The Italian program at St Martin's is well and truly alive and thriving. In 2020 the Italian program is being offered to the Year One students right through to the Year 6 students. The Italian program commences with an overall taste of Italia and all things Italiano, including Italy's location, language, famous monuments and of course the preparation of Carnevale festivities.
Each year during term one, the Dominic Centre is transformed into a colourful, vibrant festive piazza where the St Martin's community celebrate the highly anticipated Carnevale Day. The morning begins with an informative Carnevale presentation by our year 5 students, where the community is able to learn about the origins of Carnevale. Then each class from Prep to Year 6 parades their amazing masks. It is always fantastic to see the whole school community embracing an aspect of Italian culture with all the smiling, dancing and prancing, which is what Carnevale is all about!
Each year in Term 2 students from Years 2 to 6 are invited to participate in the Italian Language Speaking Competition at Newmarket. There are over 15 other schools represented at the competition. Our school is extremely proud of the efforts of all our competitors, as there is some very tough competition. Last year Aiden, Georgina and Bella performed wonderfully with no official placing. Alessia from Year two claimed a Silver medal and Christian in year six, a highly commended.
During term 3 the Year 5 students will be given the opportunity to bring in their pets to school. Unfortunately, not all students will have a pet, therefore these students will bring in photos, drawings and stuffed toys representing their favourite pet. Each year I look forward to meeting our St. Martin's community dogs, cats, guinea pigs, fish and last year even Princess Layer the hen joined us.
Term 3 is also a busy time for the Year 6's as they are busy cooking and preparing for the annual Ristorante San Martino. During the previous terms, students learn about the origins of Italian cooking and the importance of regional food in the Italian culture. The restaurant allows students to put into practice the language learning that has taken place throughout duration of the unit.
St. Martin's students demonstrate an extremely enthusiastic attitude towards their Italian language and culture learning and it is wonderful to be able to celebrate so many events with the wider school community. The St Martin's community is blessed to have such a diverse community of families from countries around the world and I believe it's extremely important to celebrate this as it gives students a sense of pride and identity. A presto….
Signora Enza