Intent
At Bishop Lonsdale, children in Key Stage 2 begin learning French. The National Curriculum states ‘Learning a foreign language is a liberation from insularity and provides an opening to other cultures. A high-quality languages education should foster pupils’ curiosity and deepen their understanding of the world’. We aim to introduce pupils to French in a fun and interactive way, foster their curiosity and their desire to learn French, and help them make the progress required to transition easily into language learning in KS3 when they go to secondary school.
Implementation
We primarily use Language Angels to teach French, which is an interactive scheme of work. Each year group has a new topic each half term, and these fun lessons involve learning key vocabulary and grammar through games, songs and activities.
The core strands to the French curriculum are listening, speaking, reading and writing. Confident pupils have the chance to practise, extend their learning and demonstrate to others if they wish and less confident pupils the opportunity to continue rehearsing French in different ways. Pupils will learn a bit about France and French customs, and compare some aspects of French culture to our own.
Impact
Importantly, learning French gives our pupils a glimpse into another country and another culture. Our French curriculum is supported by occasional French themed days or events, whereby classes have more of a focus on French art, landmarks, food or famous people. In the past, we have had a French themed day where many pupils chose to dress up as famous French people! We have also had a French themed family event with a range of activities and competitions, and even a French café! We hope pupils enjoy learning French and aspire to continue their learning at secondary school.
The Language Angels app is live on the Apple app store. Pupils can log in at home with these details:
Username: la2023app
Password: la2023app