Intent
At The Richard Clarke First School, our intent for language learning is that children are taught to develop an interest in learning other languages (our target language is French) in a way that is enjoyable and stimulating – from an early age. We encourage children’s confidence, we strive to stimulate and encourage children’s curiosity about languages. We seek to develop their awareness of cultural differences in other countries, through links to British values and curriculum enrichment opportunities. We strive to embed the skills of speaking and listening and to introduce the skills of reading and writing as appropriate to enable children to use and apply their French learning in a variety of contexts and lay the foundations for future language learning in Upper Key Stage 2 and beyond.
Our MFL curriculum is designed to progressively develop children’s skills in languages, through regular taught lessons. Children progressively acquire, use and apply a growing bank of vocabulary organised around topics, which have been collaboratively selected with our first and middle school partners in the Uttoxeter Learning Trust.
Implementation
A typical French lesson includes development of pronunciation through learning French phonic sounds. Teaching makes use of the Linguascope online platform. New vocabulary is introduced along with appropriate grammar rules, which is then applied to conversation or writing skills. Children are encouraged and supported to develop their speaking and listening skills through conversational work, singing activities and games. As their confidence and skill grows, children record their work through pictures, captions and sentences.
To support learning, displays children of key vocabulary and practical activities. Furthermore, songs and games help improve memory and recall. In the classroom, instructions in French to expose children to the target language as much as possible. Visual prompts are used to support children in translating new vocabulary. This is particularly important for children with additional needs.
In order to prepare our learners to become lifelong language learners, The Richard Clarke First School has outlined and agreed upon four threshold concepts that each teacher will implement to underpin their teaching at an age-related level for their topics. Within these, are clear and well-differentiated milestones that link closely to the threshold concepts that are used to form the Modern Foreign Language curriculum. These threshold concepts are read fluently, write imaginatively, speak confidently and understand the cultures of the countries in which the language is spoken.
We strive to ensure that our pupil’s attainment is in line or exceeds their potential when we consider the varied starting points of all our children. We work closely with our local CELL led by the Head of Languages at our partner High School (Thomas Alleyne’s High School, Uttoxeter) to assess children against the scheme of learning we have developed.
Impact
As a result of all that we do, The Richard Clarke First School have a community of enthusiastic language learners who enjoy showcasing their language skills. We have also nurtured our teaching time to become highly self-reflective, evaluative and keen to drive standards higher still. By focusing relentlessly on the quality of our provision, we can be confident that we are giving our children the best possible start to language learning.
“You get to learn a different language to English which is really fun.”
“I now know how to count up to 10 in French.”
“We can test ourselves and others using the games on Linguascope which is my favourite part.”
