MFL - French
Intent
At Sevenoaks Primary School, we are proud to offer French as part of our programme of study for Key Stage 2, with a wide-range of topics covered. Learning by speaking, reading, writing, and listening to French; allows children to experience the language and culture of our nearest neighbours. A high-quality languages education fosters pupils’ curiosity and deepens their understanding of the world.
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 their ability to communicate, including key skills of speaking and listening and extends their knowledge of how language works. It provides excitement, enjoyment and challenge for children and teachers, helping to create enthusiastic learners and to develop positive attitudes to language learning throughout life.
Click on the units below to view the attached Knowledge Organiser for that subject.
Sevenoaks Primary Skills Progression in French
Implementation
To ensure high standards of teaching and learning in MFL, we implement a spiral curriculum that is progressive throughout Key Stage Two. MFL is taught in discrete lessons covering one unit per half term. The MFL curriculum at Sevenoaks Primary School is based upon the 2014 Primary National Curriculum in England, which provides a broad framework and outlines the knowledge and skills taught. Teachers plan lessons for their class using our Curriculum progression document. The planned curriculum builds upon children’s interests and real-life experiences to ensure their learning is engaging, broad and balanced.
In MFL, skills in speaking, reading and writing another language are developed through a multi-sensory approach such as rhymes, songs, stories and repetition. In Upper Key Stage Two, children begin to develop their understanding of grammar in another language.
Fun, engaging, interactive lessons foster a love of speaking French, as well as to broaden the provision and the acquisition of knowledge and language skills.
Impact
At SPS we deliver a spiral curriculum whereby skills learnt in Lower Key Stage 2 are revisited and built upon, in upper Key Stage 2. The Learning of French in this way, encourages children to become more confident speakers and listeners through drama-based activities which are followed up with written opportunities. This stimulates and encourages children’s curiosity about language and creativity in experimenting with it. Which lay the foundations for futures language study and may equip pupils to study and work in other countries in the future.
Pupil voice is a powerful tool in assessing the impact on pupils of learning French. Through interviews with the children, we can establish attitudes to French, what interests the children, and how to improve the provision and impact of French at our school. The following are quotes from children across different year groups within Key Stage 2, talking about their French lessons:
French is really fun as we play lots of games and learn songs, to get to know the new words.
I loved learning numbers, it was really fun when we got to play games like bingo to practise numbers to 20.
It’s really fun in class when we play games with new words that we’ve been learning. Like when we were learning French names for colours, we had to listen carefully for the colour we were wearing to do an action!
I like speaking French, especially when we get to learn some new phrases and then practise them with our partners.
I like matching the English words with the French words and seeing how many I can remember.
When we were learning shop names it was interesting to compare the French written names to their English names.
