Intent

At Darras Hall Primary School, we intend to spark an interest for learning and understanding other languages in all of our pupils. We aim to begin the process of learning the French language and understanding of its culture through development of the essential skills of listening, reading, speaking and writing. We aim to build upon children’s culture capital so that they can recognise similarities and differences in traditions and cultures across the globe. We have chosen primary French in Pele Trust schools as preparation for Year 7 Modern Foreign Languages at Ponteland High; many pupils will broaden their horizons later with Spanish or German in Year 8. 

We believe that learning a foreign language is an integral part of a global education. Making the effort to try and understand someone in their language shows we can respect, work hard and be kind. We love to challenge the assumption that English is enough. It helps us see the world from a different perspective.

Implementation

Our French teacher, Madam Magee teaches French across the Pele Trust primary schools and works collaboratively with the languages department at Ponteland High School .  This ensures that the curriculum pupils receive at KS2 prepares them exceptionally well for KS3 languages. The structure of our languages curriculum is centred on three key aspects:

Language

Our French curriculum is designed to help learners make substantial progress in vocabulary, phonics and grammar. We learn language so that we can communicate with others in context. We learn how to greet and say how we are feeling; to describe families, animals, appearance, where we live; to talk about what music or food or hobbies we like; as well as ‘core’ content such as numbers, days, months.

Culture

French in France is one part of a diverse French speaking world and we give children the opportunity to encounter many interesting and inspiring aspects from cultures, countries and role models throughout Francophonie

Skills

By the end of Key Stage 2 children have learned to communicate in simple language with increasing confidence, fluency and spontaneity. They learn to listen attentively and pronounce words accurately, use a bilingual dictionary and develop other skills such as: asking questions, reading and listening to authentic sources, and having conversations. The challenge of language learning also helps develop creativity, empathy, communication, resilience and  self-esteem. French lessons aim to be inclusive with an engaging multi-modal approach that allows pupils to rehearse and retrieve learning through a range of song, stories, poems, art, games, and listening, reading, writing, copying, conversing, acting.