2014 include, amongst others:  College-based Literacy teams;  Family literacy programmes: Aqra Miegħi/Read with Me, Seħer l-Istejjer/The Magic of Stories, Gost il-Qari/The Pleasure of Reading, Nwar, The Malta Writing Programme;  Book-rich environments: Aqra Kemm Tiflaħ, L-Għodda f’Idejk;  Reading campaigns including Reading Ambassador activities, Aqra fis-Sajf and Brillantini/Reading Stars initiatives;  Innovative Literacy Programmes: Bil-Qari u l-Kitba Niskorja/Footballers Read and Write Programme (FRWP), Klabb Naħla and Brillantini/Writing Stars initiative;  Literacy Resource Centres and  A Whole-School Approach to Literacy.

2. Programmes

2.1 Aqra Miegħi/Read with Me The Aqra Miegħi/Read with Me is an early literacy programme intended for children aged between 0 and 3 years and their parents/caregivers. Each session features the sharing of storybooks, the singing of nursery rhymes and other fun activities for this age group. This bilingual programme is run by the Agency in collaboration with the Centre for Literacy of the University of Malta, supported by Malta Libraries and partially sponsored by Bank of Valletta.

The main objective of the programme is to promote a love of books and develop the child’s imagination through fun and stimulating play activities with the involvement of parents/caregivers. One-hour sessions are held at no charge once a week in a range of centres and feature the sharing of storybooks, the singing of nursery rhymes and other fun activities for this age group. The primary objective of the programme is to develop the child’s imagination through fun and stimulating 4

activities. The development of oracy skills and concepts about print are encouraged. Parents and caregivers are made aware of the benefits of sharing books with their children and are encouraged to share books with their children daily.

These interactive sessions are conducted in local or school libraries and are hosted by local councils, schools and Malta Libraries. Reading animators are provided with training, and various educational resources that include age appropriate books, nursery rhymes, CDs, big cloth numbers, alphabet cards and games to enable them to engage both children and their parents/caregivers.

Aqra Miegħi/Read with Me started as a pilot project in 2014 in six (6) centres. Eight (8) sessions were organised on a weekly basis in each of these six (6) centres. At the end of 2018, there were 65 centres across Malta and Gozo, and the programme was organised in the following localities: Attard, Baħrija, Birkirkara, Birżebbuġa, Dingli, Fgura, Floriana, Gudja, Għajnsielem, Għarb, Għargħur, Għasri, Għaxaq, Gżira, Ħamrun, Kalkara, Kerċem, Kirkop, Luqa, Marsa, Marsascala, Marsaxlokk, Mellieħa, Mġarr, Mosta, Mqabba, Msida, Mtarfa, Nadur, Naxxar, Paola, Pembroke, Qala, Qawra, Qormi, Qrendi, Rabat, Safi, San Ġwann, San Lawrenz, Sannat, Santa Luċija, Senglea, Siġġiewi, Sliema, St Julian’s, St Paul’s Bay, Swieqi, Tarxien, Valletta, Vittoriosa, Xagħra, Xewkija, Xgħajra, Żabbar, Żebbuġ, Żejtun, and Żurrieq.

The Aqra Miegħi/Read with Me programme is also being offered in six (6) FES childcare centres. During 2018, this programme was also being delivered in two (2) orphanages to reach vulnerable children.

In 2018, 270 Aqra Miegħi/Read with Me sessions were organised reaching 4,137 individual children. Of these 4,137 children 1,968 were boys and 2,169 were girls. 920 children participated in both Maltese and English sessions.

2018 Boys Girls Total Maltese sessions 1083 1166 2249

English sessions 1408 1400 2808

Table 1: Children who benefitted from Aqra Miegħi/Read with Me sessions in 2018

Table 2 indicates the number of children who attended the Aqra Miegħi/Read with Me programme each month.

2018 Boys Girls Children January 486 539 1025 February 471 505 976 March 535 563 1098 April 849 816 1665 May 1207 668 1875 June 609 668 1277 July 639 667 1306 August 850 815 1665 September 572 616 1188 October 605 555 1160 November 403 435 838 December 381 411 792

Table 2: Breakdown of children who benefitted from Aqra Miegħi/Read with Me programme each month, 2018

Children’s monthly attendance Maltese sessions 2018 Boys Girls Children January 240 275 515 February 254 256 510 March 298 321 619 April 396 369 765 May 570 579 1149 June 323 382 705 July 370 400 770 August 319 325 644 September 327 321 648 October 275 313 588 November 431 398 829 December 213 223 436

Table 2a: Breakdown of children who benefitted from Aqra Miegħi/Read with Me programme (Maltese sessions) each month, 2018

Children’s monthly attendance English sessions 2018 Boys Girls Children January 311 308 619 February 274 292 566 March 322 334 656 April 490 500 990 May 582 606 1188 June 341 352 693 July 340 371 711 August 315 350 665 September 328 376 704 October 353 387 740 November 495 493 988 December 185 196 381

Table 2b: Breakdown of children who benefitted from Aqra Miegħi/Read with Me programme (English sessions) each month, 2018

Table 3 shows the number of babies/toddlers and adults who attended the Aqra Miegħi/Read with Me Programme in 2018. Please note that the figures refer to the number of attendees not the number of individual persons as in Tables 1 and 2.

Number of Attendees per Month 2018 Children Mothers Fathers Grandparents Sessions January 2600 1740 127 354 350 February 2414 1663 107 328 362 March 2782 1874 148 395 357 April 3316 2344 133 396 400 May 3889 2655 154 530 447 June 3474 2322 161 520 447 July 3505 2471 130 373 419 August 2965 1928 77 345 369 September 3233 2241 105 375 399 October 3261 2271 98 437 470 November 2936 1990 109 396 406 December 1187 840 35 107 178 Total 35,562 24,339 1,384 4,556 4,604

Table 3: Number of attendees and sessions per month in 2018 - Aqra Miegħi/Read with Me programme

Number of Attendees per Month, Malta 2018 Children Mothers Fathers Grandparents Sessions January 2281 1536 102 275 293 February 2041 1430 84 236 1533 March 2412 1655 115 280 287 April 2280 1637 96 229 267 May 2623 1847 97 308 297 June 3068 2093 134 389 369 July 3039 2176 99 252 347 August 2029 1363 50 217 238 September 2883 2015 96 317 321 October 2931 2070 90 323 371 November 2594 1777 94 280 334 December 1078 742 31 67 151 Total 29,259 20,341 1,088 3,173 4,808

Table 3a: Number of attendees and sessions per month in 2018, Malta - Aqra Miegħi/Read with Me programme

Number of Attendees per Month, Gozo 2018 Children Mothers Fathers Grandparents Sessions January 319 204 25 79 57 February 373 233 23 92 300 March 370 219 33 115 70 April 393 252 19 104 73 May 463 240 24 134 72 June 406 229 27 131 78 July 466 295 31 121 72 August 400 254 18 84 78 September 350 226 9 58 78 October 330 201 8 114 99 November 342 213 15 116 72 December 109 71 4 40 27 Total 4,321 2,637 236 1,188 1,076

Table 3b: Number of attendees and sessions per month in 2018, Gozo - Aqra Miegħi/Read with Me programme

2.1.1 Information sessions for Parents/Caregivers about Early Literacy In 2018, the Agency liaised with Primary Health Care professionals and provided information sessions to parents/caregivers of new-born babies at the Well Baby Clinic. The aim of this initiative was to raise awareness of early literacy practices and the Aqra Miegħi/Read with Me programme, encouraging parents/caregivers to attend storytelling sessions, and read aloud to their babies at home. Some information sessions were carried out on a one-to-one basis.

The Agency collaborated also with Parentcraft Services, delivering information sessions about the Aqra Miegħi/Read with Me programme and about the importance of reading aloud to babies. These sessions were intended for groups of expectant parents and groups of parents/caregivers of new-born babies.

Further information can be found in Tables 4 and 5.

Well Baby Clinic Information sessions 2018 Adults Sessions January 823 44 February 795 45 Mach 906 46 April 838 46 May 866 46 June 858 44 July 926 48 August 929 47 September 795 42 October 830 51 November 939 52 December 594 38 Total 10,099 549

Table 4: Information sessions held at the Well Baby Clinics in 2018

Parentcraft Information sessions

2018 Babies Females Males Adults Sessions

January 78 78 52 144 10 February 54 47 44 91 4 March 59 58 50 108 4 April 4 3 4 7 1 May 65 54 48 102 6 June 18 9 7 18 1 Total 278 249 205 470 26

Table 5: Information sessions held with Parentcraft in 2018

2.2 Seħer l-Istejjer/The Magic of Stories Seħer l-Istejjer/The Magic of Stories is a family literacy programme intended for children aged 4 to 7 years and their parents/caregivers. This bilingual programme is run by the Agency, in collaboration with the Centre for Literacy of the University of Malta, and supported by Malta Libraries. The primary objective of the programme is to promote a love of books among children through the involvement of their parents/caregivers. Children are motivated to read books and parents/caregivers are shown how to share books with their children in an effective manner.

Free of charge, one-hour sessions are held in a literacy-rich environment, such as in public libraries, schools and gardens, on a weekly basis. Stories are read out to stimulate children’s imagination, provide learning opportunities for both children and their parents/caregivers. The foundations are laid for children to become enthusiastic readers. During 2018, there were 65 centres across Malta and Gozo offering the service in the following localities: Attard, Baħrija, Birkirkara, Birżebbuġa, Cospicua, Dingli, Floriana, Gudja, Għajnsielem, Għarb, Għargħur, Għasri, Għaxaq, Gżira, Ħamrun, Kalkara, Kerċem, Kirkop, Lija, Luqa, Marsa, Marsascala, Marsaxlokk, Mellieħa, Mġarr, Mosta, Mqabba, Msida, Mtarfa, Nadur, Naxxar, Paola, Pembroke, Pietà, Qala, Qormi, Qrendi, Rabat, Safi, San Ġwann, Sannat, Santa Venera, Senglea, Siġġiewi, Sliema, St Julian’s, St Paul’s Bay, Tarxien, Valletta, Victoria, Vittoriosa, Xagħra, Xemxija, Xewkija, Xgħajra, Żabbar, Żebbuġ, Żejtun, and Żurrieq.

In 2018, 3,925 children benefitted from the Seħer l-Istejjer/The Magic of Stories programme as indicated in Table 6.

2018 Maltese sessions English sessions Total

Boys 956 1028 1984 Girls 1015 926 1941 Total 1,971 1,954 3,925

Table 6: Children who benefitted from Seħer l-Istejjer/The Magic of Stories programme in 2018

2018 Boys Girls Children January 988 493 1481 February 975 917 1892 March 1223 1073 2296 April 414 537 951 May 647 580 1227 June 269 374 643 July 232 245 477 August 278 228 506 September 97 110 207 October 393 348 741 November 1426 1217 2643 December 1278 1387 2665

Table 7: Breakdown of children who benefitted from Seħer l-Istejjer/The Magic of Stories programme each month in 2018

Table 8 highlights the number of participants, children and adults, who attended the sessions of this programme throughout 2018. Please note that the figures refer to the number of attendees not the number of individual persons as in Table 7.

Seħer L-Istejjer/The Magic of Stories Programme 2018 Children Mothers Fathers Grandparents Sessions January 2870 1002 122 91 265 February 3076 1112 89 109 352 March 3290 735 66 99 261 April 5246 1525 85 166 499 May 4789 1440 115 213 498 June 2305 658 49 56 280 July 699 301 21 18 105 August 1499 582 267 12 256 September 568 321 25 10 141 October 2731 794 50 60 299 November 4684 1314 187 226 432 December 2008 456 50 58 187 Total 33,765 10,240 1,126 1,118 3,575

Table 8: Number of attendees and sessions per month - Seħer l-Istejjer/The Magic of Stories programme in 2018

Number of Attendees per Month, Malta 2018 Children Mothers Fathers Grandparents Sessions January 2494 904 104 83 215 February 2417 908 59 86 1541 March 2974 664 61 84 230 April 4518 1339 60 130 429 May 3872 1106 84 163 360 June 1693 539 28 40 211 July 694 288 10 25 103 August 1288 505 257 8 212 September 437 220 11 5 101 October 1715 641 30 38 198 November 4283 1168 165 193 390 December 1870 451 46 51 167 Total 28,255 8,733 915 906 4,157

Table 9a: Number of attendees and sessions per month, Malta - Seħer l-Istejjer/The Magic of Stories programme in 2018

Seħer L-Istejjer/The Magic of Stories, Gozo 2018 Children Mothers Fathers Grandparents Sessions January 376 98 18 8 50 February 554 180 29 27 69 March 419 114 8 22 41 April 728 186 25 36 88 May 917 334 31 50 138 June 612 119 21 16 69 July 220 101 16 5 40 August 211 77 10 4 44 September 131 101 14 5 46 October 859 170 25 15 107 November 776 144 20 31 88 December 504 47 6 9 46 Total 6,307 1,671 223 228 826

Table 9b: Number of attendees and sessions per month, Gozo - Seħer l-Istejjer/The Magic of Stories programme, 2018

2.3 Gost il-Qari/The Pleasure of Reading Gost il-Qari/The Pleasure of Reading is a reading for fun programme for children aged between 7 and 11. The programme consists of one-hour weekly storytelling sessions that feature the sharing of stories and books, and other fun activities for this age group.

This programme enhances the child’s reading abilities and understanding. Reading animators encourage children to predict the story using rich oral language. Children are invited to express themselves through reading aloud, discussions, role-play and other activities. Through this multisensory methodology, children understand that stories are made up of a sequence of events and at times pose a problem. As a group, they debate potential resolutions to resolve the difficulty.

At the end of 2018, there were 26 centres across Malta and Gozo offering this programme, i.e. Attard. Birżebbuġa, Għajnsielem, Għarb, Ħamrun, Kerċem, Lija, Marsa, Marsascala, Marsaxlokk, Mosta, Mqabba, Nadur, Paola, Pietà, Qala, Rabat, San Ġwann, Sannat, Senglea, Siġġiewi, Tarxien, Valletta, Vittoriosa. Xewkija, Xagħra. Table 10 shows the number of participants, children and their parents/caregivers, who attended the sessions in 2018.

Gost il-Qari/The Pleasure of Reading Programme 2018 Children Adults Sessions

January 826 105 56 February 615 57 49 March 947 244 56 April 548 65 40 May 855 93 66 June 464 52 33 July 134 27 23 August 19 0 8 September 55 0 12 October 843 78 63 November 2415 95 175 December 1378 51 97 Total 9,099 867 678

Table 10: Number of attendees and sessions per month in 2018 – Gost il-Qari/The Pleasure of Reading Programme

2.4 Naqraw Flimkien/Let’s Read Together Naqraw Flimkien/Let’s Read Together sessions are ad hoc reading for pleasure sessions for children aged 0 to 11 and their parents/caregivers. These sessions feature the sharing of storybooks, singing of nursery rhymes and other fun activities, and are offered on demand. These events are organised by the Agency in collaboration with local councils, NGOs and other entities.

Naqraw Flimkien/Let’s Read Together 2018 Children Adults Sessions

March 133 15 7 April 429 55 17 May 61 24 3 June 80 59 4 July 14 12 2 August 35 46 4 September 10 10 1 October 47 79 3 November 153 15 6 December 191 99 11 Total 1,153 414 58

Table 11: Number of attendees and sessions per month in 2018 – Naqraw Flimkien/Let’s Read Together

During 2018, Naqraw Flimkien/Let’s Read Together reading sessions were held as per Table 12.

Valletta Waterfront during Colour Fest, October Ahoy and Christmas activities

Malta Central Library Malta Horse Sanctuary L-Irziezet ta’ Selmun Vanni, The President’s Foundation for the Well Being of Society Ministry of Culture during Karnival in Marsascala FEE Fest organised by Nature Trust FEE Malta Digital Literacy Fair, Digital Literacy Department It-Tfal u l-Kotba, National Book Council and Cospicua Local Council Homestart Għajnsielem Esplora activity during Christmas Marsa Primary School at Verdala Place San Ġwann Primary Christmas Village World Book Day activities at Mellieħa Primary School, Mosta Kindergarten, St. Catherine’s Kindergarten and Xagħra Public Library Żejtun Primary School during Spring Family Fun Day Żabbar Primary School during an activity at the Żabbar Local Library World Children’s Day activities at Mater Boni Consilii St Joseph Paola and St. Francis School

Table 12: Events and activities during which the reading sessions were held – Naqraw Flimkien/Let’s Read Together

2.5 The Nwar Family Literacy Programme Nwar is an after-school, family literacy programme supported by Book Distributors Limited, for primary school pupils who have not acquired the required basic skills level by the end of Year 3. The rationale of the Nwar programme is to support students with literacy difficulties to acquire basic literacy skills by the end of Year 6. Dedicated literacy tutors, who have followed a professional development course in literacy, provide systematic literacy intervention to children (8 to 10 years) with literacy difficulties, and encourage, upskill and motivate parents/guardians to support their children to become confident readers and writers. Multisensory sessions are held twice a week in 16 regional centres spread out across Malta and Gozo.

The methodology of the Nwar programme is based on a Balanced Literacy framework, as outlined in the National Literacy Strategy for All in Malta and Gozo, 2014 – 2019, characterised by explicit skill and systematic instruction. Furthermore, this programme ensures that students are engaged in their learning. The leading principles of this programme include teaching using a multisensory approach and accruing skills learnt in context through authentic texts. It encompasses an authentic approach that honours diversity as it integrates various modalities of literacy instruction to reinforce each other and enables children to make meaning through texts.

Nwar tutors work with a maximum of four learners and implement a well-planned comprehensive literacy scaffolded programme, whereby opportunities for the child to learn through many different components of literacy are presented. Through a systematic approach, planning is based on what the child already knows.

The programme provides both adult-initiated and child-initiated activities to support the development of those relationships and to increase the motivation to learn for both the adult and the child. Ongoing assessments and evaluations are conducted and recorded to ensure the progress of each child and centre administrators continuously monitor and discuss children’s progress. At the end of each semester, the progress of each student is discussed and evaluated and individual plans are set for each student.

There are 16 regional centres providing the Nwar programme within the 10 college-based system, as highlighted in Table 13.

Nwar Centres

Bormla Primary School St. Margaret College Żabbar Primary B School

St. Benedict College Kirkop Primary School

San Ġorġ Preca College Paola Primary B School

St. Ignatius College Qormi SB Primary School

San Ġwann Primary School St. Clare College Gżira Primary School

Naxxar Primary School

Maria Reġina College Mosta Primary B School

St. Paul’s Bay Primary School

St. Nicholas College Rabat Primary School

Birkirkara Primary School St. Therese College Sta. Venera Primary School

Żejtun Primary B School St. Thomas Moore College Marsascala Primary School

Gozo College Sannat Primary School

Table 13: Nwar centres in 2018 – Nwar Programme

Table 14 shows the number of families who attended the Nwar sessions per semester within each Nwar centre in 2018.

Students/Families Students/Families Centre March – May 2018 October – December 2018

Bormla 15 11 Żabbar B 8 30 Żurrieq 13 12 Paola 19 29 Qormi SĠ 15 n/a Qormi SB 18 23 San Ġwann 19 23 Naxxar 14 14 Mosta 18 19 St Paul’s Bay 12 11 Rabat 15 17 Birkirkara 30 24 St. Venera 11 7 Żejtun 24 19 Marsascala 12 11 Gozo 26 28 Total 269 268

Table 14: Number of pupils and families who attended the Nwar programme per semester in 2018

2.6 Klabb Naħla Klabb Naħla is a literacy intervention programme for primary school children in Years 2 to Year 6, that is supported by Klabb Kotba Maltin. Children are identified by their respective schools and offered the programme. Participating children benefit from additional literacy support to consolidate their reading and writing skills through a balanced literacy, and hands-on multi-sensory approach which includes tackling key areas of phonological awareness, phonics, reading fluency and comprehension, writing and oracy. A Balanced Literacy teaching and learning model is applied as outlined in the National Literacy Strategy for All.

Sessions are held twice or three times weekly and are delivered by educators who work within the same school, either during the breakfast club or after-school hours.

In 2018, 13 schools participated in the programme. Further information can be viewed in Tables 15a and 15b.

Klabb Naħla - Literacy Club January – June 2018

Primary School Children Boys Girls

7 2 5 St Julian’s 7 2 5 7 2 5 Gżira 8 6 2 Valletta 5 3 2 Marsa 7 5 2 Żabbar B 7 3 4 Żabbar A 9 5 4 5 4 1 Sta. Venera 6 2 4 6 4 2 Marsascala 7 5 2 Tarxien 8 3 5 8 4 4 Qormi SĠ 8 6 2 Qala 5 2 3 Sannat 5 2 3 Total 115 60 55

Table 15a: Number of pupils who participated in Klabb Naħla, January to June 2018

Klabb Naħla - Literacy Club

November – December 2018 Primary Children Boys Girls School 5 2 3 Marsa 8 3 5 Total 13 5 8

Table 15b: Number of pupils who participated in Klabb Naħla, October to December 2018

At the beginning of scholastic year 2018 – 2019, a circular was issued to all state primary schools inviting them to participate in Klabb Naħla service provision. In response to the circular, the following five (5) training sessions were organised in November and December.

Date Schools Tutors 06/11 Sta. Venera & Marsa Primary 4 27/11 Attard Primary 2 30/11 Qala Primary 1 11/12 Ħamrun ĠP & Attard Primary 4 17/12 Gżira Primary 1

Total 6 schools 12

Table 15c: Klabb Naħla training sessions, 2018

Klabb Naħla Bieżla is a literacy, after-school support service for Year 6 pupils attending San Ġorġ Preca College. In the period between January and May, three (3) schools participated in this programme.

Klabb Naħla Bieżla - After School Literacy Club January – May 2018 Primary School Children Boys Girls Marsa 8 3 5 Paola B 10 5 5 Valletta 5 4 1

Total 23 12 11

Table 16: Number of pupils who participated in Klabb Naħla Bieżla, January to May 2018

2.7 Reading Ambassadors/L-Ambaxxaturi tal-Qari The Reading Ambassadors programme is a school-based literacy initiative, supported by Agenda Bookshop, which promotes the pleasure of reading through organised events involving local personalities appointed by the Ministry for Education and Employment to motivate children and young people to read.

During these reading activities, Reading Ambassadors conduct a read-aloud session in Maltese or in English which is followed by a lively discussion about the book. Following the interactive read aloud session, an informal forum is organised with the participation of the whole school. This takes the form of a Q&A session with the Reading Ambassador/s about their reading habits and experiences. This event ends with a performance by one of the ambassadors.

Reading Ambassadors include authors, singers, actors, footballers, presenters, broadcasters and journalists. In 2018, 23 reading ambassador activities were held in 18 Primary Schools, 1 Middle School, 1 Secondary School and 2 Skolasajf centres. Further information can be viewed in Table 17.

Books Date Place/Centre/Locality Pupils Year Classes Distributed Reading Ambassadors Kurt Calleja; Taryn Mamo 22/01/18 Birkirkara Primary School 87 Year 4 4 24 Cefai; Simon Farrugia Andrea Cassar; Xandru 31/01/18 Naxxar Primary School 50 Year 6 3 18 Grech Gilbert Agius; Toni 23/02/18 Marsa Primary School 43 Year 5 & Year 6 4 24 Attard; Antonia Micallef;

28/02/18 Mġarr Primary School 70 Year 5 & Year 6 4 20 Corazon Mizzi Malcolm Galea; Gilbert 08/03/18 Mqabba Primary School 60 Year 4 & Year 5 4 24 Agius San Ġwann Primary Felix Busuttil and Gilbert 13/03/18 School 72 Year 6 4 24 Agius Miriam Dalli; Amber Bondin; Gilbert Agius; Nathalie Portelli; Ryan 06/04/18 Valletta Primary School 148 KG1 - Year6 15 90 Galea Gilbert Agius; Taryn 17/04/18 Qrendi Primary School 87 KG1 - Year 3 7 42 Mamo Cefai President of Malta; Gilbert Agius; Christabelle Borg; Keith 23/04/18 Mosta B Primary School 117 Year 4 5 30 Demicoli Year 4, Year 5 Tom Palmer; Gilbert 03/05/18 Luqa Primary School 100 & Year 6 6 36 Agius; Saviour Darmanin 04/05/18 Lija Primary School 67 Year 4 & Year 6 5 10 Rob Lloyd Jones 04/05/18 Żabbar B Primary School 107 Year 6 6 12 Rob Lloyd Jones President of Malta; Corazon Mizzi; Keith 22/05/18 Dingli Primary School 142 Year 1 - Year 6 10 60 Demicoli; Xandru Grech Jessika Muscat; Keith Demicoli; Pauline Fenech; Saviour 27/07/18 Naxxar Primary School 84 Year 1 - Year 4 4 24 Darmanin 22/08/18 Rabat Skolasajf Centre 48 Year 2 - Year 5 4 24 Kim Dalli 24/08/18 Mellieħa Skolasajf Centre 36 Year 4 - Year 5 2 12 Antonia Micallef Taryn Mamo Cefai; Carmel Busuttil; Saviour 05/09/18 The Point, Tigne' Sliema 68 Year 4 - Year 6 6 68 Darmanin Felix Busuttil; Gilbert 19/10/18 Pembroke Primary School 60 Year 6 3 18 Agius; Carmel Busuttil Kim Dalli; Gilbert Agius; 26/10/18 Senglea Primary School 40 Year 4 - Year 6 3 18 Saviour Darmanin Amber Bondin; Gilbert 16/11/18 Żurrieq Primary School 45 Year 5 3 18 Agius; Carmel Busuttil

St. Clare College Secondary School, Rita Saliba; Gilbert Agius; 22/11/18 Pembroke 70 Year 7 6 20 Carmel Busuttil Ian Bland; Gilbert Agius; Carmel Busuttil; Saviour 29/11/18 Kalkara Primary School 57 Year 3 - Year 6 6 36 Darmanin St. Ġorġ Preca College Ian Bland; Gilbert Agius; Middle School, Blata Carmel Busuttil; Saviour 30/11/18 l-Bajda 82 Year 8 8 20 Darmanin 18 Primary Schools 1 Middle School Total 1 Secondary School 1,740 n/a 122 672 25

Table 17: Reading Ambassadors activities held in 2018

2.8 Aqra Kemm Tiflaħ – Enhancing Classroom Libraries Through this programme the National Literacy Agency, in collaboration with state primary schools, enhances classroom libraries enabling children to interact directly with books, demonstrate positive attitudes towards reading, spend more time reading and exhibit higher levels of reading achievement.

Each classroom library is provided with sets of fiction and non-fiction books. Books are banded in 11 levels to ensure that each child is provided with books of his/her level. This enables children to build their confidence and improve their reading skills. Meetings are held with school senior management teams and class teachers. During these meetings, educators are provided with additional resources such as a lending record sheet, a reading diary and a laminated book band sheet. Reading running records are also given to each school to help teachers establish each child’s reading level.

Between January and December 2018, Aqra Kemm Tiflaħ distributed 21,365 books to Years 4, 5 and 6 classes in 21 primary state schools, reaching 3,648 pupils. A minimum of 100 high-appeal books, 50 in Maltese and 50 in English, were distributed to each class. Further information can be viewed in Table 18.

January – March 2018 School Name Year 4 Students Year 5 Students Year 6 Students Books 1 Valletta Primary 2 19 2 19 2 24 644 2 Fgura Primary B 5 101 5 99 5 93 1610 3 Attard Primary 4 48 3 49 3 46 1077 4 Mġarr Primary 2 32 2 39 2 30 644 5 Żejtun Primary B 4 75 4 79 3 55 1184 Total 17 275 16 285 15 248 5,159

April – May 2018 School Name Year 4 Students Year 5 Students Year 6 Students Books 1 Naxxar Primary 3 59 3 53 3 50 966 2 St. Ġwann Primary 3 64 4 51 4 72 1177 3 Pembroke Primary 4 78 3 57 3 68 1077 4 Żurrieq Primary 4 72 4 90 3 60 1184 5 Siġġiewi Primary 3 66 3 59 3 47 966 6 Żebbuġ Primary 3 61 3 56 3 59 966 7 Birżebbuġa Primary 4 61 4 73 3 62 1184 8 Sliema Primary 2 42 3 56 2 47 751 Total 26 503 27 495 24 465 8,271

October – December 2018 School Name Year 4 Students Year 5 Students Year 6 Students Books 1 Mellieħa Primary 3 63 3 67 4 87 1070 2 Għargħur Primary 2 38 2 33 2 37 644 3 Ħal Għaxaq Primary 2 36 2 32 2 40 644 4 Gżira Primary 2 23 2 23 2 24 644 5 Floriana Primary 1 13 1 16 1 14 322 6 Lija-Balzan-Iklin Primary 2 38 3 37 2 31 751 7 Żabbar B Primary 5 97 5 118 6 107 1821 8 Marsascala Primary 4 88 5 109 4 91 1395 9 Tarxien Primary 3 40 2 41 2 34 644 Total 24 436 25 476 25 465 7,935

Year 4 Students Year 5 Students Year 6 Students Books Global total for 2018 67 1,214 68 1,256 64 1,178 21,365

Table 18: Number of books distributed to Years 4, 5 and 6 classrooms in 2018 – Aqra Kemm Tiflaħ Programme

Moreover, between October and December, the NLA distributed 3,903 books to 39 new classes from Year 1, up to Year 6 in 26 primary schools, reaching 643 pupils. Tables 16 show the number of books distributed to new classrooms within state primary schools throughout 2018.

Aqra Kemm Tiflaħ Top-up: Year 1 to Year 3 Year 1 Year 2 Year 3 TOTAL TOTAL School Pop Cls Pop Cls Pop Cls Pop Cls Books

1 Kirkop Primary 12 1 12 1 101 2 Pieta Primary 16 1 16 1 100 3 Marsa Primary 11 1 11 1 100 4 Żabbar A Primary 20 1 20 1 101 5 San Lawrenz Primary 4 1 4 1 100 6 Rabat Primary 17 1 17 1 100 7 Tarxien Primary 17 1 17 1 100 8 St. Paul's Bay Primary 20 1 20 1 40 2 200 9 Għargħur Primary 19 1 20 1 39 2 201 10 Mellieħa Primary 21 1 21 1 100 11 St. Julian's Primary 14 1 14 1 100 12 Birżebbuġia Primary 16 1 19 1 35 2 200 13 Rabat Primary 13 1 13 1 100 14 Marsaxlokk Primary 12 1 13 1 25 2 200 15 Siġġiewi Primary 17 1 18 1 35 2 201 16 Mosta A Primary 21 1 21 1 100 17 Gżira Primary 17 1 17 1 101 18 Pembroke Primary 18 1 18 1 100 19 San Ġwann Primary 15 1 15 1 101 20 Paola A Primary 30 2 30 2 200 Total 420 26 2,606

Table 19a: Number of books distributed to Years 1, 2 and 3 classrooms in 2018 – Aqra Kemm Tiflaħ Programme

Aqra Kemm Tiflaħ Top-up: Year 4 to Year 6 Year 4 Year 5 Year 6 TOTAL TOTAL School Pop Cls Pop Cls Pop Cls Pop Cls Books

1 Pembroke Primary 19 1 19 1 2 San Ġwann Primary 16 1 16 1 111 3 Naxxar Primary 15 1 15 1 111 4 Siġġiewi Primary 9 1 9 1 111 5 St. Venera Primary 15 1 16 1 31 2 215 6 Sliema Primary 19 1 17 1 36 2 215 7 Żejtun B Primary 21 1 20 1 41 2 215 8 Birkirkara Primary 15 1 15 1 111 9 Żurrieq Primary 23 1 23 1 104 10 Birżebbuġa Primary 18 1 18 1 104 Total 223 13 1,297

Table 19b: Number of books distributed to Years 4, 5 and 6 classrooms in 2018 – Aqra Kemm Tiflaħ Programme

During 2018, 40 bookshelves, sponsored by GO plc, were distributed to six (6) primary state schools. Years 1, 2 and 3 classes, within these six (6) schools, were equipped with bookshelf display units for the books provided as part of the Aqra Kemm Tiflaħ programme, allowing the books to be properly displayed and ensuring accessibility for students. Table 20 shows the schools who received these bookshelves.

School Year 1 Students Year 2 Students Year 3 Students Bookshelves Classes Students Sannat 1 Primary 2 27 1 9 3 29 6 6 65 Mosta A 2 Primary 2 39 7 125 5 117 14 14 281 Floriana 3 Primary 1 11 1 20 1 13 3 3 44 Marsa 4 Primary Utilised by all year groups in Literacy corner 2 15 197 Birkirkara 5 Primary 4 71 4 74 3 59 11 11 204 Marsaxlokk 6 Primary 1 18 2 26 1 18 4 4 62 Total 40 53 853

Table 20: Distribution of bookshelf display units in 2018 – Aqra Kemm Tiflaħ Programme

2.9 The Malta Writing Programme (MWP)/Il-Programm tal-Kitba ta’ Malta The Agency supports the college literacy teams, schools, educators and local communities in the implementation of writing process methodology.

Through after-school activities, the Agency promotes writing process methodology and writing in a fun and interactive setting for children and their families. Klabb Gost il-Kitba is a writing club for children who have reached the basic skills level through Nwar provision or for children who are not eligible for Nwar service provision. Although the focus is on developing the four skills, attention is given to developing reading and writing skills. Parents/caregivers participate together with their children enabling them to become familiar with a range of writing strategies and equipping them with writing skills they can use with their children at home.

The Intergenerational Writing Club aims to give the opportunity to different generations to work together. It also helps them develop their creative writing skills, express their thoughts in writing and work together on writing projects. The Young Writers’ Club supports gifted children in developing and honing their creative writing skills. The writing for fun activities:  introduce the writing process methodology to both children and their parents/caregivers;  contribute to a gradual but radical change in language learning and teaching of both children and parents/caregivers;  offer an informal and enjoyable setting to facilitate writing, where writing strategies as well as the reading-writing connection are addressed.

In 2018, the NLA organised the writing clubs listed in Table 21.

Date Description Participants January – March 2018 Klabb Gost il-Kitba 14 children 14 parents/guardians April – June 2018 Intergenerational Writing Club 7 children 7 parents/guardians October 2018 – January 2019 Young Writers’ Club 30 children

Total 51 children 21 adults

Table 21: Family writing clubs organised in 2018

Every month, the Agency organises Xalati ta’ Kitba/Family Writing Activities in historical, cultural or rural places. These activities, which are sponsored by Merlin Publishers, present writing as a positive experience and link it to everyday activities. Parents/guardians are empowered to use the writing techniques at home with their children.

In 2018, the Agency organised 17 Xalati ta’ Kitba, as shown in Table 22.

Participants Old New Activity Period Children Adults Children Adults Children Adults St. Thomas More Boys’ Learning 03/01/18 25 17 / / 25 17 Support Centre, Ħamrun Malta Maritime Museum, 17/02/18 27 19 8 7 19 12 Vittoriosa Malta Maritime Museum, 10/03/18 23 19 10 7 13 12 Vittoriosa Central Public Library, Floriana 28/03/18 27 19 8 6 19 13

Central Public Library, Floriana 04/04/18 26 17 11 7 15 10

Citadel, Gozo 07/04/18 28 19 15 11 13 8

Żurrieq Valley 11/05/18 25 22 8 6 17 16

Mosta Nwar Centre 30/05/18 18 18 / / 18 18

Żurrieq Valley 01/06/18 6 8 4 5 2 3

Central Public Library, Floriana 16/06/18 18 12 11 7 7 5

Selmun, Mellieħa 30/06/18 26 22 13 13 13 9

St. Venera Football Ground 13/07/18 21 18 17 14 4 4

Fort Saint Angelo 14/09/18 22 / / / 22 / National Museum of Natural 20/10/18 28 22 14 12 14 10 History, Mdina National Museum of Natural 03/11/18 22 20 15 15 7 5 History, Mdina Tarxien Temples 24/11/18 28 20 15 15 8 5

Għajnsielem, Gozo 15/12/18 13 12 2 3 11 9 Total 383 284 156 128 227 156

Table 22: Xalati ta’ Kitba/Family Writing Activities held in 2018

2.10 Footballers’ Read and Write Programme (FRWP)/Bil-Qari u l-Kitba Niskorja FRWP is a football and literacy programme, which offers upper primary state school students an opportunity to participate in reading and writing activities related to football. The passion and enthusiasm for football is utilised to inspire a love of reading and writing amongst students who are reluctant readers. Professional football coaches and literacy resource leaders form part of the FRWP team. These professionals work with primary school educators to engage children through reading and writing workshops related to the theme of football.

Cycle 2 – October 2017 to January 2018 During the second cycle, the FRWP was held in three (3) Primary Schools namely Cospicua, Birkirkara and Għajnsielem in collaboration with the Malta Football Association, Sports Malta and Għajnsielem F.C. The programme was also organised after school hours at the Sliema Wanderers Football Nursery at Tigne Point. 26

Interviews and pre-reading assessments were carried out to determine the reading level of each child. Post-reading assessments were organised at the end of this cycle to evaluate the children’s reading levels.

During this cycle, fixtures were held once weekly for ten consecutive weeks, as shown in Table 23.

October 2017 - January 2018 Class Boys Girls School/Club Venue Year 4 4 4 Birkirkara Primary School St. Venera Sports Ground Year 4 6 2 Cospicua Primary School Cottonera Sports Complex Year 4 & 5 11 1 Għajnsielem Primary School Għajnsielem Football Ground Year 6 9 1 Sliema Wanderers Football Nursery Sliema Wanderers Sports Complex Total 30 8

Table 23: Number of participants in the FRWP second cycle, 2018

Cycle 3 – February 2018 to May 2018 During the third cycle, the FRWP was held in ten (10) schools, nine Primary Schools and one Middle School, in collaboration with Mġarr United F.C., Għajnsielem F.C., Birżebbuġa Foundation, Qormi Hockey Club, Safi Local Council, San Ġwann F.C., Sports Malta and the Malta Football Association The schools included Birkirkara, Mġarr, Għajnsielem, Birżebbuġa, Qormi SB, Safi, Valletta, San Ġwann and Senglea Primary Schools, and Bormla Middle School.

Interviews, pre-reading and post-reading assessments were carried out to determine the reading level of each child.

During this cycle, the fixtures were held once weekly for ten consecutive weeks, as shown in Table 24.

February – June 2018 Class Boys Girls School/Club Venue Year 5 8 n/a Birkirkara Primary School St. Venera Sports Ground

Year 5 5 4 Mġarr Primary Mġarr Football Ground

Year 4 & Year 5 6 2 Għajnsielem Primary Għajnsielem Football Ground Year 5 11 1 Birżebbuġa Primary Birżebbuġa Football Ground Year 5 8 n/a Qormi SB Primary Qormi Hockey Ground Year 5 7 2 Safi Primary Safi Football Ground Year 4 & Year 5 7 1 Valletta Primary St Venera Sports Ground Year 4 & Year 5 7 1 San Ġwann Primary San Ġwann Football Ground Year 5 & Year 6 5 5 Senglea Primary Cottonera Sports Complex Year 7 6 2 Bormla Middle School Bormla Middle School Ground Total 70 18

Table 24: Number of participants in the FRWP third cycle, 2018 27

An overall improvement of 91% in the reading levels of the participants was registered during the third cycle.

Children who participated in the second cycle were invited to attend a Meet and Greet session with renowned UK author Tom Palmer, whilst the participants of the third cycle were invited to attend a Meet and Greet session with renowned UK children’s poet, Ian Bland.

Meet and Greet Date Children Venue Tom Palmer 3rd May 2018 22 NCC

Ian Bland 29th November 2018 23 NCC

Total 55

Table 25: Number of participants in the FRWP follow-up sessions in 2018

Cycle 4 – October 2018 to January 2019 During the fourth cycle, the FRWP was held in ten (10) schools, nine Primary Schools and one Middle School, in collaboration with the Malta Football Association, San Ġwann F.C., Żejtun Corinthians F.C., Xewkija Tigers, Safi Local Council, Qormi Hockey Club, Kalkara F.C. and Ħamrun Spartans. Five of these primary schools, namely Żejtun B, Xewkija, Vittoriosa, Marsa and Kalkara, took part in this programme for the first time. During this cycle, the FRWP was also organised in four schools which had previously participated in the third cycle. These schools include San Ġwann, Safi, Qormi SB and B’Kara Primary Schools. The FRWP was also organised in Blata l-Bajda Middle School.

Interviews and pre-reading assessments were carried out to determine the reading level of each child. Post-reading assessments to evaluate the children’s reading levels will be organised at the end of this cycle, in January/February 2019.

October 2018 – January 2019 Class Boys Girls School/Club Venue Year 4 & Year 5 8 n/a San Ġwann Primary San Ġwann Football Ground

Year 4 6 2 Żejtun Primary B Żejtun Football Ground

Year 4 & Year 5 8 2 Xewkija Primary Xewkija Football Ground

Year 4 & Year 5 5 3 Safi Primary Safi Football Ground Year 4 & Year 5 6 3 Vittoriosa Primary Vittoriosa Football Ground (5-a side) Year 5 8 n/a Qormi SB Primary Qormi Hockey Ground Year 5 7 2 Birkirkara Primary St. Venera Sports Ground Year 4 & Year 5 5 3 Marsa Primary St. Venera Sports Ground Year 4 & Year 5 7 1 Kalkara Primary Kalkara Football Ground Year 8 7 0 Middle School, Blata l-Bajda Victor Tedesco Stadium Total 67 16

Table 26: Number of participants in the FRWP third cycle in 2018 28

2.10.1 FRWP one-off fixtures These one-off fixtures offer schools and participating children a taste of the programme during a one-and-a-half hour engaging session. These one-off sessions comprise a range of varying activities, including reading about football, football exercises, exploring new football skills and games, and other physical exercises. These sessions are led by a Sports Literacy Leader and a Literacy Resource Leader.

Date Class School Students 22nd March 2018 Year 4 Għaxaq Primary 16 12th April 2018 Year 5 Lija Primary 15 13th April 2018 Year 5 St. Venera Primary 19 19th April 2018 Year 5 Naxxar Primary 17 20th April 2018 Year 4 Victoria Primary Gozo 15 20th April 2018 Year 4 Ħamrun ĠP Primary 21 27th April 2018 Year 5 Siġġiewi Primary 20 4th May 2018 Year 4 Xgħajra Primary 10 11th May 2018 Year 5 Żejtun Primary B 18 Boys’ Learning Centre, 17th May 2018 Year 8 & Year 9 10 Ħamrun 23rd May 2018 Year 5 Paola B Primary 17 24th May 2018 Year 5 Gżira Primary 12 25th May 2018 Year 4 & Year 5 Żejtun Primary B 12 5th June 2018 Year 5 Xgħajra Primary 10 6th June 2018 Year 5 Żabbar Primary B 32 11th June 2018 Year 4 Marsa Primary 25 12th June 2018 Year 4 & Year 5 Kirkop Primary 29 Total 298

Table 27: One-off FRWP fixtures in 2018

2.11 Reading Champions/Il-Promoturi tal-Qari On November 8, the Agency in collaboration with the National Book Council and the Department of Curriculum, Research, Innovation & Lifelong Learning, organised the yearly Reading Champions award ceremony for Form 2/Year 8 students as part of a nationwide campaign for the promotion of reading.

This campaign rewards students who are proficient readers in Maltese and English as well as awards students who improve their reading skills, or who promote reading and writing among their peers.

Tables 28 and 29 show the number of students who were awarded book tokens during the prize awarding ceremony of 2018 and the schools that participated in the award giving ceremonies.

1st Ceremony 2nd Ceremony Reading Champions Total 8th November 2018 8th November 2018 Schools 16 16 32 Form 2 Students 48 48 96

Table 28: Number of participants in 2018 – Reading Champions

1st Award Ceremony 2nd Award Ceremony St. Ġorġ Preca Middle School, Blata l-Bajda Maria Reġina College Middle School, Naxxar St. Edwards College St. Nicholas College Middle School, Rabat St. Clare College National Sport School, Pembroke St. Joseph School, Blata l-Bajda St. Dorothy's Senior School Immaculate Conception Secondary School, Tarxien Bishop's Conservatory Girls' Secondary School San Anton School St. Benedict College Middle School, Kirkop St. Thomas More College Middle School, Tarxien Gozo College Middle School, Victoria St. Michael Foundation Sacred Heart Minor Seminary Savio College St. Clare College Secondary School, Pembroke The Malta Visual and Performing Arts School St. Joseph Senior School, Sliema St. Theresa College Middle School, Birkirkara Our Lady Immaculate School, Ħamrun St. Margaret College Middle School, Cospicua St. Ignatius College Middle School, Ħandaq St. Joseph Mater Boni Consilii School, Paola St. Thomas More College Secondary School, Żejtun St. Augustine College St. Martin's College St. Monica School, Gżira St. Monica School, B'Kara St. Elias College St. Michael School Sacred Heart College Senior School

Table 29: List of schools that participated in the Reading Champions initiative in 2018

2.12 Għidli Storja/Tell Me a Story Għidli Storja/Tell Me a Story is a storytelling programme launched during scholastic year 2017 - 2018, which is intended for Year 5 primary students to improve their oracy, listening and comprehension skills in preparation for the Maltese and English benchmark assessment.

By learning to tell stories, children develop essential literacy skills such as, speaking, listening, reading and writing, as well as language, communication and social skills, and knowledge of story content. The students are helped to practise these skills through stories and storytelling, and oracy-based activities. Educators gain skills on how to help their students develop their listening skills and become articulate communicators who express themselves in public with confidence.

A pilot project was launched in 2018 with the participation of six (6) primary state schools.

January – June 2018 Primary School Children Boys Girls Victoria, Gozo 18 9 9 Żejtun B 22 10 12 Ħamrun GP 21 15 6 Qormi SG 19 12 7 Gżira 13 8 5 Għaxaq 20 11 9 Total 113 65 48

Table 30: List of schools that participated in the Għidli Storja/Tell Me a Story programme in 2018

2.13 Storytelling Schools On January 10, the Agency organised a full-day continuous professional development session entitled, Storytelling Schools: A Learning Methodology for Literacy, Oracy and Creativity run by Dr Chris Smith, Director of Storytelling Schools. The session was organised for the 10 college-based literacy teams. Following positive feedback, the National Literacy Agency in collaboration with the Storytelling Schools Limited (UK), launched the Storytelling Schools pilot project in November 2018. Nine (9) primary state schools, namely Marsaxlokk, Kerċem, Żebbuġ, San Lawrenz, Għarb, Qormi SĠ, Pieta’, Gżira and Dingli, participated in the pilot project.

18 whole day and whole-school staff development training sessions, three (3) per school, will be organised during scholastic year 2018 - 2019. The first training session was held between November 15 and 22, reaching 362 educators. Additional training sessions will be held between January and March 2019.

This intensive training will provide primary school educators with the necessary storytelling skills to help students build confidence and fluency in spoken language, and to raise the standards of reading and writing. Consequently, these educators will be empowered to promote literacy by integrating the skills of oracy, reading and writing.

School Educators Marsaxlokk 45 Kerċem, Għarb, San Lawrenz & Żebbuġ, Gozo 61 Qormi San Ġorġ 88 Pieta 60 Gżira 53 Dingli 55 Total 362

Table 31: List of schools and participants in 2018 – Storytelling Schools

3. NLA Summer Programmes

3.1 Aqra fis-Sajf There is considerable evidence to show that in summer, children lose some of the educational gain made during the previous academic year. One of the ways of addressing this setback is by encouraging summer reading. In view of this, for the fourth consecutive year, the NLA in collaboration with the Foundation for Educational Services (FES) and Malta Libraries organised the intensive reading campaign Aqra fis-Sajf.

The Aqra fis-Sajf Summer Reading campaign involved weekly read aloud and shared reading sessions, in Maltese and English, in 52 Skolasajf centres across Malta and Gozo. University students were assigned to Skolasajf centres to deliver the read aloud and shared reading sessions. The provision and posting of student workers was carried out in collaboration with the Students Maintenance Grants Section within the Ministry for Education and Employment.

Pupils from 19 Skolasajf centres participated in Bil-Qari u l-Kitba Niskorja/Footballers Read and Write Summer Programme activities. 392 pupils, aged between 8 and 10, participated in 32 football related literacy activities under the guidance of Literacy Resource Leaders and the Sports Resource Leaders. Reading Ambassadors visited two (2) Skolasajf centres to promote reading through story-telling sessions. 7,176 children attending Skolasajf participated in this intensive reading campaign and benefitted from a range of relevant, age-appropriate before, during and after reading for fun activities.

A four-day training programme for university students participating in Aqra fis-Sajf was organised in July, prior to the start of the summer programme. These training sessions focused on the structure and methodology of a shared reading session and on storytelling techniques. Participants discussed a variety of before, during and after reading activities they could organise, selecting appropriate books, how to animate a story, as well as general classroom management techniques. Mid-way through the summer another training session was held which focused on creating stimulating resources and activities to support the shared reading sessions.

Thirty-nine (39) Aqra fis-Sajf reading animators delivered 3,600 reading sessions during the summer period, as per Table 32.

Skolasajf Centre Pupils Classes Sessions Maria Reġina College Mellieħa 355 35 145 Naxxar 230 20 104 St Paul's Bay 302 34 156 Mosta 288 28 98 Burmarrad 28 3 36 St. Benedict College Birżebbuġa 101 10 111 Għaxaq 44 4 45 Safi 40 4 11

Mqabba 110 9 57 Qrendi 53 5 31 Żurrieq 118 16 38 St. Thomas Moore College Fgura 258 21 58 Marsascala 257 26 89 Marsaxlokk 78 10 92 Tarxien 81 7 52 Żejtun 144 16 92 St. Margaret College Cospicua 58 9 31 Xgħajra 51 6 45 Żabbar A 153 17 72 Żabbar B 171 10 149 St. Ġorġ Preca College Ħamrun 130 8 49 Marsa 62 6 58 Paola 196 18 134 Pietà 55 8 42 Valletta 52 8 25 St. Ignatius College Luqa 254 13 80 Qormi SĠ 175 117 60 Qormi SB 110 14 53 Siġġiewi 318 24 45 Żebbuġ 104 14 49 St. Theresa College Birkirkara 332 35 136 Lija 98 12 61 St. Venera 185 17 108 St. Clare College Gżira 101 8 28 Pembroke 296 30 141 San Ġwann 187 13 56 Sliema 213 20 116 St. Julian’s 76 8 38 St. Nicholas College Attard 148 16 83 Dingli 147 13 66 33

Mġarr 190 15 79 Rabat A 109 12 53 Rabat B 54 6 44 Gozo College Għajnsielem 45 5 28 Għarb/San 43 5 69 Lawrenz/Żebbuġ Kerċem 34 4 42 Nadur 64 8 32 Victoria 279 32 148 Xewkija 69 8 37 Xagħra 72 7 53 Sannat 58 6 75

Total 7,176 800 3,600

Table 32: Number of sessions and attendees in summer 2018 – Aqra fis-Sajf programme

3.1.1 Celebration Ceremonies To commemorate International Literacy Day, and celebrate the closure of the summer reading campaign, the Agency organised a celebration on September 5 at The Point Shopping Mall, Tigne’, Sliema. During this event, 68 pupils from Gżira, Sliema, and St. Julian’s Skolasajf centres took part in reading activities led by Reading Ambassadors Taryn Mamo Cefai, Carmel Busuttil, and Saviour Darmanin.

The winners of the Minister’s Challenge and the Bookmark Design Competition, together with their parents/guardians, were invited to the Aqra fis-Sajf prize-giving ceremony on September 14 at Fort St. Angelo, Birgu. Apart from receiving a prize, the 90 winners took part in various reading activities while their parents/guardians participated in a guided walking tour. This event was organised in collaboration with Heritage Malta.

3.2 Minister’s Challenge As part of the Aqra fis-Sajf 2018 reading campaign, the Minister for Education and Employment, the Honourable Evarist Bartolo, challenged students to read a minimum of ten (10) books in Maltese or English. Students recorded the book titles on record sheets that were disseminated in all Skolasajf centres and Public Libraries. 465 students took part in this challenge. 80 pupils, from different Skolasajf centres, were selected during the raffle held on September 10 at the National Curriculum Centre, Ħamrun.

3.3 Bookmark Design Challenge Apart from the Minister’s summer reading challenge, all children attending Skolasajf were also invited to take part in a bookmark design competition. Students were given a template, including a set of guidelines, to be able to design an original bookmark. These templates were handed out in Skolasajf

centres and public libraries. This competition came to an end on August 29. A total of 526 pupils submitted a bookmark design, and the best ten (10) designs were selected amongst all submitted bookmarks.

3.4 Klabbsajf During summer 2018, the NLA in collaboration with the FES organised a literacy guided reading programme at five (5) Skolasajf summer centres, reaching 68 children. The programme targeted children in Years 4, 5 and 6 who during scholastic year 2017 – 2018 attended the Nwar programme or were on the waiting list for the service.

Before the commencement of the summer programme, an introductory meeting was organised for all Klabbsajf tutors. The Klabbsajf administrators supported Klabbsajf tutors throughout the summer to ensure successful delivery of the programme. Reading running records were carried out with each child to ensure that children were grouped according to their reading level, as per Table 33.

Children’s attendance: Children’s attendance: Skolasajf Centre beginning of summer end of summer

Paola 6 6 Mosta 13 10 St. Paul’s Bay 13 13 Birkirkara 9 7 San Ġwann 7 7 Żabbar 10 8 Gozo 10 9 Total 68 60

Table 33: Number of children who participated in Klabbsajf programme, summer 2018

3.5 Skolasajf – Footballers’ Read and Write Programme/Bil-Qari u l-Kitba Niskorja Summer One-off FRWP sessions were organised in 21 Skolasajf centres, 19 in Malta and 2 in Gozo. This was an exciting opportunity for children to engage in an hour and a half session of football exercises, reading about football, exploring new skills, football games and other physical exercises.

Date Skolasajf Centre Class Students 31st July 2018 Mġarr Primary P5 Koalas 9 1st August 2018 Mellieħa Primary Year 5A & 5B 16 2nd August 2018 Paola Primary Year 4.1 15 6th August 2018 Mqabba Primary Class 7 & 8 24 7th August 2018 Lija Primary Class 10 & 11 23 8th August 2018 Luqa Primary Year 4 (Class 11) 11 8th August 2018 Attard Primary Year 6 10 9th August 2018 Luqa Primary Year 5 (Class 12) 10 9th August 2018 Sliema Primary Class 17 13 10th August 2018 Gżira Primary Year 4, 5, 6 & Form 1 23 14th August 2018 Floriana Primary 8 - 10 year olds 19 17th August 2018 Żebbuġ Primary Class 16 & 17 14 20th August 2018 Gudja Primary Class Gardell & Ċiefa 11 21st August 2018 Mġarr Primary P6 Tigers 7 21st August 2018 Sliema Primary Class 18 13 22nd August 2018 Qormi SĠ Primary 2 classes: 9 - 10 Year olds 23 22nd August 2018 Marsa Primary Class 4 & 5 16 23rd August 2018 Birkirkara Primary Class 24 & 25 26 24th August 2018 Xagħra Primary Class 1 & 2 23 24th August 2018 Victoria Primary Class 8 & 9 31 27th August 2018 Pembroke Primary 2 classes: 9 - 10 Year olds 22 29th August 2018 Żejtun Primary B 1 Group 13 St. Paul’s Bay 30th August 2018 Year 6.1 & 6.2 20 Primary Total 392

Table 34: One-off FRWP summer sessions, 2018

4. New Programmes launched in 2018

4.1 Reading Recovery Reading Recovery (RR) is an accredited school-based literacy programme for the lowest achieving children aged five or six that enables them to reach age-expected levels within 20 weeks. It involves a short series of one-to-one lessons for 30 minutes every day with a specially trained teacher. The programme is different for every child, starting from what the child knows and what s/he needs to learn next. The focus of each lesson is to comprehend messages in reading and construct messages in writing, learning how to attend to detail without losing focus on meaning.

The National Literacy Agency in collaboration with the University College London, launched Reading Recovery on March 12 at Żurrieq Primary and visits to the schools participating in this project were held. The RR programme is led by Dr Sue Bodman and the Reading Recovery National Leadership Team that is based at Reading Recovery Europe, International Literacy Centre, UCL Institute of Education, University College, London.

Two training days based on observing reading behaviours were held on March 14 and 16 for prospective students and the college literacy teams. On May 10, another visit by Dr Sue Bodman was held. This included a meeting with the SpLD team, a meeting with prospective students, and a school visit to Qormi San Ġorġ primary school.

Two courses on Reading Recovery methodology are currently underway. The first course will lead to a Masters (MA) in Reading Recovery whilst the other will lead participants to be qualified as Reading Recovery teachers. Fourteen (14) Reading Recovery teachers and seven (7) Reading Recovery teacher leaders are following the Reading recovery courses.

The MA course started on September 25 whilst the teacher course started on September 27, 2018. 92 Year 2 students from the nine (9) schools participating in the Reading Recovery intervention (Table 35) are benefitting from these programmes. During October to December, MA course students had ten face-to-face sessions, five online sessions, three behind the screen practice visits, and one individual mentoring visit per student. During the same period, the RR teacher course students followed three lectures, two behind the screen practice visits, and one or two individual mentoring visits each.

College School St. Margaret Cospicua St. Benedict Żurrieq San Ġorġ Preca Marsa St. Ignatius Qormi San Ġorġ/Principal’s office St. Claire San Ġwann St. Nicholas Rabat St. Theresa Birkirkara St. Thomas Moore Fgura A Gozo College Xagħra

Table 35: List of state primary schools participating in the Reading Recovery training programme during 2018

Parental meetings were held in each school and information was shared with 46 parents/carers who attended this meeting.

School Parents/caregivers Qormi 5 Birkirkara 3 Marsa 3 Żurrieq 12 Fgura A 5 Bormla 4 San Ġwann 9 Xagħra 5 Total 46

Table 36: List of parents/caregivers’ attendance for parental meetings about Reading Recovery, 2018

5. Projects

5.1 Brillantini tal-Qari/Reading Stars The main aim of this project is to reward outstanding students of all ages who love reading and who read in public spaces, such as in public gardens, waiting rooms, playgrounds and while waiting for school transport. When spotted reading, an employee of the Agency presents the Reading Star with a letter of achievement and a book voucher from Merlin Library, the sponsor of this initiative. At the end of each scholastic year, the Agency organises a celebration ceremony for all reading stars under the auspices of Her Excellency, the President of Malta, Marie-Louise Coleiro Preca. Each reading star receives a token from Her Excellency, and books and gifts from the Agency.

In 2018, 47 students between the ages of 4 and 15 were awarded. These students came from state, church and independent schools. On June 18, the Agency organised a ceremony for the reading stars at the Grandmaster’s Palace in Valletta under the auspices of Her Excellency, the President of Malta, Marie-Louise Coleiro Preca. During this celebration, nine (9) children exhibited their talents. Each reading star received a token from Her Excellency, Marie-Louise Coleiro Preca and a gift from the NLA. During the ceremony, the reading stars were praised for being reading role models. A further 30 students who attend Ħandaq Middle School were also awarded a gift from the NLA for their commitment to reading.

The Brillantini tal-Qari/Reading Stars awarded in 2018, are listed in Table 37.

Date Audience 21-Jan Boy, aged 7, who attends Rabat Primary School 23-Jan Girl, aged 8, who attends Birkirkara Primary School 24-Jan Girl, aged 8, who attends Birkirkara Primary School 25-Jan Girl, aged 6, who attends Żurrieq Primary School 26-Jan Girl, aged 6, who attends Gudja Primary School 27-Jan Boy, aged 8, who attends Sannat Primary School 29-Jan Boy, aged 9, who attends Sannat Primary School 31-Jan Girl, aged 10, who attends Ħamrun SS Primary School 1-Feb Girl, aged 9, who attends Birżebbuġia Primary School 2-Feb Girl, aged 10, who attends Pembroke Primary School 3-Feb Girl, aged 6, who attends Pembroke Primary School 4-Feb Girl, aged 8, who attends Għaxaq Primary School 5-Feb Girl, aged 10, who attends Tarxien Primary School 8-Feb Boy, aged 4, who attends Żurrieq Primary School 11-Feb Girl, aged 11, who attends St Francis School, Sliema 27-Feb Boy, aged 10, who attends Naxxar Primary School 28-Feb Boy, aged 10, who attends Naxxar Primary School 1-Mar Girl, aged 10, who attends St Joseph School, Blata l-Bajda 5-Mar Boy, aged 9, who attends Birżebbuġia Primary School 8-Mar Girl, aged 5, who attends Birżebbuġia Primary School 13-Mar Girl, aged 9, who attends Sacred Heart School 28-Mar Girl, aged 15, who attends Maria Reġina College, Senior School 13-Apr Girl, aged 8, who attends Senglea Primary School 14-Apr Boy, aged 6, who attends Verdala International School 4-May Boy, aged 10, who attends Żurrieq Primary School 9-May Girl, aged 10, who attends Mqabba Primary School 10-May Girl, aged 10, who attends Tarxien Primary School 17-May Girl, aged 10, who attends Fgura Primary School 18-May Girl, aged 9, who attends Vittoriosa Primary School 20-May Girl, aged 12, who attends Saint Thomas More, Middle School 22-May Boy, aged 8, who attends Mġarr Primary School 24-May Girl, aged 8, who attends Kalkara Primary School 25-May Girl, aged 8, who attends Mtarfa Primary School 25-May Boy, aged 4, who attends Gudja Primary School 39

25-May Girl, aged 10, who attends Safi Primary School 29-May Boy, aged 9, who attends Dingli Primary School 29-May Girl, aged 10, who attends Kirkop Primary School 31-May Girl, aged 6, who attends Ħamrun SS Primary School 6-Jun Girl, aged 10, who attends San Ġwann Primary School 20-Nov Girl, aged 4, who attends Pietà Primary School 21-Nov Girl, aged 9, who attends Ħamrun Primary SS School 23-Nov Girl, aged 11, who attends Santa Theresa Middle School 24-Nov Girl, aged 11, who attends Santa Theresa Middle School 26-Nov Girl, aged 9, who attends St Monica School Birkirkara 30-Nov Boy, aged 7, who attends Paola Primary A School 4-Dec Boy, aged 9, who attends Attard Primary School 11-Dec Girl, aged 8, who attends San Andrea School

Table 37: List of Brillantini tal-Qari/Reading Stars in 2018

On May 3, children’s author Rob Lloyd Jones delivered a writing workshop for the Reading Stars in collaboration with Merlin Library.

5.2 Rakkonti Rakkonti is a three-year project, funded by BNF Bank, aimed at boosting language and literacy skills including reading, listening, speaking, writing, and critical thinking among early years and primary school children.

The Rakkonti project promotes traditional Maltese tales through digital animations, music and puppet re-enactments. The tales were written and illustrated by Trevor Zahra, and may either be read aloud, or dramatized using the puppets, Bertu and Bettina. An original song written by Trevor Zahra and composed by Dominic Galea accompanies each tale. All primary state schools across Malta and Gozo were given a set of the puppets.

In 2018, another three tales were made available, namely Tin Iswed u Tin Abjad targeted for Year 1 children, Torsinella for Year 2 children, and Id-Dragun Draganti for Year 4 students. The tales and animations are available to download from the YouTube channel, L-Aġenzija Nazzjonali tal-Litteriżmu or the website www.malti.skola.edu.mt.

To give further visibility to this project, the Agency translated these tales to the following eight languages; Arabic, English, French, German, Italian, Mandarin, Russian, and Spanish. At present, the translations of the first three tales i.e. Il-Ħrafa tax-Xhur (Year 3), Il-Ġgant u l-Iskarpan (Year 5), and Ix-Xiħ Midfun ġol-Għar (Year 6) are available on the National Literacy Agency website.

Information Meetings about Rakkonti Project with Teachers during Curriculum Time Date School Year Teachers

15-Jan Marsaxlokk Primary School 5 & 6 4 24-Jan Kerċem Primary School 6 1 26-Jan Nadur Primary School 5 & 6 4 06-Feb Qala Primary School 5 & 6 2 07-Feb Għarb Primary School 5 1 22-Feb Tarxien Primary School 6 2 28-Feb Għaxaq Primary School 4 2 02-Mar Safi Primary School 4 1 05-Mar Birżebbuġa Primary School 4 4 05-Mar Qrendi Primary School 4 1 22-Mar Gudja Primary School 4 1 10-Apr Żurrieq Primary School 4 4 12-Apr Kirkop Primary School 4 1 16-Apr St Julian's Primary School 1 & 5 4 17-Apr Pembroke Primary School 1 4 18-Apr Pembroke Primary School 2 4 20-Apr Pembroke Primary School 4 3 20-Apr Safi Primary School 3, 4, 5 & 6 4 23-Apr Birkirkara Primary School 1 5 24-Apr St Venera Primary School 1 & 2 5 25-Apr Mqabba Primary School 4 2 30-Apr Lija Primary School 1 & 2 4 07-May Birkirkara Primary School 2 4 09-May St Venera Primary School 4 3 06-Jun Msida Primary School 1 2 16-Jun Għargħur Primary School 1 & 2 2 Total 21 Schools n/a 74

Table 38: Number of information meetings about the Rakkonti project held in 2018

In-class Demonstration Sessions Date School Year Pupils Classes 16-Jan Mġarr Primary School 5 39 2 25-Jan Marsaxlokk Primary School 5 27 2 25-Jan Marsaxlokk Primary School 6 26 2 19-Feb Sliema Primary School 5 56 3 20-Feb Dingli Primary School 3 13 1 21-Feb Tarxien Primary School 5 29 2 05-Mar Qrendi Primary School 4 18 1 05-Mar Tarxien Primary School 6 34 2 06-Apr Gudja Primary School 4 11 1 10-Apr Birżebbuġa Primary School 4 15 1 10-Apr Pieta Primary School 6 23 1 12-Apr Żabbar B Primary School 3 30 2 13-Apr Birżebbuġa Primary School 4 14 1 13-Apr Gżira Primary School 2 14 1 13-Apr Gżira Primary School 4 12 1 13-Apr Paola B Primary School 6 16 1 13-Apr Paola B Primary School 6 18 1 13-Apr Paola B Primary School 6 17 1 13-Apr Paola B Primary School 6 18 1 13-Apr Senglea Primary School 3 16 1 16-Apr Birżebbuġa Primary School 4 14 1 17-Apr Paola B Primary School 5 18 1 17-Apr Paola B Primary School 5 17 1 17-Apr Paola B Primary School 5 16 1 17-Apr Paola B Primary School 5 18 1 19-Apr Cospicua Primary School 3 13 1 19-Apr Kirkop Primary School 4 20 1 20-Apr Birżebbuġa Primary School 4 16 1 20-Apr Pieta Primary School 5 20 1 20-Apr Pieta Primary School 5 18 1 20-Apr Pieta Primary School 5 20 1 20-Apr Żabbar B Primary School 3 20 1 23-Apr Marsa Primary School 5 15 1 42

23-Apr Marsa Primary School 5 17 1 25-Apr Vittoriosa Primary School 4 8 1 27-Apr Rabat Primary School 1 44 2 27-Apr Rabat Primary School 2 41 2 30-Apr Marsa Primary School 6 16 1 30-Apr Marsa Primary School 6 17 1 02-May San Ġwann Primary School 1 79 5 03-May San Ġwann Primary School 3 62 4 03-May Vittoriosa Primary School 4 8 1 03-May Żurrieq Primary School 4 19 1 04-May Ħamrun SS Primary School 5 13 1 04-May Ħamrun SS Primary School 5 11 1 04-May Ħamrun SS Primary School 6 20 1 04-May Rabat Primary School 4 34 2 04-May San Ġwann Primary School 5 51 4 07-May Għaxaq Primary School 4 16 1 08-May Għaxaq Primary School 4 16 1 09-May Safi Primary School 4 14 1 09-May San Ġwann Primary School 2 35 2 09-May Żabbar B Primary School 4 60 3 11-May Floriana Primary School 5 14 1 11-May Floriana Primary School 6 20 1 11-May Gżira Primary School 1 28 2 11-May Gżira Primary School 4 11 1 11-May Gżira Primary School 5 24 2 11-May Mqabba Primary School 4 16 1 14-May Xgħajra Primary School 4 12 1 15-May Kalkara Primary School 4 26 2 15-May Żurrieq Primary School 4 18 1 16-May Mqabba Primary School 4 15 1 16-May Pembroke Primary School 1 76 3 17-May Cospicua Primary School 4 25 2 18-May Pembroke Primary School 2 75 4 21-May Pembroke Primary School 5 57 3 21-May Żurrieq Primary School 4 18 1 43

22-May Dingli Primary School 1 31 2 22-May Dingli Primary School 2 21 1 22-May Dingli Primary School 4 19 2 22-May Żurrieq Primary School 4 17 1 23-May St Julian's Primary School 1 31 2 23-May St Julian's Primary School 2 30 2 23-May Żabbar B Primary School 5 60 3 13-Jun Mellieħa Primary School 3 65 3 Total 30 Schools n/a 1,961 119

Table 39: Number of in-class demo sessions about the Rakkonti project held in 2018

5.3 Spellili/Spell It Out The main objective of Spellili is to support schools who are interested in organising activities related to spelling. These activities range from in-class activities where teachers focus on specific spelling patterns to whole-school activities, where students participate in spelling competitions.

Books and certificates were awarded to students at the end of each the competition to celebrate their effort and achievement.

Date Venue Children Marsaxlokk Primary 30-Aug 35 School 30-Nov Fgura B Primary School 283 September – December Żejtun Secondary School 72 Total 3 schools 390

Table 40: Spellathons organised in 2018

5.4 Children in Social Difficulties, Scheme 9 - Home Libraries/Librerija f’Kull Dar Through this project, the Agency is creating home libraries for kindergarten aged children who have been identified as at-risk children and who may have little or no exposure to books. Furthermore, through this project the Agency is distributing books to families who benefit from the Fund for European Aid to the Most Deprived (FEAD) and the State Funded Food Distribution.

Through the home libraries, book-gifting scheme vulnerable families, of kindergarten aged children, receive a reading pack of 24 high-appeal books, 12 in Maltese and 12 in English. Parents/caregivers are also given leaflets to guide them how to use these books with their children, and information about the Aqra Miegħi/Read with Me programme.

As of December 2018, 93 families benefitted from this scheme, and 2,232 books were distributed.

Gozo College Għajnsielem Primary 2 Sannat Primary 4 Żebbuġ Primary 1 Xewkija Primary 2 San Ġorġ Preca College Floriana Primary 5 Ħamrun GP Primary 4 Marsa Primary 1 Paola A Primary 6 Pieta Primary 2 Valletta Primary 5 St. Ignatius College Qormi SĠ Primary 6 Żebbuġ Primary 1 St. Nicholas College Attard Primary 1 Baħrija Primary A 1 St. Theresa College Birkirkara Primary 7 Lija/Balzan Primary 1 Maria Reġina College Mosta Primary 2 St. Paul's Bay Primary 2 St. Benedict College Birżebbuġa Primary 1 Kirkop Primary 1 Safi Primary 1 St. Margaret College Cospicua Primary 2 Vittoriosa Primary 1 Xgħajra Primary 2 Żabbar A Primary 1 St. Thomas More College Marsascala Primary 5

Tarxien Primary 11 Fgura Primary 2 St. Clare College Gżira Primary 2 San Ġwann Primary 8 Pembroke Primary 1 St Julian's Primary 2 Total 93

Table 41: Number of families who benefitted from the Home Libraries scheme in 2018

During the FEAD and State Funded Food Distribution in collaboration with FSWS, vulnerable families of children aged 0 to 3 received a pack consisting of two (2) books, one in English and the other in Maltese. In February, as part of the FEAD distribution scheme, 584 book packs were distributed reaching 584 families and 711 children. During April and May, as part of the State Funded Food Distribution, 42 book packs were distributed reaching 42 families and 42 children. In total 626 book packs were distributed, reaching 626 families and 753 children.

Fund for European Aid to the Most Deprived (FEAD) Locality Families Children Ħaż-Żebbuġ 11 14 San Ġwann 30 37 Mosta 40 52 Rabat 28 28 Kirkop 38 47 Qormi 32 37 Qawra 41 55 Marsascala 43 72 Marsa 15 18 Żejtun 45 52 Valletta 23 29 Sta. Venera 36 45 Birgu 60 66 Msida 73 79 St. Luċija 38 45 Għargħur 4 4 Xewkija, Gozo 23 28 Total 580 708

Table 42a: Number of families who benefitted from FEAD in 2018

Home Libraries State Funded Food Distribution Locality Families Children Birgu 1 1 Fgura 8 8 Marsascala 4 4 Msida 2 2 Nadur, Gozo 3 3 Qormi 4 4 Sta. Venera 3 3 Valletta 2 2 Xewkija, Gozo 1 1 Żabbar 5 5 Żebbuġ, Malta 1 1 Żejtun 2 2 Żurrieq 1 1 Qawra 1 1 Birkirkara 3 3 Birżebbuġa 1 1 Total 42 42

Table 42b: Number of families who benefitted from Home Libraries State Funded Food Distribution in 2018

5.5 The Symbol Literacy Project In 2018, the Agency continued to work in collaboration with Prof. Anthony Gellel from the University of Malta on the implementation of the Symbol Literacy Project. The project is grounded in socio- cultural theory which is meant to help children develop their observation, thinking and creative skills.

Through the project, children will be able to recognise, read and interpret symbols and metaphors, and give meaning to traditions, wisdom and heritage passed on by previous generations. Participating in the symbol literacy project helps children develop a richer symbolic repertoire and increases their cultural capital, whilst enabling them to understand reality through an interdisciplinary mode rather than in a fragmented way. This project is partially funded by the Malta Arts Council, Culture Pass Scheme.

In 2018, 618 children from schools within seven (7) Colleges and an independent School took part in the symbolic literacy project.

Schools Colleges Children Kalkara Primary St. Margaret 19 Cospicua Primary St. Margaret 23 Vittoriosa Primary St. Margaret 30 Qormi SB Primary St. Ignatius 117 Marsa Primary San Ġorġ Preca 25 Naxxar Primary Maria Reġina 54 Mġarr Primary St. Nicholas 39 Baħrija Primary St. Nicholas 30 Mtarfa Primary St. Nicholas 43 San Ġwann Primary St. Clare 25 Żurrieq Primary St. Benedict 70 Qrendi Primary St. Benedict 15 Mqabba Primary St. Benedict 48 San Andrea School, Żebbiegħ Independent School 80 Total 618

Table 43: School participation in the Symbol Literacy Project in 2018

6. New Projects launched in 2018

6.1 Brillantini tal-Kitba/Writing Stars - Primary Schools Brillantini tal-Kitba/Writing Stars was launched in March 2018 as a one-off opportunity for nine-year- old children from state primary schools who excelled in the writing component of the English and Maltese Annual Examinations held in June 2017.

The writing stars were awarded a one-day trip to Rome in March 2018, which focused on a series of engaging, reading and writing activities related to the places of interest they visited. The Agency is planning another such activity for writing stars during scholastic year 2018 - 2019. It is envisaged that this project will become a yearly event to celebrate and hone gifted children’s talent in writing.

Date College Students Gozo College 11 Maria Reġina College 5 St. Benedict College 8 St. Clare College 5 San Ġorġ Preca College 6 6th March 2018 St. Ignatius College 5 St. Nicholas College 6 St. Theresa College 4 St. Thomas More College 4 St. Margaret College 6 Total 60

Table 44: Writing Stars - Primary Schools, 2018

6.1.1 Brillantini tal-Kitba/Writing Stars - Middle Schools This activity was targeted at twelve-year-old children who excelled in the writing component of the English and Maltese Annual Examinations held in June 2018. Fifty-one (51) writing stars from State Middle Schools, Church and Independent Secondary Schools attended a two-day live-in experience in November/December 2018.

The two-day live-in experience was organised at a hotel in the northern area of the island. The students participated in workshops led by Maltese and UK authors. The local authors were Clare Azzopardi, Trevor Zahra, Rita Grech, Rita Saliba, Natasha Turner, Ivan De Battista, Carmel G. Cauchi and Charles Casha whilst the UK authors were Julia Golding and Ian Bland. The Agency is planning another such activity for middle school writing stars during scholastic year 2019 – 2020. It is envisaged that this project will become a yearly event to celebrate and hone gifted children’s talent in writing.

Date College/School Students Gozo College 2 Maria Reġina College 2 St. Benedict College 2 St. Clare College 2 San Ġorġ Preca College 2 St. Ignatius College 2 St. Nicholas College 2 St. Theresa College 2 St. Thomas More College 2 St. Margaret College 2 National Sports School 2 St. Catherine School 2 St. Martin School 2 30/11/18 and 01/12/18 St. Edward's School 2 Immaculate Conception 2 Mater Boni Consilii 2 Our Lady Immaculate 2 Sacred Heart College 2 Savio College 2 St. Augustine School 2 St. Dorothy School 2 St. Joseph School, Blata l-Bajda 2 St. Joseph School, Sliema 1 St. Michael School 2 St. Monica B’Kara 2 Bishop’s Conservatory 2 Secondary School, Gozo

Table 45: Writing Stars - Middle Schools, 2018

6.2 Ismagħni Naqra/Talking Books Project The Talking Books Project is an initiative between the Agency and Malta Libraries. The project aims to make the Aqra Kemm Tiflaħ books within each class library available to all children, including children with visual impairments. This will be achieved by converting books into audio books at the Talking Books Unit within Malta Libraries.

In the first phase of the programme, 22 Maltese Myths and Legends published by Klabb Kotba Maltin were converted into audio books.

6.3 The Power of Storytelling The Power of Storytelling is a project consisting of storytelling workshops and performances over 3 days run by storyteller Nell Phoenix. This project came abbot from the partnership between FEST (Federation for European Storytelling) and the Agency, and was endorsed by the Valletta 2018 Foundation.

On April 27, Year 5 students from Qormi SG, Ħamrun ĠP, Żejtun B, Gżira and Victoria, Gozo primary schools, participated in a storytelling workshop held at the Central Public Library in Floriana. These schools were invited to this storytelling activity since they are participating in the pilot phase of the programme, Għidli Storja/Tell Me a Story.

A second workshop held on April 28 at the Central Public Library, was open to the public. Parents/caregivers were given practical tips on how to help their children develop their speaking and listening skills via storytelling.

On April 26, educators from the 10 college literacy team members participated in an interactive workshop at Mosta, Żokrija secondary school. On April 27, Nell Phoenix shared storytelling skills and techniques with the reading animators of the Seħer l-Istejjer/The Magic of Stories programme at the National Curriculum Centre, Ħamrun. During these hands-on, engaging workshops, participants experienced how storytelling can help students learn the skills of storytelling and story making as a springboard for tackling literacy skills.

Continued collaboration with FEST is targeted for 2019.

Date Activity Children Adults 26/04/2018 CPD for literacy teams 0 74 The Power of Storytelling workshop - Year 5 classes 27/04/2018 from 9 primary schools 79 21 27/04/2018 CPD for reading animators n/a 19 The Power of Storytelling workshop for children and 28/04/2018 parents/caregivers 28 24 Total 107 138

Table 46: List of Power of Storytelling activities in 2018

7. Schemes

7.1 L-Għodda f’Idejk Through l-Għodda f’Idejk, the Agency provides and distributes books and other resources in Maltese and English to primary, middle and secondary schools to support, facilitate and encourage good literacy practices, such as shared reading, creative writing and storytelling. Furthermore, this

scheme provides financial support to primary schools who are interested in investing in banded reading books and other resources. In this case, the cost is shared between the school and the Agency.

Between January to December 2018, through l-Għodda f’Idejk, the Agency distributed 10,011 books and 6,463 educational posters, flashcards and other educational resources to all primary state schools. Moreover, in the same year, the Agency supported 30 primary schools by partially funding the purchase of 10,358 reading books and 22 assessment tools.

Maltese English Other Educational Posters Flashcards Books Books Resources 9,433 578 2,716 2,968 779

Table 47: Resources distributed through l-Għodda f’Idejk scheme in 2018

7.2 Bil-Ħila Tagħkom This scheme aims to encourage the creation of new and engaging resources in Maltese. Several educators, including class, literacy and kindergarten teachers have benefitted from this scheme. Their creative work was published by the Agency in collaboration with local publishing houses and disseminated in several state schools. The published resources include big books, reading books, flashcards, posters, eBooks, apps, educational board games, jigsaw puzzles, CDs and animated video clips.

Bil-Ħila Tagħkom Big books 14 Reading book 1 eBooks/apps 2 CDs 2 Animated song 1 Total 20

Table 48: List of resources produced by NLA through Bil-Ħila Tagħkom scheme in 2018

Resources have been made readily available to early years and primary school educators whilst the animated video clips have been uploaded on the Agency’s YouTube channel. Digital books and apps may be downloaded free of charge on tablets and mobile phones from Google Play play.google.com/

Big Books Title Author Illustrator Type Audience Publisher Sponsor Iż-Żarbuna Sherise Zammit Henna Ryynänen Story KG2 Klabb Kotba Maltin NLA tan-Nanna Rożi Ding Dong, min ġie? Miriam Schembri Matthew Stroud Story KG2 BDL NLA Aqta' Xiex Sherise Zammit Noémie Gionet Story Year 1 Klabb Kotba Maltin NLA Dr Tania Muscat & In-Nemel ta' Kelina Sue Flask Story Year 1 BDL NLA Kim Dimech Ġola l-Ġiraffa u Christina Farrugia & Sue Flask Story Year 2 Klabb Kotba Maltin NLA t-Tifla tal-Kampanja Rebecca Spiteri Iċ-Ċirklu Patricia Bondin Matthew Stroud Story Year 2 Horizons NLA Il-Ġgant u l-Karrotta Andrew Scicluna Marie Claire Zammit Story Year 3 Klabb Kotba Maltin NLA Is-Sħaba l-Imqarba Maria Attard Janet Vella Story Year 3 Klabb Kotba Maltin NLA f'Lejlet il-Milied Pandolfu u Erika Medati Janet Vella Story Year 3 Horizons NLA l-Ġwienaħ Imlewnin Marika Vella Pinu jżomm ruħu Montebello& Elaine Camilleri Story Year 3 Klabb Kotba Maltin NLA nadif Charmaine Bartolo Marika Vella Ċetta tagħmel Ħbieb Montebello& Elaine Camilleri Story Year 3 Merlin Publishers NLA Ġodda Charmaine Bartolo Karolina u l-Ġiżirana Analise Busuttil Matthew Stroud Story Year 3 BDL NLA Maġika Dr Tania Muscat & Non- Kurjużata H20 Merlin Publishers Year 3 Merlin Publishers HSBC Kim Dimech fiction Feliċ jitgħallem Melanie Caruana Sue Flask Poem Year 3 BDL NLA mill-Ġganti

Table 49a: List of resources produced by NLA through Bil-Ħila Tagħkom scheme in 2018

Reading Book Title Author Illustrator Type Audience Publisher Kemm nixtieq li kelli Charles Casha Sue Flask Poetry Year 5 Klabb Kotba Maltin l-ġwienaħ Apps/eBooks Title Author Illustrator Type Audience Publisher Year 1 & Ittri Kkuluriti Rosette Cardona Albert Pace app foreign NLA students Sara sejra Ġita Victoria Lia Maltaserv eBook Year 1 - 4 Maltaserv CDs Title Author Vocalist/s Composer Type Audience Josephine Sammut, In-Numri: 13 nursery Mark Zammit, Miriam Nursery _ Joe Brown Kinder - Year 1 rhymes Schembri, Rita Gatt & rhymes Connie Agius Augusto Augusto Il-Mixtla-10 songs Ċettina Saliba Songs Year 2 & Year 3 Cardinali Cardinali

Table 49b: List of resources produced by NLA through Bil-Ħila Tagħkom scheme in 2018

Animated Song Title Author Composer Animator Type Kliem ix-Xiħ Mark Cachia Mark Cachia Matthew Stroud Animated film

Table 49c: List of resources produced by NLA through Bil-Ħila Tagħkom scheme in 2018

7.3 Bis-Sehem Tagħkom/Promoting Good Practice Through this scheme, publishers are invited to submit educational projects in Maltese. These resources include big books, reading books, books with augmented reality, flashcards, posters, digital books/apps, animated video clips and educational games. Resources published through this scheme in 2018 may be viewed in Table 50.

Bis-Sehem Tagħkom Big books 5 Reading books 7

Reading books with augmented reality 2 Games and educational resources 3 Flashcard packs 6 Posters 17 Animated nursery rhymes and video clips 16 CDs/songs 1 Apps 1 Total 58

Table 50: List of resources produced by NLA through Bis-Sehem Tagħkom scheme in 2018

The animated nursery rhymes and video clips are uploaded to the National Literacy Agency’s YouTube channel www.youtube.com/channel/UC4cF5Bubg5ZRYAOCFAqLa0A and can also be accessed through the website www.malti.skola.edu.mt

Big Books

Title Author Illustrator Publisher Type Audience

Antonin l-Iżveljarin Audrey Friggieri Marisa Attard Horizons Big book Year 3

Ċisju, il-Fenek taċ-Ċarruta Carlo O. D'Emanuele Christine Mizzi Horizons Big book Year 3

Karlu, il-Fatat Imqareb Audrey Friggieri Marisa Attard Horizons Big book Year 3

Fil-Ġnien ta' Pablo Picasso Doris Schembri Ryan Galea Horizons Big book Year 4

Ryan Galea & Faraxa Il-Ktieb tal-Fantasija Doris Schembri Big book Year 2 Philip Taliana Publishing Reading Books

Title Author Illustrator Publisher Type Audience Lorella u l-ġenju li ma kienx Moira Scicluna Rita Saliba BDL Script Year 4 & 5 jaf jaqra Zahra Il-Klabb Malti tal-Avventuri Ruth Frendo Fleur Sciortino Pro.Motion Ltd Reader Year 5 Translated by Dwayne Merlin Insalvaw il-Pjaneta l-Blu Jakub Cenkl Non-fiction Year 6 Ellul Publishers Inħaddem il-Malti Tajjeb: Karl Scicluna, Saviour S. Teacher's Manwal Prattiku n/a BDL Year 1-6 Agius & Chris Giordano book tal-Grammatika It-Tulipan Iswed u Drammi Middle Joe Friggieri Lisa Falzon Horizons Script Oħra Schools Board book Tikk Tokk BDL BDL BDL Year 1 & 2 (clocks) Translated by Godwin Faraxa Secondary Jien Malala n/a Biography Ellul Publishing Schools

Reading Books with Augmented Reality

Title Author Illustrator Publisher Type Audience Reader with L-Orsini jgħoddu u Ruth Frendo n/a Pro.Motion Ltd augmented Year 1 jiċċaqilqu reality Reader with Kull Orsinu hu Speċjali Ruth Frendo n/a Pro.Motion Ltd augmented Year 1 reality Games and Educational Resources

Title Author Illustrator Publisher Type Audience Educational Taħbila ta' Kliem BDL BDL BDL word building Year 1 puzzle Spelling Spellitona BDL n/a BDL Year 4 - 6 activity sheets Ryan Galea & Faraxa Nimraħ fil-Fantasija Doris Schembri Board game Year 2 Philip Taliana Publishing

Flashcard Packs Title Author Illustrator Publisher Type Audience Mary Claire Xerri & Annimali tar-Razzett Janet Vella BDL Flashcards Year 1 Christine Ebejer Mary Claire Xerri & Annimali tad-Dar Janet Vella BDL Flashcards Year 1 Christine Ebejer Mary Claire Xerri & L-artikli Janet Vella BDL Flashcards Year 1 Christine Ebejer Mary Claire Xerri & Ġugarelli Janet Vella BDL Flashcards Year 1 Christine Ebejer

Mary Claire Xerri & Ikel u Xorb Janet Vella BDL Flashcards Year 1 Christine Ebejer Mary Claire Xerri & Kuluri Janet Vella BDL Flashcards Year 1 Christine Ebejer Posters

Title Author Illustrator Publisher Type Audience Mary Claire Xerri u Kuluri Janet Vella BDL Poster Year 1 Christine Ebejer Mary Claire Xerri u Annimali tad-Dar Janet Vella BDL Poster Year 1 Christine Ebejer Mary Claire Xerri u Annimali tar-Razzett Janet Vella BDL Poster Year 1 Christine Ebejer Mary Claire Xerri u Ikel u Xorb Janet Vella BDL Poster Year 1 Christine Ebejer Mary Claire Xerri u Ġugarelli Janet Vella BDL Poster Year 1 Christine Ebejer Mary Claire Xerri u Fil-Ġnien/Il-Farfett Janet Vella BDL Poster Year 1 Christine Ebejer Mary Claire Xerri u Fis-sajf/Fix-xitwa Janet Vella BDL Poster Year 1 Christine Ebejer Mary Claire Xerri u Il-Karnival Janet Vella BDL Poster Year 1 Christine Ebejer Mary Claire Xerri u Fil-Ġungla Janet Vella BDL Poster Year 1 Christine Ebejer Mary Claire Xerri u Ejja ħa mmorru Janet Vella BDL Poster Year 1 Christine Ebejer Mary Claire Xerri u Xalata Janet Vella BDL Poster Year 1 Christine Ebejer Mary Claire Xerri u Il-Familja Tiegħi Janet Vella BDL Poster Year 1 Christine Ebejer Klabb Kotba Klabb Kotba Il-Forom Klabb Kotba Maltin Poster Kinder 1 Maltin Maltin Klabb Kotba Klabb Kotba Forom Oħra Klabb Kotba Maltin Poster Year 1 Maltin Maltin Klabb Kotba Klabb Kotba Il-Kuluri Klabb Kotba Maltin Poster Year 3 Maltin Maltin Klabb Kotba Klabb Kotba In-Numri Klabb Kotba Maltin Poster Kinder 2 Maltin Maltin Klabb Kotba Klabb Kotba Ix-Xhur Klabb Kotba Maltin Poster Year 6 Maltin Maltin Klabb Kotba Klabb Kotba Il-Ġranet tal-Ġimgħa Klabb Kotba Maltin Poster Year 2 Maltin Maltin

Animated Nursery Rhymes & Video Clips Animator/vide Title Author/Illustrator Vocalist Type Audience ographer Animated Kinder- Aħħ! Kemm hu Bard! Mary Anne Zammit Mariele Zammit MPS Ltd nursery rhyme Year 1 Animated Kinder- Kieku kelli Mary Anne Zammit Mariele Zammit MPS Ltd nursery rhyme Year 1 Animated Kinder- Il-lapes Mary Anne Zammit Mariele Zammit MPS Ltd nursery rhyme Year 1

Matthew Animated Il-Farfett Mary Anne Zammit Mariele Zammit Year 1-3 Grima Connell nursery rhyme Early & Kristalli - Nifhem Sew Keith Balzan u Video clip-sign Charmaine Friggieri n/a Primary Emozzjonijiet Andre Gialanze language Years Early & Kristalli - Nifhem Sew Keith Balzan u Video clip-sign Charmaine Friggieri n/a Primary Sinjali Soċjali Andre Gialanze language Years Early & Kristalli - Nifhem Sew Keith Balzan u Video clip-sign Charmaine Friggieri n/a Primary Annimali Andre Gialanze language Years Early & Kristalli - Nifhem Sew Keith Balzan u Video clip-sign Charmaine Friggieri n/a Primary Għeluq Żmieni Andre Gialanze language Years Early & Kristalli - Nifhem Sew Keith Balzan u Video clip-sign Charmaine Friggieri n/a Primary Ħdejn il-Baħar Andre Gialanze language Years Early & Keith Balzan u Video clip-sign Kristalli - Nifhem Sew Skola Charmaine Friggieri n/a Primary Andre Gialanze language Years Early & Kristalli - Nifhem Sew Keith Balzan u Video clip-sign Charmaine Friggieri n/a Primary Sports Andre Gialanze language Years Early & Kristalli - Nifhem Sew Keith Balzan u Video clip-sign Charmaine Friggieri n/a Primary Trasport Andre Gialanze language Years Early & Kristalli - Nifhem Sew Keith Balzan u Video clip-sign Charmaine Friggieri n/a Primary Temp Andre Gialanze language Years Early & Kristalli - Nifhem Sew Keith Balzan u Video clip-sign Charmaine Friggieri n/a Primary Sinjali ta' Barra Andre Gialanze language Years Early & Kristalli - Nifhem Sew Keith Balzan u Video clip-sign Charmaine Friggieri n/a Primary Kuluri Andre Gialanze language Years Kristalli - Nifhem Sew Charmaine Friggieri n/a Keith Balzan u Video clip-sign Early & Numri Andre Gialanze language Primary Years CDs/Songs

Title Author Vocalist/s Composer Type Audience Keira Galea, Emma Sciberras, Martina Kemm nixtieq li kelli Year 1- Charles Casha Galea, Jan Zammit, Sammy Galea Songs l-ġwienaħ - 10 songs Year 3 Mikela Galea u Dean Spiteri Apps

Title Author Illustrator Animator Type Audience Kinder- Numri bil-Malti Maria Micallef Jeanette Cutajar Malti Diġitali app Year 1

Table 51: List of resources produced by NLA through Bis-Sehem Tagħkom scheme in 2018

7.4 Sky Kids Library From January to November 2018, the Agency in collaboration with Air Malta, provided a mini-library of 18 appealing books in Maltese and English suitable for children aged 2 to 11 years on ten (10) Maltese National Airline aeroplanes. The aim of this project was to keep kids entertained while encouraging book reading during idle time. Due to difficulties encountered by the other party in the distribution of books, the scheme was cancelled in November 2018.

8. New Schemes

8.1 Libreriji fl-Apert/Open Libraries The Agency in collaboration with MP Julia Farrugia launched the scheme, Libreriji fl-Apert/Open Libraries during summer 2018. The aim of this project is to make reading books easily accessible to the public thus encouraging, and promoting a culture and love of reading.

Each open library is equipped with approximately 70 high-quality and appealing books in Maltese and English. In 2018, there were six (6) Open libraries in the following localities: Birżebbuġa, Safi, Qrendi, Rabat, Kirkop and Żurrieq.

8.2 Mobile Library at Mater Dei Hospital In April 2018, the Honourable Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Health Chris Fearne launched a mobile library service for child patients at Mater Dei Hospital. The aim of this initiative is to provide child patients at Mater Dei Hospital with an opportunity to read high-quality books for fun throughout their stay in hospital.

Three (3) mobile libraries are at the disposal of teachers who work within the Rainbow, Fairyland, Wonderland, and Disneyland wards to ensure reading books are available and accessible to the children. By the end of 2018, 135 books and 72 educational resources were distributed in the three wards.

9. Units

9.1 The Literacy and Support Unit (LISU) The Literacy and Information Support Unit offers support to all school libraries in Malta and Gozo and supports schools in both the technical and the curricular aspect of libraries. LISU provides support to schools through:  Selecting and cataloguing books;  Designing new libraries;  Processing and weeding library books;  Organising literacy related activities;  Promoting whole school reading culture within primary, middle and secondary schools;  Supporting schools on library management software;  Providing professional development;  Promoting Information Literacy Skills, and  Creating book lists for teacher librarians and educators.

In 2018, the LISU supported 28 middle, secondary and post-secondary schools, and 68 primary schools. LISU processed 37,381 books for use in school libraries. Processing entails weeding, cataloguing and classification of resources as well as inputting information about books in the Library Management Software.

During this period, the Aqra Kemm Tiflaħ/Enriching Classroom Libraries middle school programme reached eight (8) middle schools. This was possible due to collaborative work with Educational Officers, respective Heads of Schools and language teachers. Through this programme the Agency assists middle schools to create and maintain libraries in language classrooms. The programme included the dissemination of books in Maltese, English, French, Italian, Spanish, German and Arabic. Eight (8) schools received books in French, Italian, Spanish, German, Arabic and Chinese to boost their classroom libraries. 2,514 books were distributed as per Table 52.

Rabat Malta National Cospicua Victoria Blata l-Bajda Ħandaq Naxxar Birkirkara Middle Sport School, Middle Middle Middle Middle Middle Middle Books School Pembroke School School School School School School

Maltese 212 -- 45 214 67 ------

English 152 -- 128 157 76 -- -- 50

French 20 -- 15 15 68 44 54 --

Italian -- -- 43 8 204 28 139 --

Spanish 70 10 16 5 25 40 97 --

German -- -- 21 -- 52 41 26 --

Arabic -- -- 11 ------47 --

Chinese -- -- 10 ------Books to compensate 28 -- 82 49 118 46 31 --

Total 482 10 371 448 610 199 394 50

Grand Total 2,564

Table 52: Reading books in various languages distributed to middle schools by LISU in 2018

As part of the Aqra fis-Sajf programme, ten (10) primary school libraries, six (6) middle schools and 14 secondary school libraries opened a minimum of once a week during the summer holidays.

In 2018, the LISU and Malta Libraries worked together to integrate the first eight (8) middle school libraries into the public library system VSmart. The migration of data took place in July 2018. In October 2018, six (6) training sessions on the VSmart circulation system were organised for middle school teacher-librarians. This initial training was followed by 3-weeks mentoring from public library staff who visited school-librarians on-site to guide them through any teething problems.

9.1.1 World Book Day The Agency celebrated World Book Day on April 23 through the organisation of the following competitions:

Primary Schools Class Competition Category K1 – Year 2 Decorate a door according to a story theme Year 3 – Year 6 Students dressed as a character from a book Middle schools Class Competition Category Year 7 & Year 8 Creating a bookmark Secondary schools Class Competition Category Year 9 - Year 11 Designing a poster

Table 53: List of competitions – World Book Day 2018

The Agency registered a positive response rate within all categories, as can be viewed in Table 54:

Church/Independent 2018 State Schools Schools Total Schools Entries Schools Entries Schools Entries K1 17 48 3 3 20 51 K2 15 35 5 4 20 39 Yr. 1 14 33 1 7 15 40 Yr. 2 14 25 0 0 14 25 Yr. 3 12 109 1 32 13 141 Yr. 4 11 108 0 0 11 108 Yr. 5 11 44 0 0 11 44 Yr. 6 6 23 0 0 6 23 Yr. 7 8 76 2 13 10 89 Yr. 8 8 53 3 10 11 63 Yr. 9 0 0 1 10 1 10 Yr. 10 1 3 0 0 1 3 Yr. 11 1 14 1 1 2 15 Total 118 571 17 80 135 651

Table 54: Number of participating schools - World Book Day 2018

Three winners in each year group were presented with a book voucher and a certificate. Table 55 shows the winners within each category:

World Book Day Competitions Winners Category & Class School College Kinder 1 1st K 1.9 Żabbar Primary A St Margaret College 2nd K 1.1 Senglea Primary St Margaret College 3rd K 1.5/1.6 Attard Primary St Nicholas College Kinder 2 1st K 2.1 Nadur Primary Gozo College 2nd K 2.1 Ħamrun Primary SS St Ġorġ Preca College 3rd K 2.4 Birżebbuġa Primary St Benedict College Year 1 1st Yr. 1.1 Ħamrun Primary SS St Ġorġ Preca College Yr. 1 Humming 2nd Birds Rabat Primary Gozo College 3rd Yr. 1 Robins Rabat Primary Gozo College Year 2 1st Yr. 2.1 Attard Primary St Nicholas College 2nd Yr. 2 Gudja Primary St Benedict College 3rd Yr. 2.2 Siġġiewi Primary St Ignatius College Year 3 1st Yr. 3.3 Żurrieq Primary St Benedict College 2nd Yr. 3.3 Siġġiewi Primary St Ignatius College 3rd Yr. 3 Siġġiewi Primary St Ignatius College Year 4 1st Yr. 4.1 Żurrieq Primary St Benedict College 2nd Yr. 4.4 Żabbar Primary B St Margaret College 3rd Yr. 4.2 Siġġiewi Primary St Ignatius College Year 5 1st Yr. 5.1 Mosta Primary B Maria Reġina College 2nd Yr. 5.1 Sannat Primary Gozo College 3rd Yr. 5.2 Żurrieq Primary St Benedict College Year 6 1st Yr. 6.1 Siġġiewi Primary St Ignatius College 2nd Yr. 6.1 Siġġiewi Primary St Ignatius College 3rd Yr. 6.1 Mosta Primary B Maria Reġina College

Year 7 1st Yr. 7.8 Sec. School, Pembroke St Clare College 2nd Yr. 7.9 Sec. School, Pembroke St Clare College 3rd Form 1A St Joseph School, Sliema n/a Year 8 1st Form 2 Lilac National Sport School St Clare College 2nd Form 2 Lilac National Sport School St Clare College 3rd Form 2 Amber National Sport School St Clare College Year 9 1st Form 3.1 St Dorothy’s Senior School, Żebbuġ n/a 2nd Form 3.2 St Dorothy’s Senior School, Żebbuġ n/a 3rd Form 3.4 St Dorothy’s Senior School, Żebbuġ n/a Year 10 1st Yr. 10.4 Sec. School, Mosta Maria Reġina College 2nd Yr. 10.7 Sec. School, Mosta Maria Reġina College 3rd Yr. 10.4 Sec. School, Mosta Maria Reġina College Year 11 Bishop Conservatory Secondary 1st Form 5 School, Victoria n/a Alternative Learning Programme. St Thomas More 2nd Group 17 Paola College Alternative Learning Programme. St Thomas More 3rd Group 13 Paola College

Table 55: Winners of the World Book Day 2018 competitions organised by NLA

Special Prizes Group School College Kinder 1.1, 1.2 & 1.3 Marsa Primary St Ġorġ Preca College Kinder 1 & Kinder 2 St Francis School, Luqa n/a Kinder 2.3 Żabbar Primary A St Margaret College Year 2 Ethics Pembroke Primary St Clare College Group A Sannat Primary & Special Unit Gozo College Group B Sannat Primary & Special Unit Gozo College Group C Sannat Primary & Special Unit Gozo College

Table 56: List of Special Prizes awarded by NLA, World Book Day 2018

9.1.2 Consolation Prizes A book, a bookmark and a certificate of participation were given to all teachers and Learning Support Educators who took part in the Kindergarten 1 to Year 2 category, while consolation book prizes were given to all students who took part in the Year 3 to Year 11 category. Table 43 shows the number of books given out as consolation prizes.

Consolation Prizes Year Books 3 276 4 208 5 82 6 34 7 172 8 118 9 14 10 / 11 24 Total 928

Table 57: Number of consolation prizes awarded by NLA, World Book Day 2018

9.1.3 Book Champion Schools In the first quarter of 2018 the LISU invited schools to submit a report on the activities they planned to organise to celebrate World Book Day. Participating schools were declared Book Champion Schools and rewarded with a gold, silver or bronze certificate as well as a book voucher, according to the level of commitment they showed towards the celebration of literacy. Forty-seven (47) schools participated in this competition, as may be viewed in Table 58.

Primary Primary Church &

Government Schools Independent Schools

27 2 Total 29

Secondary Secondary Church &

Government Schools Independent Schools

14 4

Total 18

Table 58: Number of schools which organised activities, World Book Day 2018

Table 59 highlights the Book Champion schools within each category.

Bronze Award College School/Locality Gozo College Nadur Primary Maria Reġina College Għargħur Primary St Ġorġ Preca College Ħamrun Primary GP St Theresa College Birkirkara Primary Maria Reġina College Secondary School, Mosta (Żokrija) Maria Reġina College Secondary School, Mosta St Theresa College Secondary School, Mrieħel Silver Award Sacred Heart College Junior St Julian’s School Gozo College Għarb Primary Maria Reġina College Mellieħa Primary Maria Reġina College Mosta Primary B St Benedict College Mqabba Primary St Margaret College Senglea Primary St Margaret College Vittoriosa Primary St Margaret College Xgħajra Primary St Thomas More College Tarxien Primary Sacred Heart College Senior St Julian’s School Maria Reġina College Middle School, Naxxar St Ignatius College Ħandaq Middle School, Ħandaq St Clare College Secondary School, Pembroke St Margaret College Secondary School, Cospicua St Nicholas College Secondary School, Dingli Gold Award St Monica School Mosta Gozo College Qala Primary Gozo College Sannat Primary School & Special Unit Maria Reġina College Mosta Primary A St Benedict College Birżebbuġia Primary St Benedict College Żurrieq Primary St Clare College Pembroke Primary 64

St Clare College Sliema Primary St Ġorġ Preca College Floriana Primary St Ġorġ Preca College Marsa Primary St Ignatius College Siġġiewi Primary St Margaret College Żabbar Primary A St Nicholas College Baħrija Primary St Nicholas College Dingli Primary St Nicholas College Mġarr Primary St Nicholas College Rabat Primary Sacred Heart Minor Seminary Gozo St Dorothy's Senior School Żebbuġ St Joseph Senior School Sliema Gozo College Middle School, Victoria St Benedict College Middle School, Kirkop St Margaret College Middle School, Cospicua St Theresa College Middle School, Birkirkara St Clare College National Sport School The Malta Visual and Performing Ħamrun Arts School

Table 59: List of Book Champion schools, 2018

9.1.4 Teacher-Librarian Meetings During the 2018, ten (10) meetings were held for the 64 teacher-librarians between March and December 2018. Four topics were discussed: one topic was covered in one session and the other three topics were covered over three different sessions. Groups were heterogeneous to ensure a mix of teacher-librarians hailing from different colleges, including teacher-librarians from Giovanni Curmi Higher Secondary Naxxar and M.A. Refalo Sixth Form, Victoria, Gozo. Meetings for secondary school teacher-librarians working in Malta were held at the LISU premises in Ħamrun whilst meetings for teacher-librarians working in Gozo were held at Gozo College M.A. Refalo Sixth Form, Victoria, Gozo.

Topic 1: Collection Development and Library Management Systems The first set of meetings with teacher-librarians was held on April 9, April 16, and April 30 to accommodate the middle schools, secondary and post-secondary schools, and Gozo College teacher- librarians respectively.

Topic 2: School Libraries – The Way Forward The second round of meetings with teacher-librarians was held on May 7, May 14 and May 21. During the meeting the forthcoming migration from Oliver to Vsmart was explained to the middle school- librarians and the best way of weeding library books was discussed.

Topic 3: Book Selection for School Libraries The topic of book selection and age appropriate books was discussed during this meeting. The preparation of book lists to be ordered by school-librarians with the help of subject-specialist teachers or HODs was also addressed. These meetings were held on November 26, December 3 and December 17.

School Library Funding by the National Literacy Agency Ceremony This ceremony was held on March 5 at St. Benedict College Secondary School, Kirkop. During this ceremony, €49,400 in book vouchers were presented to teacher-librarians to be invested in their school-libraries. The amount presented to each school library was determined by the funds each school had allocated to their school library in 2017.

9.2 The Language in Education Policy Unit The Language in Education Policy Unit works in collaboration with the Language Policy in Education Committee to draw up language in education policies for the early, junior and secondary years. The Unit also:  organises seminars for educators and parents/guardians on the use of languages with children and adolescents;  creates resources and materials to promote bilingualism in educational settings;  conducts research in schools on language use and ways in which teachers can enhance children’s bilingual development. The project findings are used to support and inform the language in education policies.

In 2018, the unit organised a series of seminars and meetings for parents/caregivers, kindergarten educators and senior management teams to disseminate the recommendations outlined in the Language Policy for Early Years document. It also provided in-service training for educators on issues related to bilingual education. Data from the report ‘Language Use in Early Childhood Education Classrooms in Malta’ was presented at the Multilingual Education in Linguistically Diverse Contexts (MELDC) Conference, held in Valletta, on August 30 and 31. Three publications were also issued, in collaboration with the Centre for Literacy, at the University of Malta (refer to Appendix A):

 Mifsud, C. L., & Vella, L. A. (2018). Teacher Agency and Language Mediation in Two Maltese Preschool Bilingual Classrooms. Language, Culture and Curriculum, 31(3), 272-288.  Mifsud, C. L. & Vella, L A. (2018). To Mix Languages or Not? Preschool Bilingual Education in Malta. In M. Schwartz (Ed.). Preschool Bilingual Education Agency in Interactions Between Children, Teachers, and Parents, (pp.57-98), Springer.  Vella, L.A., Mifsud, C. L. & Muscat, D. (2018). Language use in Early Childhood Education Classrooms in Malta. A Report. Ministry for Education and Employment.

Detailed information pertaining to such meetings can be viewed in the Tables 60 and 61.

Parental Meetings: Seminar on the Language Policy for the Early Years' Recommendations

Date Venue Adults

23-Oct St Paul’s Missionary College 21 4-Oct Attard Primary School 18 5-Oct Siġġiewi Primary School 21 Total 60

Table 60: List of parental meetings about the Language Policy for the Early Years, 2018

Educator and SMT Meetings: Seminar on the Language Policy for the Early Years' Recommendations Date Audience Venue Adults Kindergarten Educators and Learning 10-Oct Attard Primary School 24 Support Educators Kindergarten Educators and Learning 31-Oct Support Educators Chiswick House School 31 Kindergarten Educators and Learning 12-Nov Support Educators St Dorothy School, Sliema 4 Kindergarten Educators and Learning 13-Nov Support Educators Mellieħa Primary School 26 Kindergarten Educators and Learning 14-Nov Support Educators Marsa Primary School 13 Kindergarten Educators and Learning 16-Nov Support Educators Kalkara Primary School 4 Kindergarten Educators and Learning 4-Dec Support Educators Luqa Primary School 13 Kindergarten Educators and Learning 7-Dec Support Educators Għaxaq Primary School 32

Senior Management Team 11-Dec San Andrea School 3 Kindergarten Educators and Learning 12-Dec Support Educators Floriana Primary School 8 14-Dec College Literacy Team Mġarr Primary School 7 Total 11 Schools 165

Table 61: List of meetings and seminars for educators about the Language Policy for the Early Years in 2018

In line with the unit’s objectives to produce bilingual resources, all Mathematics Benchmark Examination papers were translated into Maltese.

9.3 Literacy Resource Centres The Agency manages two literacy resource centres, one in Malta and one in Gozo. These centres cater for all education professionals who wish to make use of teaching books and resources. Resources in 67

both centres were selected on the recommendations of the heads of department literacy, literacy support teachers, class teachers, LSAs, and complementary teachers. Both centres are open daily after-school hours and on Saturday mornings.

The literacy resource centre in Malta is housed at the National Literacy Agency premises in Ħamrun and has a collection of over 10,500 resources. New premises are being refurbished which will be more modern and offer a better environment for the users. The literacy resource centre in Gozo is within the Gozo College Sannat Primary School and has a collection of more than 3,500 resources.

10. Initiatives

10.1 Readathon/Qaritona The National Literacy Agency, together with the President’s Trust under the Distinguished Patronage of the President of Malta, Marie-Louise Coleiro Preca, launched the First National Readathon on March 21. The launch event was held at Verdala Palace and involved over 100 nine-year-old pupils from Qormi San Bastjan and San Ġorġ Primary schools. The aim of the Readathon is to foster a love for reading among children while nurturing a sense of solidarity with their peers.

Following the launch event, the Agency issued a circular to all schools in Malta and Gozo. The Readathon was open to students in Years 1 to 6. Students had to find sponsors, family members or friends, who were willing to sponsor their reading through a monetary donation.

1,185 pupils from 22 Primacy schools participated in the first Readathon, as listed in Table 62.

School Participants

Cospicua Primary School 8

De La Salle College 72

Dingli Primary School 34

Għargħur Primary School 10

Gudja Primary School 5

Marsa Primary School 12

Mater Boni Consilii St Joseph, Paola 12

Mellieħa Primary School 41

Mġarr Primary School 63

Mosta B Primary School 44

Our Lady Immaculate School, Ħamrun 194

Qormi San Bastjan Primary School 81

Rabat Primary School, Gozo 62

Sacred Heart College Junior School 180

Safi Primary School 45

San Andrea School 149

Siġġiewi Primary School 26

St Martin's College 17

St Paul's Bay Primary School 37

Valletta Primary School 20

Xewkija Primary School 8

Żabbar B Primary School 54

Others (Individual Participants) 11

Total 1,185

Table 62: List of participating schools - Readathon, 2018

On July 11, the Agency celebrated the closure of the First National Readathon at Sala Antoine de Paule, San Anton Palace. The Readathon winners, students who collected the most money from their respective schools, were awarded a book and certificate in the presence of their parents/caregivers

and representatives from their school. The President of Malta, Marie-Louise Coleiro Preca, also awarded a medal to each Readathon winner. The Agency donated a pack of educational resources and books to the two schools whose students collected the largest amount of money.

Following the celebration, the President together with the overall Readathon winner planted a tree to commemorate the event in the President’s Kitchen Garden, San Anton Gardens. All pupils who took part in this initiative were awarded a certificate of participation.

The money collected from the Readathon was used to partly finance the purchasing of resources and/or assistive devices for children with visual impairments. On December 1, the President of Malta presented the first set of resources and devices to 40 children who were identified by the National School Support Services. These devices and resources were bought with the support of RE/MAX Malta, APS Bank, and the Vodafone Malta Foundation who were the main sponsors of this initiative.

11. Continuous Professional Development (CPD) sessions The National Literacy Strategy highlights the importance of promoting professional development opportunities for educators in literacy teaching and learning.

11.1 At National Level Once a month the Agency organises a full day of Continuing Professional Development in literacy strategies and issues for the Literacy teams, (heads of department literacy, literacy support teachers, representatives of the complementary teachers, assessment for learning personnel, specific learning difficulties support teachers and representatives of the e-learning department) at the National Curriculum Centre, Ħamrun.

During 2018, the following topics were covered during the continuing professional development training sessions:  Children’s Literacy Development  A Balanced Literacy Approach to Teaching Reading and Writing  Using Guided and Shared Reading to develop a life-long love of reading  Storytelling Methodology  Language Attitudes and Ideologies in Malta  Symbol Literacy  Let Me Learn Methodology

On January 10, the Agency organised a seminar about storytelling run by Dr Chris Smith, the Director of ‘Storytelling Schools TM’, at Siġġiewi Primary School for the 10-college based literacy teams.

On April 26, the 10 college-based literacy teams participated in Continuous Professional Development sessions about storytelling run by Nell Phoenix, at the Żokrija secondary school in Mosta. This training was part of the project, The Power of Storytelling, a partnership between the National Literacy Agency and the Federation for European Storytelling (FEST), endorsed by the Valletta 2018 Foundation.

On May 30, Mr Len Tyler from the Len Tyler Music School, delivered a training seminar on the Kodaly approach for the College Literacy Teams at the National Sports School, St. Clare College, Pembroke. On May 16, Mr. Steven Graham delivered a seminar on Guided Writing for the College Literacy Teams.

On December 5, the heads of department literacy and the literacy support teachers participated in a four-hour seminar on the Let Me Learn® methodology.

11.2 At College and School Level The College literacy teams in each of the 10 colleges regularly deliver professional development sessions focusing on oracy, reading and writing techniques within a balanced literacy framework, to class teachers, learning support teachers and assistants, complementary teachers, class teachers and parents/caregivers.

On July 9, July 10, and July 11 the heads of department literacy and the literacy support teachers, delivered the in-service course Literacy Intervention Programmes. This course was delivered within the 10 colleges and reached 250 educators.

11.3 Aqra Miegħi/Read with Me Programme Training Sessions Initial training is organised for volunteers, parents/caregivers, who apply to deliver this programme in schools, public libraries, and community and parish centres across Malta and Gozo. The reading volunteers are supported by mentoring visits and continuous professional development sessions throughout the year.

Eight (8) training sessions were organised for reading animators in which 208 persons participated as can be seen Table 63.

Continuous Professional Development Sessions for Reading Animators Date Title Participants Hours 09/01/2018 Storytelling Schools 47 2 Ġenituri l-Ewwel Għalliema/Parents 28/03/2018 the first teachers 18 5 Ġenituri l-Ewwel Għalliema/Parents 29/03/2018 the first teachers 18 5 27/04/2018 The Power of Storytelling 19 2 30/05/2018 Len Tyler - Music with Babies 24 2 19/10/2018 Visualising a Story 14 2 19/11/2018 Storytelling with Chris Smith 35 2 18/12/2018 Bilingualism 33 2 Total 208 22

Table 63: List of training sessions for Reading Animators, 2018

During 2018, 17 persons attended training in the Aqra Miegħi/Read with Me methodology and 15 persons attended training in the Seħer l-Istejjer/The Magic of Stories methodology organised by the Agency, as follows:

Training for Aqra Miegħi/Read with Me prospective reading animators 20-June 17 Training for Seħer l-Istejjer/The Magic of Stories prospective reading animators 14-June 15

Table 64: List of training sessions for prospective reading animators, 2018

11.4 Training Course in the Methodology of the Nwar Literacy Programme The training courses consisted of practical hands-on literacy workshop sessions that are led by a team of experienced, literacy trainers. The training course is aimed at educators who are interested in learning practical literacy strategies which can be used with primary school learners who experience literacy difficulties.

In 2018, two Nwar Training Courses were held. Ten (10) participants successfully completed the first course organised between October 2017 and February 2018. The second training course commenced in October 2018 and will end in March 2019; Eight (8) participants are currently following this course.

The Agency is working in collaboration with the Institute for Education for the Training Course in the Methodology of the Nwar Literacy Programme to be accredited.

11.5 Seminars for Childcare Educators The Language Policy in Education Unit together with Aqra Miegħi organised three seminars for childcare centre educators and managers entitled, Embracing a bilingual language and literacy policy in childcare centres. The seminar was delivered by Lara Ann Vella and Miriam Schembri. During these seminars, the recommendations outlined in the Language Policy for the Early Years, together with practical implications were discussed with the participants. The following table outlines the dates and the number of participants per seminar:

Date Audience Venue Adults 6-Nov Childcare centre educators and managers National Curriculum Centre 32 26-Nov Childcare centre educators and managers National Curriculum Centre 23 7-Dec Childcare centre educators and managers National Curriculum Centre 20 Total 75

Table 65: List of seminars for childcare centre educators and managers, 2018

12. New Training Courses

12.1 Ġenituri l-Ewwel Għalliema/Parents the First Teachers This is a course for parents/caregivers of babies and toddlers between 0 and 3 years. This course offers parents/caregivers practical tips to help their children develop linguistic and communication skills. 72

The course consists of a series of five (5) sessions where parents/caregivers together with their children participate in interactive, language and literacy activities. Parents/caregivers are encouraged to continue such activities at home, to help their children develop these language and literacy skills from an early age.

In 2018, 24 courses where organised in 22 localities and 171 parents/caregivers attended as shown in Table 66.

Locality Adults LEAP Centre Birgu 2 NCC, Ħamrun 10 LEAP Centre Kirkop 6 Marsascala 8 LEAP Centre Mosta 5 LEAP Centre Msida 8 LEAP Centre Qawra 5 LEAP Centre Qormi 4 San Ġwann Primary School 9 Sannat Resource Centre 10 LEAP Centre Sta. Luċija 8 LEAP Centre Valletta 4 Żurrieq Public Library 3 NCC, Ħamrun 9 Isla Primary School 4 Żejtun Primary School 8 Rabat Primary School 12 Naxxar Primary School 13 NCC, Ħamrun 4 Dar il-Kejka Tarxien 9 Kalkara Primary School 8 Għaxaq Local Council 11 Sannat Resource Centre 3 Mellieħa Local Council 8

Total 171

Table 66: List of Ġenituri l-Ewwel Għalliema/Parents the First Teachers course, 2018

13. Conclusion The Agency endeavours to make literacy available to all. Through its programmes and initiatives, it reaches a wide spectrum of services users, from at-risk children and families, to high achievers. Its main driving force is to enhance lifelong learning and to offer high quality literacy practices to children and adults within educational settings and the community. The present report has highlighted the Agency’s work in 2018, to reach these aims and to consolidate its provision. Specifically, the Agency has reinforced the belief that parents/caregivers are children’s first teachers by organising parental courses within local communities. In 2019, the Agency will seek to strengthen its current literacy programmes and strive towards high-quality initiatives whilst addressing social inclusion amongst all stakeholders.

David Muscat CEO, National Literacy Agency