St Mewan CP School - MFL
2023 - 2024
Intent:
The National Curriculum states that schools should choose one modern or ancient language in Key Stage 2. At St Mewan, the children learn French, with the following intent:
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To have aspirational targets for the progress of language learning
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To build their knowledge of ‘how’ to learn a language and the specifics of the French language in focus
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To develop a curiosity for other countries, cultures and their languages and understand the importance of being a global citizen. It is hoped that children will develop a lifelong love of languages, that they will develop cultural awareness and values and that they will, in turn, choose to embark upon further language learning in Key Stage 3 and beyond.
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To challenge children to think beyond what they already know, to take on new concepts and to build an increasing amount of vocabulary and knowledge
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That language learning will enrich their overall learning experience and support other areas of the curriculum through developing memory, confidence and cultural awareness
Children will progressively acquire, use and apply new vocabulary and skills in a variety of contexts. They are encouraged and supported to develop their speaking and listening skills through conversational work, focused phonics learning, singing, games, language learning through physical activity and performances. They will use a variety of tools including ‘real’ French resources, traditional stories and well-known books, games and video. As their confidence and skill grows, children record their work through pictures, writing captions, sentences and short paragraphs, recording their spoken work and performing what they have learned where possible. Teaching aims to be active, lively, varied, fun, stimulating and inclusive to all. The French teacher will provide verbal support, resources and video support for class teachers who are continuing the programme of French in alternating terms.
Implementation:
At St Mewan, the French teacher uses a range of documents, programmes and resources to ensure that the aims and purposes of the National Curriculum are met. These are also used for reference by class teachers along with a simplified French programme with phonic and word and sentence level support for teaching via powerpoints, physical resources, recordings and video.
The school follows its own planning with its own prepared resources and assessment along with some resources from the Lightbulb Languages Scheme of Work that link closely to the QCA units previously used. It provides clear coverage of the National Curriculum with an appropriate balance of the four skills areas, taught in a progressive way as the children move throughout the Key Stage. It also covers phonics, language learning awareness and cultural awareness threads which support the children’s understanding of the ‘how’ of language learning as well as the cultural significance and relevance of the French language around the world and the importance of raising awareness for the children of their role as global citizens.
The children will acquire new language, develop confidence in pronunciation and the sound of the language (and its Francophone variation) and then use and apply it in a range of different scenarios and topics.
The school has a clear and thorough Skills Progression Document that outlines how the children’s speaking, listening, reading and writing skills will progress along with the development of their understanding of ‘how’ to learn a language .
The MFL teacher will use clear lesson plans, powerpoints, games and resources that link to the progression of skills across KS2.
Children are introduced to French from Year 3 and receive timetabled sessions from the MFL teacher half termly on a rolling programme along with lesson from their class teacher during the alternating half term that are supported with materials and video by the French teacher. Exposure to French vocabulary and everyday phrases is also encouraged in Key Stage 1 throughout the day such as during register time and as part of classroom commands. Displays and whole school French activities will be developed and encouraged as well as performances of language learned. Children also have the opportunity to pay for additional, private MFL teaching with an outside specialist who delivers weekly lunchtime French lessons.
A phased approach has been adopting to rolling out the curriculum over the course of the next 3 years, to ensure high quality provision in all year groups.
The school’s MFL Lead is part of an MFL cluster group which includes representatives from other primary schools within our trust, as well as our main feeder secondary school.
Impact:
Our MFL curriculum will ensure all pupils develop key language learning skills set out by the National Curriculum, as well as a love of languages, an awareness of their place in the world and the impact language learning can have on it and an understanding of other cultures. It will help to prepare children for life through giving them knowledge and understanding of a foreign language and the skills and understanding which that brings with it. Children will:
• Understand and respond to spoken and written language from a variety of authentic sources.
• Be 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 and improving their phonic knowledge
• Be able to 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
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Have an awareness of the French language from a cultural perspective, in a local context and understand that it is spoken across the world and that those communities differ
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Understand that they have a place in the world as global citizens and that learning a language can unlock their access to the world and enable them to flourish as citizens of the world.
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Improve their knowledge of ‘how’ to learn a language, their critical thinking and memorization skills and an understanding of the methods and approaches which will help them learn effectively and with greater efficiency
Teachers assess French throughout lessons using ‘assessment through learning’ and through termly review assessments. Pupil voice is used to further develop and measure the impact of the MFL curriculum. This is achieved through regular pupil discussion with a selection of children from each class.
