French

French Intent Statement

At Clayton St John Primary School, we teach the French curriculum as part of the Modern foreign language in KS2. The curriculum followed is based on the guidance given in the revised National Curriculum.

In Early Years, children develop language through listening and responding with their own ideas. Children are introduced to new vocabulary throughout their curriculum through stories, non-fiction, rhymes and poems. Building an understanding of English language at a young age supports children’s understand of new Languages. Children in Early Years and KS1 are made aware of other languages and are encouraged to use them, for example, answering the register and greeting staff and peers in French.

Pupils in KS2 learn French. The learning of a foreign language provides a valuable educational, social and cultural experience for all pupils. Pupils develop communication 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 a foreign language and English. Learning another language raises awareness of our multicultural world, giving them an insight into their own culture and those of others. The learning of a foreign language provides an opportunity for cross-curricular links, reinforcing understanding of other subjects.

The aims and objectives of learning a modern foreign language in primary school are:

To foster an interest in learning other languages
To introduce young children to another language in a way that is enjoyable and fun;
To make young children aware that language has a structure, and that the structure differs from one language to another;
To help children develop their awareness of cultural differences in other countries;
To develop their speaking and listening skills;
To lay the foundations for future study.

Implementation

Our curriculum has been designed to progressively develop skills in French. In line with the National Curriculum for MFL, pupils at Clayton St John are taught to:

listen attentively to spoken language and show understanding by joining in and responding
explore the patterns and sounds of language through songs and rhymes and link the spelling, sound and meaning of words
engage in conversations; ask and answer questions; express opinions and respond to those of others; seek clarification and help
speak in sentences, using familiar vocabulary, phrases and basic language structures
develop accurate pronunciation and intonation so that others understand when they are reading aloud or using familiar words and phrases
present ideas and information orally to a range of audiences
read carefully and show understanding of words, phrases and simple writing
appreciate stories, songs, poems and rhymes in the language
broaden their vocabulary and develop their ability to understand new words that are introduced into familiar written material, including through using a dictionary

write phrases from memory, and adapt these to create new sentences, to express ideas clear
describe people, places, things and actions orally and in writing
understand basic grammar appropriate to the language being studied,
including (where relevant): feminine, masculine and neuter forms and the conjugation of high-frequency verbs; key features and patterns of the language; how to apply these, for instance, to build sentences; and how these differ from or are similar to English.
This is done through a weekly French lesson, taught by our MFL teacher.

Aims

The national curriculum for languages aims to ensure that all pupils

Understand and respond to spoken and written language from a variety of authentic sources
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
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.