Languages
Vision
Learning foreign languages is increasingly important in a global economy and also has great value in terms of cultural and linguistic richness in our society.
Therefore, we offer all of our students the opportunity to share our love of the language and culture of France and the French-speaking world.
We also value the different heritage and ethnic groups from which our pupils originate and give them the opportunity to immerse themselves further and become increasingly fluent and develop deeper understanding.
Our aim is for students to be able to engage with native speakers, writers and texts of various kinds for purposes of real communication, to extract real information, or to read, listen or view for their own enjoyment and also to create language learners
We do this by planning and delivering engaging and well-sequenced lessons which meet the needs of pupils of all abilities, that will provide them with the skills and knowledge, which will enable them to communicate confidently.
The Modern Languages Department is made up of 5 full-time, highly qualified teachers.
Key Stage 3 Curriculum
We fully cover the National Curriculum in Key Stage 3. Students are taught to listen, speak, read and write in French and they are also assessed on these 4 skills. The language of the classroom is French as we wish to develop the idea of languages for life.
We cover a range of topics including myself, friends and family, free time, education and future careers and holidays to name but a few.
Students are taught in ability bands.
Homework is set once a week in line with the whole-school homework timetable. Students are assessed in homework tasks as well as formal tests in the four skill areas: Listening, Speaking, Reading and Writing. Key pieces of work and assessments are given a National Curriculum level, and students are also set targets for improvement.
Key Stage 4 Curriculum
French is a compulsory subject for most students and approximately 90% of our students continue to study French to GCSE. Students are once again taught in set ability groups and have five lessons over two weeks. They build on the skills and knowledge acquired in Key Stage 3. Homework is set each week, and may include learning as well as producing a piece of writing, planning a speaking task or completing a reading exercise. Feedback includes a GCSE grade as well as targets to improve.
The exam board we use is Edexcel. At the end of Year 11 students are required to sit end-of-course Listening Speaking, Reading and Writing tests at either Foundation of Higher tier according to ability.
A level
In KS5, students are taught for 9 periods over 2 weeks. Students are expected to complete 5 hours of private study each week, and the work produced is monitored and assessed on a regular basis.
Extra Curricular Provision
We deliver the curriculum by making extensive use of audio-visual technology and teaching techniques, enabling students to learn about and appreciate other languages and culture. We ensure that our curriculum is accessible to all students by providing a range of different tasks and activities. Extra support sessions are also run after-school, during the Easter holidays and on Saturdays leading up to the GCSE, AS and A level exams.
KEY STAGE 3 OVERVIEW
We fully cover the National Curriculum in Key Stage 3. Students are taught to listen, speak, read and write in French and they are also assessed on these 4 skills. The language of the classroom is French as we wish to develop the idea of languages for life.
We cover a range of topics including myself, friends and family, free time, education and future careers and holidays to name but a few.
Year 7 are taught in mixed-ability forms, whilst Year 8 and Year 9 are set by ability.
Homework is set once a week in line with the whole-school homework timetable. Students are assessed in homework tasks either by the teacher by themselves or peers with guidelines. Students are regularly set targets for improvement.
YEAR 7
Our pupils are taught French for 7 hours over the two-week timetable and are taught in banded sets.
The courses we use are Accès Studio and Dynamo 1 and we supplement the published material with our own resources, which are tailored to meet the needs of all of our students.
The topics taught are as follows:
Autumn Term 1
- meeting people
- spelling words using the French alphabet using French phonics system
- saying how old you are – numbers up to 31
- talking about birthdays
- giving the date
- key verb ‘avoir’ in the present tense
- learning school objects
- learning about the gender of nouns
- learning how to form plurals of nouns
- using classroom language
- saying what activities that you like and dislike and why
- talking about family members
- introducing food nouns
Pupils are formally assessed in listening, reading and writing which forms their baseline level.
Autumn Term 2
- saying if you have brothers and sisters
- saying what family members are called and giving their ages
- learning how to describe a photo
- talking about likes and dislikes the activities you like to do using opinions with reasons
- describing yourself and other people
- key verb ‘être’ in the present tense
- describing your favourite cartoon character
- talking about what you like doing at the weekend
- key verb ‘faire’ in the present tense
Spring Term 1
- talking about school subjects and what you think of them
- clothing to talk about school uniform
- telling the time
- using the present tense to speak about your daily routine
- what life is like in a typical French school
- describing your ideal school
- learning how to talk about weather
Spring Term 2
- talking about French-speaking countries
- talking about sports and activities you play and do
- describing a photo
- learning about typical sports in French-speaking countries
- saying how often you do various activities
- using different types of questions
- talking about what you like doing on your mobile phone
Summer Term 1
- numbers up to 100
- talking about animals
- describing your family, revision of family members
- using possessive adjectives such as my and your
- describing where you live
- talking about breakfast
- learning how to say some in French (partitive article)
Summer Term 2
- saying what is in your town and discussing where you live
- understanding prices and currency in French
- saying where you go at the weekend
- key verb ‘aller’ in the present tense
- inviting someone to make plans
- using transactional language to order food in a café
- saying what you are going to do using the near future tense
YEAR 8
Our pupils are taught French for 5 hours over the two-week timetable and they are taught in mixed-ability groups.
The course we use is Dynamo 2 and we supplement the published material with our own resources, which are tailored to meet the needs of all of our students.
The topics taught are as follows:
Autumn Term 1 – Autumn Term 2
- talking about school holidays
- using the past tense to describe what you did during a recent holiday
- describe a past visit to a theme park
- use the plural form of the past tense to talk about a holiday you had with other people
- understand problems which happened on holiday
- asking and answering questions about a special trip
Pupils are formally assessed in reading.
Autumn Term 2 – Spring Term 1
- talking about the festivals you like and dislike
- recognizing large numbers
- talk about what happens on special days
- describe a photo of a festival
- buying quantities of food at a market
- understanding ingredients and information about a typical French dish
- use the near future tense to talk about an upcoming school trip
- talk about New Year’s resolutions
Pupils are formally assessed in listening and speaking.
Spring Term 1 – Spring Term 2
- talking about celebrities
- discussing TV programmes, including giving your opinion
- talking about using digital technology
- arranging to go to the cinema, including meeting time and place
- talk about leisure activities
- using a range of negative constructions
- listening for synonyms
- producing work in three different tenses
Pupils are formally assessed in writing.
Spring Term 2 – Summer Term 1
- describing the place you live in detail
- saying what you can do where you live
- talk about the jobs you do to help out at home
- discuss your daily routine
- using the past and the present to talk about moving house
- using a range of tenses to talk about a visit to a new area
Pupils are formally assessed in speaking.
Summer Term 1 – Summer Term 2
- talking about sports and sporting stars
- comparing different sports
- asking the way and giving directions in a town
- understanding the qualities of a champion
- talking about injuries and illness and understanding basic remedies
- asking and answering questions about sports and sporting events
Pupils are formally assessed in listening, speaking, reading and writing.
YEAR 9
Our pupils are taught French for 5 hours over the two week timetable and they are taught in groups which have been set by ability.
The course we use is Edexcel for GCSE and we supplement the published material with our own resources which are tailored to meet the needs of all of our students.
The topics taught are as follows:
Autumn Term My Personal World/ Media and Technology
- exploring events in the Francophone world
- talking about what you do online
- staying what you do to stay active
- talking about your viewing habits
- making plans to go out
- saying what you did last weekend
- taking part in a n interview
Spring Term My Personal World/ Family and Friendship
- talking about your identity
- talking about your weekend routine
- discussing friends and friendship
- talking about what people look like
- talking about positive role models
- discussing celebrations
Summer Term Studying and my future
- learning about school life in francophone countries
- talking about school subjects and school life
- discussing school rules
- talking about what has happened at school
- being able to say if you have made progress
- talking about what school used to be like when you were younger;
- talking about learning languages
KEY STAGE 4 OVERVIEW
Approximately 75% of our students continue to study French to GCSE. Students are once again taught in set ability groups and have five lessons over two weeks. They build on the skills and knowledge acquired in Key Stage 3. Homework is set each week, and may include learning as well as producing a piece of writing, planning a speaking task or completing a reading exercise. Feedback includes a GCSE grade as well as targets to improve.
The exam board we use is Edexcel. At the end of Year 11 students are required to sit end-of-course Listening and Reading tests at either Foundation or Higher tier according to their ability in each skill.
YEAR 10
Our pupils are taught French for 5 hours over the two-week timetable and they are taught in groups which have been set by ability.
The course we use is Edexcel for GCSE 9-1 and we supplement the published material with our own resources which are tailored to meet the needs of all of our students. Some students will be entered for all Foundation level papers and others will be entered for Higher in all papers.
The themes and topics taught are as follows:
Autumn Term Studying and my future
- learning about school life in francophone countries
- talking about school subjects and school life
- discussing school rules
- talking about what has happened at school
- being able to say if you have made progress
- talking about what school used to be like when you were younger;
- talking about learning languages
Spring Term Lifestyle and Wellbeing
- describing and giving opinions about typical dishes
- talking about meals and mealtimes
- discussing good mental health
- describing illness and accidents
- saying what you are going to do to improve your life
- talking about lifestyle changes
Summer Term Travel and Tourism
- talking about holidays and accommodation
- talking about your ideal holiday
- discussing what you can see and do on holiday
- talking about festivals
- reviewing and booking holiday accommodation
- talking about staycation activities
YEAR 11
Our pupils are taught French for 5 hours over the two-week timetable and they are taught in groups which have been set by ability.
The topics taught are as follows:
Autumn Term The World of work
- discussing jobs and work preferences
- discussing career choices
- talking about plans, hopes and wishes
- discussing the importance of languages
- applying for jobs (Higher)
- talking about part time jobs and how you earn money (Foundation)
- understanding case studies (Higher)
- talking about a past work experience
Spring Term 1 International and global dimension
- talking about what makes you tick
- discussing problems facing the world
- talking about protecting the environment
- discussing ethical shopping
- talking about volunteering
- discussing big events and their impact on society
Spring Term 2/ Summer Term
Revision