Junior School

Once the children have graduated from the Pre-Junior class, they move onto the Junior School (age 5 up to age 10 or 11 circa).  The Junior School carries on the co-ed system from the Pre-Junior and comprises 6 levels (Junior 1 to Junior 6) with classes at each level without any form of academic streaming.

The move to Junior School is the real introduction to formal schooling and whilst children in the Junior 1 still have 1 class teacher leading them through the programme set up for the year, they are already introduced to another teacher for Physical Education.  From Junior 2 upwards, the children will then be exposed to teachers specialising in the different subjects, although this move is done gradually over the first two years of the Junior School.   

School times in the Junior School are the same as the Pre-Junior and the Senior School, namely from 8:00am to 1:40pm (although in June we do have shorter hours till 12:15pm).  Classrooms in the Junior School are still 25 feet by 25 feet and still boast plenty of natural light and air and students in each class number between 20 and 30.
 
The syllabi of the various Junior years cover a myriad of core competencies, such as Science, Information Technology and digital learning, Maltese (introduced at Junior 1 level) and English Language and Mathematical competencies and cover subjects such as Religion.  Other subjects introduced during the years are: Science, Geography, Social Studies, and Italian.  The syllabi also cover the more holistic areas of personal and social development, ability to think creatively, drama, music, cooking, art and physical education (the lessons of P.E. in the Junior School range between 4 and 5 lessons per week).    

To help monitor the students’ progress throughout the year, assessments are held on a regular basis. Mid-yearly and annual exams are also set for the upper Junior classes (Junior 3 upwards) whilst formal ongoing assessment reports are issued for the Junior 1s and the Junior 2s.  We believe in fact that a combination of both ongoing assessment and test or exam taking is important for the assessment of students in their schooling and we encourage students to take their studies seriously from an early age so as to instill a love for learning and exploration of the world around them. 

Apart from the academic side of the students’ journey at school, the School believes in offering a holistic dimension to the studies of students in the Junior School and as such, we offer classes of music, drama, cooking, physical education, and art (some of which may also be taken as part of the Extra Curricular Activities offered by the School as part of the afternoon programme). 

From Junior 3 onwards, students are admitted into the Sports Houses system (Dolphins, Pandas and Eagles) and will be competing in the various leagues organized during the year by the School.  

Furthermore, outings and excursions, both educational and fun in nature, are organised on a regular basis for all our students in the Junior School, and students participate too in an annual Christmas concert as well as in Sports Day and other events which are organised throughout the year, such as the Open Day. These events bring out the more creative elements in our children and help the children to boost their self esteem and build up on self-presentation skills that are so necessary in this day and age.  

If you would like a taste in the life of a Junior 1 or Junior 2 student, please feel free to browse the Junior Blogs for the scholastic year 2009-2010.