At St Patrick’s, we believe that primary school is about providing the best possible start in life for children. Language skills and an awareness and understanding of other cultures broaden a person’s outlook and increase the opportunities available to them in adult life. Language is the vehicle that brings emotional content to our lives, it defines who we are. An awareness of other cultures gives us an appreciation of the similarities and differences between people and therefore a deeper appreciation of our communities.
Introducing children to foreign languages at primary school, encourages an interest and helps to develop a strong foundation in learning language, which they take with them to secondary school. Children are more likely to study foreign languages later in life if they have been introduced to them at primary school. Young children are well adapted to learning languages whereas this often becomes more difficult in later life. The modern foreign language taught in the school from Year 3 to Year 6 is French. France is our nearest neighbour and French is spoken in many countries around the world .Whether in the course of work or on holiday, adults are likely to be confronted with occasions when the ability to understand and speak French will be of advantage to them.
French overview of the units
National Curriculum for French
French- Curriculum Statement
Intent
Intent The 2013 National Curriculum for Modern Foreign Languages aims to ensure that all children:
- Understand and respond to spoken and written language from a variety of authentic sources.
- Are able to speak with increasing confidence, fluency and spontaneity, finding ways of communicating what they want to say, including through discussion and asking questions, and that they are continually improving the accuracy of their pronunciation and intonation.
- Can write at varying length, for different purposes and audiences, using the variety of grammatical structures that they have learnt.
- Discover and develop an appreciation of a range of writing in the language studied.
A high quality languages education should foster children’s curiosity and deepen their understanding of the world. We aim to develop the importance of values, whilst respecting the differences of others. At St Patrick’s we are committed to ensuring that competence in another language enables children to interpret, create and exchange meaning within and across cultures. It also helps children develop skills that will open further opportunities later in life. We want pupils to be independent and self-motivated. The teaching of French provides an appropriate balance of spoken and written language and forms a sound basis for further foreign language teaching at KS3.
Implementation
KS1
We ensure that children are exposed to French in a variety of ways e.g.: answering the register in French, singing familiar nursery rhymes in French. In addition, KS1 participate in language enrichment days and cultural awareness days.
KS2
We follow the programme of study from Bishop Hogarth Catholic Education Trust which covers the National Curriculum and is underpinned by the four key language skills:
- Listening
- Speaking
- Reading
- Writing
- Children are taught to listen attentively to spoken language and respond, joining in with songs, rhymes and games.
- French Day enables the whole school to be immersed in the inclusion of the culture and use the language meaningfully in context.
- Children develop an appreciation of a variety of stories, songs, poems and rhymes in French that are delivered through the curriculum content within the Bishop Hogarth Trust lessons.
- Cross curricular links with computing are provided using Purple Mash – children have access to online games that facilitate current learning.
Impact
Pupils will develop an enthusiastic and positive attitude to languages, whilst developing their own knowledge and skills. Our MFL curriculum ensures that children develop their knowledge of where different languages, in particular French, are spoken in the world. Varied learning experiences, including ‘French Day’ also ensure that languages are celebrated throughout the school community whilst providing a context for language learning and develop the children’s understanding of different cultures. Enjoyment of the curriculum promotes achievement, confidence and good behaviour. High quality teaching through the programme of study from Bishop Hogarth Catholic Education Trust, forming a sound basis for further learning into KS3.
Children feel safe to try new things, developing their independence and motivation as learners and their sense of responsibility as future citizens, is at the heart of all our teaching and learning.