French

1. Statement of Intent

At BMA, we believe that the learning of a foreign language provides a valuable educational, social and cultural experience for all children. Pupils develop communication and literacy skills that lay the foundation for future language learning. They develop linguistic competence, extend their knowledge of how language works and explore differences and similarities between the foreign language and English.
Learning another language raises awareness of the multi-lingual and multi-cultural world and introduces an international dimension to pupils’ learning, giving them an insight into their own culture and those of others.
At Brewood Middle Academy, we teach French to prepare them to move on to High School and carry on studying the same language at GCSE. Our main objectives in the teaching of French are to promote the development of linguistic competence and confidence in speaking and writing as well as an understanding and awareness of the world and other cultures.

2. The National Curriculum

The 2014 National Curriculum for Modern Foreign Languages aims to ensure that all children:

Understand and respond to spoken and written language from a variety of authentic sources.
Are able to speak with increasing confidence, fluency and spontaneity, finding ways of communicating what they want to say, including through discussion and asking questions, and that they are 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. A high quality languages education should foster children’s curiosity and deepen their understanding of the world.
At BMA we are committed to ensuring that competence in another language enables children to interpret, create and exchange meaning within and across cultures. It also helps children develop skills that will open further opportunities later in life. The teaching of French in KS2 and KS3 here at BMA provides an appropriate balance of spoken and written language and lays the foundations for further foreign language teaching and learning at KS4.

3. Lesson Structure

A typical French lesson will start with greeting and welcoming the class. The learning objectives of the lesson and a short starter activity will be introduced. We then move on to the core of the lesson which will usually introduce new vocabulary/ grammar structures or practise to manipulate the language further.
Through a range of different activities, pupils’ progress will be assessed during the lesson and a plenary will be covered.
Homework is usually set in KS3 once a week if appropriate and relevant to the lesson.

4. Curriculum Implementation – Planning and Teaching

Children in year 5 and 6 have one 55 minutes timetabled lesson of French each week. Lessons support the skills of speaking, listening, reading and writing but the main aim is to develop pupil’s confidence and to give them an insight of what it is like to learn a foreign language.
We use a variety of techniques to encourage pupils to have an active engagement in French, these include to listen attentively to spoken language and respond, joining in with role-plays, songs and games.
We have devised our own schemes of work based on the KS3 QCA schemes of work and adapted those to suit a younger audience.
In year 7 and 8, pupils have two 55 minutes lessons each week.
We have devised our own KS3 schemes of work in consultation with the schools within our pyramid. We have worked as a pyramid (BMA, PMS and WHS) to make sure that all our pupils cover the same units/ topics before moving on to the next stage of their language learning at High School (GCSE).

From year 5 to year 8 at BMA, through the delivery of different units of work, we teach pupils to know and understand how to:

Engage in conversations, express opinions and respond to those of others
Speak in sentences using familiar vocabulary, phrases and basic language structures
Understand basic grammar including gender of nouns, definite and indefinite articles, singular and plural forms of noun, and conjugation of key verbs.
Write words and phrases from memory
Use a dictionary
Adapt phrases to create new sentences describing people, places things and actions orally and in writing
Broaden their vocabulary and develop ability to understand new words that are introduced into familiar written material.
Read carefully and show understanding of words, phrases and simple writing.
Explore the patterns and sounds of language and link the spelling, sound and meaning of words.

5. Impact and Assessment

Pupils are assessed continually throughout the year and provided with whole class feedback, individual feedback, marking and assessment tasks. Children review their work at the end of each unit with “I can…” statements and they are given a target for the next unit.
In KS2, pupils are mainly assessed through teacher assessment.
In KS3, pupils are assessed through teacher assessment, mini assessments within each unit and end of unit assessments.

6. Cultural Capital

At BMA, through learning a foreign language, pupils develop language skills and language learning skills. They are given the confidence in interacting with others and given the opportunity to increase their global awareness. They are also given an interest in different cultures and lifestyles.
We have established strong links with 3 schools in France, Italy and Germany and have successfully completed 3 international projects with the British Council. Some pupils have had the opportunity to go on visits to a school in each of the 3 countries and we have welcomed students from the 3 countries here at BMA.
Each summer, we welcome a group of 8 to 10 Spanish students and they are placed with families during 3 weeks. We sometimes have a Spanish student staying with us at BMA for a whole term.

7. Inclusion – Equal Opportunities and SEND

At BMA we are committed to promoting equal opportunities irrespective of socio-economic background, gender, disability and ethnicity in all areas of the curriculum. We believe all children should have access to and participation in the learning of French and to be supported in this process.

8. The Subject Leader

The subject leader is responsible for the planning and coordinating of the French curriculum. The subject leader also:

Supports colleagues in their teaching, by keeping them informed of new developments.
Writes a subject development plan each year informed by the whole school development plan.
Attends specialist courses and ensures content is disseminated to staff.