Modern Foreign Languages

East Hanningfield Primary School

How do we teach Modern Foreign Languages (MFL)

 

Intent for Foreign Languages

At East Hanningfield Primary School we believe that the learning of a foreign language provides a valuable educational, social and cultural experience for our pupils. It helps them to develop communication skills in speaking, listening, reading and writing, with the aim of making substantial progress in one language: French. In addition, children’s knowledge of how language works will be developed to lay the foundations for further language learning in future. We believe that learning another language gives children a new and broader perspective on the world, encouraging them to understand their own cultures and those of others. 

 

Our intent for foreign language learning is guided by the aims of the National curriculum which are:

 

• understand and respond to spoken and written language from a variety of authentic sources

• speak with increasing confidence, fluency and spontaneity, finding ways of communicating what they want to say, including through discussion and asking questions, and continually improving the accuracy of their pronunciation and intonation
• can 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

 

-The National Curriculum in England: Key stages 1 and 2 Framework Document. September 2013

 

We address the National curriculum for Languages through themed blocks of work.  French is taught weekly by a specialist languages teacher.

 

 

Implementation for Foreign Languages

Children develop their love of language learning and develop language skills throughout their time at our school. 

 

In Key Stage 1, all children are introduced to learning French with sharing of basic phrases, vocabulary and cultural comparisons and differences.  Children have opportunities to develop an appreciation of songs and stories in French during class time and Assemblies.

 

The National curriculum Languages programme of work outlines the expectations to be met in KS2.  These are as follows:

 

• 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
• present ideas and information orally to a range of audiences
• read carefully and show understanding of words, phrases and simple writing
• appreciate stories, songs, poems and rhymes 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 clear
• 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

 

-The National Curriculum in England: Key stages 1 and 2 Framework Document. September 2014.  Details of topics covered in each year group can be found on our website.

 

As we acknowledge children’s different learning styles, our children learn through active participation in actions, rhymes, stories, song, grammar focus, video clips, sentence structure, dictionary work, book making and many more creative ways to extend, embed and combine language skills.  Working walls (displaying vocabulary, grammar points and storyboards) support learning. 

 

Our languages curriculum is reinforced by our termly French language mornings with gifted and talented Year 9 students from our local Secondary School. Pupils in KS2 have the opportunity to participate in fun French language activities which enhance their language learning and help them to develop a wider cultural appreciation of the language they are studying.  We believe this acts as a great motivation for language learning and aids transition and links between Primary and Secondary Schools.

 

Every opportunity is taken to enhance and embed French learning at School Concerts and Assemblies, both whole school and class.  Children are taught French songs, stories and rhymes which they take pride in performing to their families and friends. 

 

Special Educational Needs Disability (SEND) / Pupil Premium / Higher Attainers

All children will have Quality First Teaching. Any children with identified SEND or in receipt of pupil premium funding may have work additional to and different from their peers in order to access the curriculum dependent upon their needs. As well as this, our school offers a demanding and varied curriculum, providing children with a range of opportunities in order for them to reach their full potential and consistently achieve highly from their starting points.

 

Impact of Foreign Languages 

The National curriculum expectations, as laid out in the implementation section above, form the basis for our assessment process.  We have developed key objectives from these expectations and used them to develop objectives for each year group. 

 

Our formative and summative assessment includes:

• regular assessment of spoken French, both individually and as part of groups;
• listening comprehension assessments;
• marking and feedback of reading and writing skills;
• regular vocabulary assessments
• end of topic assessments and feedback
• annual reporting to parents

 

We also use pupil voice and self-assessment sheets to ensure pupils are continuing to enjoy and engage with language learning. 

 

Impact of teaching is constantly reviewed by learning walks, observations of displays and moderation staff meetings where pupils’ work is scrutinised and shared between teachers. 

 

We review the impact of language teaching at our school in conjunction with the Head of Languages at our local Secondary School.  We seek feedback on our pupils’ attainment levels and readiness for language learning at KS3.  This provides us with the opportunity to constantly review and develop our planning and schemes of work.