French at St Paul's
Intent
At St Paul's, the intention of our MFL curriculum is to develop an interest in and thirst for learning other languages. We aim to introduce the learning of the French language and the understanding of its culture in enjoyable and stimulating ways. We hope to embed the essential skills of listening, reading, speaking and writing. We aim to build the children’s ‘culture capital’ so that they are aware of similarities and differences between cultures. In short, we hope to lay the foundations for future language learning.
Implementation
Our MFL curriculum has been designed to progressively develop skills in French.
We follow the National Framework for Languages and ensure that all five strands are covered:
- Literacy
- Oracy
- Learning about language
- Learning language strategies
- Intercultural understanding
We base our planning on Languagenut and guidance by the MFL co-ordinator to ensure progression.
This ensures children acquire a bank of vocabulary organized around topics and ensures development is progressive as they build on previous knowledge from units already studied.
All children in KS2 are taught French in a weekly discrete lesson.
Impact
Teachers assess French throughout lessons using ‘assessment through learning’. This helps teachers plan for future lessons.
How do we decide what is taught in MFL?
We follow the National Framework for Languages and ensure that all five strands are covered:
- Literacy
- Oracy
- Learning about language
- Learning language strategies
- Intercultural understanding
We base our planning on Languagenut and guidance by the MFL co-ordinator to ensure progression.
What are the key principles that guide MFL teaching at St Paul’s?
Class teachers provide the lessons.
We aim to enthuse children about being able to communicate in a different language.
We hope to broaden children’s knowledge about other countries and cultures.
We encourage children to explore the structure of their own language-noting how it is similar to and differs from the language they are learning.
We develop children’s speaking and listening, reading and writing skills which will in turn support their attainment in literacy.
Language is at the heart of all the learning a pupil does. It is how they receive knowledge, express themselves and communicate, from the very earliest stages. The learning of a language enhances their abilities to communicate and to develop personal skills.
Learning a language helps the development of an understanding of the many purposes for which language is used. It promotes an awareness of the diversity of forms language can take. Children already have a broad understanding of the purpose, nature, and functions of language by the time they begin learning a foreign language. Learning a foreign language enhances this knowledge base.
The aims with French at St Paul’s are;
- To develop the ability to communicate using the French Language
- To develop confidence in listening, speaking, reading and writing in French
- To learn about some of the cultural aspects of France
- To develop the ability to contribute more effectively to modern society in line with the curriculum
Further information can be found in our policy which you can view below.
Long Term Plan
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Autumn 1 |
Autumn 2 |
Spring 1 |
Spring 2 |
Summer 1 |
Summer 2 |
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Year 3 |
About Me Covering basic information, greetings, age, family members and languages. |
Hobbies and Pets Covering useful phrases, numbers, hobbies, playtime and pets. |
Where I live Covering countries, local area, houses, rooms, furniture and home activities. |
How I look Covering body parts, facial features, descriptions and days of the week. |
Animals, colours and sizes Covering pets, animals, colours and sizes. |
Food and drink Covering meals, food, drink and shopping. |
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Year 4 |
Going to school Covering morning routine, travel, transport, school subjects, classroom items and opinions. |
Going to work Covering jobs, workplaces, money, shopping, numbers and time. |
Around the world Covering countries, directions, languages, air travel and holidays. |
Healthy lifestyle Covering sports, outdoor activities, healthy eating and comparatives/ superlatives. |
Clothes and shopping Covering clothes, getting dressed, descriptions, shopping and laundry. |
Weather Covering weather, numbers, temperature, clothes, weather reports and extreme weather. |
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Year 5 |
Useful phrase Covering questions, opposites, connective, future time phrases, clarification and possessive pronouns. |
More about food Covering time, lunchtime, cafeterias, cooking, growing and description |
Around the house Covering rooms, furniture, activities and household chores. |
Music and celebrations Covering music, opinions, instruments, negatives, sounds and celebrations. |
On the way to school Covering directions, journeys, buying tickets, local area, town features, crossing the road and asking for directions. |
Seasons and holidays Covering seasons, weather, time expressions, birthdays, parties, presents and family. |
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Year 6 |
More about school Covering school rooms, prepositions, school subjects, break time and connectives |
Our world Covering countries, continents, geography, holidays, cities and beaches. |
Describing people and things Covering description, hairstyles, patterns, colours, and quantities. |
Technology Covering mobile phones, computers, internet, games, music and videos. |
The environment Covering environmental issues, recycling, pollution, energy and ordinal numbers. |
Hygiene and healthcare Covering hygiene, health, illnesses, doctors, dentists, accidents and useful words. |
Skill progression
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Autumn 1 |
Autumn 2 |
Spring 1 |
Spring 2 |
Summer 1 |
Summer 2 |
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Year 3 |
Listening- Understand a few familiar spoken words and phrases. Speaking- Say and repeat single words and short simple phrases. Reading- Can recognise and read out a few familiar words and phrases. Writing- Can write or copy simple words or symbols correctly. |
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Year 4 |
Listening- understand a range of familiar spoken phrases. Speaking- Answer simple questions and give basic information. Reading- Understand and read out familiar written phrases. Writing- Can write one or two short sentences to a model and fill in the words on a simple form. |
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Year 5 |
Listening- Understand the main points from a short spoken passage made up of familiar language in simple sentences. Speaking- Ask and answer simple questions and talk about their interests. Reading- Understand the main point and some of the detail from short written texts or passages in clear printed script. Writing- Write a few short sentences with support using expression which they have already learnt. |
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Year 6 |
Listening- Understand and respond to spoken and written language from a variety of authentic sources. Speaking- 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. Reading- Understand the main points and opinions in written texts from various contexts. Writing- Write at varying length, for different purposes and audiences, using the variety of grammatical structures that they have learnt. |
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Knowledge Organisers
The children use knowledge organisers in French lessons to support them in remembering more of the key vocabulary from each unit taught. These can be referred to by the teacher to help build on previous learning. Please see some examples of French knowledge organisers below.
Vocabulary Progression
Read the document below to find out what vocabulary your child will learn and how this will progress from Year 3 to Year 6:
French Day 2023
