French

Intent

Our intent in the teaching of French is to equip our pupils with the knowledge and cultural capital to succeed in their primary and secondary language education, and in wider life.

We aim to set a foundation of language learning through the three pillars of phonics, vocabulary and grammar, taught explicitly through carefully sequenced units of intentional language learning. These three pillars combine and interact, as pupils learn the sounds, words and rules of French, and these connect to create meaning.

Through our curricular delivery, we aim for our pupils to become confident language learners with the ability to immerse themselves in the culture and traditions of French speaking countries and regions. Through learning French, we intend to create a culture of appreciation and celebration of difference, and to set a foundation of knowledge from which pupils can learn other languages in their educational career.

Implementation

Our French curriculum is delivered by class teachers, using a Deer Park-specific curriculum in conjunction with the Language Angels teaching materials. Units from Years 3-6 are implemented in thematic, topical blocks as a practical method for organising the learned vocabulary, and the taught content focused on the three building blocks of language: phonics, grammar and vocabulary.

As learning progresses through the curriculum, the pupils are able to bring these building blocks together to produce increasingly complex language. The teaching of this knowledge content is explicit and focused, as we believe that intentional language teaching leads to greater knowledge and understanding than ‘incidental’ language teaching.

Lessons from Years 3-6 are divided into two weekly session: ‘speaking and listening’ and ‘reading and writing’. Through this spaced, distributed practice, pupils are able to rehearse key knowledge and expression consistently over time. The learning and practice contained within these lessons supports the pupils’ range, complexity, and accuracy of the three strands of language to increase over time. Pupil autonomy in expression through speaking and writing increases through the curriculum, culminating in a Year 6 residential in France to apply their language knowledge directly.

Impact

As a result of our carefully sequenced progression of French phonics, grammar and vocabulary over the course of our four-year curriculum, pupils develop a strong awareness of phonology and accurate retrieval of sounds.

This in turn leads to an increasing ability to understand and visualise the French language. Pupils establish a reliable recall of grammar knowledge, developed incrementally over time through our explicit instruction and scaffolded practice in lessons. Year 6 pupils also have the opportunity to attend a residential in France in order to solidify and practise their knowledge.

By the time they leave Deer Park, pupils are able to convey meaning with the accuracy and efficiency required to make a strong start to language learning at secondary school, and are able to recall the phonological and vocabulary knowledge necessary to build their understanding of French language over the course of their future education.