The English-Speaking Union, a global education charity launched in Malta last year, has made a call for volunteers to help schoolchildren in two state primary schools to improve their English.

One of the aims of Malta’s ESU, which is among 50 worldwide, is to raise standards of spoken and written English in Maltese schools. It does this through fostering the enjoyment and constructive use of English through educational programmes.

A practical, hands-on English-speaking support programme, called Arm of Support, was run in state primary schools in Żabbar and Gżira last scholastic year.

More than 300 children were exposed to English through various activities, under the guidance of volunteer teachers and in close collaboration with English teachers at the two schools.

The Arm of Support programme needs more volunteers to come forward for the next scholastic year, in order to ensure the continued success and expansion of the project.

Volunteers devote approximately two to three hours once a week, for morning classroom sessions throughout the year. The work involves leading various creative exercises and play activities in English, tailored according to the ages of the children.

Meanwhile, the ESU runs a programme of courses and workshops open to the public, designed to improve spoken and written skills in English. A number of courses start all the year round, including group conversation, one-to-one courses and correspondence.

Corporate training, such as public speaking, e-mail and letter writing and business presentation skills is also available.

The next public workshop will take place on Friday. Called How English Is Used, it will discuss the true meaning of words and the way the language keeps changing. The facilitator will be Leslie Skipper, a former news editor with the BBC.

For more information go to: www.esumalta.org.