French

At Scawsby Junior Academy, we believe that learning a modern foreign language is vital as it gives children a good understanding of the structure of other languages and it allows them the opportunity to develop their cultural understanding.  It can also support the children’s transition to secondary school where they will continue to learn a language. 

Curriculum Intent

Scawsby Junior Academy intends to use the Language Angels scheme of work and resources to ensure we offer a relevant, broad, vibrant and ambitious foreign languages curriculum that will inspire and excite our pupils using a wide variety of topics and themes. All pupils will be expected to achieve their full potential by encouraging high expectations and excellent standards in their foreign language learning - the ultimate aim being that pupils will feel willing and able to continue studying languages beyond key stage 2.

The intent is that all content will be continuously updated and reviewed annually, creating a dynamic programme of study that will be clearly outlined in both long-term and short-term planning. This will ensure that the foreign language knowledge of our pupils progresses within each academic year and is extended year upon year throughout the primary phase and, in so doing, will always be relevant and in line with meeting or exceeding national DfE requirements. 

The four key language learning skills; listening, speaking, reading and writing will be taught and all necessary grammar will be covered in an age-appropriate way across the primary phase. This will enable pupils to use and apply their learning in a variety of contexts, laying down solid foundations for future language learning and also helping the children improve overall attainment in other subject areas. In addition, the children will be taught how to look up and research language they are unsure of and they will have a bank of reference materials to help them with their spoken and written tasks going forward. This bank of reference materials will develop into a reference library to help pupils recall and build on previous knowledge throughout their primary school language learning journey.

The intent is that all pupils will develop a genuine interest and positive curiosity about foreign languages, finding them enjoyable and stimulating. Learning a second language will also offer pupils the opportunity to explore relationships between language and identity, develop a deeper understanding of other cultures and the world around them with a better awareness of self, others and cultural differences. The intention is that they will be working towards becoming life-long language learners.

Implementation

We will implement our intent by:

  • Children are taught French by their class teacher weekly and this learning is also reinforced outside the core lessons through cross-curricular l
  • In order to support the progress our children make across KS2, we have formulated a progression map, which is focused on Speaking, Listening, Reading, Writing and Grammar.

National Curriculum

The teaching should provide an appropriate balance of spoken and written language and should lay the foundations for further foreign language teaching at KS3.  It should enable pupils to communicate ideas, facts and feelings in speech and writing, focused on familiar and routine matters, using their knowledge of phonology grammatical structures and vocabulary.

The focus of study in modern foreign languages will be on practical communication.  Pupils should:

  • Listen attentively to spoken language and show understanding by joining in and responding.
  • Explore the patterns and sounds of language through songs and rhymes and link the spelling, sound and meaning of words.
  • Engage in conversations; ask and answer questions; express opinions and respond to those of others; seek clarification and help.
  • Speak in sentences, using familiar vocabulary, phrases and basic language structures.
  • Develop accurate pronunciation and intonation so that others understand when they are reading aloud or using familiar words and phrases.
  • Read carefully and show understanding of words, phrases and simple writing.
  • Appreciate stories, songs, poems and thymes in the language.
  • Broaden their vocabulary and develop their ability to understand new words that are introduced into familiar written material, including through using a dictionary.
  • Write phrases from memory and adapt these to create new sentences, to express ideas clearly.
  • Describe people, places, things and actions orally and in writing.
  • Understand basic grammar appropriate to the language being studied, including (where relevant): feminine, masculine and neuter forms and the conjugation of high-frequency verbs; key features and patterns of the language; how to apply these, for instance, to build sentences; and how these differ from or are similar to English. 

Impact

Throughout school, the profile of languages will be strong and learning environments will display vocabulary that is used by all learners.  French will be enjoyed by pupils and by teachers and impact will be measured through key questioning of skills across lessons; child-led assessment; and summative assessments. 

Files to Download

Autumn Term French Policy