Foreign Languages

Subject Leader - Vicky Zárate

"French is taught by a teacher with specialist language skills and the sound foundation given to pupils was acknowledged by the secondary school to which most transfer." (Ofsted, May 2016)

Foreign Languages at Icknield

It is well known that exposing children to other languages at an early age helps their cognative development.

At Icknield we believe that by learning a foreign language from Year 3, children can also understand English grammar and its vocabulary more deeply, while at the same time being exposed to a new culture.

Our children are very excited about learning Spanish in Years 3 and 4 and French in Years 5 and 6 through games, songs and mini conversations.

French or Spanish are taught once a week. 

It is important for the children to learn both French and Spanish as they may be expected to learn either in Year 7 at the local secondary school, and we want to make sure that they start with every advantage.

The following outlines the main objectives taught in each year group for Foreign Languages:

Pupils should be taught to:

• listen attentively to spoken language and show understanding by joining in and responding
• explore the patterns and sounds of language through songs and rhymes and link the spelling, sound and meaning of words
• engage in conversations; ask and answer questions; express opinions and respond to those of others; seek clarification and help
• speak in sentences, using familiar vocabulary, phrases and basic language structures
• develop accurate pronunciation and intonation so that others understand when they are reading aloud or using familiar words and phrases
• present ideas and information orally to a range of audiences
• read carefully and show understanding of words, phrases and simple writing
• appreciate stories, songs, poems and rhymes in the language
• broaden their vocabulary and develop their ability to understand new words that are introduced into familiar written material, including through using a dictionary
• write phrases from memory, and adapt these to create new sentences, to express ideas clearly
• describe people, places, things and actions orally and in writing​
• understand basic grammar appropriate to the language being studied, including (where relevant): feminine, masculine and neuter forms and the conjugation of high-frequency verbs; key features and patterns of the language; how to apply these, for instance, to build sentences; and how these differ from or are similar to English.

YouTube has a large selection of video clips in both Spanish and French. The majority of these are songs and rhymes in the target language, which are perfect for practising the language which your child has been learning in class. There are also video clips of people reading familiar stories in French or Spanish which children can enjoy listening to and following along with. Check with your class teacher which topics your child is presently learning so that you can support them more effectively.