MFL – French
Intent
The 2014 National Curriculum for Modern Foreign Languages (MFL) 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 Willow Wood Primary School 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 provides an appropriate balance of spoken and written language and lays the foundations for further foreign language teaching at KS3.
Implementation
Children are introduced to French in Year 3 and lessons are blocked for one week a term within our curriculum planner for Years 3-6.
Lessons across Key Stage 2 support the skills of speaking, listening, reading and writing:
- Children are taught to listen attentively to spoken language and respond, joining in with songs, rhymes and games.
- We follow ‘The Complete Course for Primary French’ from Monkseaton Language College as part of the North Tyneside with Durham LA MFL Key Stage 2 Pathfinder.
- MFL Week, in July, enables the whole school to be immersed in the inclusion of a modern foreign language to gain an additional understanding of different languages and cultures.
Impact
Our MFL curriculum ensures that children develop their knowledge of where different languages are spoken in the world. Varied learning experiences, including ‘MFL Week’ and ‘Culture Week’ also ensure that languages are celebrated throughout the school community whilst providing a context for language learning and develop the children’s understanding of different cultures.
