Modern Foreign Languages (MFL) is a very important aspect of all our pupils curriculum, and will ultimately figure in the range of Ebacc subjects students will take in Upper School.

All pupils learn French throughout their time in the school. In years 5 and 6 they have one hour per week and in year 7 and 8 this increases to 3 hours per fortnight of French.

French

In Year 5, pupils learn to introduce themselves and ask and give personal details e.g. name, age etc. They learn numbers up to 30, the French alphabet, descriptions of people, the months and the seasons, building on work already covered in Lower School. The emphasis is on speaking and listening, but reading and writing are important too.

In year 6, pupils learn to talk about school, clothes, hobbies, family, what they have for breakfast, festivals and celebrations, how to tell the time in French, and to give opinions and reasons. Although the emphasis is still on speaking and listening, pupils start to write independently.

In Year 7, topics include: describing where you live, free time activities and going out, ordering food and drink at a café, making arrangements to go out, planning a visit to Paris, festivals, buying food at a market, TV programmes, digital technology, going to the cinema, describing the weather, places in town, household chores, and daily routine.  Communication in the classroom continues to develop, and grammar is explored more deeply, including the introduction of the future and past tenses.

In year 8, topics include: food and drink, shopping, talking about everyday activities, pocket money, travel, and past holidays. The emphasis is on extending vocabulary and using two or more tenses, and creating extended, complex sentences.

We strongly encourage children to practice using foreign languages at home. Here are some websites, that the children will find useful and which provide a multitude of games and fun activities. 

French Phonics

https://www.frenchcourses-paris.com/french-phonetic-alphabet/

Linguascope 

https://linguascope.com/default.htm

This website offers a multitude of languages at different levels and games to practise in a fun way. (your French teacher will communicate your username and password so you can use it for free)

An app is also available.

BBC Languages

https://www.bbc.co.uk/bitesize/levels/z4kw2hv

KS3 - BBC Bitesize Key Stage 3 is the first three years of secondary school education in England and Wales, for pupils aged 11 to 14. www.bbc.co.uk

Lightbulb Languages

https://www.lightbulblanguages.co.uk/

French, German Spanish, Italian and Latin Variety of topics, skills and resources for KS1-KS5 learners

Light Bulb Languages HOME Hundreds of resources for busy language teachers. Choose from French, Spanish, German and Italian. www.lightbulblanguages.co.uk

Free educational apps:

Duolinguo

https://www.duolingo.com/privacy

A huge selection of languages available to practise. App available

Memrise

https://www.memrise.com/en/learn-french

Busuu

https://www.busuu.com/en/p/start-learning?utm_medium=cpc&utm_source=google&utm_campaign=UK_EN_Web_Brand_BMM&utm_group=UK_EN_Web_Brand_BMM&utm_term=%2Bbusuu&gclid=Cj0KCQjwjcfzBRCHARIsAO-1_Oo7DAcOu7cAimGijPcKbBZQE9nNWTRclUzcUfnc5-AET25iUgppZrkaAjdfEALw_wcB&gclsrc=aw.ds

Start learning languages with Busuu today! - Busuu Busuu www.busuu.com

 

BBC Languages – Free online lessons to learn and study with Free online language learning: courses, audio, video and games, including the alphabet, phrases, vocabulary, pronunciation, grammar, activities and tests www.bbc.co.uk