Modern Foreign Languages
Modern Foreign Languages is taught by a specialist teacher (Ms Mertz) in Key Stage 2. Currently the children are taught Spanish. Our curriculum is based on www.lightbulblanguages.co.uk and completed with different resources showing the riches of the Spanish-speaking world.
Here is our learning journey...
Year 3
Autum Term
The children start their Spanish lessons by learning Spanish phonics. This is a great link to their English learning in KS1! By Christmas, they can greet each other in Spanish, tell their name and age and ask simple questions. They also know that Spanish is spoken in a lot of countries - not only in Spain!
Spring Term
In Spring, the children learn their colours in Spanish and have lots of fun with naming different objects in the classroom in Spanish. They ask for equipment in Spanish and learn to use the language in real life! We also learn about school in Spain and compare it to our school in England. Is it better to have 10 weeks of summer holidays but having to re-do a year if the grades are just not that good?
Summer Term
The Summer Term focusses on family and pets - one of the most popular topics in Year 3. The children love talking about their wonderful pets and share their names and ages with their friends.
¿Tienes mascotas? - Tengo dos perros y un gato. Mi gato se llama Beanie.
Year 4
Autum Term
The Autum Term starts for Y4 with a link to Year 3: Colours! The children use their colours and shapes to describe flags in Spanish. This links well to their Maths knowledge and shows that languages are connected to many other subjects. The children also learn the fascinating background of the Mexican flag - ask them about it! Before Christmas, the children learn their Spanish numbers up to 31.
Spring Term
Springs starts with learning the date in Spanish. This is so important when travelling to a Spanish speaking country! We also learn to tell our birthdays and ask others about theirs. And of course, we practise "Happy birthday" in Spanish: "¡Cumpleaños feliz!" Before Easter, we talk about the weather - possibly the most English topic - but in Spanish!
Summer Term
The topic of the Summer Term is very popular in Year 4: All about food! The children learn to name different fruits and vegetables in Spanish and state their opinion on them.
¿Te gustan las zanahorias? No, prefiero comer los tomates.
This term also features the infamous singing cats. Try the song at home - it might get a tiny bit annoying after the 100th time though...
Year 5
Autum Term
The Autum Term in Year 5 is all about numbers and money. The children learn to use bigger numbers in Spanish, do Maths - again a great link to another subject - and learn about the Euro as a currency. It is always great to hear the students sharing their experience with foreign moneys!
Spring Term
In Spring, the children in Year 5 focus on themselves: They describe their personality and their physical appearance in Spanish and learn that Spanish adjectives change depending on whether the speaker is a boy or a girl. This is always great fun and leads to some unexpected discussions in the classroom. Am I a boy or a girl? Some lessons boil down to just this one question.
Summer Term
The Summer Term in Year 5 is full of cultural learning. In a project across 4 weeks, the children learn about Pablo Picasso as one of Spain's greatest artist and create a cubistic self-portrait. This sounds ambitious and the results are mind-blowing! The project finishes with students describing their art work in Spanish.
Before the summer holidays, we focus on sport and hobbies - how fitting for this time of year!
Year 6
Autum Term
In Year 6, the children are already experienced linguists and start the Autumn Term with the topic of towns and villages. Students deepen their understanding of Spanish grammar and broaden their vocabulary. The term finishes with an extended writing task, which connects to their English lessons and shows how skills can be transferred between different languages.
Spring Term
In Spring, the children continue their work about towns and design a travel guide in Spanish for anybody who wants to visit Madrid.
Summer Term
The Summer Term brings the language learning in primary school to a conclusion and prepares the children for their transition into Year 7. The students learn more about grammar and the way verbs have to change in Spanish. A highlight is the discussion whether we want to live in a world with only one language or in a world with many different languages. Their enthusiasm for languages is amazing!
“I think, we should have multiple languages, so that we can learn new things from each other every day.”
“I think, it would be better to have loads of languages as we are unique in our ways. If we take all languages away and leave only one, then people’s believes, cultures and countries would change.”
“I think languages should stay because diversity is important and everyone should decide how they want to express themselves.”
“More languages would be better as it would get boring if not and everyone would just be the same.”
“I think it would be better to have multiple languages because being bilingual helps to develop the brain and all cultures would be destroyed if we only spoke one language.”
“Being bilingual makes you special.”