SMC MS & SS T1 2009

ST MARTIN’S COLLEGE
SPRING TERM NEWSLETTER
Scholastic Year 2009 - 2010
Dear Parents,
The Autumn Term has come to an end and it has been a very positive one.
Form 3 Students have settled down to a 'new' start and very busy
academic year in the Senior School, together with their older colleagues.
Our Junior 6 Students, too, are getting used to life at St Martin's College
very quickly and we were pleased to welcome a new cohort of Sixth Form
First Year Students together with our Second Years. Parents' Day ran
smoothly and we were happy to meet so many parents with encouraging
feedback and worthwhile suggestions.
Good communication like this between school and home is an important
tool which helps us work together in the best possible way in the interest of all our students.
Mrs Abela visits SMC
May we wish all our students, parents, staff and families a Blessed Christmas and a Prosperous New Year.
Ms Anita Seguna
Head of
Middle School
Mr Patrick Padovani
Head of
Senior School
Mr Tonio Pace
Head of
Sixth Form
St Martin's Fund Raising Event
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The 13 of November marked a special date in the scholastic calendar at St
Martin's College. The traditional fund raising fair, organized to
commemorate the feast of St Martin, was as usual a highly anticipated
event.
A wide array of stalls ranging from food and drinks, to stationery, books and
even plants, were set up for students and teachers to enjoy and make use of
during recreation time. Students showed a great deal of enthusiasm,
setting up their own stands and at times even competing to find out which
of them managed to raise most money for a worthy cause.
The total sum collected this year exceeded 3,000 Euros and will be
donated to Life Cycle later this year. A small portion will also be kept for
use by the Student Council.
We would like to take this opportunity to extend
our thanks to all the parents and relatives
who donated money, cakes and all sorts of items
which helped make the fair a great success.

Information for Parents - Middle School
SMC LIBRARY NEWS
Form 2 Option Programme
Form 2 parents kindly take note of these dates. More details will follow in January.
Dates
Schedule
12 th March 2010 Distribution of Option Booklet
25 th / 26 th March 2010 Option Teachers talk to students
12 th April 2010 Guidance teacher talks to Form 2 classes
16 th April 2010 Parents’ meeting at St Martin’s College –
distribution of option forms
19 th April 2010
Guidance teacher talks to students on an individual basis
(by appointment)
28 th April 2010 Collection of option forms
Used Batteries:
Any used batteries can be disposed of in the containers found next to
our receptionist, Ms Kristine Kerr.
Important Notice
Please note that the Public Health Division has informed the school that
all Form 2 students will not be receiving their TB Injections this year.
They will receive them next year due to the H1N1 Flu.
Lost Your Contact Book
Need another to replace a tatty one
Contact Books for sale at €1
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as from 6 January 2010

News & Events Summer Autumn Term 2009
Commonwealth Essay
Competition
Four students from Middle School and two from Senior School were
awarded certificates for the high quality of the essays they had
submitted to the 2009 edition of this prestigious, international
competition.
The Middle School students are: Megan Balzan, Michela Manduca,
Francesca Naudi and Alexander Sammut. Melissa McElhatton (who was
highly commended) and Simran Mohnani (commended) are the Senior
School students who also received certificates.
Well done to all!
11-a-side Friendly Tournament in
aid of Puttinu Cares at Luxol
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On 2 January, between 09:00 - 12:30, the U/15 age group will take part
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in this fund-raising event. The U/14 age group will be participating on 4
January between 10:30 - 14:00.
Three other schools have been invited to this event; St Edward's College,
San Anton School and St Michael's Foundation.
Best Player, Top Scorer and Best Supporters Awards will be handed out.
Congratulations
Laura Demicoli
Laura Demicoli (Jr 6 Yellow) had her first national
success in swimming. She broke the 50mtrs butterfly
record, previously held by Gail Rizzo since 1989. This
st
event took place on Saturday, 31 October at the
National Pool.
Well done Laura!
Parents, friends and family are encouraged to attend as all money
collected will be donatedn to Puttinu Cares. .
Each ticket is 1 euro per person
Hagar Qim and Mnajdra Outing - Jr6
The Humanities Department organised a cultural outing for the Jr 6s at Hagar Qim and Mnajdra. The students were presented with a
pack, prepared by the GES,
History and Religion
teachers, with activities
relating to the three
subjects.
This outing was the first
one of its type for the
Humanities Department,
since all the three subjects
covered in the Middle
School, were involved.

News & Events Autumn Term 2009
Fort Manoel
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On 28 October 2009, St Martin's College
students of Form 4 studying Art Option,
History and Environmental Studies went on
an outing to Fort Manoel. Fort Manoel stands
proudly overlooking Marsamxetto Harbour
yet few have had the opportunity to set foot
inside this impressive 18th century fortress.
The students had the opportunity to view the
different restoration interventions on this
historical gem carried in the last 9 years. A
tour around Fort Manoel was organized by
the architects taking part in the conservation
process. Furthermore they were given a
presentation about the fort's history and
students could appreciate the changes that
occurred in the Fort over time.
Throughout the visit our students had the
possibility to understand in which time and
ambience the Fort was built while being able to identify and see the main parts of the Fort, which include the chapel, the barracks, the
cavaliers & casemates, the polverista and gun emplacements. Moreover they were encouraged to gain an awareness of the state of
decadence a historic structure may fall into when not maintained and left open to vandalism, such as happened in Fort Manoel. This
helped to make students more aware of our national heritage in general.
Finally, it was really interesting to hear the students' reactions to the restoration project at Fort Manoel and its parading ground. Some
felt it was too modern and not authentic, while architects explained that one has to think in terms of future plans and running of the site.
Bonding Exercise
with Form 4 Students
The Form Tutors of Form 4 students organised bonding exercises where
student got to know each other and their Form Tutor better while having
fun. This activity was very useful for new students who joined this year.
It also helped Form Tutors to get to know their class better.
There was good team spirit and competition between classes.
Form 4 Yellow students won the games.
Cake Sale - Form 3
Form 3 students held a very successful cake sale in aid of charity. They managed to
raise Euros 177.37! The money will be donated to the Ursuline Sisters Creche in Sliema.
Thank you all for your support especially Ms Rita for your help in ensuring all went
smoothly. We are really proud of the Form 3s, so many really helped and made a great
effort.
Ms Venessa

News & Events Autumn Term 2009
SEC Students Go For
Swimming Lessons
The students who chose PE as their option subject attended swimming
lessons at the Ta Qali indoor swimming pool as part of the SEC PE Syllabus
and Assessment in the month of November. During these lessons students
learn swimming strokes technique, dives and turns. Timing is also part of
their assessment and we are delighted to have our students reaching very
good levels of performance in Form 5.
Whilst wishing our Form 5 PE students every success in their SEC Exams, we
also congratulate all the PE students who attended these sessions for having
done so well in their swimming exam.
Romaine Petrococchino -
National School Librarian of the Year
A very well-deserved word of congratulations to our librarian at St Martin's
College, Ms Romaine Petrococchino, who was chosen as the National
School Librarian of the Year. The SMC library also came second in the
National School Library contest.
These awards are given on a yearly basis by the Student Services
Department falling under the Directorate for Educational Services.
Libraries are assessed on a number of criteria including environment,
materials and resources, information strategy, library use by students and
teachers, organisation of activities, improvements made to the library as a
whole.
Many thanks Ms Romaine for your dedication to instilling a love of reading
and of learning in all our students.
Mrs Abela visits SMC
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On Thursday the 12 of November, Malta's first lady, Mrs Abela visited St
Martin's college as part of the 'istrina' campaign. Mrs Abela was greeted by
the Principal and our college heads as well as the school council and a
number of students from both Middle and Senior School. The College choir
also performed a song to animate the event. Members from the drama
unit entertained the students with a short play which they prepared for the
occasion.
Mr Tabone welcomed Mrs Abela to the College, and after she addressed
the students, showed her round the school, stopping in a number of classes
to observe the students and present them with a piggy bank which the
students are meant to fill up with donations for 'istrina'. Mrs Abela stated
that she thoroughly enjoyed her visit.
We look forward to having Mrs Abela with us again next year.

News & Events Autumn Term 2009
Message from Mr Melvin Mizzi:
Yellow Pages donate footballs
Yellow Pages donated a 100 footballs to St Martin's College and
Chiswick House School so these can be used in physical education
classes and other school activities being organised.
Yellow Pages holds to heart the concept that individual entrepreunerial
success, whilst fundamental in spearheading further business thanks to
targeted advertising campaigns that are supported by particular
merchandise, can also contribute back to the community at large.
Yellow Pages thought fit to help in the proliferation of sport education. It
has thus decided that the football donation be made to a number of
schools including Government, church and as well as private schools.
This initiative took off with this donation to St Martin's College.
Yellow Pages is a relatively new company which has achieved considerable success in a short period of time and has become synonymous
with the provision of effective directory services to residents of the Maltese Islands.
Melvin Mizzi
Yellow Pages
SMC students take part in a
television programme
During the month of November, a number of students from Junior 6, Form 1,
Form 2 and Form 3 represented our school in a Television programme called
'Malta Llejla' in which a special guest is invited every Friday to talk about
his/her life and career in entertainment.
The role of our students was to ask short questions in Maltese to the special
guest from the students' point of view. After the programme the students
were given the opportunity to see what goes on behind the scenes and they
were also given a short tour round the studios. Many thanks to you students
for having taken up this challenge and presented yourselves so well.
The Middle School Advent Wreath
The Humanities Department, through the Middle School
religion teachers, organized a giant advent wreath to decorate
the foyer. During their religion lessons, all the students in
Middle School wrote a prayer or a promise indicating
something they would like to work upon in preparation for
Christmas. These were written on a leaf which when put
together made up the above-mentioned wreath.
Apart from keeping up the tradition of the advent wreath,
every student learnt the value of advent in preparation for Christmas. Well done to all Middle School students for their work and thanks
also to the members of the Humanities Department for their help.

News & Events Autumn Term 2009
Jr 6 and Form 1
Science Outing
This year the Junior 6s and Forms 1s were given the opportunity to visit the
Malta Science and Technology fair at the University of Malta.
The experience was a very fruitful and enjoyable one and our students really
enjoyed observing experiments and trying out the different equipment,
ranging from microscopes and whirlpool simulators available.
Amongst other things the students experienced an earthquake simulation, a
very interesting talk about water experiments, a break-dancing robot, an open
chemistry lab and a tornado creator.
This trip was a very important experience for all students' academic
development, and the teachers loved it too!.
PSD Update
So far, this scholastic year, the PSHE Department organized a panel discussion on Refugees with the help of JRS (Jesuit Refugee Service).
This activity has been held for the last five years at St Martin's College and has provided our Form 4 students with an opportunity to learn
about the refugee experience from various perspectives.
It was also an excellent opportunity to deal with sensitive questions about this topic with people and professionals directly involved in the
field. Last year four speakers took part in the panel discussion and one of the speakers who has been through the refugee experience
himself kindly shared his own personal experience with the students. This topic was followed up in PSHE lessons after the activity. Many
thanks go to members and volunteers at JRS who visit schools to take part in these activities.
Human Rights was also the topic focused on for Form 1, 2 and 3 students whereby issues were covered at each level. This year Form 2
students were visited by a volunteer from JRS who talked to them about his personal experience with them as to how he arrived in Malta.
Form 1 students have dealt with Diversity and Difference along with Poverty. Form 2 students were introduced to issues concerning
Refugees, particularly Child Refugees. Whilst Form 3 students focused on Stereotyping, Discrimination and Racism by watching scenes
from The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas.
Pyjama Day
Slowly but steadily our Fifth Formers are
feeling the pressure of the Mock and SEC
Exams this scholastic year. With a packed
programme and not much time to relax, they
have organised an event in which they
cleverly put together a way of relaxing and
collecting funds for their School Leaving
Social, a pyjama day.
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On the 1 December our Fifth Formers
attended school in their favourite homewear
at the cost of €5 each and raised a
substantial amount that will help them to
cover some expenses for their much awaited
Social. Well Done!

News & Events Autumn Term 2009
Sports Fest 2009
This year we were blessed with 3 glorious November days for our annual
Sports Festival!
Each level in the Middle School enjoyed 3 lessons of sports on the above
days. Events kicked off with a fun run around the school which, though
less than a kilometre in length, sometimes proves to be quite a challenge
for some of our students. Running has become one of our PE targets this
year, during PE lessons as well as break time activities, in order to
improve the students' fitness.
After the fun run, students had a choice of football or dodge ball team
events as well as four challenges to compete in. Here are some of the
results:
Fun Run
Other Races
Boys
Girls
Junior 6 1. Jan Busuttil 1. Bettina Boaker
2. Mikail Cutajar 2. Kyra Erasmi
3. Nicholas Herbert 3. Mia Vickery
Form 1 1. Matthew Barthet 1. Anna Alosio
2. Lloyd Bonello 2. Hannah Formosa
3. Luke Bonnici 3. Federica Mondovi
Form 2 1. Ian Falzon 1. Rene Erasmi
2. Liam Azzopardi 2. Sara Vella
3. Luke Bonnici 3. Olivia Mello
Level Hula Hoop Challenge Skipping Football Heading Football Juggling
Junior 6 Arachana Mupparapu - 4mins 29secs Kyra Erasmi - 3mins 49secs Mikail Cutajar - 7 Mikail Cutajar - 28
Runner Up: Julia Kosorukova - 4mins
Form 1 Shona Cousins - 60mins 13secs Federica Mondovi - 2mins 35secs Ellie Muscat - 9 Luka Pace Bonello & Keanu Dougall - 20
Form 2 Corrine Micallef Grimaud - 43mins 30 secs Krsna Mohnani & Marie Unger - 4mins 37secs Ian Falzon - 30 Ian Falzon 66
Runner Up: Neil Tarachand
As can be seen from the results the best overall performance came from Ian Falzon
who won 3 of the events, well done Ian! The next very impressive result came from
Shona Cousins who 'hula hooped' for over an hour and only stopped because the bell
for break rang!! Well done Shona!
Overall a very pleasant 3 mornings for students and teachers involved.
A big thank you goes to Ms Jenny who organised these activities and to the teachers
who helped out in the events.

News & Events Autumn Term 2009
MONOLOGUE MARATHON
The fourth edition of the Acting Marathon (an event which is held every two years) was held on the
rd
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23 and 24 November 2009. Our aim was to clock a total acting time of 10 hours in which students
from the Middle School would perform monologues over two days. That aim was reached and
surpassed as we hit the eleven hour mark and had over 150 budding actors perform their
monologues in front of a panel of judges. We would like to thank Ms Bernie Mizzi, Mr Patrick
Tabone, Ms Anita Seguna, Ms Marica Portelli, Mr Joe Balzan, Ms Maria Rosner and Mr Kurt Cini who
sat on the judging panel.
The aim of this activity was also to collect sponsorships to award grants to our students to help them
attend the Drama trip later in the year. In fact, Eur4795.00 is being awarded to 20 of our students (1
per class and 10 talent awards) bringing the total awarded by our drama fund to over Eur17,500
over seven years. This shows a serious and tangible commitment by our college to the performing
arts, something we should be very proud of!
The grants were awarded as follows:
Class Winner Scholarship Talent Awards
6R Megan Maistre Melillo Eur 200.00 J6 Jacques Muscat Eur 200.00
6W Tom Captur Eur 200.00
6B Andrew Mallia Eur 200.00 F1 Hannah Formosa Eur 200.00
6Y Laura Demicoli Eur 225.00 Ella Coppini Eur 200.00
6G Emma Tonna Eur 200.00 Philippa Attard Eur 200.00
Sophie Mifsud Eur 200.00
1R Andy Critien Eur 200.00 Matthew Demicoli Eur 200.00
1W Megan Balzan Eur 200.00 Matthew Barthet Eur 200.00
1B Keanu Dougall Eur 200.00
1Y Kim Restall Eur 200.00 F2 Gianni Delia Eur 200.00
1G Maria Petrocochino Eur 200.00 Jonathan Fally Eur 200.00
Alexander Grogan Eur 200.00
2R Emily Micallef Eur 160.00
2W Sarah Pace Eur 150.00
2B Sophie Spiteri Eur 150.00
2Y Hannah Debono Eur 160.00
2G Emma Blake Eur 150.00
Finally, we would like to thank all the
students for their enthusiasm and
congratulate this year's winners.

News & Events Autumn Term 2009
Library News
Many students took advantage of the library opening hours this summer and borrowed books to supplement their leisure reading. In fact
945 books were borrowed and this positive trend continued during
the first months of the scholastic year, with many students visiting
the library during break to borrow books or read in the library. 250
new books were added to the collection during the summer
months and many more books will be added on a regular basis
during the year.
We take this opportunity to thank those parents who forwarded
the 'Agenda books for schools' vouchers to the library. These
vouchers are redeemed by the school for exciting new books from
Agenda bookshops.
Junior 6 students got off to a good start in the library following an
orientation visit held during the first week of school. They are now
attending weekly lessons in the library where they learn how the
classification system works, how to differentiate between genres, how to look up information on their favourite authors, how to 'judge a
book by its cover' (blurb) and how to carry out a critical analysis of different types of publications.
Many students are using the reference collection during break to look up information for projects handed by teachers. Judging by the
amount of group work being carried out in the library many classrooms will soon be beautifully decorated with the colourful and
interesting charts being prepared by students. Form 3 students are busy working on a Shakespearean theme while Form 1 students have
been looking up Christian times during the Roman Empire. Form 4 students are tackling the Renaissance period and are using the history
section extensively during lessons held in the library.
SMC library has recently set up a media area for lessons, a Sixth Form library section and a new layout with clear signposting of the
different sections. The acquisitions, accessioning, cataloguing and circulation systems are fully automated. New material is purchased
on a regular basis and there has been a constant increase in book loans statistics. We take this opportunity to thank all the students,
teachers and members of staff for their collaboration which has led to this success.
SMTA Taekwondo
Ms Kimberly Meli, who is presently one of our Sixth Form students, and also
assistant instructor with St Martin's Taekwondo Academy, has made us proud
when she brought home a gold medal after participating in the Mediterranean
Friendship competitive games held in Marsala, Sicily organised by the MOC.
Kimberly has also been nominated and chosen to represent Malta in the
Friendship Youth Camp to be held in Singapore in December 2009.
For more information about our
St Martin's Taekwondo Academy
kindly contact Mr Joseph Azzopardi, Taekwondo Chief
Instructor, on 99424983, 21345146 or www smta-tkd.com.
Sessions are held every Monday at CHS and every Friday at SMC
between 15:15 and 16:30.

News & Events Autumn Term 2009
Student Council
The scholastic year 2009/10 took off with a steadfast determination to
get a School Council set up at St Martin's College for the first time.
A Statute was drafted defining the role and responsibility of the Council,
the method and timing of elections, the rules and regulations to be
followed regarding term of office, communication with the school's
authorities and with the whole student body
In order to make each part of the exercise a learning experience we
encouraged the involvement of volunteers at each stage. Sophie Spiteri
and Alexia Vincenti Kind drew up Nomination sheets for those
interested in contesting the election. These carried the names of the
proposer and seconder as well as acknowledgement by the contestant.
Contestants were then invited to make a short speech to their potential voters identifying their reasons for wishing to run for election. A
variety of urgent issues seemed to need addressing including, better table manners in the canteen, a school radio station, cleanliness and
reduced vandalism to school property. Activities such as more casual and theme days. Cake sales, eco-awareness projects were among
the first to receive positive reactions
An electoral Commission was set up by volunteers from the student body who managed the voting procedure with great enthusiasm and
dedication. They meticulously checked off each voter, issued a voting document and ensured that votes were posted into the ballot box
provided. Adam Algededi, Callum Bell, Peter Brejza, Sean Farrugia, Rebekah Mamo, Julian Padovani, Sophie Spiteri and Etienne Vella
deserve special mention here.
The counting of votes took place in the silent corridors of the school after all had left the premises to start off their mid term break. The
anxious candidates had to wait for their return to school to listen to the announcement of the final results.
The School Council was formed consisting of the two highest voted candidates from each year group except for Form 4. Since Form 5
students opted out of representation due to the stressful pressure SEC brings with it, it was decided that the third seat would be given to a
Form 4 candidate to enable a casting vote in a case of parity at any council meeting. A first formal meeting convened in the Board Room
during which it was explained that the Statute would need scrutiny and revision before acceptance, and posts of President, Vice-
President, Treasurer, PRO and Secretary needed assigning so as to give the Council an operating structure. This was formalized at a second
meeting where inter-council voting elected the following:
President Anthony Mizzi Form 4
Vice-President Federica Giallombardo Form 4
Treasurer Alexander Grogan Form 2
Secretary Mattea Zammit Mizzi Form 3
Public Relations Daniel Ellul Form 3
Members Hannah Ellul Vincenti Form 4
Luca Galea Junior 6
Lara Brockdorff Junior 6
Valentina Sansone Form 1
Hannah Formosa Form 1
MS Coordinator Nicky Vella Form 2

Corporate Social Responsibility - CHS & SMC Staff
Dar Merhba Bik
This year Chiswick House School and St Martin's College
members of staff spent a whole morning at Dar Merhba Bik
helping out in the cleaning up of the garden.
Members from Dar Merhba Bik were grateful for the work
that was carried out.
Special thanks go to all the staff who dedicated their free
time and to Mr Nello Calleja who co-ordinated this activity.
Clean Up the World
Similarly, on another occasion, a seabed cleanup which
coincided with Clean Up the World Day was organised by
Mr Joseph Azzopardi and Mr Victor Bezzina at Anchor Bay.
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On Saturday 10 October 2009, with the help of voluntary
staff from St Martin's College, a group of experienced
divers and ground crew, supported by the Mellieha Local
council, spent an afternoon cleaning up Anchor Bay.
The volunteers managed to fill an entire open skip with
material retrieved from the seabed. Thanks to all those
who took part in this activity.
Parents’ Circle at SMC
We continued with our popular monthly talks. We started with
an Update on Swine flu in October, by Dr Tanya Melillo of the
Infectious Disease Unit.
In November there was an equally interesting talk, on Learning
styles and Multisensory Training, by Audrey Fenech Adami.
Everyone agreed how useful it is to identity their child's and their
own learning style.
During Parents day we held our usual Christmas Fair. There were
Christmas sweets, poinsettias, books and gifts for sale to put
everyone in Christmas mode. Sandwiches and goodies prepared
by committee members kept the parents going as they waited
their turn. Proceeds were given to charity.
Next term, a course on parenting skills for 5-12 year olds by Dr Charles Azzopardi will be held in the evenings. A talk on reflexology will be
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held on 26 January and there will be another talk in March.
Details will follow.
Please look out for future talks/activities to be held during the second term on the school website.

Middle School -
Students & Class of the Month
Sports Events &
Break Time Activities
October
Class of the Month
1 Red
Student of the Month
Andrew Mallia
Francesco Azzopardi
Kristina Azzopardi
Matthew Fenech
Prize for Effort
Douglas Gowland Camilleri
Philippa Attard
Nicholas V. Galea
Prize for Maltese
Tom Captur
Charlotte Borg
Sara Vella
Excellence in Sports
Mia Vickery
Matteo Trozzi
Jeremy Vella
Upholding St Martin’s Image
Nicholas Herbert
Megan Balzan
Alex Grogan
Altruism
Clara Said Dudley Ward
Rebecca Attard
Sophie Spiteri
Peter Brejza
Our Leagues kicked off early this year, with a new system where
students play for their class colour and compete for the Best Class
Colour at the end of the year.
The leagues don't just focus on the best team and award points solely
for the final results, however points are given for fair play and
respect, support, wearing the correct kit and shoes, being punctual
for league matches, and for having good team organisation. Extra
bonus points are given if their Form Tutors attend the game. This
allows students not just to focus on on-the-field situations, but also
on other important principles and values which one learns through
sports and being part of a team.
Our participation in Interschool competitions has produced some
great results, and we're looking forward to seeing more success in the
coming months. Our 1st term was mainly filled with U/16
tournaments. Our U/16 produced yet another fantastic
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performance on the 9 of December, when they were crowned
champions of the interschool tournament. Having topped the group
with 3 wins out of 3, confidence was high amongst the boys. In the
Final Group Stage, our boys defeated San Andrea 3-1, Seminary 3-2
and St Michael's Foundation 4-3! Well done to all the boys who took
part: Nick Mizzi, Nicky Grima, Luke Causon, Michael Johnson,
Andrew Rizzo Naudi, Julian Farrugia, Nick Bradshaw, Michael
Scudamore, Luke Cesareo, Nathan Bonello, Ryan Gatt, Jacob Falzon
and Mike Vella!
One week later, our Girls Football team placed 2nd after losing the
final to San Andrea by a solitary goal. The team was composed of
Form 3 students, the same students who last year won the U/13
competition.
Our Boys Basketball team placed 3rd after losing the semi-final in the
dying moments of the encounter. We also participated with the Boys
and Girls Handball teams, and Girls Basketball.
Our only U/15 tournament was the Boys Football, which saw our
team place 3rd after a 2-1 win over San Andrea in the 3rd and 4th
place play-off.
In Tennis, our U/13 & U/16 teams produced great overall results;
U/13 and U/16 Girls overall 1st, U/13 Boys overall 1st, and U/16 Boys
overall 2nd!
Well done to all!
Next up;
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13 January U/13 Football Boys @ St Edward’s
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27 January U/19 Football Boys @ St Aloysius
Our 3rd term is usually packed
with Athletics and Swimming
being the main events, while we
will try to have another
Waterpolo event following last
year's success.
Form 5 Football Team
In conclusion may I take this
opportunity of wishing you and all
your families a Happy Christmas &
New Year.
Andrea Vella
Break Time Activities Co-ordinator

S I X T H F O R M
Induction Day
An Induction Day was held for all first year students at St Martin's College Sixth Form. After an
introductory talk by the Principal, Mr Patrick Tabone, and the Head of Sixth Form, Mr Tonio Pace, a
number of guest speakers introduced various initiatives that can be taken at Sixth Form, such as Young
Enterprise, Mini European Assembly and others.
Mr Pace explained the various aspects of St Martin's College Sixth Form which would help students to
settle in quickly once lectures start. It was also an opportunity for the students to meet the other Sixth
Form students and a number of the lecturers.
SMC Sixth Form Young Enterprise Team
ICE-Breaking
Day
Ice-breaking Day was an event for all
First Year students to get to know each
other in a fun and relaxed atmosphere.
Students were taken bowling and
afterwards, together with the
Head of Sixth Form and a number of
teachers, they enjoyed a pizza
at Melita Gardens in Balzan.
Shakespeare Lecture
At the invitation of the English Speaking Union, well-known Shakespearean scholar, Professor Stanley Wells
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visited Malta to conduct a series of lectures. On 7 October first and second year students who are studying
English at 'A' Level, attended a lecture for Sixth Formers at Junior College. The eminent professor discussed
the plays 'King Lear' and 'Julius Caesar', both set texts on the Matsec syllabus.
It was a wonderful opportunity for students to listen to and engage with an expert in the field.
Food Boxes for Peru
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On 16 October, World Food Day, all Sixth Form First years
attended an out of school consciousness-raising activity. As a
result, a large number of students volunteered to collect food for
the St Paul's Missionary College mission in Peru, which
distributes food to people living below the poverty line.
The students distributed empty boxes to students in Senior
School and Middle School, who then returned them to school
full of food to be transported to South America.
Well over 200 boxes overflowing with food were sent.
Thank you to all those who donated!
World Food
Day Activity
Many of the boxes
which were sent to
Peru

S I X T H F O R M
The Fifth European Youth Meeting in Bologna
Late in October 2009, St Martin's College was invited to send a delegation to the fifth European Youth Meeting organised by the
Legislative Assembly of Emilia-Romagna that was scheduled for the last week of November. A delegation of four students made up of
Julian Bonicci, Ilona Deguara, Chiara Merola and Jack Spencer were selected to represent the College and they were accompanied by the
Sixth Form lecturer Mr Chris Vella (History, Sociology and Systems of Knowledge). Another delegation from the Gozo Sixth Form also
joined us in Bologna.
In Bologna we met some 300 participants from 29 European countries. During the four-day long Conference, we had the opportunity to
share our ideas and thoughts on Equality, Justice, Citizenship and Human Rights. Meeting so many people and sharing our ideas at this
level was undoubtedly a unique experience. The Maltese delegations left their mark on the meeting, as three Maltese persons (including
Julian Bonnici and Mr Vella) were elected among the 11 delegates to address the two Plenary Sessions of the Conference.
A comment by a student:
“The Youth Meeting was a great experience as it allowed all of us a chance to
meet other teens from different countries within the European Union and to
discuss all the different systems and problems within our respective country. It
also gave us a chance to work in a relaxed environment that truly helped with
the learning process, as it was us that made the conversations and
discussions, as we were guided to them by our teacher. This definitely helped
me become more aware and to meet students from the EU countries.”
Ilona Deguara
Malta
The Mini European Assembly
For the first time ever, St Martin's College Sixth Form is fielding a team for the prestigious Mini-European Assembly organised by the NSTS
Foundation. The group made out of two students (Julian Bonnici and Ilona Deguara) is coordinated by the Sixth Form lecturer Mr Chris
Vella.
The team has already participated in the first two Plenary sessions of the competition and are representing the Netherlands. In this
competition, Julian and Ilona have to 'represent' the Netherlands on a number of European issues at this mock Council of Europe
Parliament, where they are expected to know Netherland's position on a number of issues and 'lobby' the other countries in favour of
their position.
The Mini-European Assembly is a great experience that will help the students in public speaking, debating, researching European issues
and enriches one's personality. We wish Ilona and Julian a great success in this competition!
A Visit to Argotti Botanical Gardens
What could be better than learning outside the classroom Plant Biology to many, might not
be the most exciting topic to study, however this changed for our Biology A-level students,
when plant biology was tackled in the stunning Argotti Botanical Gardens.
The gardens host a variety of plants including endemic flora, a Mediterranean Garden,
greenhouses which host plants that need shelter and warmth, and small areas of plants that
are grouped together as they belong to the same family, such as the family Cactaceae, the
cactus family.
The students were given talks about the different plants, including the type of habitat they
inhabit, their scientific name, plant adaptations and other interesting information. Some
plants that they encountered were: Pinus halepensis, the Pine tree; the Maltese National
Tree - Tetraclinus articulata – Sigra ta' l-Gharghar or the Sandarac Gum Tree; the Maltese National plant – Maltese Rock Century or Widnet
il-Bahar; the spurge, Euphorbia melitensis and many others.

S I X T H F O R M
A Visit to ICP
Biology A-level Students were given a unique opportunity thanks to Mr Charles Saliba who is the General Manager at the Institute of
Cellular Pharmacology (ICP) at the Mosta Technopark, together with his dedicated team.
The students visited the factory which produces vegetal extracts for both human
and animal use for various industries such as pharmaceuticals, cosmetics and
veterinary industries. A number of research areas are tackled at this institute
especially in areas such as the ageing process, degradation of cells and diseases
of aging. The institute has managed to make use of natural extracts found on the
island and employ these extracts for various uses. The two extracts are TEX-OE®
Natural Prickly Pear (Opundia ficus indica) Fruit Extract and an Extract of Padina
pavonica (EPP) which is a brown alga found round the islands which is commonly
known as the Peacocks tail.
After the visit the students were given the opportunity together with the ICP
biologist to carry out some lab work in their laboratory. The students first viewed skin cells and bone cells, followed by lab analysis that is
carried out on a daily basis at the ICP laboratories. The students were shown how to produce cell cultures and produce dilutions which
enables them to count the number of cells present in the culture flask. Cell counting was done by making use of a Haemocytometer which
is basically a slide on which there is engraved a grid, the volume of which is known. The students counted the number of cells in the
chosen region and pooled results.
This visit enabled students to get an insight into what goes on in research laboratories on the island and to gain knowledge about cell
cultures and cell counting techniques.
Marine Biology
Biology A-level syllabus requires one of the practicals to be a fieldwork practical in which students carry out and
make use of ecological techniques.
At SMC we go one step further and apart from the fieldwork carried out on land we take our
students under the sea! During this fieldwork session students got an insight into the different
zones of the marine environment, put their knowledge of ecological techniques into practice,
made use of belt transects, line transects and random sampling and used quadrants. Last but
not least they also performed a try dive with qualified instructors where they sampled the
underwater world, recorded results on a diver’s slate and got an insight into flora and fauna up
to 8m depth.
This was a truly memorable and enjoyable experience for all concerned.
Sixth Formers participate in Juvenes Translatores
Two sixth form students, Melissa Manthos and Kurstin Gatt, participated in the third edition of
'Juvenes Translatores', a translation contest organised by the Directorate-General for Translation
at the European Commission in Brussels. St Martin's College Sixth Form was one of a small group
of Maltese schools which took part.
The contest is run to promote foreign language usage and is open to 17 year old students
th
throughout the EU. On 24 November the competition took place simultaneously in all member
countries, students translating between any two EU languages. Melissa chose to translate from
English into Italian, while Kurstin translated from English into Maltese.
We wish them both luck!