Modern Foreign Languages

Aims

The Department aims to:

Inspire a love of language learning
Promote the value of learning languages for pleasure, travel and work
Provide high quality learning in a caring environment
Provide students with an insight into the lives of young people from French and Spanish speaking countries to develop intercultural understanding and expand their horizons.

Key stage 3

French is taken by all students in Years 7 and 8. In Year 7 students from sets 1, 2, and 3 have the opportunity to study Spanish as a second language. At the end of Year 8 students in sets 1-3 will indicate their preferred language for further study and all pupils will continue with French or Spanish in year 9.

All year groups focus on the skills of listening, speaking, reading, writing, dictation, translation and using a bilingual dictionary. Topics and online resources are designed to use contexts familiar to students while giving them an insight into the everyday life and culture of French and Spanish speaking countries. Topics in Years 7 and 8 include family, friends, free time, food and festivals. We are also running a Twinning with College Jean Baptiste De La Salle in Lisieux, Normandy in Year 9.

Students follow the Dynamo and Pearson GCSE course books for French and the Viva and Pearson GCSE course books for Spanish. In Year 9 we use the GCSE textbooks in these series, Foundation or Higher as appropriate. These build on and extend the vocabulary and grammar learnt in Year 8. Topics include technology, leisure time, food and festivals in French; and holidays, school and technology in Spanish.

Key stage 4

Students continue with their chosen language to GCSE in Year 11. The skills of listening, speaking, reading and writing are equally weighted and exam skills are practised regularly. We also aim to increase appreciation of the target language culture through the use of authentic resources. Year 10 Spanish students will be going to Madrid in Spring 2025.

Students continue with the Foundation or Higher GCSE textbooks. Topics in French include my neighbourhood, holidays, school, work, the environment and community involvement. In Spanish we study my neighbourhood, free time, festivals, work and the environment. Students are encouraged to become more accurate in their work, to use a wide variety of structures, and to write and speak convincingly.

Past papers are used for mock exams in Years 10 and 11 and a full speaking mock will take place in year 11. We use the Edexcel exam board.