French
At Brightside Primary School, we aim to foster a love for languages by providing our pupils with engaging, fun and high quality teaching. We believe the learning of an additional language provides a valuable educational, social and cultural experience for pupils. It helps them to develop communication skills, including key skills of speaking and listening and extends their knowledge of how language works. It also helps children develop skills that will open further opportunities later in life.
Intent
We feel that the earlier a child is exposed to a foreign language, the faster the language is acquired. We believe that this early acquisition of French will facilitate the learning of other foreign languages later in life.
In line with the national curriculum for Modern Foreign Languages, it is our intention that all pupils:
understand and respond to spoken and written french.
speak with increasing confidence, fluency and spontaneity.
continually improve the accuracy of their pronunciation and intonation.
Can write at varying lengths for different purposes (Year 5 and Year 6).
Implementation
French is taught to all children from Year 1 to Year 6 in weekly lessons. The school uses a variety of schemes to support the teaching and learning of French such as Lightbulb Languages, Kapow Resources and Cave Languages. In the initial stages of teaching in Key Stage 1 we place sole emphasis on speaking and listening. Our pupils are taught to listen attentively to spoken language and respond, joining in with songs, rhymes and games. Throughout Key Stage 2 pupils continue to learn through games, role-play, action songs and rhymes. From this stage our teaching provides clear progression by focusing on how grammar and vocabulary combine so that pupils will understand more of the French language. In the Autumn term 2023 our aim is to expand our focus to phonics, looking more closely at the relationship between sounds and spelling.
Impact
The teaching of French at Brightside is thoroughly enjoyed by all pupils, many of whom say that French is their favourite subject. All children show great enthusiasm in learning the language. Through the high quality first teaching of French we will see the impact of the subject in the following ways:
Pupils recognise and can remember key French vocabulary (word, phrase, sentence) and can write a limited amount in French, often with support.
Pupils develop their language and communication through development of the key skills of speaking, listening, reading and writing.
Pupils will enrich their language learning by developing an understanding of the French culture.
Pupils will be best prepared to continue their language learning at Senior School.