For the last two years, through the Helen O’Grady Academy programme, the Vodafone Malta Foundation has provided children at Kalkara Primary School with a developmental programme intended to boost their confidence, encourage attentive listening and improve their knowledge of English through usage.

Weekly classes cover speech, movement, creative expression, language development and a short improvised play designed to encourage students to “work the language”. The programme boosts children’s confidence and helps build strong and assertive personalities. The link between the Helen O’Grady Academy and subjects such as English, History, Literature, Social Studies and related areas is obvious.

Vodafone Malta Foundation chairperson Gemma Mifsud Bonnici said: “The programme has been so successful that teachers and parents have noted a marked improvement in the written and spoken English of the participating students. Providing opportunities for children is at the core of the Foundation’s work and experiencing children’s successes gives us great satisfaction and joy.”

Head of School for St Margaret’s College Kalkara Primary Miriam Mallia said: “The children have enjoyed their lessons immensely and we have seen a huge improvement in their confidence as well as their level of spoken English. We are very grateful to the Helen O’Grady Academy and the Vodafone Foundation for making this important project possible and we hope that we will be able to count on their continued generosity in the coming years.”

Academy principal Alan Montanaro thanked the Vodafone Foundation for making this important initiative possible. “We strive to eliminate the crippling fear of making mistakes. Our systems give children a sense of creativity and allow them to absorb, repeat and create without fear of ridicule. After all, lessons learned through fun are never forgotten.”

Many of the children benefiting from the Helen O’Grady Academy development programme come from challenging backgrounds and would, under normal circumstances, not have the resources or indeed the motivation to attend such programmes.

The Helen O’Grady Academy is the only school of its kind to follow a prepared curriculum that has been created over the years by teachers, parents and psychologists to ensure the healthy development of children in an energetic and fun-filled environment without the pressure of looming examinations.