St Thomas of Canterbury
Spanish
Intent:
At St Thomas of Canterbury, we want all our pupil’s to learn Spanish so they can have an early introduction of literacy in the new language as it can provide an important focus as well as support for learning. Through studying a foreign language, grammatical concepts and rules in English become clearer, it reinforces and celebrates the different cultures we come from and encourage children to be proud of being able to speak more than one language and coming from different parts of the world and very importantly. It helps pupils on attainment and preparedness for secondary school language learning to the success of the national English Baccalaureate (EBacc) ambition. The EBacc is a set of subjects at GCSE that is designed to keep pupils’ options open for further study and future careers. It is a suite of qualifications made up from English language and literature, mathematics, the sciences, geography or history, and a language (modern or ancient). It is the government’s ambition that 75% of Year 10 pupils in state-funded mainstream schools should be studying EBacc GCSE courses nationally by September 2022 (taking their examinations in 2024), rising to 90% by September 2025 (taking their examinations in 2027).
At STOC, Spanish also provides the foundation for learning further languages. It should enable pupils to study and work in other countries and it has a potential positive impact on business and the economy.
Implementation:
KS2 pupils should be taught to:
LOWER AND UPPER KS2 Years 3-6.
When learning Spanish as a second language as part of the curriculum and as part of the assessment systems, it incorporates 3 important ‘pillars’:
- Phonics (Learning the sounds)
- Vocabulary
- Grammar of the language understanding and producing these when they are combined
Learners understand language when reading and listening (receptive skills). They produce language when speaking and writing (productive skills). Speaking, listening, reading and writing are the 4 ‘modalities’ of language.
The Modern Foreign Language (MFL) curriculum is designed to allow progress in one language, in this case Spanish, and the intent is:
IN LOWER KS2 YEAR 3: Listen attentively to spoken language and show understanding by joining in and responding
+ understand how phonics work in Spanish
+ learn what cognates are
+ Explore the patterns and sounds of language via songs and rhymes + link spellings, sounds, and meaning of words
+ Read carefully and show understanding of words learnt
+ copy new words accurately, learn them and be able to recognise them in short readings
+ Appreciate stories, songs, poems, and rhymes in the language
IN LOWER KS2 YEAR 4 Consolidate skills from Year 3
+ Engage in conversation, ask and answer questions
+ Speak in sentences, using familiar vocabulary, phrases and basic language structures
+ Read carefully and show understanding of words, phrases and simple writing.
+ Express opinions, respond to those of others
+ Describe people, places, things and actions orally and in writing.
IN UPPER KS2 YEAR 5 Seek clarification and help and consolidate skills form Y3 and 4.
+Broaden your vocabulary and ability to understand new words that are introduced into familiar written material
+ Understand basic grammar- including feminine & masculine, conjugation of high frequency verbs, key features and patterns of the language.
+ Read carefully and show understanding of words, phrases and simple writing.
+ Develop accurate pronunciation and intonation so that others understand when you are reading aloud or using familiar words and phrases
+ Write phrases from memory and adapt theses to create new sentences to express ideas clearly
+ Present ideas and information orally to teacher / rest of class
+ Broaden your vocabulary by revising and practising the language
IN UPPER KS2 YEAR6: Recognise nature of words (nouns, verbs, adjectives, prepositions, connective words, etc.) Consolidate skills form Y3, 4 and 5.
+ Develop accurate pronunciation and intonation so that others understand when you are reading aloud or using familiar words and phrases
+ Read carefully and show understanding of words, phrases and simple writing.
+ Write phrases from memory and adapt theses to create new sentences to express ideas clearly+ To build own sentences and understand how they differ or are similar to English + Present ideas and information orally to a range of audiences
+ Broaden your vocabulary by using dictionary / online dictionary
Please find below the curriculum for each year group:-
Year 3
Year 4
Year 5
Year 6
Special Occasions
Impact:
The impact of teaching Primary Modern Languages is big:
- It helps pupils on attainment and preparedness for secondary school language learning
- Listen attentively to spoken language and show understanding by joining in and responding
- Engage in conversations, ask and answer questions, express opinions and respond to those of others, and seek clarification and help
- Read carefully and show understanding of words, phrases and simple writing
- 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, expressing their ideas clearly
- Describe people, places, things and actions in speech and in writing
By embedding other subjects such as Maths, Geography, History, children use what they learn in one language to reinforce what they've learned in another.
MFL learning also reinforces and celebrates the different cultures we come from and encourage children to be proud of being able to speak more than one language and coming from different parts of the world.
Teaching MFL languages with a positive attitude has been shown to be a crucial factor in determining children's success in foreign language learning.