Teaching & Learning
Modern Foreign Language
Reading List:
Le Petit Nicolas - René Goscinny
Le Petit Prince - Antoine de Saint Exupéry
Paroles – Jacques Prévert
Oxford University Press – GCSE French Foundation Book - ISBN 978-0-19-836584-6
Oxford University Press – GCSE French Higher Book - ISBN 978-0-19-836583-9
Useful Websites:
www.lesclesjunior.com : for simplified reading texts for French
www.languagesonline.org.uk : for grammar exercises
https://conjuguemos.com/ : for grammar exercises
http://apprendre.tv5monde.com/ : for authentic texts and exercises
www.duolingo.com: for language learning and sentence structure
www.languagesonline.org.uk: for grammar practice
www.quizlet.com: vocabulary learning site
www.bbc.co.uk/bitesize/levels/z98jmp3: exam style practice
www.wordreference.com: online dictionary
KS3
Intent and Knowledge Entitlement:
In KS3, pupils should be able to use grammatical structures and vocabulary that help them understand the world around them. The main topic areas covered are self, family and friends, technology, hobbies, school, local area. In order to maximise retrieval practice, themes are revisited several times over the Key Stage in order to consolidate vocabulary and to widen the range of grammatical structures being used.
French is currently studied for one hour per week throughout years 7 and 8. German is studied for one hour per week during the first half of the year and Spanish is studied in the second half of the year. This pattern is repeated in year 8. The aim of this is to heighten enthusiasm for languages in general. Pupils learn patterns and can make points of reference between different languages. They are taught language acquisition skills and strengthen their cognitive ability. Within our pedagogy we include strategies developed using sound research by professionals such as Dr. Gianfranco Conti and Steve Smith. Retrieval practice is central to our pedagogy and subjects are regularly revisited thereby ensuring that knowledge is embedded. As vocabulary is recycled so the structures and grammar used become more complex.
Skills Entitlement:
By the end of KS3 pupils should be able to understand and respond to spoken and written language from a variety of authentic sources. They should speak with increasing confidence, fluency and spontaneity, finding ways of communicating what they want to say, including through discussion and asking questions, and continually improving the accuracy of their pronunciation and intonation. They should be able to write at varying length, for different purposes and audiences, using the variety of grammatical structures that they have learnt. In addition to this, they should discover and develop an appreciation of a range of writing in the language studied.
List of Topics and Themes covered each Term:
Year 7 - French
Term 1 – Numbers, Dates, Greetings, Pencil case items, colours. family, animals, physical and personal characteristics. Expressing opintions, Festivals in French-speaking countries. Present tense verb. Understanding of gender and number. Use of negatives. Translation skills
Term 2 – House and local area, asking for directions, buying food at a snack bar Expressing opinions, verbs in the present tense Festivals in French-speaking countries. Translation skills
Term 3 – school and future plans, hobbies and holidays Expressing opintions, Festivals in French-speaking countries. Verbs in the present tense and Infinitive construcions. Translation skills
Year 7 - German
Term 1- Numbers, dates, greetings, classroom items and colours, School. Understanding of gender and number. Use of accusative case. Present tense verbs. Translation skills. Giving opinions and justifications.
Term 2a - family, animals, physical and personal characteristics. Present tense verbs. Translation skills. Giving opinions and justifications.
Year 7 - Spanish
Term 2b – The basics of pronunciation, greetings, numbers 1-31, colours, dates, Family members, pets.
Term 3 - Describing people, countries and nationalities, home and local area, places in a town, numbers 31-100, telling the time, school subjects and opinions.
Year 8 - French
Term 1 Family relationships and physical descriptions (using more complicated vocabulary and structures. Eg perfect tense)
Term 2 – Technology, hobbies, eating out, festivals. Future tenses. Lifestyle, transactional vocabulary, holidays.
Term 3. – weather, holidays, future plans
Year 8 - German
Term 1 - Hobbies, arranging to go out, home and local environment, festivals
Term 2a – Home and local area, transactional vocabulary
Year 8 – Spanish
Term 2b – A recap of year 7 topics, giving opinions and justifications, common conjunctions and prepositions, sports, hobbies, modern technology.
Term 3 – Jobs and future plans, chores, food and meal times, healthy eating, the body, clothing, fashion and shopping, the environment, holiday and travel plans and activities
KS4
Intent and Knowledge Entitlement:
The AQA specification covers three distinct themes. These themes apply to all four question papers. Students are expected to understand and provide information and opinions about these themes, and the topics contained therein, relating to their own experiences and those of other people, including people in countries/communities where French is spoken.
Theme 1: Identity and culture
Theme 2: Local, national, international and global areas of interest
Theme 3: Current and future study and employment
Skills Entitlement:
Listening: understand and respond to spoken language
Students are expected to be able to: • demonstrate general and specific understanding of different types of spoken language • follow and understand clear standard speech using familiar language across a range of specified contexts • identify the overall message, key points, details and opinions in a variety of short and longer spoken passages, involving some more complex language, recognising the relationship between past, present and future events • deduce meaning from a variety of short and longer spoken texts, involving some complex language and more abstract material, including short narratives and authentic material addressing a wide range of contemporary and cultural themes • recognise and respond to key information, important themes and ideas in more extended spoken text, including authentic sources, adapted and abridged, as appropriate, by being able to answer questions, extract information, evaluate and draw conclusions
Speaking: communicate and interact in speech
Students are expected to be able to: • communicate and interact effectively in speech for a variety of purposes across a range of specified contexts • take part in a short conversation, asking and answering questions, and exchanging opinions • convey information and narrate events coherently and confidently, using and adapting language for new purposes • speak spontaneously, responding to unexpected questions, points of view or situations, sustaining communication by using rephrasing or repair strategies, as appropriate • initiate and develop conversations and discussion, producing extended sequences of speech • make appropriate and accurate use of a variety of vocabulary and grammatical structures, including some more complex forms, with reference to past, present and future events • make creative and more complex use of the language, as appropriate, to express and justify their own thoughts and points of view • use accurate pronunciation and intonation to be understood by a native speaker.
Reading: understand and respond to written language
Students are expected to be able to: • understand and respond to different types of written language • understand general and specific details within texts using high frequency familiar language across a range of contexts • identify the overall message, key points, details and opinions in a variety of short and longer written passages, involving some more complex language and recognising the relationship between past, present and future events • deduce meaning from a variety of short and longer written texts from a range of specified contexts, including authentic sources involving some complex language and unfamiliar material, as well as short narratives and authentic material addressing relevant contemporary and cultural themes • recognise and respond to key information, important themes and ideas in more extended written text and authentic sources, including some extracts from relevant abridged or adapted literary texts • demonstrate understanding by being able to scan for particular information, organise and present relevant details, draw inferences in context and recognise implicit meaning where appropriate • translate a short passage from French into English.
Writing: communicate in writing
Students are expected to be able to: • communicate effectively in writing for a variety of purposes across a range of specified contexts • write short texts, using simple sentences and familiar language accurately to convey meaning and exchange information • produce clear and coherent text of extended length to present facts and express ideas and opinions appropriately for different purposes and in different settings • make accurate use of a variety of vocabulary and grammatical structures, including some more complex forms, to describe and narrate with reference to past, present and future events • manipulate the language, using and adapting a variety of structures and vocabulary with increasing accuracy and fluency for new purposes, including using appropriate style and register • make independent, creative and more complex use of the language, as appropriate, to note down key points, express and justify individual thoughts and points of view, in order to interest, inform or convince • translate sentences and short texts from English into French to convey key messages accurately and to apply grammatical knowledge of language and structures in context.
List of Topics and Themes covered each Term:
Year 9 - French
Term 1 – Bridging module (consolidation of Present tense, infinitive constructions, negatives, adjectival agreement). Theme 1: Identity and culture covers the following four topics with related sub-topics shown as bullet points: Topic 1: Me, my family and friends • Relationships with family and friends • Marriage/partnership
Term 2 - Technology in everyday life, Social media, Mobile technology, Free-time activities, Music, Cinema and TV, Food and eating out, Sport
Term 3 Topic 4: Customs and festivals in French-speaking countries/communities
Year 10 - French
Term 1 - Home, town, neighbourhood and region , Social issues , Charity/voluntary work
Term 2 - Healthy/unhealthy living , Global issues ,The environment , Poverty/homelessness
Term 3. - Travel and tourism
Year 11 - French
Term 1 - My studies , Life at school/college , Education post-16 , Jobs, career choices and ambitions
Term 2 – Revision and exam preparation
Year 9 - Spanish
As an accelerated ‘ab initio’ subject pupils work through the Michel Thomas for Schools language system which supplies them with the core language structures required for GCSE. They also have a discrete vocabulary lesson where they begin the more traditional topics.
Year 10 Spanish
Term 1: Me, my family and friends • Relationships with family and friends • Marriage/partnership
Term 2 - Technology in everyday life, Social media, Mobile technology, Free-time activities, Music, Cinema and TV, Food and eating out, Sport, Customs and festivals in French-speaking countries/communities
Term 3: Home, town, neighbourhood and region , Social issues , Charity/voluntary work Revision and Exam preparation.
Year 11 Spanish
Term 1 - Healthy/unhealthy living , Global issues ,The environment , Poverty/homelessness , Travel and tourism
Term 2 - My studies , Life at school/college , Education post-16 , Jobs, career choices and ambitions