"To learn a language is to have one more window from which to look at the world"

Ancient Chinese Proverb

Intent

We want our learners to shine as French communicators and global citizens.

Being able to communicate in multiple languages truly broadens our horizons and opens up endless possibilities. At Cookham Rise, we believe that learning a modern foreign language should be exciting and enjoyable, which children wish to continue throughout secondary school and beyond.  It is more than simply seeking to be multilingual; we want our learners to be tolerant global citizens.  We consider language learning to be a life-long skill, fostering children's awareness of, and positive attitudes towards, other countries and cultures. 

Learners will be able to understand, read, write and speak simple French sentences.  Their learning of French will give them essential skills for learning other languages at secondary school, broadening their opportunities and understanding of other cultures.  They will develop an understanding and respect for France as a nation, learning about their customs and traditions. 

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

Implementation

French is taught as a stand-alone subject, with a 45 minute lesson timetabled per week in Key Stage 2.  We follow the Kapow scheme of work which aids the development of accurate pronunciation through 'Mouth Mechanics'.  Children are also exposed to a range of French songs, stories and nursery rhymes and opportunities to celebrate French culture.

Learners are exposed to a range of vocabulary and encouraged to spot patterns and rules relating to grammatical structures, comparing these with English.  This, along with the use of English/French dictionaries and translation software, provide children with the skills to structure their own sentences as they move up through the school.  They learn to use the French spell-check and spoken word features on their iPads to enable them to check and edit their work.

Children are given the opportunity to apply their developing language skills through completion of a range of creative mini-projects, which allow children to independently utilise their knowledge of French.

Impact

Children leave Cookham Rise with a knowledge of basic French and excited to continue their language learning journey at secondary school and beyond.  They are able to celebrate their progress through the completion of their mini-projects in Year 6.