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Languages

Vision
We believe that the study of Modern Languages is centrally important to the St Gregory’s Curriculum because it is fun, intellectually fulfilling and equips students with valuable knowledge, skills and attributes that will enable them to flourish in our global society.

Aims
We aim to create 'Confident Linguists who See the World Differently'.
'Confident Linguists'
are students who:

  • Enjoy and are enthusiastic about their Language learning
  • Use the Language spontaneously, creatively and accurately
  • Make rapid and sustained progress and exceed their Minimum Target Grade / Level

'Confident Linguists' are students who:

  • Know about, and immerse themselves in, other languages, histories and cultures
  • Challenge stereotypical views about other cultures and languages

The Modern Languages Department is made up of 5 full-time, highly qualified teachers, a part-time Administrative assistant and each year we are fortunate to have two Foreign Language Assistants work with us from October to May.

Key Stage 3 Curriculum
We fully cover the National Curriculum in Key Stage 3.  Students are taught to listen, speak, read and write in French and they are also assessed on these 4 skills.  The language of the classroom is French as we wish to develop the idea of languages for life.

We cover a range of topics including myself, friends and family, free time, education and future careers and holidays to name but a few. 

Year 7 are taught in mixed-ability forms

Homework is set once a week in line with the whole-school homework timetable.  Students are assessed in homework tasks as well as formal tests in the four skill areas: Listening, Speaking, Reading and Writing. Key pieces of work and assessments are given a National Curriculum level, and students are also set targets for improvement.

Key Stage 4 Curriculum
French is a compulsory subject for most students and approximately 90% of our students continue to study French to GCSE.   From September 2017 we are beginning the GCSE course with our Year 9 students.  Students are once again taught in set ability groups and have five lessons over two weeks.  They build on the skills and knowledge acquired in Key Stage 3. Homework is set each week, and may include learning as well as producing a piece of writing, planning a speaking task or completing a reading exercise.  Feedback includes a GCSE grade as well as targets to improve.
The exam board we use is Edexcel.  At the end of Year 11 students are required to sit end-of-course Listening Speaking, Reading and Writing tests at either Foundation of Higher tier according to ability.    

A level
In KS5, students are taught for 9 periods over 2 weeks, and Year 13 students also have an extra period with a foreign language assistant to enable them to practise their oral work. Students are expected to complete 5 hours of private study each week, and the work produced is monitored and assessed on a regular basis.

Extra Curricular Provision
We deliver the curriculum by making extensive use of audio-visual technology and teaching techniques, enabling students to learn about and appreciate other languages and culture.   We ensure that our curriculum is accessible to all students by providing a range of different tasks and activities.  Extra support sessions are also run after-school, at lunchtimes, during the Easter holidays and on Saturdays leading up to the GCSE, AS and A level exams.

Community Languages
Each year an audit is carried out by Mrs Young regarding other languages.  Where appropriate, pupils will be entered for a GCSE or an A level in their home language.

 

 KEY STAGE 3 OVERVIEW

We fully cover the National Curriculum in Key Stage 3.  Students are taught to listen, speak, read and write in French and they are also assessed on these 4 skills.  The language of the classroom is French as we wish to develop the idea of languages for life.

We cover a range of topics including myself, friends and family, free time, education and future careers and holidays to name but a few. 

Year 7 are taught in mixed-ability forms, whilst Year 8 and Year 9 are set by ability.

Homework is set once a week in line with the whole-school homework timetable.  Students are assessed in homework tasks either by the teacher by themselves or peers with guidelines.   Students are regularly set targets for improvement.

 YEAR 7

Our pupils are taught French for 7 hours over the two-week timetable and they are taught in mixed-ability forms. 

The courses we use are Accès Studio and Dynamo 1 and we supplement the published material with our own resources, which are tailored to meet the needs of all of our students.

The topics taught are as follows:

Autumn Term 1

  • meeting people
  • spelling words using the French alphabet
  • saying how old you are – numbers up to 31
  • talking about birthdays
  • giving the date
  • key verb ‘avoir’ in the present tense
  • learning school objects
  • learning about the gender of nouns
  • learning how to form plurals of nouns
  • using classroom language
  • saying what activities you like and dislike and why

Pupils are formally assessed in listening, reading and writing which forms their baseline level.

Autumn Term 2

  • using colours to describe objects
  • talking about pets
  • dictionary skills
  • talking about family members
  • key verb ‘être’ in the present tense
  • saying where you live
  • regular ER verbs in the present tense
  • discussing food
  • the weather
  • talking about Christmas celebrations

Pupils are formally assessed in speaking as well as grammar and translation.

 Spring Term 1

  • countries and nationalities
  • saying if you have brothers and sisters
  • saying what family members are called and giving their ages
  • talking about likes and dislikes the activities you like to do using opinions with reasons
  • describing yourself and other people
  • describing your favourite cartoon character
  • talking about what you like doing at the weekend

Pupils are formally assessed in speaking and listening.

Spring Term 2

  • talking about school subjects and what you think of them
  • clothing to talk about school uniform
  • telling the time
  • using the present tense to speak about your daily routine
  • what life is like in a typical French school
  • describing your ideal school
  • revision of weather

Pupils are formally assessed in writing.

Summer Term 1

  • talking about French-speaking countries
  • talking about sports and activities you play and do
  • describing a photo
  • learning about typical sports in French-speaking countries
  • saying how often you do various activities
  • using different types of questions
  • talking about what you like doing on your mobile phone

Pupils are formally assessed in listening, speaking, reading and writing.

Summer Term 2

  • numbers up to 100
  • describing your family and your home
  • translation skills
  • saying what you eat for breakfast
  • talking about special occasions
  • saying what is in your town and discussing where you live
  • talk about where you go at the weekend

 YEAR 8

Our pupils are taught French for 5 hours over the two-week timetable and they are taught in mixed-ability groups.   

 The course we use is Dynamo 2 and we supplement the published material with our own resources, which are tailored to meet the needs of all of our students.

The topics taught are as follows:

Autumn Term 1 – Autumn Term 2

  • talking about school holidays
  • using the past tense to describe what you did during a recent holiday
  • describe a past visit to a theme park
  • use the plural form of the past tense to talk about a holiday you had with other people
  • understand problems which happened on holiday
  • asking and answering questions about a special trip

Pupils are formally assessed in reading.

Autumn Term 2 – Spring Term 1

  • talking about the festivals you like and dislike
  • recognizing large numbers
  • talk about what happens on special days
  • describe a photo of a festival
  • buying quantities of food at a market
  • understanding ingredients and information about a typical French dish
  • use the near future tense to talk about an upcoming school trip
  • talk about New Year’s resolutions

Pupils are formally assessed in listening and speaking.

Spring Term 1 – Spring Term 2

  • talking about celebrities
  • discussing TV programmes, including giving your opinion
  • talking about using digital technology
  • arranging to go to the cinema, including meeting time and place
  • talk about leisure activities
  • using a range of negative constructions
  • listening for synonyms
  • producing work in three different tenses

Pupils are formally assessed in writing.

Spring Term 2 – Summer Term 1

  • describing the place you live in detail
  • saying what you can do where you live
  • talk about the jobs you do to help out at home
  • discuss your daily routine
  • using the past and the present to talk about moving house
  • using a range of tenses to talk about a visit to a new area

Pupils are formally assessed in speaking.

Summer Term 1 – Summer Term 2

  • talking about sports and sporting stars
  • comparing different sports
  • asking the way and giving directions in a town
  • understanding the qualities of a champion
  • talking about injuries and illness and understanding basic remedies
  • asking and answering questions about sports and sporting events

Pupils are formally assessed in listening, speaking, reading and writing.

 YEAR 9

Our pupils are taught French for 5 hours over the two week timetable and they are taught in groups which have been set by ability.   They are often supported in lessons by one of our Foreign Language Assistants which gives them the opportunity of working with a French native speaker.

The course we use is Edexcel for GCSE and we supplement the published material with our own resources which are tailored to meet the needs of all of our students.

 

The topics taught are as follows:

Autumn Term Identity and culture/ Who am I?

  • revising family and describing people;
  • revising places in town and activities;
  • talking about friends and what makes a good friend;
  • talking about family relationships;
  • making arrangements to go out;
  • describing a night out with friends;
  • talking about life when you were younger;
  • talking about role models.

The students will be formally assessed in writing and reading.  

 

Spring Term Identity and culture/ Daily life

  • revising sport and music;
  • revising technology, films and TV;
  • talking about sport;
  • talking about your life online;
  • talking about books and reading;
  • talking about television programmes;
  • talking about actors and films.

The students will be formally assessed in listening and speaking.

 

Summer Term - Identity and culture/ Cultural life.

  • talking about food and meals;
  • discussing shopping for clothes;
  • describing your daily life;
  • talking about food for special occasions;
  • using polite language;
  • describing family celebrations;
  • describing festivals and traditions.

Students are formally assessed in reading, speaking and writing.

 KEY STAGE 4 OVERVIEW

Students are guided through the Options process at every level and are advised on which Pathway they should choose.  French is a compulsory subject for students on Pathway 1 and Pathway 2 and it is an option on Pathway 4.  Approximately 75% of our students continue to study French to GCSE.   Students are once again taught in set ability groups and have five lessons over two weeks.  They build on the skills and knowledge acquired in Key Stage 3. Homework is set each week, and may include learning as well as producing a piece of writing, planning a speaking task or completing a reading exercise.  Feedback includes a GCSE grade as well as targets to improve.


The exam board we use is Edexcel.  Students are required to complete controlled assessments in Speaking and Writing, which are spread out over the two years.  At the end of Year 11 students are required to sit end-of-course Listening and Reading tests at either Foundation or Higher tier according to their ability in each skill.

 YEAR 10

Our pupils are taught French for 5 hours over the two week timetable and they are taught in groups which have been set by ability.   They are often supported in lessons by one of our Foreign Language Assistants which gives them the opportunity of working with a French native speaker.

The course we use is Edexcel for GCSE 9-1 and we supplement the published material with our own resources which are tailored to meet the needs of all of our students.  Some students will be entered for all Foundation level papers and others will be entered for Higher in all papers.

The themes and topics taught are as follows:

Autumn Term  - Local area, holiday and travel/ town, region and country.

  • talking about where you live, weather and transport;
  • describing a town and asking the way;
  • describing a region;
  • talking about your town, village or district;
  • discussing what to see and do;
  • discussing plans and weather;
  • describing community projects.

Students are formally assessed in writing and speaking.

 

Spring Term – Local area, holiday and travel/ Holidays, travel and tourist transactions.

  • talking about what you normally do on holiday;
  • talking about past and future holidays;
  • talking about an ideal holiday;
  • booking and reviewing hotels;
  • ordering in a restaurant;
  • talking about travelling;
  • buying souvenirs;
  • talking about holiday disasters.

Pupils are formally assessed in listening and reading.

 

Summer Term – School.

  • revising school subjects;
  • talking about your school;
  • comparing school in the UK and French-speaking countries;
  • describing school rules;
  • talking about getting the best out of school;
  • talking about a school exchange.

 

Pupils are formally assessed in speaking and writing.

 YEAR 11

Our pupils are taught French for 5 hours over the two-week timetable and they are taught in groups which have been set by ability.   They are often supported in lessons by one of our Foreign Language Assistants which gives them the opportunity of working with a French native speaker.

The course we use is Edexcel for GCSE 9-1 and we supplement the published material with our own resources which are tailored to meet the needs of all of our students.

We run weekly intervention sessions during Period 6.

The topics taught are as follows:

 

Autumn Term – Future aspirations, study and work.

  • discussing jobs and work preferences;
  • discussing career choices;
  • talking about hopes and wishes;
  • discussing the importance of languages;
  • applying for jobs;
  • understanding case studies.

Pupils are formally assessed in listening, speaking, reading and writing.

 

Spring Term – International and global dimension

  • discussing problems facing the world;
  • talking about protecting the environment;
  • discussing ethical shopping;
  • talking about volunteering;
  • discussing big event.

Pupils are formally assessed in listening, speaking, reading and writing.

 

The summer term will be used for revision of all themes.